"I ask myself, and always tell my students, you should always ask "why do we care?" Because people are going to ask you, so you should be the first one to ask yourself."

- Dr. Raúl Hernández Sánchez, June 12, 2024

We were pleased to host Dr. Raúl Hernández Sánchez of Rice University for the first of our June seminars, as he shared some of his group's research on applications of novel macrocyclic arene complexes. If you missed the live webinar, you can still catch the recording on our YouTube channel!

The ACS-GHS Scholarship Exam for high school students was held on April 27, 2024, at the University of Houston. The exam was organized by Dr. Tai-Yen Chen, Associate Professor of Chemistry at UH. Thanks to all the teachers and students who participated in this year's exam and congratulations to this year's Scholarship Award winners!

2024 Winners - 1st Year

1st Place – Krish Jha

Carnegie Vanguard High School, Teacher Joshua Garcia

2nd Place – Alan Yao

Glenda Dawson High School, Teacher Andrea Buchelli

3rd Place – Krishna Harish

Elkins High School, Teacher Rolf S. Arvidson

Honorable Mention – Leetyan Chen

St. John’s School, Teacher Sarwat Jafry

Honorable Mention – Boone Roeser

St. John’s School, Teacher Roxie Allen

Honorable Mention – Kevin Hu

Clements High School, Teacher Caitlin Zuber

2024 Winners - 2nd Year

1st Place (Tie) – Cosmo Wu

Dulles High School, Teacher Katherine Coleman

1st Place (Tie) – Richard Zhang

Seven Lakes High School, Teacher Mayra Colombani-Acosta

2nd Place (Tie) – Benjamin Bian

Seven Lakes High School, Teacher Mayra Colombani-Acosta

2nd Place (Tie) – Vishal Sundaram

Elkins High School, Teacher Christopher Nguyen

3rd Place (Tie) – Charles Anstead

DeBakey High School for Health Professionals, Teacher Dina Adam

3rd Place (Tie) – Antonio Yu

Clements High School, Teacher Caitlin Zuber

Interested in taking the exam next year? Learn more about the Scholarship Exam on our awards page.

The annual Engineering Council of Houston (ECH)/Science and Engineering Fair Houston (SEFH) Banquet was held Monday, May 20 from 5:30 pm - 8:30 pm at the University of Houston. Students were honored for their scientific achievements state- and nation-wide over the 2023-2024 academic year. The keynote speaker for the event was Dr. Alan Rossiter, Executive Director of External Relations and Educational Program Development at UH Energy, University of Houston.

ECH/SEFH award recipients with Dr. Lionnel Ronduen (UH STEM Center, left) and Dr. Heather Domjan, Executive Director of the UH STEM Center (right).

Did you miss our May seminar with 2024 ACS President Dr. Mary K. Carroll? You can still hear Dr. Carroll talk about about her experiences with commercialization of aerogel materials. See what you missed on our YouTube Channel!

ACS Greater Houston Chapter had a successful time at the Discovery Green Earth Day in Downtown Houston! With over 400 visitors, we were able to share and demonstrate information on this year's theme of batteries. Visitors learned about how indispensable they are in our society and how they can accept energy from alternative energy sources such as such as solar, wind, and hydro power, then store it in chemical bonds. Huge shout out and thanks to University of St. Thomas ACS Student Chapter and Rice Fun with Chemistry for helping make this a phenomenal event!

This year, more than 300 students from 35 schools in Greater Houston participated in the Chemistry Olympiad local competition in March. Among the top section-wide performers, 13 students were nominated and joined the 3-part national competition held at the University of Houston on April 15.

Mr. Anantshri Asthana from Dulles High School (who also participated in in the 2022 and 2023 UNSCO Study Camps) has just been selected among the top 20 finalists nationwide to enter the 2024 Study Camp. Anant, congratulations on your achievement!

The Greater Houston Section continues having representation in the top 20 nationwide finalists since 2020. We are pleased to see rising students' great interest in chemical education. We welcome more high school students to take part in this annual event.

We wish all the UNSCO attendees well as they participate in the Chemistry Olympiad Study Camp at the University of Maryland at College Park from June 3 - 15, 2024.

For a full list of the top 20 finalists, see the ACS posting here.

The Greater Houston section kicked off its 2024 technical seminar series featuring local talent with ACS & PMSE Fellow, Dr. Jaime Grunlan of Texas A&M. Thank you to those who joined us for our first seminar. For those who missed it, a recording has been posted to our YouTube channel.

We have an exceptional lineup of speakers this year and hope to see you at the next one!

The Greater Houston section was out in force at the ACS Spring Meeting in New Orleans! It's difficult to get everyone together for photos at a large conference, but hopefully you had a chance to meet with one of our local section representatives out and about, or stopped by to chat and pick up a sticker at the Sci-Mix poster event.

GHS Board Members (left to right): David Germack (Councilor), Amber Hinkle (Councilor), Dawn Friesen (Alt. Councilor), Safia Mohamed (Chair)

Didn't catch us at the conference? We're active year-round in the Greater Houston area so keep an eye on our website and social media accounts for upcoming virtual in and in-person events, as well as volunteer opportunities. Getting involved with your local section is a great way to meet chemists from all areas of science to build your personal and professional networks. We'd love to meet you!

The Greater Houston section participated in this year’s IUPAC Global Women’s Breakfast event by holding a virtual networking and group discussion on International Women’s Day, March 8, 2024. The event was co-organized by the ACS Greater Houston Section, Stepan Company's Women's Networking and EMBRACE (Black employee) Resource Groups, and the Space City EWOC chapter. This year’s theme of “catalyzing diversity in science” was recognized by focusing on the benefits of diversity in science and sharing practical strategies to ensure that diverse voices and ideas are being heard in the scientific community.

Participants were provided with a short list of resources highlighting the importance of hearing diverse voices both personally and as a good business practice prior to the event, as well as articles offering practical tips for amplifying diverse voices at work.

• TED Talk: The Danger of a Single Story - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (video transcript available)
• BCG Group Report: The Mix That Matters: Innovation Through Diversity (pdf of report available here)
• NPR: How to get your ideas heard in work meetings
• The Muse: How to make your voice heard in the workplace (especially as a woman or minority)

A brief presentation on strategies to speak up and be heard was given by Dr. Dawn Friesen, (ACS-GHS Alternate Councilor) before the participants launched into a lively discussion of their experiences, including successes and challenges of speaking up for themselves and others in the workplace.

GWB 2024 - Amplifying Diverse Voices Presentation

Thanks to those who attended for engaging in conversation with us, and special thanks to our collaborating organizations for participating in an excellent event!

Event Co-organizers:

Stepan Company: Alexis Bender, Diana Dardugno, Parker Stockman (Women’s Networking Resource Group); Monica Brown and Andre Ceasar (EMBRACE [Black Employees] Resource Group)
EWOC: Catherine Faler, Haley Brown

The Greater Houston Section is proud to recognize Dr. Ding-Shyue (Jerry) Yang, Associate Professor of Chemistry at the University of Houston, as our 2024 Outreach Volunteer of the Year!