Margaret Faul to Give 2026 Arthur Fry Lecture

Margaret Faul, vice president of drug substance technologies and site lead at Amgen Massachusetts, will give the 2026 Arthur Fry Lecture at 3 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 28, in CHEM 144. There will be a reception following the seminar at 4 p.m. in CHEM 105.

The title of Faul's lecture is "Transforming molecules into medicines: Innovative case studies in process development at Amgen."

The event is hosted by the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry and is free and open to the public.

Faul is a leader in drug development and an internationally recognized expert in green chemistry. Through decades of pioneering work, she has advanced both the technical and ethical dimensions of pharmaceutical research—translating complex science into life-changing therapies while championing sustainability across the biotechnology industry.

Originally from Ireland, Faul relocated to the United States in 1987 to pursue doctoral studies in synthetic organic chemistry. She began her professional career at Eli Lilly and Company in 1993, where she developed deep expertise in process development, manufacturing and commercialization. In 2003, she joined Amgen Inc., where she has since advanced through roles of increasing leadership and responsibility.

Currently vice president of drug substance technologies and site lead for Amgen Massachusetts, Faul plays a central role in the development and large-scale production of biopharmaceuticals to treat serious illnesses including cancer, asthma and cardiovascular disease. Beyond her technical contributions, she has been instrumental in embedding sustainability into Amgen's culture. Under her leadership, the company adopted green chemistry practices that significantly reduced environmental impact and improved efficiency, helping Amgen rise to 34th place in the 2015 Global Green Rankings and earn inclusion in the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index. In 2017, the Environmental Protection Agency recognized these efforts with a Green Chemistry Challenge Award for advances in producing etelcalcetide, a treatment for hyperparathyroidism in dialysis patients.

Faul is a prolific contributor to the scientific community, with more than 100 peer-reviewed publications. She has held leadership roles in organizations such as the International Consortium for Innovation and Quality and, in 2025, became editor-in-chief of Organic Process Research & Development. Her achievements have earned her election to the National Academy of Engineering and designation as a Fellow of the American Chemical Society. In 2019, an award was established in her name to recognize early-career women in chemical research.

Faul holds bachelor's and master's degrees in organic chemistry from University College Dublin and a doctorate in synthetic organic chemistry from Harvard University.

About the Arthur Fry Lecture Series: Arthur (Art) Fry joined the department in 1951 and played a major role in the establishment of the department's doctoral program. For the next 40 years, he continued to provide leadership, serving two terms as department chair in the 1950s and 1960s.

He was educated in his home state of Montana, where he received a bachelor's degree from Montana State University. After serving in the Navy during WWII, he worked for two years at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. He then received his doctorate in chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley, working with Nobel Laureate Melvin Calvin.

Fry earned worldwide recognition as the "father of heavy atom isotope effects in elucidating the mechanisms of organic reactions" for his pioneering research in the use of C-13, C-14, N-15, Cl-37 and O-18 to study the mechanisms of ketone rearrangements and numerous other organic reactions. In 1985, he was awarded the American Chemical Society Southwest Region Chemist Award.

The Arthur Fry Lecture Series began in 1997 through a generous donation from alumni Holly Childs, B.S. 62, and the late Ves Childs, M.S. '60, Ph.D. '63, to honor Fry's accomplishments and years of unselfish devotion to the department.

Ves Childs was a native Arkansan who obtained an undergraduate degree from Southern Arkansas University and a doctorate degree in chemistry from the U of A.

Holly Childs holds undergraduate degrees in both mathematics and chemistry from the U of A and a graduate degree in chemical engineering from the University of Tulsa. Both Ves and Holly Childs retired from research positions at the 3M Corporation.