Teacher-Scholar Legacies: Abdou Lachgar

By Lindsay Comstock-Ferguson, Chair and Associate Professor of Chemistry

Dr. Abdessadek (Abdou) Lachgar, Professor of Chemistry, will retire in June following a 35-year career — a testament to the belief that science should serve humanity.

Abdou began his career at Wake Forest in 1991, following postdoctoral work at Iowa State University. He earned his B.Sc. in Chemical and Physical Sciences and Ph.D. in Materials Sciences at the University of Nantes, France. Not only has Abdou embraced the teacher-scholar model teaching in our undergraduate and graduate curriculum, but he also excelled as a researcher, authoring over 150 peer-reviewed publications and securing more than $3 million in external support as Principal Investigator. These efforts were acknowledged in 2025 when he was elected as a Fellow by the American Association for the Advancement of Science for his “exceptional contributions to research, teaching, and service in the field of materials science, particularly his work in crystal framework engineering and green energy production.”

Outside of the classroom and research laboratory, Abdou has further distinguished himself in service, as he was a founding board member of the Center for Energy, Environment, and Sustainability (CEES) — now the Sabin Center for Environment and Sustainability — and has provided critical leadership to the board since its inception in 2010. His contributions to sustainability extend beyond Wake Forest, as he has been a leader within the African Materials Research Society and has forged collaborations to apply Wake Forest-developed technology to address global humanitarian challenges. These efforts have culminated in recent years, as he has been awarded two prestigious Fulbright Scholarships to participate in collaborative research projects in Brazil (2018) and Namibia (2023-2024). While this only describes a small part of what Abdou has accomplished and what he has meant to the Chemistry Department and Wake Forest, his colleagues will miss his wisdom and camaraderie, and we wish him the best in his next chapter of life.