Friday, February 15, 2008
The Arts Center at Nazareth College
4245 East Avenue - Rochester, NY

Please note: The Sign-up deadline for the Annual Dinner featuring Roald Hoffmann is Monday, February 11.

The Rochester ACS Section invites you to join us for an informal and pleasant evening with your fellow Section members and spouses/guests.  The evening will begin with a mixer at 5:30 p.m. in The Arts Center at Nazareth College, followed by a buffet dinner.  After dinner we will hear a talk by Cornell University Chemistry Professor and Nobel Prize winner, Roald Hoffmann.   Prof. Hoffman, in addition to his well known achievements as a chemist, is a highly regarded and entertaining poet and playwright.

You do not to be an ACS Member to attend.

5:30 p.m.:  Mixer / Cash Bar
6:30 p.m.:  Buffet Dinner
7:30 p.m.:  Talk

Prof. Roald Hoffmann
The Frank H. T. Rhodes Professor of Humane Letters
at Cornell University
Indigo, a Story of Science, Religion, and Culture of the Natural and the Unnatural

8:30 p.m.:  Coffee/Dessert Reception

Dinner reservations, with payment of $25 per person, ($30 non-members) must be received by February 10. Dinner attendance is not required to attend Prof. Hoffmann's lecture

Reservation/Payment options:
1) Send checks, payable to Rochester ACS Section, to
Mary Anne Mendel
158 Lake Lea Road
Rochester, NY 14617
(585) 544-6679 - evenings

2) Make payment with a credit card by PayPal on the Rochester Section website.

The Arts Center is Building 1 in the Nazareth Campus Map. Parking Lot A is convenient to the Arts Center.

Buffet Dinner includes:  Table served mixed garden salad with warm rolls and butter, Roast beef carving station with horseradish sauce or Cabernet demi glaze, Bowtie pasta with wild mushroom Alfredo sauce, Boneless chicken breast in Marsala wine sauce, Seasonal fresh vegetables, Garlic oven roasted potatoes, Coffee and tea service              

2008 marks a very special time for me as I begin my 3-year term as a Councilor for the Rochester Section and as I take on a new leadership role on the National level - that of Chair of the ACS Membership Affairs Committee (MAC).

I plan to use my upcoming articles to give my fellow Rochester Section members a view from within this vital Committee. It is, after all, the Committee that deals with membership recruitment, retention, benefits, Services, dues and categories.

In this first article, I wanted to cover the important decision that will be made by the Council at the National Meeting in New Orleans in early April. After a Governance Review Taskforce submitted their recommendations for the whole ACS and after multiple years of work, MAC has proposed to Council the biggest change in Society Membership ever. As a review, based on the present structure:

o Undergrad Students are welcomed into the ACS as 'Student Affiliates"
o Applicants who have a BS degree in chemistry from an ACS approved program can become full members immediately, but those who do not come from an ACS approved program have to have three-years work experience in the field of chemistry
o Applicants with a 2-year degree have to have five-years work experience in the field of chemistry
o High school teachers, with 5-years work experience in science instruction, can become members

Keep in mind, that the last two categories only became effective since 2001! Also,
there are three levels of membership: Full Membership, Associate Membership and Affiliate Membership.

As I mentioned, the petition being proposed represents a comprehensive revision of the qualifications required for membership and for affiliate status in the ACS. In response to a developing consensus that the current qualifications for membership in the Society are unduly narrow and too restrictive, the amendments, while indicating the Society's focus on chemistry, would make anyone with a Bachelor's or higher degree in chemistry or in a related field of natural science, engineering, technology, or science education eligible for membership. In addition, an individual with an Associate's Degree in chemical science or a related field of technology would also be eligible, as would any qualified pre-college chemistry teacher. These latter provisions would eliminate the current requirement for a number of years of work experience to be eligible. The proposal would retain a provision allowing the Admissions Committee to approve for membership those whose chemical knowledge and training is attained in the course of work experience. These changes would enable all who currently qualify as Associate Members to become Full Members, allowing the ACS to drop the unnecessary membership category of "Associate Member". This proposal makes no changes in the various dues category for Full Members.

An amendment to the current Bylaw establishing specific requirements for Society Affiliate status would open this membership category to anyone interested in Chemistry.

There is also a developing consensus that undergraduate students should be eligible for Society membership status, as they are in most of our sister organizations. These amendments replace the Associate Member category with a Student Member category, granting Student Members all the rights of membership except those of holding national office. This includes the right to vote in Society elections. The proposed provisions governing this membership category are patterned after the current Associate Member category, and Divisions and Local Sections would have the option of allowing, but would not be required to allow, Student Members to serve as officers in the Division or Local Section, except for Councilor and Alternate Councilor. Divisions and Local Sections would also be enabled to waive or discount their dues for Student Members. Because the current Associate Member category is rendered unnecessary, it is proposed to effect these changes by straightforwardly replacing the term "ASSOCIATE MEMBER" with "STUDENT MEMBER" and Student Affiliate Chapters would become Student Chapters.

So, at my first National Meeting as MAC Chair, and as your Councilor, you can see that I have my hands full. However, this is a great proposal that, most feel, will bring the ACS membership requirements into today's real world.

As I stated, I will bring forth more information about my role as MAC Chair in future articles, as it is important to know what your Councilors are doing and how they are serving you - the ones who honored us by electing us to the positions we hold.

Please remember that I, and Jim Reynolds, are your voices on the national level. Feel free to contact me at 477-4903, email me at:

d.richard.cobb@kodak.com

or write me at:

15-C Greenleaf Meadows, Rochester, NY 14612.

Thank you!

D. Richard Cobb

The 2008 Rochester ACS Undergraduate Research Symposium will take place Saturday, April 26 at SUNY Geneseo. For further information and to submit an abstract, please contact symposium organizer Dr. Kazushige Yokoyama (585 245-5320, yokoyama@geneseo.edu).

Fellow Chemists:

The 2008 Northeast Regional Meeting will take place at the Sheraton Conference Center in beautiful Burlington, Vermont, from June 29th to July 2nd. The technical program includes symposia on environmental chemistry, green chemistry, particles and composites, synthetic organic chemistry, medicinal chemistry, peptides and proteins, 21st century energy, analytical interfacial science, chemistry education, computers in chemistry, layered materials, responsive polymers and self assembly, organometallic chemistry of the group 15 elements, physical chemistry, the history of chemistry, scanning probe microscopy, chemical biology, chemistry of foods and beverages, and industrial innovation. Our chemistry and policy forum, legislative action, and health and safety events will provide further opportunity for lively discussion.

NERM2008 will also feature an innovative "chemistry enthusiasts" program of fun and informative lectures on topics of general interest aimed at educators, retired chemists, and anyone who is enthusiastic about chemistry.

ACS regional meetings provide excellent opportunities for networking and developing regional collaborations. Social and networking events include poster sessions, receptions, a chemistry cruise on Lake Champlain, a comedy evening, and tours to places of regional and chemical significance (such as the Ben and Jerry's ice cream plant!).

NERM2008 also provides opportunities for professional development with career development workshops and workshops for chemistry educators at K-12 and college level.

The deadline for abstracts is May 11th. Further information and on-line abstract submission is available at http://www.nerm2008.org.

We hope you can join us at NERM2008!

Willem Leenstra
willem.leenstra@uvm.edu
NERM2008 General Chair

Martin Case
martin.case@uvm.edu
NERM2008 Program Chair

Fiona Case
greenmntacs@yahoo.com
NERM2008 Marketing Chair

Ralph Stuart
rstuart@uvm.edu
NERM2008 Exhibits Chair

The 40th Mid-Atlantic Regional Meeting of the American
Chemical Society will be held May 17 -21, 2008 at
Queensborough Community College, Bayside, NY. The theme
of the meeting, Chemistry & Health, reflects the
importance of the health sciences but MARM 2008
programming extends well beyond the central theme with
more than 60 technical sessions covering all areas of
chemistry. The online abstract submittal program is now open at www.marmacs.org.


We look forward to seeing you at MARM 2008!

Jill Rehmann, Ph.D.
MARM 2008 Publicity Committee
2006 Chair, ACS New York SectionJill Rehmann, Ph.D.
Department of Physical Science
St. Joseph's College
245 Clinton Ave
Brooklyn, NY  11205
917-539-5679

The Department of Chemistry at Nazareth College is seeking a non-tenure track, temporary instructor position for the 2008-2009 academic year. For more details, click here.