Topic: Forensics/Crime Scene Investigation
April Hill
April Hill, Ph.D., is a professor and program director of Criminalistics in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Metropolitan State University of Denver. She has conducted research on water quality analysis, forensic chemical analysis, archaeochemistry and science education for the visually impaired.
During her graduate research, Hill completed 12 flights aboard NASA’s microgravity aircraft, affectionately known as the “Vomit Comet.” She then completed a post doctorate in education and outreach at Penn State University’s Center for Nanoscale Science, where Hill developed a passion for creating hands-on science experiences for the blind. Her work in this area has been published in the Journal of Chemical Education and was awarded a ChemLuminary Award from the American Chemical Society.
As a dedicated proponent of increasing minority participation in STEM fields, Hill serves on the steering committee for MSU Denver’s CO-WY AMP Program and as the academic advisor for the Women in Science student organization. Her current research efforts include projects in archaeochemistry, chemical education for students with visual impairments and forensic chemistry. She has collaborated with the Denver Museum of Nature & Science on several projects, including analyzing residues in ancient Mayan beer vessels to recreate an authentic Mayan beer and performing a demonstration of the Marsh Test for arsenic which was featured in the recent Poisons exhibit.
Hill received her doctorate in analytical chemistry and a graduate certificate of forensic science from Iowa State University in 2007. She completed her bachelor’s in chemistry and became ACS certified from Central College in Iowa in 2002.
William Gaines
William Gaines, M.S., is a lecturer in the Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology at Metropolitan State University of Denver.
Gaines has worked as a patrol officer, a field investigator and a criminal justice instructor. He has received extensive training in the areas of criminal investigation, narcotic identification, DUI prosecutions, advanced homicide investigation, active shooter response and mobile field force. His research interests include racial profiling, biased policing, immigration control and destructiveness of low self-control.
Gaines received a master of science in public administration from Florida International University in 2016; and a master’s and bachelor’s in criminology and criminal justice from Florida State University in 2012 and 2010. He is currently completing his doctorate in criminal justice and criminology from Nova Southeastern University.
Andrew Bonham
Andrew Bonham, Ph.D., is a professor and chair of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Metropolitan State University of Denver. He is a research biochemist with a focus on development of novel biosensors for detection and quantification of proteins and small molecules.
Bonham has been teaching at MSU Denver since 2011 and became chair of the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department in 2016. While pursuing his doctorate, Bonham worked as a post-doctoral fellow and graduate research associate at University of California in Santa Barbara, and as an undergraduate researcher at University of Colorado in Boulder while pursuing his bachelor’s degree. Bonham has received several teaching awards and a Tri Counties Blood Bank Santa Barbara Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship from the Santa Barbara Foundation in 2010. His professional memberships include Association of American Colleges and Universities, American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Society for Biological Engineering, and American Chemical Society.
As a biochemist by trade, Bonham conducts research on transcription factor interactions, biosensors development for early cancer and disease diagnosis, novel spectroscopic investigations of gene regulation and protein-binding events. He has published several articles on his research and co-authored the Biochemistry Laboratory Manual CHE 4350 for the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. Bonham also runs the Bonham Research Lab at MSU Denver.
He received a doctorate in biochemistry and molecular biology from University of California, Santa Barbara in 2010 and a bachelor’s in chemistry and biochemistry from University of Colorado, Boulder in 2004.
Tom Bellinger
Thomas R. Bellinger, Ph.D., is an adjunct professor in the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at Metropolitan State University of Denver.