Greater Houston SectionEstablished in 1917, the Section serves about 2500 members, consisting of chemists, chemical engineers and professionals in allied fields. The American Chemical Society is recognized as a world leader in fostering science education and research, and promoting public understanding of science. The Greater Houston Section of the American Chemical Society is one of 189 local ACS sections across the nation. |
We're Excited to Announce the Launch of our Fall 2019 Event Passport Program!
The event passport is intended to help us recognize local members and non-members who take time to participate in ACS events. It's participants like you that help us build a strong chemistry community in the Greater Houston area.
Learn more about the program and download your passport today!
National Chemistry Week 2019
NCW Illustrated Poetry Contest The Greater Houston Section of the American Chemical Society is, once again, hosting the Illustrated Poetry Contest as a part of the National Chemistry Week (NCW) festivities. The NCW theme this year is Marvelous Metals, which should be a lot of fun! This contest is open to students from Kindergarten through 12th grade, with four age divisions for the contest. The winner in each age group will receive a $25 prize and winning entries will be forwarded on to the national contest. Students who have an interest in both STEM and the humanities/arts may find this contest to be a lot of fun, as it combines thematic illustrations with a creative writing component. Please select the contest event flyer for more information; and when submissions are ready, please download the entry form to send in with the poem. Submission Deadline: Friday, October 11th
Fall 2019 Program-in-a-Box: Marvelous Metals Join thousands of students and early career chemists from around the world for this FREE, one-night only event during National Chemistry Week. Discover how chemists are developing new technologies using metals at the intersection of organic and inorganic chemistry. From innovations in medical imaging and theranostics to fundamental changes to the way we create everyday necessities like clothing, food, and energy, these scientists will demonstrate how we can harness the power of our “marvelous metals.” Tuesday, October 22nd 5:45 - 6:45 pm University of St. Thomas Room TBD 3800 Montrose Blvd Houston, TX 77006 A Conversation with ACS President Dr. Bonnie Charpentier
The Greater Houston and Brazosport sections were honored to host ACS President Dr. Bonnie Charpentier for a dinner and seminar at the University of St. Thomas on September 9th. The evening kicked off with a celebration of long-serving GHS board member Mamie Moy's 90th birthday, followed by dinner (and birthday cake!) and an interactive presentation by Dr. Charpentier.
Dr. Charpentier discussed the sustainable development goals set out by the United Nations and engaged with attendees on identifying key goals that the ACS could help address. She also included information on how the ACS is working to promote science outreach and advocacy in chemistry. The evening closed with an open conversation around the priorities of the chemistry community and ways to address challenges and roadblocks encountered in public science literacy. Thanks to Dr. Bonnie Charpentier and ACS Director-at-Large Dr. Lee Latimer for making the time to visit with us!
Get in Your Element for the International Year of the Periodic Table
The Periodic Table of Chemical Elements is one of the most significant achievements in science. This year marks the 150th anniversary of the publication of Mendeleev’s Periodic Table of Chemical Elements in 1869. In celebration of this momentous occasion, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) officially proclaimed 2019 as “The United Nations International Year of The Periodic Table of Chemical Elements,” or "IYPT 2019."
The Greater Houston Section (ACS-GHS) is celebrating IYPT by making Periodic Table quilts and other themed crafts. If you would like to help by sewing, if you’re a teacher who would like to teach your students about the elements by making a quilt, or if you have other ideas for celebrating IYPT, please contact Catherine Faler at: | SWRM Student Presenter Travel Scholarship SWRM has funds to provide ten $500 travel scholarships to students who are presenting their papers at the El Paso meeting. The GHS can nominate up to two students from our section for this award. Student nominations should be submitted to the Greater Houston Section at acs-ghs@acs-ghs.org by Sept 30th for review. For more information, see the SWRM Awards Page. Download the nomination form here. Selected nominations will be forwarded to the Southwest Region Awards Committee Chair, William Maio, before the nomination deadline. Upcoming events
Celebrating Our Success at the ChemLuminary Awards!
We're happy to share that the Greater Houston Section won three ChemLuminary Awards at the 2019 Fall National Meeting and Exposition in San Diego on August 27th. The awards include:
Congratulations to everyone for their hard work and dedication to our section!
Volunteer Spotlight - Carolyn Burnley
Carolyn Burnley has been an active American Chemical Society (ACS) volunteer for more than 15 years at all levels of the society including local section, division, regional and national. Carolyn served in the GHS Chair succession from 2007-2009 and has served as Councilor since 2009. She continued to create and publish the monthly newsletter until 2016. She has chaired or served on virtually every GHS subcommittee including Awards, Senior Chemists, Technician Affairs and Community Affairs, and has served as National Chemistry Week Coordinator numerous times. Carolyn has organized many GHS and Southwest Regional events including award banquets, summer socials, science cafes and our GHS 100th Anniversary Gala. However, the single, largest contribution and legacy that Carolyn has provided is for Project Seed. Carolyn became the GHS Project Seed Coordinator in 2008 and has been serving in this role ever since. Carolyn is passionate about providing opportunities to gain exposure to science for underrepresented minority students. She started the program from scratch with no student mentors and very few high school teacher contacts. She reached out to her network and was able to get a small program together that first year. Since that time, she has grown the program to accommodate up to 20 interns per year. Over her 11 years as Project Seed Coordinator, she has provided summer research opportunities to >100 interns, including four Project Seed scholarship recipients and one Project Seed Scholar. It is a testament to her that she has had 20 mentors who have served with her for more than 5 years and in 2019 alone was able to recruit five new mentors to the program who have already expressed interest in returning next year. In honor of 15 years of ACS volunteering and another successful year of Project Seed, Carolyn is our volunteer spotlight this month! Chemistry Outreach Volunteers Needed Share Your Experience with Students: Are you willing to share your experience as a chemist or chemistry technician with high school (afternoon) or college students (evening)? We're looking for volunteers who can either give a short presentation or simply speak freely to the students. Expected time commitment is 1-2 hours, including travel. To volunteer, contact acs-ghs@acs-ghs.org. Volunteer for NCW: The ACS Greater Houston Section will be holding a National Chemistry Week event at the Children's Museum of Houston on Saturday, October 26th and needs volunteers to help with hands-on experiments. Two shifts are available, 9 am - noon and 1 - 3 pm. To sign up for a volunteer shift, please contact Bob Botto at bbotto49@gmail.com. San Jacinto College STEM Expos: We are looking for volunteers to help with hands-on chemistry demonstrations at the San Jacinto STEM Expo on their Central Campus on Oct 24th. We are also looking for coordinators and volunteers for the North Campus on Nov 7th, and the South Campus on Nov 21st. All events are from 5:30 - 7:00 pm. To volunteer, contact acs-ghs@acs-ghs.org. ACS-GHS needs volunteers for efforts of various proportion and length - something for everyone. At this time, we need help with the following:
If you are interested in volunteering, email acs-ghs@acs-ghs.org or the GHS Volunteer Coordinator, Maryanne Mores at maryannemores@yahoo.com. |
ACS-GHS August Seminar - Curtis Swisher, Career Management During Uncertain Times
Our August seminar speaker was Curtis Swisher, President of SpirePointe Consulting, who spoke on the topic of career management, and some of the most common mistakes people make when managing their careers. He also discussed the most effective actions you can take to enhance your career and achieve professional growth.
This seminar was definitely worth attending for the wealth of information Curtis provided, but if you missed it, don't despair! The recording is available now on our YouTube channel! Special thanks to those who tried to join our YouTube Live stream, we were sadly thwarted by an unreliable internet connection. We hope to see you again the next time we stream!