Shelby Davis “Dave” Worley ’64

Jan. 31, 1942—April 16, 2024

Dave Worley ‘64, professor emeritus of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Auburn University, was well-known by colleagues for his lifelong research, and by students who encountered his formidable organic chemistry classes.

A 1964 graduate of Auburn, after a tour of duty with the U.S. Army at NASA’s Johnson Space Center, where he performed research in atmospheric kinetics, he taught at Cleveland State University and was a scientific officer at the Office of Naval Research.

Worley returned to Auburn in 1974 and was active in teaching and research. He was named Teacher of the Year in 1992 by the Auburn chapter of Alpha Epsilon Delta, the national honor society for science students.

Worley’s premier achievement was the discovery of a polymer material that kills bacteria and deactivates viruses in water filter applications, providing clean drinking water for millions of people around the world.

Though he retired from teaching in 2009, he was still making research breakthroughs in collaboration with graduate students and post-doctorate fellows, like the discovery of a staph-resistant gauze bandage that could protect people from infections, while also being cost-effective enough to reach millions of people.

In 2014, he and his wife, the late Karen Holcombe Worley ’63, established an endowed professorship in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Auburn.