Dr. James Tour
“Propelling Your Career as a Christian Professional”
Dr. James Tour is a synthetic organic chemist. He is the T. T. and W. F. Chao Professor of Chemistry, Professor of Computer Science, and Professor of Materials Science and NanoEngineering at the Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology at Rice University
He has been honored with many awards – here are just a few:
- Named among “The 50 Most Influential Scientists in the World Today” by TheBestSchools.org in 2014
- Listed in “The World’s Most Influential Scientific Minds” by Thomson Reuters ScienceWatch.com in 2014
- Named “Scientist of the Year” by R&D Magazine, 2013
- Awarded the George R. Brown Award for Superior Teaching, 2012, Rice University
- Ranked as one of the Top 10 Chemists in the world over the past decade
James has developed several highly acclaimed packages for elementary and middle school education. His SciRave program has risen to be the #1 most widely adopted program in Texas to complement science instruction. It is currently used by over 450 school districts and 40,000 teachers with over 1 million student downloads.
Lee Strobel says “We need more people with Dr. Tour’s sincere devotion to Christ, his passion to help people, and his sharp scientific mind to be an influence for Christ.”
He received his Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry from Syracuse University, a Ph.D. in synthetic organic and organometallic chemistry from Purdue University, and his postdoctoral training in synthetic organic chemistry at the University of Wisconsin and Stanford University.
James has been married to Shireen for 37 years after meeting at church in college. They have four children and two grandchildren. They attend West University Baptist Church, close to the Rice University campus which is strategic for his ministry.