Boyd and Kayser named 2025 Gerard J. Mangone Young Scholars

Marcaline Boyd and Laure Kayser are assistant professors in very different fields of scholarship - classics and materials science, chemistry and biochemistry, respectively - but they share an insatiable curiosity that drives them to challenge accepted norms.

Because of their outstanding work, Boyd and Kayser are the University of Delaware's 2025 Gerard J. Mangone Young Scholars, a recognition by the Francis Alison Society of their status as promising early-career faculty and accomplished researchers.

"It was such a surprise to be named a Mangone Scholar, and it remains a significant honor," Boyd said.

Kayser said being named a Mangone Scholar will be a tool that reaffirms the work of her students, encouraging them to think bigger.

Marcaline Boyd

As a middle schooler visiting Spain, Boyd remembers her mother pointing out an ancient bridge that piqued her interest in history. It remains an indelible memory because of how the bridge dominated the landscape and the importance it had to the people who lived there.

As a graduate student at Florida State University, she became intrigued by the discourse around democratic empires and how tyranny was a part of the rhetoric.

"What I found along the way is how differently tyranny is presented from what it actually was," she said. "We're taught that it is a step on the way to democracy, but in truth, there are many different patterns of tyranny that complicate the picture."

Boyd, now in her 10th year at UD, says that she remains curious about history, specifically tyranny.

"There is still so much to be found and learned from the ancient world," Boyd said. "My curiosity also grows from the thought-provoking questions asked by my students, because their fresh eyes and perspectives tend to chip away at presumptions."

Student perspectives also influence Boyd's teaching.

"As an instructor, I look forward to hearing feedback from students," she said. "I use it as a guide to alter content for the next semester so that the course evolves in the best direction for everyone."

Boyd's teaching and research focus on ancient Greek and Roman studies - their languages and their social, cultural and political history - with an emphasis on Greek historiography, tyranny and the dynamics of power.

"They're not classics because they are the best; they are classics because of the collective body of culture, literature, perspectives and disciplines that we trace our intellectual heritage back to that still show up today," she said. "They give us answers that we don't have to accept. It gives students the chance to put themselves in vastly different and familiar situations."

Currently, Boyd is working on a project that will change the understanding of inscriptions detailing the political alliance between Athens and Sicilian tyrants. She is also on an international team tasked with producing a multivolume publication of all the acropolis.

Boyd believes that being recognized as a Mangone Scholar affirms and challenges her teaching and research.

"I feel like I'm finding my stride," she said. "I've seen how my work is evolving as I try to successfully marry, in teaching and research, themes from the ancient world and look at them from different perspectives, where it's how power is gained or the impacts made by the deficit of power within subordinated groups."

Beyond the course content, Boyd hopes that students become better humans as a result of her teaching.

"In Greek tragedy, we have to confront why bad things happen or how to navigate plagues," she said. "So in the end, I want students to be able to use those experiences, discussions and strategies to ethically think through and engage with the world."

Boyd is passionate about the mentoring aspect of her role at UD, as she recalls having a mentor who guided her as a first-generation college student and whom she still leans on when necessary. Now, she finds fulfillment in being a mentor.

"I created a mentorship roundtable for majors, minors and prospective students in our department," she said. "I gathered alumni who are working in an array of fields, because it is important to share non-linear experiences."

Laure Kayser

Kayser remembers being the kid who wondered and asked scientific questions because of her insatiable interest in how things work. Now, as a trained synthetic chemist, she continues to ask questions as she works to find solutions to complex challenges.

"I enjoy listening to others share scientific problems, because it gives me the opportunity to ask fundamental questions and problem solve," she said. "It's normal for me to text ideas to my students about how we can use our research to answer questions that others seem to find difficult to solve."

Kayser's research uses polymers (plastics) with biological materials, designing materials that integrate biology and electronics. (Think pacemakers and continuous glucose monitors.)

Her post-doctoral mentor introduced her to this course of study. Now Kayser is introducing it to her students in the Kayser Lab, which specializes in designing, synthesizing and characterizing new plastics and polymers that can conduct electricity while safely interfacing with living systems.

By working at the intersection of chemistry, polymer science and materials engineering, her lab is able to develop innovative design and synthesis approaches for creating new types of plastic materials.

She is currently mentoring 13 graduate students, which she says is the most rewarding and sometimes difficult part of her role because she doesn't want to mess it up.

Kayser said a set of guiding principles help her balance how to challenge and nurture students.

"Our lab's philosophy is to make sure we are producing the best science in our area of research, without losing sight of who we are and what we want to do in the future," she said.

Kayser said what sets her group apart from others in the field of organic bioelectronics is a strong foundation in organic chemistry and their ability to make any material they want instead of only being limited to what's currently available.

"Our chemistry is modern chemistry, it is not necessarily typically used in the field, and we apply it to materials science," she said. "Because of our background in chemistry and synthesis, we can make any material, characterize it, establish structure-property relationships and tailor it so the material can be interfaced with biology."

Kayser is currently working with her group to create a medical device to benefit those diagnosed with osteoarthritis.

Being named a Mangone Scholar reaffirms that her research and teaching are moving in the right direction, Kayser said.

Outside of the lab, Kayser teaches materials kinetics, a fundamental course primarily taken by engineering majors. Her goal is for students to not only grasp the concepts that she's teaching, but also become comfortable with working as a team and think for themselves.

"Throughout the semester, we have 'why does it matter' check points," she said. "The purpose of these check points is to get them to identify where this foundational learning can be applied in real life."

About Gerard J. Mangone

The Mangone Young Scholars Award is named in honor of the late Gerard J. Mangone, a pioneering international legal scholar who joined the UD faculty in 1972 and spent nearly the next 40 years teaching and advising scores of UD students. He also served numerous governmental and non-profit organizations, consulting for the White House, the State Department, the United Nations, Japan, the Ford Foundation and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He was the first senior fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C., and served as a visiting professor and lecturer around the world. Mangone's contributions were instrumental to the success of UD's marine policy program. He founded the Center for the Study of Marine Policy, the first research center at an American university to study the legal, political and economic issues facing the ocean and coast. The center was the forerunner of the Gerard J. Mangone Climate Change Science and Policy Hub. He received UD's highest faculty honor - the Francis Alison Award - in 1983 and was an active member of the Francis Alison Society until his death in July 2011.