Spring 2007 ACS Meeting Governance Summary

The following is a summary of key actions of the ACS Council and Board of Directors at the 2007 spring national meeting, held in Chicago March 25-29.

ACTIONS OF THE COUNCIL

Election Results

· The Committee on Nominations and Elections presented to the Council the following nominees for selection as candidates for President-Elect, 2008: Pat N. Confalone, Thomas H. Lane, William A. Nugent, and Howard M. Peters. By written ballot the Council selected Thomas H. Lane and Howard M. Peters as candidates for 2008 President-Elect. These two candidates will stand for election in the Fall National Election.

· The Committee on Nominations and Elections announced the results of the election to select candidates from the list of nominees to represent District II and District IV on the Board of Directors for the term 2008-2010. Nominees for District II included: Robin J. Hood, Joseph R. Peterson, Diane Grob Schmidt, and Steven W. Yates. Nominees for District IV included Paul F. Barbara, Eric C. Bigham, John P. Fackler, Jr., and Gregory H. Robinson. By mail ballot the councilors from these districts selected Joseph R. Peterson and Diane Grob Schmidt as District II candidates; and as District IV candidates, Eric C. Bigham and Gregory H. Robinson. Ballots will be mailed on or before October 10 to all members in District II and District IV for election of a Director from each District.

Candidates for Directors-at-Large

· The Committee on Nominations and Elections announced the selection of the following candidates for Directors-at-Large for a 2008-2010 term: Janan M. Hayes, Helen A. Lawlor, Kent J. Voorhees, and Frankie K. Wood-Black. The election of two Directors-at-Large will be conducted in the fall. Ballots will be mailed to the Council on or before October 10.

Committee Performance Reviews

· As part of a regular review, the Council VOTED to continue the Committee on Science, the Women Chemists Committee, and the Younger Chemists Committee - subject to concurrence by the Board of Directors. The Committee on Science provides an organizational framework to facilitate policy formulation, actions, and planning in several areas of ACS activity directly related to the science of chemistry. The Women Chemists Committee was established to recognize women chemists and to encourage them to take an active interest in Society activities; and the Younger Chemists Committee facilitates communication of ideas and attitudes between the governing bodies of the Society and younger chemists.

Petitions

(For Action)

· The Council received three amendments to the ACS Bylaws (Petitions) for action: the Petition on Election Procedures 2006, the Petition on Rules for Nominating Members of

N&E for National Offices, and the Petition on Multi-Year Dues.

· The Council VOTED to split consideration and action on the Petition on Election Procedures 2006 into two parts: Part 1 changes the timing of run-off elections and specifies an election process for situations in which only one Director-at-Large position is open.

Part 2 addresses consistency in national election procedures. It proposes changes to standardize the petition and election processes for President-Elect and all Director positions based on percentages of voting members. It replaces language specifying a required absolute number of petition signatures for nomination of candidates for President-Elect, and Director-at-Large with language specifying a higher requirement for petition signatures as a percentage of the membership for nomination of candidates for these offices.

The Council VOTED to accept Part 1. For Part 2, the Council VOTED to recommit this petition back to the Committee on Nominations and Elections and ask that they reconsider the signature requirements, procedures for processing electronic signatures, and those suggestions arising from the Governance Review Task Force pertinent to election procedures.

· The Petition on Rules for Nominating Members of N&E for National Offices establishes a one-year waiting period following service on the Committee on Nominations and Elections before an individual can be nominated for District Director, President-Elect or Director-at-Large. The Council VOTED by recorded vote to defeat this petition.

· The Council VOTED to accept the Petition on Multi-Year Dues. This petition will allow members paying full dues without any of the discounts to pay for periods of two or three years if they wish, at a rate equal to two or three times the rate for a one year period. Council also VOTED to make this petition effective when technical components are instituted to offer and track the payments, but no later than January 1, 2010.

· The Board of Directors will vote within 90 days on whether to ratify the approved petitions.

(For Consideration)

· The Council received one petition for consideration: the Petition on Local Section Affiliations. The petition addresses a difference in current Society bylaws regarding the responsibilities of the Committee on Local Section Activities (LSAC) and the Committee on Divisional Activities (DAC) in oversight of the establishment of affiliations by local sections and divisions, respectively. The petition grants responsibilities for LSAC parallel to those currently established for DAC. Action is expected on the petition at the fall national meeting.

2008 Member Dues

· The Council VOTED to set the member dues for 2008 at the fully escalated rate of $136. This rate is established pursuant to an inflation-adjustment formula in the ACS Constitution and Bylaws.

The Society’s Finances

· The Society ended 2006 with a net contribution from operations of $12.2 million, on revenues of $424.0 million and expenses of $411.9 million, which was $7.8 million favorable to the approved budget. The favorable variance was primarily attributable to higher-than-budgeted electronic services revenue and investment income, as well as expense savings from lower-than-budgeted health care costs and reduced IT spending. In addition, the Society ended 2006 in full compliance with the Board-established financial guidelines.

Registration Report

· As of March 27, 2007, the ACS fall national meeting had attracted 14,520 registrants as follows: Regular attendees 7,152; Students 5,059; Exhibitors 1,283; Exposition only 573; and Guests 453.

Future National Meetings

· The Council VOTED to approve dates and sites for 2017 national meetings as follows: April 2-6, San Francisco, California; and September 10-14, St. Louis, Missouri.

New Local Section

· The Council VOTED to establish the Snake River Local Section with headquarters in Boise, ID. This brings the total number of local sections to 190.

Member Statistics

· ACS closed 2006 with 160,491 members, the highest year-end membership since 2002. Of the 17,857 applications processed in 2006, more than 1,000 came from the Member-Get-A-Member campaign, in which many councilors participated.

Governance Review

· The Council received a report on the recent activities of the Governance Review Task Force. Councilors were informed that since the last Council meeting, the task force has met twice and action teams have been actively addressing those areas under the “Advance” category. Councilors also learned that the Council Policy Committee and the Board of Directors VOTED, as recommended by the Governance Review Task Force, to accept four recommendations under the “Refine” category.

Chemical Professional’s Code of Conduct

· The Council VOTED to approve the Chemical Professional’s Code of Conduct as submitted by the Committee on Economic and Professional Affairs. This document offers guidance for Society members in various professional dealings, especially those involving conflicts of interest.

Resolutions

· The Council adopted resolutions in memory of deceased councilors and ACS Past Presidents Robert Parry (1982), and Fred Basolo (1983).

ACTIONS OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

The Board’s Standing Committees

· The Board of Directors received a report on the screened list of candidates from the Committee on Grants and Awards for the 2008 Priestley Medal and the Volunteer Service Award. The Board will announce the winners of these two awards after its June meeting. The Board also VOTED to approve a new award: the ACS Award for Affordable Green Chemistry, and an endowment to support the award sponsored by the Rohm and Haas Company. The Committee on Grants and Award concluded its report with an update from the PRF Steering Committee.

· The Board received a report on the activities of the Committee on Public Affairs and Public Relations where they were informed of its actions at this meeting and recent governance advocacy activities since the committee’s last meeting in December.

Activities of the Board’s Task Forces and Working Groups

· The Board of Directors received status reports from several of its task forces and working groups namely: the Governance Review Task Force, the International Strategy Advisory Group, Percy Julian Task Force, the Board Oversight Group on Leadership Development, the working group on 2007 Board Goals and the working group charged with planning the Board’s retreat. The Board VOTED, on the recommendation of the Governance Review Task Force, to accept four recommendations under the “Refine” category. The Board also expressed its appreciation to the Percy Julian Task Force for its outstanding work and presented its members with plaques of the US House of Representative Resolution (February 2007) honoring the life and contributions of Dr. Julian.

Recognition of Chemical Society Milestone Anniversaries

· The Board approved resolutions recognizing the 100^th anniversary of the Hungarian Chemical Society and the 150^th anniversary of the French Chemical Society. The French Chemical Society’s anniversary will be celebrated in connection with its national meeting and the “C6” meeting, a summit of six large international chemical societies, in July. The Hungarian Chemical Society will celebrate its anniversary in June.

The Review and Approval of Two Policies

· The Board reviewed and approved a statement on scholarship as presented by the Committee on Education, and a series of policies for the acceptance of gifts as supported by the Task Force on Development Activities.

Compensation of Society Staff

· On the recommendation of the Committee on Executive Compensation, the Board VOTED to approve several actions relative to compensation for the Society’s executive staff. The compensation of the Society’s executive staff receives regular review from the Board.

The Executive Director/CEO Report

The Executive Director/CEO led a discussion on challenges facing the ACS, 2007-2011, including demographic/disciplinary, international, workforce readiness & science competitiveness, knowledge transfer and governance reform, and on priority recommendations for addressing those challenges. She also, along with several of her direct reports, updated the Board on the following issues: the impact of evolving information and communication technologies and trends on the Society, the Web Presence initiative, the ACS Green Chemistry Institute, and the activities of Chemical Abstracts Service, the Publications Division, and the Society’s General Counsel.

Message from the Chair - April 2007

April is upon us and, as is tradition within the Rochester Section, April serves as the eve of a lot of major activities.

This month, the Undergraduate Symposium taking place Saturday, April 21st at RIT. There is also the annual High School Chemistry Olympiad test taking place April 28th. Of course, do not forget about the popular monthly “Mixer” (at MacGregor's at 300 Jefferson Road) on April 24th!

Then we head into May when we have a new “joint” event planned, as well as three High School Chemistry Award evenings. There is still space available for the May 12th joint event with the Western New York Section (Buffalo area). Please look for the flyer in this newsletter or on the Section's website. The deadline for reservations for this event is May 5th and space is limited to only 27 people. The cost is only $15.00 and includes bus transportation as well as lunch and a tour of the Niagara Falls Power Authority with members of the Western New York Section.

The High School Chemistry Award evenings are May 17th (Canandaigua), May 22nd (Franklin) and May 29th (Leroy). These award evenings are a great chance for our members who want to offer some help in the Section without a major commitment. We need several ushers for those evenings. If you are interested, please contact Jim Reynolds (james.reynolds@kodak.com).

This leads me to the new program that we are initiating. We are doing a talent search! If you will let us know what you like to do and what your areas of expertise and interest are, along with how much time you’d like to offer to our Local Section, we will team you up with an activity that matches both! It does not matter whether you can offer a week, a month or an hour – we need everyone to be involved to show that we are indeed – the best Local Section for membership involvement. Please take the time to fill out the Talent Search survey today!

Oh, if that is not enough, we still have space available for the June 23rd joint event with the Corning Section that includes the day at the Corning Museum of Glass! Space is going fast and you will not want to miss out on this wonderful event! The deadline for reservations is June 9th. The cost is only $20.00 and includes bus transportation, entrance into the Corning museum of Glass, special presentations and a Chinese dinner with members of the Corning Section.

Yes we have a lot of activities in the wings, ready to come upon our stage as we enter April. 2007 is showing up as the year of rejuvenation for the Rochester Section – don’t miss a beat of it!

Please take the time to look at where we have volunteer opportunities and our schedule of events for 2007. There’s a lot going on and we’d love to have the chance to be with you and work with you!

D. Richard Cobb
2007 Chair
Rochester Section, ACS

d.richard.cobb@kodak.com
Phone = 585-477-4903

Call for Nominations

Nominations are now being accepted for the 2007 Rochester Section election. Positions that will be on this year’s ballot are:

• Chair-Elect (3 year commitment – one year each as chair-elect, chair and past-chair)
• Treasurer (2 year term)
• Councilor (3 year term)
• Alternate Councilor (3 year term)
• Three positions for Member-at-Large (2 year term)

All candidates must be members of the ACS.

According to the Rochester Bylaws (Bylaw V Sec. 2.), candidates for the office of Chair-Elect should have been active within the Section in some form of elected, appointed, or volunteer role.

Please send any nominations to this year’s Chair of the Nomination and Election Committee (Joan Williams, joan.williams@kodak.com) no later than September 11, 2007. It would be appreciated if you would discuss the nomination with the potential candidate before submitting their name. Along with their name, please provide a phone number or e-mail address.

Message from the Chair - March 2007

"We have ignition … We have liftoff!" That was the title of the keynote address given by 2007 ACS President Katie Hunt at our Annual Dinner on February 9th. Her talk focused on re-igniting our commitment to science and technology through innovation, collaboration, and education. It was a great presentation, as was her entire day which included a breakfast with Kodak Managers, a keynote address before the Technician Symposium at Kodak, and a full schedule of events at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID) at RIT.

A big “Thank you” and congratulations to the members of the Technician Affiliate Group for their successful technician symposium. Thanks also to Joan Williams for planning the successful Annual Dinner, and to Todd Pagano, the students and faculty at NTID/RIT for their wonderful programs and presentations to Dr. Hunt. The day at RIT was a moving and an eye opening experience for me. In the near future, I am hoping to be able to announce plans for a new “WOW” Program in our area. This will be an exciting venture that will connect students from NTID/RIT with the Rochester School for the Deaf.

So we have experienced out own "ignition and liftoff" for 2007 with these successful events. Now we need to take it a step further. I am announcing a new “Rochester Section Talent Search”! We are trying to find out what our members like to do, what skills and talents they have, and what hobbies they enjoy so that we can match them up with a Local Section activity. Some people may have little time to donate, but may be able to contribute finacially to the Section to help in specific programs. Thus, this new Talent Search opens up the door for them to contribute in a financial and a tax-exempt manner. Both of these forms will be available soon on the Section’s web page.

As we enter March, it is a also good time to remind members about the two joint events with neighboring Local Sections.

May 12th – A bus trip to Niagara Falls for a lunch with the Members of the Western New York Section (Buffalo area) and a visit to the Niagara Falls Power Authority. (Total cost is $15.00).

June 23rd – A bus trip to Corning for a day at the Corning Museum of Glass with members of the Corning Section, special presentations and a Chinese dinner. (Total cost = $20.00)

More information about these trips and reservation forms are available at our Local Section
website.

Also, before we know it, we will need volunteers to help with the annual Spring High School Chemistry Award Nights! Please stay tuned for further info.

As Chair, I am here to serve you – the Members of the Rochester Section. This is YOUR Section! Let me hear from you!

D. Richard Cobb
2007 Chair
Rochester Section, ACS

Email = d.richard.cobb@kodak.com
Phone = 585-477-4903

Technician Affiliate Group (TAG) Report - March 2007

The Kodak Technicians’ Symposium, "The Technician Element in Innovative Technology at Eastman Kodak", was held February 9, 2007. The event was co-sponsored by the Rochester Technician Affiliate Group (TAG) and Kodak's Office of the Chief Technical Officer. The symposium invited all Kodak technicians to present posters of their work. Dr. Catherine Hunt, 2007 President of the American Chemical Society was the keynote speaker and focused her presentation on the three central themes of her presidency:

* Education: For ourselves, legislators, the media, the general public, and the next generation
* Collaboration: Building a strong, vibrant and vocal technical community
* Innovation: Recreating our companies, our schools, and ourselves

Following Dr. Hunt’s presentation, a poster session was held in Kodak’s research complex. A total of 21 posters were presented by Kodak technicians on a wide array of topics including inkjet printing, thin film transistors, OLED diplays, nanoparticles, polymer synthesis, and many others.

The symposium organizing committee members were Deborah Janes, Tulienne Molaire, Timothy Wilson, Anne Marie Lanzafame, Joan Williams, Mary Jane Witkiewitz and Dick Cobb. The organizing committee would like to express our thanks to Doreen Johnson, John Dyer and Nancy Ferris for their generous support of the symposium.

Tim Wilson and Deb Janes were involved with several educational outreach opportunities during February:

A forensic workshop was presented at CWS STANYS for educators at Nazareth College. This activity was held to help educators to meet new circular mandates.

An educational outreach poster was presented at the Technician Affiliate Group’s 2007 poster session on Feb. 9. This poster was well received and may result in the renewed support to sponsor a science show during “Bring Your Daughters and Sons to Work Day” at Kodak in April.

Six general science demonstrations were held for Otetiana Council’s Bay Water District Winter Fun Day at East Ridge High School Feb. 10. The popularity of the show was apparent as the organization committee asked us to reserve a date for next year at the conclusion of the day.

Tim and Deb were invited to participate in a career day at Spencerport Jr. High School on Feb. 14 to present excite a newly developed presentation entitled: “What do students need to succeed in a science career?” The event was cancelled due to inclement weather and may be rescheduled in the future.

A series of hands-on activities were also presented for National Engineering Week held at the Rochester Museum and Science Center on Feb. 17.

Rochester Technician Award 2007

The Rochester Section of the American Chemical Society is seeking nominations for the 2007 ROCHESTER TECHNICIAN AWARD.

The ACS defines a technician as a person whose training includes successful completion of a two-year post-high school level science curriculum leading to an Associate’s degree, the equivalent course work in a Baccalaureate program, or the equivalent knowledge gained by experience. The primary work of a technician is to conduct experiments, correlate information to help solve problems, and discover new knowledge.

Eligibility: All technicians, as defined by the ACS and with a minimum of five years experience, are eligible for nomination. Membership in the ACS or the Rochester Section's Technician Affiliate Group (TAG) is not required. All technicians working in the areas covered under the 34 divisions of the ACS are eligible for nomination. This includes, but is not limited to, process, environmental, health/safety, quality assurance, medical, analytical and R&D technicians.

Nominations should include a description of the Nominee’s Job Skills, Reliability, Communication Skills, Safety Awareness, Relationships with co-workers, Publications/Presentations and other professional or community related activities.
Please include your Nominee’s work address, e-mail and phone number.
Seconding letters are encouraged and may be submitted by anyone with knowledge
of the nominee, not just ACS or TAG members.

The Award will be presented at the local ACS Award dinner on October 26, 2007.

Nominees from previous years are eligible.

Past winners are eligible to reapply after a minimum of 5 years.

Exclusions include ACS Technician Affiliate Group Executive Board members and Awards Committee members.

DEADLINE: Nominations are due by May 1, 2007.

Please send Nominating Letters to:
Joan K. Williams
Eastman Kodak Company,
Building 82C
Rochester NY 14650-2124
(585) 477-0990.
joan.williams@kodak.com

Local Schools Up for Adoption!

Why are University of Rochester graduate students back in fourth grade?

These volunteers are part of Adopt-a-School, a program designed to bring science resources and role models into local fourth grade classrooms. The group was created in 1990 by the Rochester Section of the American Chemical Society and is currently chaired by Katherine O’Brien. To make more outreach programs available to young chemists, the Rochester Section's Younger Chemists Committee (YCC) paired up with Adopt-a-School in 2003.

The project has taken off. This year, YCC adopted six fourth grade classrooms at James P. Duffy Elementary School (School 12) in downtown Rochester. Eighteen graduate students participate in the program. The students visit the school for one hour each month and bring topics like classification, magnetism, and chromatography to life for the fourth graders. As one volunteer stated, "Kids see that learning can be more than just reading from a book. It can be measuring water squeezed from a sponge to learn about volume, or sorting items in their own grocery store to learn about classification." The graduate students also meet monthly to discuss previous visits, prepare for the next kit, and brainstorm ways to improve their teaching strategies.

And the schools love it! Rochester YCC Chair Katie Leach says, "What impresses me the most is the way the classroom jumps to life when the kids sees us approaching. Even though we visit only once a month, the students remember our names and everything about us! The teachers appreciate how our lessons reinforce important concepts that they teach in the classroom, especially since we challenge students to think like real scientists."

Why fourth graders? According to the National Assessment for Educational Progress (NAEP), students' achievement at the fourth grade level lays the groundwork for the rest of their science education. There is also the New York State science exam, a standardized test that fourth graders take at the end of the school year. While working with Adopt-a-School's eight science kits, students gain crucial hands-on experience in topics that directly relate to questions posed on the exam and its laboratory components.

Students aren't the only ones who benefit from the program. Because the kits are made from household items, teachers are getting great ideas for do-it-yourself science resources. The program also fosters interaction between graduate students and local chemists, and strengthens ties between the University of Rochester and the community. Best of all, volunteers, teachers, and students have a great time cultivating this creative and lively learning atmosphere.

The YCC in Rochester is continuing to grow, and there are opportunities for local chemists and for students from area colleges and universities to get involved with Adopt-a-School. Volunteers who would like to learn more about the group can contact Lisa Carlson (lcarlso2@mail.rochester.edu).