REPORT OF THE PRESIDENT
I am proud to be a chemist – improving people’s lives through the transforming power of chemistry! I am equally proud to have gotten to know so many of you, the members and potential members of this incredible scientific society. We have chatted and you have shared your concerns, dreams, and wishes at local section, regional, and national meetings. Many of you have contacted me by email, U.S. Mail, and through the various social networks to make your thoughts known. Your thoughtful messages have been extremely helpful to me and have made a difference.
One such message was received shortly after the national meeting in Salt Lake City, from a small school in the Midwest. The students had raised money to attend the meeting to give their oral and poster presentations. Unfortunately, these bright young students were scheduled late in the afternoon on the last day of the meeting and no one attended. The students and their professor were extremely disappointed. After hearing this story, I contacted the professor and offered to hear the presentations in a conference call. In turn, they invited me to the college to hear their presentations and for me to give a talk. The auditorium was packed with nearly 180 people, including the president of the college. These outstanding young chemists did an incredible job representing their discipline in front of an engaged and thankful audience. They will not soon forget that night or the commitment that their professional Society showed to them. Friends, thank you for giving me that privilege.
This year is the 25th anniversary of the U.S. National Chemistry Olympiad. The U. S. Air Force Academy has hosted the Olympiad study camp for each of those 25 years. In June, I had the pleasure of meeting and spending time with the twenty U. S. National Olympiad high school finalists in Colorado Springs. It is a time of incredible learning and stress for these extraordinary students. During this time the twenty students are pared down to six; four students with two alternates who will represent the United States during the international competition in Cambridge, England. This year 129 of our 189 local sections participated in the U.S. Chemistry Olympiad; down from an all time high of 145 local sections. This is an extremely important activity and one that is easy for sections to become involved. The participating local sections administered preliminary examinations to 11,202 high school students which resulted in 916 students taking the national examination; twenty students made the final cut for the study camp. By the time we meet in Washington, DC the outcome of the International Chemistry Olympiad, in Cambridge, England, will be known.
Remember, the International Chemistry Olympiad will be held in the United States in 2012; now is the time to reenergize your local section around this outstanding event. For more information visit www.acs.org/education and follow the links for high school students and the Chemistry Olympiad.
Thank you for your continued efforts in increasing the membership of the Society. The 2009 ACS President’s Challenge asks that you help me achieve a goal of 10,000 new members; progress is slow but we can do it. You may recall that each local section and technical division has an individual membership recruitment target. Once 5,000 new members have been added to the membership list, a reward of $1,000 will be given to each section and division that reaches their target. Please refer to the local section and division web site that list each section and division by size categories.
For complete details about the President’s Challenge, visit www.acs.org/MAC. You can also visit the ACS Network where you can join the President’s Challenge discussion thread. This space is available for you to share tips and tools about what recruitment strategies have worked successfully for your group. Included in the discussion thread are three videos that were recorded to help local sections more effectively reach out to their communities. I hope these videos can be another resource to help you promote ACS membership through the President’s Challenge and I encourage you to share these links with fellow councilors, local section and division members.
Thank you for your continued support, thoughtful counsel, and dedicated effort. It is a privilege to work with you and to serve as your president.
– Thomas H. Lane