Cooperative Education Service
opportunities require a more practical, "real world" orientation. Cooperative education is an attractive way to correct this discrepancy. It also has the important secondary benefit of bringing together the academic and industrial components of the Society and allowing them to share in the training of new members. Coooerative education mav take man" forms. but thev all have a common coal of makine oractical. meanineful work
a n important part of the undergraduate educational scheme. In recent years there has been a marked growth in the number of students participating in cooperative education as well as in the number of programs and range of disciplines involved. However, there are relatively few active eo-op for chemists and only a handful of these involve appreciable numbers . programs . . ofstudents. The eeneral eoals of the Service are t o stimulate interest in chemical cooperative education: to act as an information ~
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establishing a clearinghouse to aid in the placement of chemical eo-op students. organizing regional conferences for industrial and academic institutions interested in establishing cooperative programs in chemistry. establishing a cooperative education speakers' bureau. developing consulting teams to aid in establishing and evaluating co-op programs. gathering and disseminating information dealing with the establishment, organization, evaluation and funding ofchemical cooperative programs. working closely with a small number of chemistry departments to establish co-op programs that will serve as development models.
We hope to involve the ACS local sections in several activities including havingeo-ap presentations a t section meetings, coordinating local job placement for cooperative students and giving special presentations designed to make high school students, guidance counselors and teachers aware of co-op. The Service wishes to establish contact with interested parties and actively seeks comments and suggestions both about the ahove activities and other roles it might play. Volunteers to act as resource persons for the activities are also sought.
Robert W. Ridgway Cooperative Education Service American Chemical Society 1155 16th Street, N. W. Washington, D.C.20036
720 / Journal of Chemical Education
