Council Statement, March 26th, 2003
V.P. Chlorovinyl Issues, Occidental
Chemical Corporation
Adjunct Professor of Chemistry, Indiana University
MANAGING FOR VALUE
These are days of increasing need but limited resources. We in governance
will be measured by how we plan and manage for members, society and future
generations of chemists. The times require us to focus on and deliver
value as never before.
Excelling at Basics.
Our Local Sections and Divisions are the engines of the Society.
Increased financial support must and will come, but money isn't everything.
The roles of these groups are growing and evolving but our volunteer base
is eroding, especially in many Local Sections, and we should be concerned.
We can be more creative-whether through programs devised at the national
level or through section or division mutual aid--in helping both entities
attract involved members. It means thinking beyond traditional models
and experimenting with new activity that fits members' lifestyles but
satisfies their desire for participation. Some groups, most notably the
Younger Chemists Committee, have led the way in promoting a public service
model of involvement, which I believe has merit. Showcasing chemists and
chemistry in service to society provides a great opportunity to start
a conversation with the public about the benefits of chemistry. Local
Sections are the ideal launching pad for this dialogue.
We must remain the premier source for chemical information. We
are experts in designing new information vehicles to serve those who work
at the frontier. We create the best tools for extracting precise answers
from increasingly complex literature. Our leadership is based on our ability
to detect needs, especially in interdisciplinary science, and to serve
them with excellence; our livelihood depends on pressing this advantage.
Members and nonmembers alike depend upon Chemical Abstracts and Publications
being soundly and creatively managed.
Employment services are a core need. Members identified employment
assistance and continuing education as key needs in the 2001 electronic
poll; they are even more critical in 2003. Members in need deserve the
very best their Society and colleagues can offer. We can't create jobs,
but we can facilitate opportunity and individual development. This investment
in our peers deserves top priority.
We welcome excellence. Diversity matters to us; we all benefit
from expanded horizons. Talent and desire should see no barrier to entry
or advancement in chemistry.
What takes priority in difficult times? Infrastructure. Divisions,
local sections, committees, publications, meetings and above all, members.
Seizing opportunities:
A more chemically-literate generation is on the way. According
to NSF, 60% of high school students now take chemistry. This statistic
reflects recognition of the technological age by the educational system.
It also reflects an emerging opportunity for ACS.
Too few high school chemistry teachers hold chemistry degrees. Streamlining
certification for experienced chemists with the desire to teach is a start
and is happening. Still, many students will never have a chemist as a
teacher.
We can help. Some schools have designed a summer experience for non-chemist
teachers of chemistry. ACS should catalog the best ideas in these courses,
design curricula if necessary, encourage more schools to offer them, publicize
them and help schools and individuals identify potential local sources
of funding for individual teachers to attend. We can have a chemically
literate and even "chemophilic" public if we make chemistry
compelling for the emerging majority who will study it.
The "non-traditional" career is becoming the norm. We
are deeply responsive to the needs of interdisciplinary chemists, but
we have yet to reach out strongly to those who were educated in chemistry,
still use the tools and science they were taught, but no longer work in
the field. Non-traditional careers will attract more chemists in the future;
chemists so employed bring diversity of perspective, potential involvement
and a public voice. These allies for chemistry should not fall through
the cracks of our membership requirements and outreach.
If chemistry is the central science, why is chemistry not the central
degree? In past years, liberal arts students found that majoring in
English prepared them for many careers. On the other hand, with a basic
chemistry major and other science and humanities courses, a liberal arts
student finishing four years of college is well prepared for law, medicine,
business, technology management, government--almost any imaginable discipline,
including but not limited to graduate chemistry. We should develop a "Chemistry/Liberal
Arts" curriculum and degree program, certify it and promote it as
part of our ongoing efforts to rethink chemical education.
These days, no association can afford to be an island. With chemistry-related
trade associations and professional societies all focused on improving
the public image of chemistry, we must partner where it makes sense.
Alliances make budgets go further, but there's more. When we work together
we mobilize more human energy in the service of chemistry. I chaired a
Presidential task force that involved the American Chemistry Council and
its company members in National Chemistry Week-many had never participated
before this year. International Activities Committee, which I chair, allies
with our global counterparts. Alliances succeed if they are based on common
goals, people of goodwill and an environment of mutual respect.
Making it Personal:
Our neighbors and our colleagues expect us to be ambassadors for chemistry.
Who speaks for the relevance of science if not its practitioners? We must
make a technical world more accessible for our children and their teachers;
for our friends and the authorities. Much of my career has involved speaking
and listening to these audiences.
The President of ACS should be the most visible face and the most credible
voice on behalf of chemistry. That means seeking out and utilizing every
opportunity to engage groups, and to interact with individuals, both inside
and outside ACS.
And value matters more than ever. The public responds when we
reach out to them about the benefits of chemistry. We create value for
members-current and future--when we identify needs clearly, deliver results
reliably and steward resources sustainably. I am personally committed
to being that voice and succeeding at that management challenge on behalf
of our members, our Society and society at large.
http://www.billcarroll.org
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