In Spite of COVID-19, ACS Student Chapter Award Winners Crush 2020
We’ve all heard it before: 2020 was a year like no other! That certainly was the case for ACS student chapters. Historically, ACS student chapters are built on in-person activities: campus and community events, team-building meetings, member recruiting, fundraising, and hands-on science activities. These opportunities are crucial for sustaining a club and measuring success. But the challenge of staying active and impactful in 2020 was unparalleled in the 83-year history of the ACS Student Chapter Program.
For most chapters, pandemic-driven campus closures stymied plans and communications. But, as For You The Traveller author and artist Nabil Sabio Azadi has said, “When fishermen cannot go to sea, they repair nets.” Many chapters used the closures to step back and allow their members time to rest and recharge. Chapter officers collaborated on contingency plans to keep their chapters together in the fall. Some chapters not only repaired nets but developed new tools and strategies: In-person meetings became Zoom calls, paper elections and record-keeping became all-in-one digital forms, hands-on outreach became informational and educational multimedia creations shared on social media and through e-mail.
For their resilience, tenacity, and resourcefulness, the 2019-2020 ACS Chapter Award winners are truly deserving of recognition for the unique efforts made to strengthen their chapters, develop professional skills, and educate their communities about the transforming power of chemistry.
inChemistry commends the 72 Outstanding, 99 Commendable, and 120 Honorable Mention chapter winners, as well as the 22 chapters recognized with a distinguished honor for green chemistry activities.
The following gallery is a snapshot of chapters in action just before the pandemic, which continues to grip the world.
ACS Student Chapter events from around the world
Nova Southeastern University hosts a student-faculty chemistry physics mixer during the fall semester. New students and faculty met each other in a stress-free environment and bounced around ideas of research and improvements. They also interacted with professors and learned about their research, independent study, and upper-level classes.
Members of Morgan State University in Baltimore, MD, give prospective students information about their chemistry club at the institution’s an Open House for high school students.
At their monthly Super Series Saturday, Georgia Gwinnett College conducted a mystery investigation with middle and high school girls. The students had to foil a diabolical villain from destroying the all of the Instagram accounts of the world using various experiments in six labs that represented parts of the puzzle. They were able to “save the world with chemistry” by learning concepts like pH and the flame test.
In an effort to raise interest in chemistry among all students whether or not they are majoring in chemistry, Florida International University held an event explaining how different drugs are made and the chemistry of their effects. Students from different backgrounds attended the event and said they had a greater appreciation for chemistry.
At the start of the 2019-2020 school year, Farleigh Dickinson University-College at Florham held an “Interest” meeting to recruit new members where members gave a PowerPoint presentation explaining the benefits of ACS membership and joining the chapter.
Belhaven University officers bought supplies and gifts to donate to the student council Operation Christmas Child packing project. Each officer packed as many boxes as possible and wrote notes to the children.
Angelo State University members, student researchers, and faculty who attended the Fall 2019 ACS regional meeting in El Paso, TX, said they enjoyed listening to insightful presentations and participating in the many networking opportunities.
Members of the Jackson State University student chapter share science experiment kits at the 2019 Mississippi Science Fest. They also conducted experiments involving metal, gum, chocolate, the nature of dye, and a lesson on where crystals come from.
The California State University, Northridge, Biochemistry and Chemistry club offered a helpful graduate school information session at its October 2019 club meeting.
During quarantine, the University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez, held a competition in which the university community could participate showing their talents. Students submitted poetry, paintings, drawings, short stories, and more.
At the start of the Fall 2019 semester, Lebanon experienced civil unrest because of its economic crisis that forced the Lebanese American University (LAU) to temporarily close. “Even though we couldn’t hold any meetings or talks, we made sure that we enhanced our own understanding of chemistry and stay up-to-date with breakthroughs in science.” Two (LAU) members, Gabie Mitri and Celine Estephan, attended the ACS International Chapter Summit in Amman, Jordan.
