ACS CO M M E NT
Petition On Membership Categories & Requirements D. RICHARD COBB, CHAIR, MEMBERSHIP AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
ON THE ELECTION BALLOTS, scheduled to be mailed on Sept. 29, ACS members will have the opportunity to ratify the constitutional amendments brought about by the Petition on Membership Categories & Requirements (www.acs.org/bulletin5, click “Petitions”). As the chair of the Membership Affairs Committee, I occasionally get questions about the petition. For example, I am asked that if the petition is ratified … ■ Can anyone be a member of ACS? ■ Will student members pay higher dues? ■ Will student chapters be eliminated? ■ Can student members become councilors? ■ Will graduate students pay higher dues? The answer to all of these questions is no. The petition does welcome undergraduate students, now known as student affiliates, to be student members. The petition also helps to bring the society’s membership admissions policies into this multidisciplinary age of chemistry. However, there are still admissions guidelines in place, and not just anyone can be a member. For several years now, the ACS Task Forces on Governance Review and Multidisciplinarity have taken up the issue of the inclusion into ACS membership of chemists or scientists who have overlapping skills, interests, experience, and education in other disciplines. These task forces correctly identified that current ACS membership admissions policies do not recognize the growing number of academic degrees in new, multidisciplinary sciences. The petition aims to remove membership barriers for this group of scientists. Also on the advice of the task forces, the petition, if ratified, would elevate associate members to regular membership. This means that chemical technicians, precollege teachers, and others who do not yet have the required number of years of work experience under the current constitution and bylaws could be regular ACS members. If the amendments are ratified, the new
of membership except those of holding regular membership requirements would national office. Student members would admit to ACS membership those with an have the right to vote in national ACS elecassociate’s, bachelor’s, or higher degree in tions. Student members would not serve chemistry or a related field of natural scias councilor or alternate councilor. ence, engineering, technology, or science Divisions and local sections would have education. Current society documents the option of allowing, but would not be now require additional work experience required to allow, student and/or supplementary applimembers to serve as offication documentation from cers in the division or local scientists without a chemissection. Divisions and lotry degree. cal sections would themCurrently, undergraduate selves decide whether or students are not members, not to waive or discount but rather affiliates. If ratitheir dues for student fied, the petition will allow members. a person actively working There will continue to toward a degree in chembe student chapters and istry to be counted as a their associated activities member of the society, thus on college and university increasing membership campuses led by faculty and recognizing students advisers. The members of as members, just as many Current ACS these groups will be ACS boutique associations and student members rather ACS sister societies do now. membership than student affiliates. This provides a seamless admissions Graduate students are transition to full memberpolicies do not now, and will continue to ship. Most student affiliates recognize the be, regular members of the already think of themselves growing number society and receive a 50% as members, only to realize student discount on their later that the years that they of academic degrees in new, membership dues. The pebelonged to ACS as a stutition will have no impact dent affiliate do not count in multidisciplinary on the dues discounts. their years of service toward sciences. Because of the comretired or emeritus memberplexity around this petiship status. tion, the Membership The petition would also Affairs Committee has offered many change the student affiliate category label sessions to answer all questions posed by to student member for individuals working members. I urge you to pay very close attoward an undergraduate degree in chemtention to the facts leading to this imporistry or related field. Student members tant vote. If you have further questions, would be eligible for a five-sixths discount please contact me at
[email protected]. on member dues. Currently, based on 2008 This vote is extremely important as it can dues, this would mean that student mempave the way for a more expansive, inclubers would pay $23 with access to C&EN sive, and sustainable society. Online and $38 with the print version of C&EN. The petition does not make any Views expressed on this page are those of other change in dues structure. The petithe author and not necessarily those of ACS. tion grants student members all the rights
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