Steven Forsey

Steven Forsey began leveraging emerging technologies as a Laboratory Instructor at the outset of his career. As early as the 1980s, he started creating lab manuals uploaded to the internet and instructional videos. He began flipping his lecture courses long before flipping the classroom became an established instructional method. He was an early adopter of in-class response systems, leading him to work with a start-up company at the time, Top Hat. These strides in leveraging mobile, immediate-feedback technologies in the classroom culminated in Dr. Forsey creating Top Hat's first online textbook (2016), designed from the outset to engage readers as active learners through a fully online, interactive reading experience.

To determine the effectiveness of each resource, he conducts class surveys to make evidence-based changes. He regularly uses senior students to conduct surveys of his courses as their 4th-year research project.

• Chemical education

• Organic chemistry

• 2004, PhD, Earth Sciences, University of Waterloo, Canada

• 1988, MSc, Chemistry, University of Waterloo, Canada

• 1984, BSc, Honours Chemistry, University of Waterloo, Canada

• 2023, Outstanding Performance Award, Faculty of Science, University of Waterloo

• 2020, Outstanding Performance Award, Faculty of Science, University of Waterloo

• 2017, Top Hat Achievement Award, Top Hat dynamic courseware platform

• 2013, Excellence in Science Teaching Award (ESTA), Faculty of Science, University of Waterloo

• 2013, Outstanding Performance Award, Faculty of Science, University of Waterloo

• 2010, Outstanding Performance Award, Faculty of Science, University of Waterloo

• 2003, Chemistry Professor of the Year Award, Undergraduate Chemistry Club, University of Waterloo

• Science Teaching Fellow, Department of Chemistry

• 2023-present, 2012-2014, Chemistry Faculty Performance Review Committee

• 2022-present, Chemistry Executive Committee

• 2017-present, Waterloo Transfer Pathway

• 2009-present, Hiring Committee for Laboratory Instructor positions

• 2008-present, Medicinal Chemistry Advisor

• 2007-present, Undergraduate Officer (Laboratory Operations)

• 2006-present, Curriculum Committee and Undergraduate Affairs

• 2004-present, Science Undergraduate Studies Committee (SUSC)

• 2016-2022, Geochemistry Advisor

• 2020-2021, Science Undergraduate Teaching Taskforce

• 2016-2020, Chemistry Department Teaching Fellow

• 2009-2016, Excellence in Science Teaching Award Committee

• 2009-2015, Undergraduate Lab Equipment Committee

• 2017-present, Top Hat Customer Advisory Board

• 2004-present, Volunteer, Science undergraduate events

• 1995-present, hands-on chemistry experiments, Science Open House

• CHEM 264 - Organic Chemistry 1
  • Taught in 2023, 2024, 2025
• CHEM 266 - Basic Organic Chemistry 1
  • Taught in 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025
• CHEM 267 - Basic Organic Chemistry 2
  • Taught in 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025
• CHEM 363 - Organic Process Chemistry
  • Taught in 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025

* Only courses taught in the past 5 years are displayed.

• Forsey, Steven Philip, et al. (2023) Organic Chemistry I & II: A Live Interactive Textbook. 3rd Ed. Toronto, Ontario: Top Hat.

• Al-Shamsi. M. A., Thomson N. R, Forsey, S. P., 2013. Iron based bimetallic nanoparticles to activate peroxygens. Chemical Engineering Journal 232, 555-563.

• Forsey, S. P., Thomson N. R., Barker J. F., 2010. Oxidation kinetics of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons by permanganate. Chemosphere 79, 628–636.

• Organic Chemistry I & II - An interactive Top Hat Textbook (Lead author: Steve Forsey)
• April 10, 2020: Kritik peer-grading platform review by Steve Forsey
• June 21, 2011: Steven Forsey on Top Hat Monocle