Report from Kids & Chemistry organizer Bob Botto:

We had a wonderful time with the kids at the Children's Museum of Houston on Saturday, October 26th. Volunteers from University of Houston, Texas Southern University and Rice University arrived at 9 am to help me set up. I counted at least 25 so when it was time to welcome the kids at 10 am we were ready! Catherine Faler brought a small banner and a quilt. We had 5 tables set up: Color Changes with Juices, Radish Writing, Candy Experiments, Play Doh (because kids!) and a Theme table for Marvelous Metals. Each table was staffed with at least 4 volunteers. Extra volunteers who came to our event were used by the Children's Museum to staff the Slime Stations. Emily MacWilliams was my contact and facilitated everything.

The Theme table featured the properties of metals which make up 80 percent of the Periodic Table. Properties such as thermal conductivity, electrical conductivity, ferromagnetism, malleability and ductility were featured with objects the kids and parents could touch and feel.

The hands on experiments were as fun as ever and we added candy experiments this year. At noon we fed all the volunteers pizza and drinks. We had 58 volunteers signed up and they were distributed between morning and afternoon shifts. 

At 11 am Houston City Councilwoman Karla Cisneros came by to present a proclamation from the Mayor's office declaring National Chemistry Week in Houston. The proclamation was read by Karla Cisneros and received by me and Crystal Young, ACS-GHS Chair-Elect.

Visitors continued to come and enjoy the exhibits until 3 pm when we shut it down. I would estimate in the range of 300-400 kids and adults visited the displays.

Our October seminar speaker was Sebastian Frommhold, a Forensic Analyst with the Texas Department of Public Safety. Mr. Frommhold spoke on the challenges of forensic drug analysis in a rapidly changing chemical and regulatory field, and the importance of understanding the advantages and limitations of your available analytical techniques.

This seminar was educational and entertaining but if you missed it, don't despair - the recording is available now on our YouTube channel!

Dr. Javoris Hollingsworth, Chair of the GHS Minority Affairs Committee, shared this update on a new MAC program:

Today (October 23rd) I really enjoyed speaking to the students at North Houston Early College High School as part of our Chemistry Career Roadshow, which is sponsored by the ACS-GHS Minority Affairs Committee. Through this event, talented students from under-served groups in STEM received the opportunity to learn about various careers they could pursue in chemistry and related fields.

Special thanks to Usha Devathosh, Ed.D. and school administrators for allowing me and our amazing team of professionals to visit and share career insight. Also, thanks to the ACS Senior Chemists Committee for providing us a grant to support this great cause.

We are pleased to announce the recipients of the 2019 Greater Houston Local Section Awards:

Joe W. Hightower Award – Kenton Whitmire, Rice University
Two Year College Award – Christopher Wild, San Jacinto College
Younger Chemist Award – Crystal Young, University of St. Thomas
Excellence in High School Chemistry Teaching – Jamie Flint, Spring Woods High School

The awards were presented at our Awards Banquet on Saturday, October 19th where we also honored the 2019 High School Scholarship Award winners and their teachers; our 50- and 60-year members; our National and Regional Award winners as well as our volunteers.

The 2019 ACS-GHS Awards Banquet was held at St. John's School on Saturday, October 19th. Approximately 85 people attended the event, which is held annually to celebrate Greater Houston Local Section Award winners, national and regional award winners, the 2019 High School Scholarship Award winners and their teachers, our 50- and 60-year members, and our volunteers. Attendees were greeted by a display of periodic table quilts celebrating the International Year of the Periodic Table with dinner served in the Chao Assembly Hall. Awards presentations followed the dinner and guests were treated to a keynote presentation by Joe W. Hightower Award winner, Kenton Whitmire from Rice University. Congratulations to all the award winners on their achievements and thanks to all in attendance for sharing this special evening!

The Awards Committee is grateful for sponsorships from PAC LP, DCG Partnership, Shell, and Educational Innovations Inc.

The ACS ChemClub is a high school chemistry club that provides students with a unique opportunity to experience chemistry beyond the classroom.  Students participate in after-school activities, get involved in community building, learn about chemistry careers, enjoy social events, and better understand how chemistry plays a role in our everyday lives.

The O’Connell College Preparatory School Chemistry Club, with Advisor Nina Corley, has created a ReCycling Program within the school and goes into the community to share the science behind recycling. As part of their science outreach, the O'Connell College students conducted public demonstrations at Galveston’s Own Farmer’s Market (pictured). We're thrilled to have such dedicated and enthusiastic chemistry ambassadors in our area!

A small group of GHS members participated in the 2019 Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure in support of breast cancer research on Saturday, October 5th. Under GHS Past Chair and team captain Catherine Faler, the team faced a warm autumn morning for the run and raised almost $200 for breast cancer research.

The ACS-GHS Fall Career Fair was held at the University of St. Thomas on the morning of October 5th. We kicked off the morning with a keynote talk by Paige Morse from Aspen Technologies, followed by a panel discussion on Women in Industry with panelists Lisa Houston (PAC LP), Valerie Lafitte (Schlumberger), and Shreya Shah (Syzygy Plasmonics). A second panel on Professional Development featured panelists Martin Van Sickels and Larry Kremer (Global Energy Mentors), J.C. Kuo (Chevron, retired), and Patricia McHenry (Covestro). Panel moderators Nikki Nguyen and Alison Tran kept the audience engaged and asked insightful questions of our panelists, and student attendees were encouraged to network with other participants, panelists, and our participating employers (Syzygy Plasmonics, Covestro, and PAC LP) about career paths and opportunities after the formal program.

Some words of wisdom from our Professional Development panelists:

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!

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:

• Outstanding Career Program
• Kids & Chemistry
• Outstanding Performance by a Local Section- Large Category

Congratulations to everyone for their hard work and dedication to our section!