Whitley County grad earns PhD in chemical engineering

Congratulations to Whitley County High School Alum Kendall (Huddleston) Murphy as she has defended her PhD Dissertation titled “The Development of Polymer Constructs for Adipose Tissue Engineering Applications.”

Kendall says it is an honor to highlight her achievements as a graduate of Whitley County High School (Class of 2011). “I know how easy it is for students to get in their minds that, because they are from a small county in Appalachia, they don’t have the capabilities to achieve certain goals they may have,” Murphy said. “I hope that my academic career is a testament to those students that you can achieve any dream with hard work and a strong support system.”

“I truly believe that my time in the Whitley County School District laid the foundation for my academic success, and I am grateful to the educators and administrators in this district who have all played an enormous role in my life and continue to be a source of support and encouragement,” Murphy added.

Listed here are highlights of Murphy’s academic career:

• Proud graduate of Whitley County High School, class of 2011
• Graduated from the University of Kentucky in May 2015 with a Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Chemical Engineering and a certificate in Biopharmaceutical Engineering
• Began her PhD at the University of South Carolina in August 2015
• On April 1st, defended her PhD dissertation titled “The Development of Polymer Constructs for Adipose Tissue Engineering Applications” detailing her research on drug delivery devices for the treatment of metabolic diseases.
• Earned her Doctorate of Philosophy in chemical engineering.

Murphy has accepted an offer as a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Cincinnati School of Medicine where, in collaboration with Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, she will be working to develop novel biomaterials for fetal spina bifida repair.