Teaching

Teaching

My responsibilities focus primary on teaching organic chemistry.

  • CH 2503 - Elementary Organic Chemistry 
  • CH 4513 - Organic Chemistry 1
  • CH 4523 - Organic Chemistry 2 
  • CH 4554 - Integrated Organic Chemistry 1 
  • CH 4564 - Integrated Organic Chemistry 2 

Occasionally, I will teach special topics classes on instrumentation such as CH 4331 (Practical Mass Spectrometry). 

In the Spring of 2025, I am slated to teach:

  • Organic Chemistry 2 - CH 4523-01 - MWF 9-9:50 AM
  • Organic Chemistry 2 - CH 4523-03 - TR 11-12:15 PM
  • Organic Chemistry 2 - CH 4523-05 - MWF 10-10:50 AM (Small Class)

I offer "observer" Canvas courses for students who are not currently enrolled in my class. In these classes, I have my lecture notes, lecture videos, practice problems, study guides and more. These can also be great help for students studying for the MCAT.

I currently have "observer" Canvas courses for:

  • Elementary Organic Chemistry (CH 2503)
  • Organic Chemistry 1 (CH 4513)
  • Organic Chemistry 2 (CH 4523)

To enroll, send me an email with your name, NetID, and the name of the course you want to be in.

Email: sstokes@chemistry.msstate.edu 

In May 2018, I took on the responsibility of authoring the coursebook for organic chemistry 1, which has since become an integral resource across all organic chemistry 1 sections. The following year, I successfully completed the coursebook for organic chemistry 2, which continues to be widely used by the Department of Chemistry. To ensure their relevance, I consistently update both workbooks with fresh content, including comprehensive reaction summaries for each chapter, chapter-by-chapter study guides, and practice exams.

Students: These are a valuable resource that you can utilize to help navigate CH 4513 and CH 4523.

I have revised multiple versions of the CH 2501 (Elementary Organic Chemistry Lab), CH 4511 (Organic Chemistry I Lab), and CH 4521 (Organic Chemistry II Lab) lab manuals. These revisions included: the creation of new figures and tables so the lab manual appear more consistent, corrections of various mistakes, and an increased clarity of the experimental steps, with more step-by-step instructions.

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Exam Walkthrough
Walkthrough videos of old and current exams
Videos of Class Lectures
Videos of my class lectures
Worked problem videos
Worked problem videos from the textbook
Access to my Old Exams
Access to my old exams
My Lecture Slides
Module containing my lecture slides
Practice quiz module
Module containing practice quizzes for each chapter
Example Practice Quiz problem
Example problem from the Practice Quiz module
Test Your Might Module
Feeling brave? Try my Test Your Might questions module to test your mastery of the chapter material.
Example Test Your Might Problem
Example problem from the Test You Might module
Test your might problem explainations
Explanations of the Test Your Might problems
Extra module
My Extra module contains cheat sheets, extra problems, and additional helpful materials
Example extra problems
Extra problems from the extra module
Click to proceed
Circulating bath
Hooking up condensers to a circulating bath is better than to a sink (prevents wasting water and huge water leaks if a waterline comes off)
Hose clamp water lines
Add hose clamps to waterlines to prevent leaks
Regulator diagram
Know your gas regulator to prevent damaging equipment or hurting yourself.
Bad label
Know when to dispose of old chemicals or relabel bottles if the label is coming off.
Organic acids
Segregate chemicals properly (mineral acids, organic acids, flammables, oxidizers, etc.)
Grease
Properly grease, clamp, and support all Schlenk line setups
Door signage
Make sure your lab space has the proper door signage (firefighters will thank you)
Broken glass box
Only throw broken glass in a broken glass box (no paper or plastic). It is not a trash can.
Clean balance
Always keep balance areas clean
Tagged gas cylinders
All gas cylinders should be tagged, capped, and chained when not in use.
Gas cylinders on elevators
When transporting a gas cylinder on an elevator, never ride with the cylinder and make sure there is proper signage on it.
Strapped gas cylinders
In the lab space, make sure cylinders are secured with a strap, chain, or floor clamp to prevent accidents.
Coursebooks for CH 4513 and CH 4523
Coursebooks for CH 4513 and CH 4523
Lab Manuals
Lab manuals for CH 2501, CH 4511, and CH 4521
My first cowbell
My first cowbell! A gift from my Spring 2023 CH 4564 class. Thank you.
Maroon Academy Badges
Maroon Academy Teaching Microcredentials