Angela Gutiérrez is a Ph.D. student at the University of Kentucky under the guidance of J. Zach Hilt, Ph.D., and Tom Dziubla, Ph.D. Her research is focusing on the development of magnetic nanocomposite microparticles (MNMs) for on/off binding of persistent organic pollutants. She is producing MNMs using iron oxide nanoparticles incorporated into a polyphenolic-based polymer matrix with high affinity for organic pollutants. This platform allows for the specific binding of chlorinated organics, the rapid magnetic separation of bound organics from contaminated water sources, and the thermal destabilization of the polymer matrix for contaminant release and material regeneration. Gutiérrez has a B.S. in chemistry from the University of Los Andes in Bogotá, Colombia.