Michelle Richards-Babb, Ph.D.

About

Dr. Richards-Babb earned an ACS-certified B.S. in Chemistry from Ursinus College (1986) and a Ph.D. in Chemistry from Lehigh University (1993). She arrived at West Virginia University as a Postdoctoral Fellow (1993-1994) for Dr. Lane Wilson and Dr. Nar Dalal. She transitioned to teaching large enrollment chemistry courses and then into a faculty position with research in chemical education, particularly the freshmen chemistry learning experience, undergraduate research and STEM outreach. She was the recipient of a 2013/2014 Eberly College Outstanding Teacher Award.

NOTE:  WVU students are encouraged to apply to REU Sites at other institutions or to the WVU-based SURE Site. Another resource to search REU Sites by category (e.g. FR, SO, International, Community College, or Undocumented Students) is  REU Finder.

Research Interests

Chemical education; introductory/first- and second-year chemistry learning; undergraduate research and student engagement; STEM education pathways and student success; STEM outreach and community engagement 

Teaching Fields

Chemistry education

Courses Offered

• CHEM 110 - Preparatory Chemistry
• CHEM 115 & CHEM 116 - Fundamentals of Chemistry I and II
• CHEM 191 - First-Year Seminar for Chemistry Majors
• CHEM 233 - Organic Chemistry I
• CHEM 312 - Environmental Chemistry
• CHEM 497 - Undergraduate Research
• CHEM 651 - Pedagogy for College Chemistry

Recent Publications

Richards-Babb, M., Gordon, C., Mersing, D., Perrone, T., Ratcliff, B. (2025) Promotion of student success and positive chemistry course perception through frequent metacognitive reporting. Journal of Chemical Education, 102 (1), 102-111, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jchemed.4c00578.

Landis, T., Paden, M., Richards-Babb, M. (2025) Supplementing STEM career mentoring through biweekly opportunity emails. West Virginia Academy of Science, 97 (3), 33-39, DOI: https://doi.org/10.55632/pwvas.v97i3.1209.

Hernandez, P.R., Ferguson, C.F., Pedersen, R., Richards-Babb, M., Quedado, K, Shook, N.J. (2021) Research apprenticeship training promotes faculty-student psychological similarity and high-quality mentoring: a longitudinal quasi-experiment. Mentoring & Tutoring: Partnership in Learning, 31 (1), 163-183, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13611267.2023.2164973.

Hanna, J., Carreon, H., Fultz, M., Harvey, E., Howley, C., Norton, M., Richards-Babb, M., Riley, S., Sine, A., Heatherly, S. (2021) Impact of short-duration research experiences on STEM self-efficacy among early-stage, rural, first-generation college students. Scholarship and Practice of Undergraduate Research, 4 (4), 42-49.

Gullion, R. G., Gullion, T., Richards-Babb, M. (2019) Addressing misconceptions related to mass-matter conservation and bond energetics with a modified Gauss Accelerator. Journal of Chemical Education, 96 (4), 734-738.

Simpson, T., Chiu, Y.-C., Richards-Babb, M., Blythe, J. M., Ku, K.-M. (2019) Demonstration of allelopathy of horseradish root extract on lettuce seed. Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education, 47 (3), 333-340.

Hernandez, P. R., Hopkins, P. D., Masters, K., Holland, L., Mei, B., Richards-Babb, M., Quedado, K. & Shook, N.J. (2018) Student integration into STEM careers and culture: A longitudinal examination of summer faculty mentors and project ownership. CBE-Life Science Education, 17 (3), 1-14.

Popp, B.V. & Richards-Babb, M. The Chemistry REU Program at West Virginia University. In Best Practices for Chemistry REU Programs; Griep, M.A., Watkins, L.M., Eds.; ACS Symposium Series 1295; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 2018, pp 86-106.

Richards-Babb, M., Curtis, R., Ratcliff, B., Roy, A., & Mikalik, T. (2018) General chemistry student attitudes and success with use of online homework, traditional-responsive versus adaptive-responsive. Journal of Chemical Education, 95 (5), 691-699. DOI: 10.1021/acs.jchemed.7b00829

Chiu, Y.-C., Jenks, M., Richards-Babb, M., Ratcliff, B.B., Juvik, J.A., Ku, K.-M. (2017) Demonstrating the effect of surfactant on water retention of waxy leaf surfaces. Journal of Chemical Education, 94, 230-234, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jchemed.6b00546. (Highlighted on the cover page of the Feb. 14, 2017 of JCE.)

Richards-Babb, M., Curtis, R., Georgieva, Z., & Penn, J.H. (2015) Student perceptions of online homework use for formative assessment of learning in organic chemistry.  Journal of Chemical Education, 92, 1813-1819.

Richards-Babb, M., Curtis, R., Smith, V., & Xu, M. (2014) Problem solving videos for general chemistry review: Students’ perceptions and use patterns.  Journal of Chemical Education, 91, 1796-1803.

Richards-Babb, M., Penn, J.H., & Withers, M. (2014) Results of a practicum offering teaching-focused graduate student professional development.  Journal of Chemical Education, 91, 1867-1873.

Richards-Babb, M. & Jackson, J.K. (2011) Gendered responses to online homework use in general chemistry.  Chemistry Education Research and Practice, 12, 409-419.

Richards-Babb, M., Drelick, J., Henry, Z., & Robertson-Honecker, J. (2011) Online homework, help or hindrance: What students think and how they perform.  Journal of College Science Teaching, 40 (4), 70-82.

Richards-Babb, M., Carroll, R.L., & Sweeney, R.J. (2010) Ferrofluid synthesis: Concurrently teaching laboratory techniques and enhancing interest in nanoscience.  The Chemical Educator, 15, 1-6.

Vannatta, M., Richards-Babb, M., & Sweeney, R.J. (2010) Oxalate synthesis and pyrolysis: A colorful introduction to stoichiometry.  Journal of Chemical Education, 87 (11), 1225-1229.

Vannatta, M., Richards-Babb, M., & Sweeney, R.J. (2010) Thermochemistry to the rescue: A novel calorimetry experiment for general chemistry.  Journal of Chemical Education, 87 (11), 1222-1224.

Richards-Babb, M., Bishoff, J., Carver, J.S., Fisher, K., & Robertson-Honecker. J. (2010) Keeping it safe: Chemical safety in the high school laboratory.  Journal of Chemical Health and Safety, 17 (1), 6-14.