Dr. Padam Acharya was born in Dandagaon, a village in the Ilam District of eastern Nepal, where he grew up in an intergenerational family with his grandparents, parents and brother. His father, who served as a primary school teacher for nearly 36 years, was his greatest inspiration and played an important role in shaping his passion for education.
Acharya’s interest in chemistry began during the 11th grade when he was introduced to different branches of science. He was particularly fascinated by organic chemistry and soon realized that he wanted to pursue it as a career. He earned his undergraduate degree in chemistry and a master’s degree in organic chemistry from Tribhuvan University in Nepal. His master’s thesis provided his first hands-on research experience in natural product chemistry. Following graduation, he began his academic career teaching organic chemistry, an experience he found personally fulfilling.
Seeking to expand his knowledge and develop his research skills, Acharya came to the United States and enrolled as a graduate student at the University of Toledo in Ohio. Working under the mentorship of Dr. Jianglong Zhu, his doctoral research focused primarily on cancer research, including the total synthesis of natural products and their derivatives and evaluating their anticancer activity against various human cancer cell lines. He received extensive training in organic synthesis and completed his Ph.D. in chemistry in 2019.
Following his doctoral studies, Acharya joined the laboratory of Dr. Qisheng Zhang at the Eshelman School of Pharmacy at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. During five years of postdoctoral research, he expanded his expertise in medicinal chemistry while studying lipid signaling. His work included the synthesis of pharmaceutical probes, inhibitors and related compounds.
With a strong passion for teaching organic chemistry, Acharya began looking for an institution where he could continue developing as both an educator and researcher. He found that opportunity at Eastern Kentucky University and joined the Department of Chemistry and Forensic Science as an Assistant Professor of Organic Chemistry in August 2024.
Since arriving at EKU, Acharya has enjoyed contributing to student success through teaching, mentoring and advising. One recent milestone was the induction of a new chapter of Gamma Sigma Epsilon in the Department of Chemistry and Forensic Science. He is honored to serve as the chapter’s faculty advisor and looks forward to supporting students as they grow academically and professionally.
One of the things Acharya values most about EKU is its supportive and collaborative working environment. He finds particular satisfaction in the enthusiasm and engagement he receives from students during his lectures. For him, however, education extends beyond the classroom and into the research laboratory.
Acharya’s research laboratory provides students with opportunities to develop their skills as young scientists while pursuing research in two primary areas. One area focuses on medicinal plants, particularly polyphenols, while the other focuses on the synthesis of biologically important molecules. Mentoring undergraduate researchers is especially rewarding to him, and he enjoys watching students develop their laboratory skills, confidence and abilities as junior scientists.
For Dr. Acharya, teaching and research are closely connected. Whether he is explaining organic chemistry in the classroom, advising students or mentoring them at the laboratory bench, his greatest satisfaction comes from helping students learn and grow.
Beyond the classroom and research laboratory, Dr. Acharya actively engages with the scientific community by presenting his research at national conferences, including meetings of the American Chemical Society (ACS). He also serves as a Guest Associate Editor for the Organic Chemical Synthesis section of Frontiers in Chemical Biology, supporting scientific collaboration and the advancement of chemical research.
Outside of the university, Dr. Acharya enjoys traveling and spending time with his family. He especially enjoys traveling with his wife, Jia, who is a nurse, and their daughter, Aarushi, who recently started preschool.