Welcome Assistant Professor James Bour

The Department of Chemistry welcomes James Bour, Ph.D., as an assistant professor.

Bour is a native Michigander who completed his bachelor of science at Hope College in 2013 and received his Ph.D. at the University of Michigan as a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow working with Professor Melanie Sanford. Bour's thesis work concentrated on the elementary reactivity and catalytic applications of highly oxidized late transition metal organometallics.

Following graduation in 2018, Bour joined the Massachusetts Institute of Technology as an Arnold O. Beckman Postdoctoral Fellow. While at MIT, he worked in the lab of Professor Mircea Dincă on the synthesis of novel phosphine-containing metal-organic frameworks and effects of nanoconfinement on molecular catalysts.

Bour's research program at Wayne State draws inspiration from his graduate work and postdoctoral research. His group will investigate the synthesis of new porous organic materials and the synthetic applications of organometallics confined in such materials.

Members of his lab will be trained in materials and organometallic synthesis as well as more traditional organic and inorganic chemistry.

Outside of the lab, Bour enjoys camping in Michigan's state parks with his wife, Cassondra. They look forward to exploring Michigan's urban settings, starting with Detroit's unique food and art scene.