ACS COMMENT
National Chemistry Week 1992 f course, there's a National Chemistry Week (NCW) in 1992! If s scheduled for Nov. 1-7, and, as chairman of the National Chemistry Week Task Force, I'd like to make a personal plea to the leaders of our 185 local sections to participate in an experiment. Although the society's board of directors has established an official, fully funded NCW to occur every other year in odd-numbered years, Helen M. Free they have also taken note of the ACS president-elect number of local sections that have held NCW every year. In fact, more than 50 local sections celebrated NCW us to have NCW every year?" 'Is it easduring 1990—the last off year; and all 185 ier to keep up contacts for each year, or sections celebrated during 1991. should we try to restart things after a year So, to find out just how widely the off?" "Can our local section get enough sections will celebrate NCW if they have volunteers to do this every year?" "Can national office support, the board has al- our section afford to do this every year?" located additional funds for an experi- The answers to these questions can only ment. This year, the NCW office at ACS be provided by the local sections and headquarters has money to produce all their leaders. the usual materials for local section celeBecause more than 125 sections have brations. It will have shirts (really nice already indicated that they will be celenew ones with the chemical contents of brating National Chemistry Week during the human body printed on the backs), 1992, I think I know how most section campaign buttons, videotapes, children's leaders are answering these questions. stickers, magazines, flyers, posters, broAs ACS president-elect during 1992, chures, children's activity newspapers, I strongly urge local sections to make a periodic table cards, and career informa- great effort to do something during the tion. There will not be a new children's week of Nov. 1. From a volunteer's activity newspaper this year, but re- standpoint, it seems to me that it is best prints of last year's "Chemistry All to sustain an activity like NCW rather Around Us" will be dated for 1992. than try to start everything up after a The questions facing the local sections year's hiatus. I know that the schools become: 'Is it better public relations for (elementary schools, in particular) real-
O
ly appreciate what our members do for them and have come to count on something every year— at least this is true in my part of the country. Chemical industries might also prefer to have a frequent and ongoing public outreach effort that becomes a regular part of their budgeting process, rather than trying to justify funds for an activity that occurs only every other year. I think, too, that an awful lot of reinventing the wheel goes on when we let our NCW efforts lapse for a year. The workers from a given event are bound to lose track of contacts after a two-year period, and they're likely to forget the strategies that enabled them to put on a really successful event. This means that someone has to rekindle all those valuable contacts and figure out, from square one, how to set something up in the local shopping center, for instance. In my opinion, one of the best benefits of a focused event like NCW is that it produces a solid base of contacts, a reliable corps of volunteers, and an effective collection of activities. These help us build ongoing programs that turn every week into a chemistry week, and enable us to reach out to a broad range of the public. I'm not a betting person, but it would be a sure bet that every local section that considers the great chemistry that resulted from NCW '91 will be all fired up and ready to go on Nov. 1. •
ACS NEWS Sections get Phoenix Awards for NCW projects American Chemical Society local sections whose National Chemistry Week (NCW) programs last year were judged the best received Phoenix Awards from ACS at an NCW celebration during the society's national meeting last month in Washington, D.C. Twenty-nine awards were presented in 15 categories by ACS
president-elect Helen M. Free, who is also chairman of the ACS Task Force on National Chemistry Week. This was the third presentation of Phoenix Awards to sections for their NCW programs; they were awarded previously for projects in 1987 and 1989. The awards, named for the legendary
phoenix on the ACS emblem, consist of an etched 1-inch-thick rectangular piece of crystal, 6 by 8 inches, set vertically in a wood base. Award winners are selected by the NCW Task Force from sections nominated by NCW staff and others. Categories and winners for the 1991 Phoenix Awards are: • Best activity with elementary schools—Southeastern Texas Sectioa This section reached more than 9000 chilSEPTEMBER 21,1992 C&EN 31
ACS
NEWS
dren in over 50 elementary The first such special schools with safe and educa award, for best communica tional demonstrations. tion under duress, went to Holly A. Stretz of the Indi • Best activity with high ana Section. According to schools—Bttsbuigh Section. Bradford, she had the unen "This section sponsored a viable experience of having wide variety of poster con the fire department show up tests and career-day events at her chemical demonstra at a large number of high tions program. It seems that schools," Free said in an several people passed out nouncing the award winner. from fumes in a room next • Best involvement of to the demonstrations. When student affiliates—Western the fire chief investigated, he Maryland Section. 'It is ex discovered that the fumes tremely important for our lo Helen Free (right) presents award to Robert Botto of Southeastern were from sewer gas and cal sections to involve stu Texas Section, as Christina Taylor of Western Maryland Section and not from the chemical dem dent affiliates in National Richard Danchik of Pittsburgh Section await their awards onstrations. Chemistry Week," Free said. "Our awardee made the most of her "The sections need the workers, and it • Best activities outside a local sec unanticipated meeting with the fire helps the students become a part of chem tion—Hillsdale College in Hillsdale, chief and explained how chemists are istry." Mich.; American Association of Univer • Best activities in shopping cen sity Women in Circleville, Ohio; and Bis extremely concerned about safety and ters—Texas A&M Section, Rochester marck State College in North Dakota. also willing to help out when chemical Section, and Western Connecticut Sec These awards reflect the high level of questions arise in the community," tion. "Holding demonstrations and ex motivation shown by ACS members in Bradford explained. Stretz won the hibits in shopping centers is fast be unassigned territories who conducted award "for maintaining her composure coming one of our sections' best tools NCW activities without section support. under fire, so to speak," he said. for reaching the public," Free said. The second special award, for activity • Best involvement of the member • Best activity in a museum or li ship—Montana Section. This award rec with the greatest reach, was presented to brary—Western New York Section and ognizes the NCW goal of activating ACS Linda G Glaeser of the Cleveland Sec Milwaukee Section. Both sections host members, in addition to reaching out to tion. "She set out to convince public ed several days of events in museums, the public with positive messages about school officials that the NCW children's including displays and chemical dem chemistry. "By mobilizing the members newspaper should be widely circulat in her very large and thinly populated ed," Bradford said. "She did such a thor onstrations. • Best activity at an open house— section, NCW coordinator Andrea Stier- ough job of convincing that, in coopera Northeast Tennessee Section. These are le was able to accomplish a lot for tion with the public schools' delivery a "great PR opportunity for industries NCW," Free said. "I really admire ef system, 128,000 children—including ev ery first through eighth grader in the forts like this." and schools," Free said. • Best media coverage of an event— • Greatest individual effort—Kala Cleveland public schools—received a Columbus Section, Coastal Empire Sec mazoo Section and Washington Section. copy of the newspaper." The third special award was present tion, and Georgia Section. "Each of This award recognizes "superhuman ef these sections was able to get substan forts" by "truly remarkable members." ed to the student affiliates chapter of tial coverage of their events by both Each of the two winning sections had an Arkansas State University for conduct newspapers and television stations," individual member who single-handed ing one of the most impressive events ly distributed more than 25,000 copies of in NCW history. The group decorated Free said in announcing the winners. • Most creative event—Philadelphia the NCW children's newspaper to local 106 cakes and assembled them as the "world's largest edible periodic table." Section. "Among many other creative schoolchildren. In addition to those awards, James It displayed its creation in a local shop activities," Free said, "the Philadelphia Section rehabilitated a run-down house Bradford, ACS program manager for ping center, raffled off the cakes, and for former President Jimmy Carter's NCW, presented three other awards that donated the proceeds to a children's Habitat for Humanity Project—while he said are for "those highly creative ac hospital in Little Rock. Most local sections are now gearing tivities that occur during every National wearing NCW shirts, of course." • Special or unusual events—Hawaii Chemistry Week but don't fit into other up for the 1992 celebration of NCW, scheduled for Nov. 1 to 7. Although Section; Princeton, South Jersey, Trenton award categories." To lend impact to the presentations this is not an official NCW year, more sections team; and Chicago, Rock River, Milwaukee sections team. "The Hawaii of these special awards, S. Allen Hein- than 120 sections have indicated that Section purchased subscriptions to Won- inger (immediate past-president of they are planning activities. According derScience magazine for every school in ACS), Joseph A. Dixon (chairman of the to Cheryl Brown, who assists Bradford the state, and the teamwork of the [two ACS Board of Directors), and John Κ in the NCW staff office, the activities three-section teams] is a good example Crum (ACS executive director) joined scheduled this year are just as creative of how sections working together can Free and Bradford to congratulate the as those carried out last year. Ernest Carpenter award winners. produce great results," Free said. 32
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