Candidate Bios

Luke Roling is an Associate Professor in the Department of Chemical & Biological Engineering at Iowa State University. Luke’s research group uses first-principles computations to understand reaction mechanisms and design catalysts, with applications in environmental catalysis and biomass transformation. Luke has served as webinar co-organizer, director, and secretary for the GPCS, and chaired the 2025 GPCS Symposium held at ISU. His primary goal as President will be to continue to grow the society’s membership and advance its mission of facilitating an environment of collaboration and fellowship as it supports the advancement of catalysis science.

Samir Castilla is an Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering at Kansas State University, researching heterogeneous catalysis, biomass upgrading, and sunlight-driven photocatalysis for water treatment and waste-to value pathways. As Academic Program Coordinator for the 2026 GPCS Symposium, he strengthened his commitment to the GPCS community. As a GPCS Director, he would support engaging scientific meetings and invited lectures, expand student participation, and encourage collaborations across disciplines and institutions. He would also promote emerging catalysis areas, including photocatalysis, plasma-driven processes, and environmental applications, to advance GPCS’s mission of catalysis research, education, and fellowship.

Graham Lief is a Senior Research Chemist with Chevron Phillips Chemical, where he develops catalyst and process technologies for polyolefins. He previously worked at Boulder Scientific Company and conducted postdoctoral research at the University of Chicago. He earned a B.A. from the University of Minnesota and a Ph.D. from the University of North Dakota and is a co-inventor on over 20 patents. Through three years of service as a GPCS webinar coordinator and his (future) role as a volunteer organizer for the 2027 symposium, he has enjoyed supporting the society and would welcome the opportunity to contribute further as a Director.

Pere Miró is an Associate Professor of Chemistry at the University of Iowa. He received his PhD from Universitat Rovira i Virgili/ICIQ in Spain and following postdoctoral work, served on the faculty at the University of South Dakota before joining Iowa in 2024. His research group specializes in computational homogeneous catalysis, molecular metal oxides, coordination chemistry, and actinide clusters. Recently, his lab applied DFT and multireference methods to vanadium alkoxide clusters, showing how central oxygen displacement stabilizes switchable electromers to explain observed reactivity.

Ricardo Prada Silvy is a CTO at CHASM Advanced Materials and an affiliate lecturer at the University of Oklahoma. He holds a PhD in Catalysis and Materials Science from Université catholique de Louvain, Belgium, and a degree in Chemistry -Chemical Engineering from Universidad Central de Venezuela. His 40-plus-year career spans catalyst development and commercial scale-up in hydroprocessing, aromatic hydrogenation, Fischer–Tropsch synthesis, propane ammoxidation, carbon nanotube synthesis and hybrid materials, and reactor design-engineering, including multiple patents, commercial products and peer-reviewed publications. As Director, he would strengthen university–industry collaboration, support early-career researchers, and contribute industrial expertise to the Society.

Dr. White serves as Professor and BP endowed chair of Chemical Engineering at Oklahoma State University. He obtained his PhD at Texas A&M university, working in Bell Labs and Exxon prior to joining academia. He began his academic career at NC State and after receiving tenure relocated to OSU where he has served on the faculty of both the chemistry and chemical engineering programs. Dr. White was the recipient of the 2025 GPCS award, recognizing his many contributions to catalysis in the GPCS region.

Yizhi Xiang is an Associate Professor in the Department of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering at the University of Missouri. He obtained a Ph.D. degree from Zhejiang University of Technology and completed postdoctoral training at the Université Libre de Bruxelles and Washington State University. His research advances thermal, Joule heating, and plasma-driven catalysis for sustainable energy and chemical conversions. He actively contributes to the broader catalysis community through conference participation and student mentoring. As a GPCS Director, he seeks to help expand member engagement, support professional development for students