Ryan Sweeder is a chemist in Lyman Briggs College at Michigan State University specializing in chemistry education research. He studies methods for increasing the learning in undergraduate general chemistry classes using out-of-class activities. He also runs the SPRING Scholars program, a program that helps students explore science career options and develop a professional network. Within his general chemistry classes, he brings his research to bear by providing students with lots of opportunities to engage with course content, apply it to real world scenarios, and gain frequent feedback on their level of understanding. Through these processes he shares his passion about understanding how molecular level interactions can be used to explain our everyday observations of materials, their properties, and how they interact.