Virginia
Section of the Women Chemists Committee
Virginia
Section of the
Friday November 13, 2009 at University of Mary Washington
Catherine Fenselau
WCC is sponsoring Catherine Fenselau, an ACS Garvan award winner, as the speaker for the November 13th meeting in Fredericksburg.
In addition, a planning meeting for 2010 will be scheduled this fall. Anyone wanting to get involved with planning WCC activities, or be added to the email list, should contact Stephanie Mabry at 804-788-5280 or stephanie.mabry@aftonchemical.com
Friday 30 October 2009 at 12:00 pm
WCC Planning Lunch
The Women Chemists Committee of the Virginia Section will hold a lunch meeting on Friday, October 30, 2009 at 12:00 pm at Beauregard's Thai Room Restaurant, 103 E. Cary St., Richmond, VA 23219. Free parking is available at the restaurant. The purpose of the meeting is to discuss the past year’s events and plan activities for 2010. All interested persons are invited to attend. Please RSVP by Wednesday October 28 to Stephanie Mabry at 804-788-5280 or stephanie.mabry@aftonchemical.com
The minutes for this meeting are available as a pdf file.
Friday 19 June 2009 at 12:00 pm
WCC Networking Lunch
WCC Networking Lunch – June 19, 2009
The Women Chemists Committee of the Virginia section held a networking lunch on Friday June 19, 2000 at Legends Brewery in Richmond. Fourteen women and men (and one baby!) participated in the event coming from as far away as Williamsburg. The main topic of discussion was pregnancy in the lab. Attendees were surprised by the variations in policies and practices that exist not only between companies, but between university labs. Everyone shared their own stories or those of colleagues while enjoying a delicious lunch and door prizes provided by Saks Fifth Avenue.
The Women Chemists Committee of the Virginia Section will be holding a networking lunch on Friday June 19, 2009 at 12 pm at Legend Brewing Company, 321 West 7th Street, Richmond, VA (www.legendbrewing.com). The topic for discussion will be “Pregnancy in the Lab”. RSVP by Tuesday June 16 to Stephanie Mabry at 804-788-5280 or stephanie.mabry@aftonchemical.com
Friday 27 March 2009, 12:30 p.m.
WCC Chemistry Career Discussion Panel
John Tyler Community College, Richmond
Meeting NoticeOn Friday, March 27, five chemists from various aspects of industry, government, and academia talked to over 50 students and guests at John Tyler Community College for the first Chemistry Career Panel sponsored by the Women Chemists Committee of Virginia. Dr. Stephanie Mabry, chair of the WCC, introduced each of the women chemists who talked about how they became involved in their career in chemistry.
First, Ms. Shannon Smith talked about gaining a MS in chemical engineering, an MA in chemistry and finally a teaching certificate which allowed her to teach in high school and community college. She described getting a teaching certificate in Virginia which allowed her to teach introductory, college prep and forensics chemistry at a high school.
Dr. Marian Miller spoke on her varied career starting with a BS in chemistry and working as a forensic chemist both in the lab at crime scenes. She eventually received her doctorate in a forensics chemistry program and now leads the program at VCU.
Dr. Miller was followed by Ms. Jenna Rice, one of her former students who received a BS degree from the forensics program at VCU. Ms. Rice now works in the Chemical Terrorism group at the Division of Consolidated Laboratory Services, which the laboratory responsible for all testing for the Commonwealth of Virginia. She spoke on what she does in the lab and how the hiring process works at a government laboratory.
Next, Dr. Denise Walters from Wyeth Consumer Healthcare shared her career history working in industrial research laboratories. She joined the workforce after getting a BS in chemistry and worked on her PhD while employed. She explained that as a chemist in the pharmaceutical industry she has dealt with many aspects of projects from inception of the idea through testing and marketing of the product.
Finally, Dr. Suzanne Ruder, who is a professor at Virginia Commonwealth University, spoke on her journey toward being a research chemist at a PhD granting university. She talked about her decision to go directly into a PhD program after receiving her BS degree. She explained that by being a teaching assistant and doing research during her education, she was able to get her advanced degree without incurring large debt. Each of these women described their career path in such a way that the audience of both men and women were able understand and appreciate the options that a degree in chemistry can give. Much thanks also go to Dr. Kristine Smetana and JTCC for hosting this event.
Left to Right: Dr. Marian Miller, Dr. Denise Walters, Ms. Jenna Rice, Dr. Suzanne Ruter and Dr. Stephanie Mabry. Ms. Shannon Smith is not pictured.
The WCC consists of chemists in industry, academia and government who wish to advance the careers of women in chemistry. The next event planned for this committee is a discussion of Pregnancy in the Laboratory on June 19th at Legends Brewery, for more information visit the WCC webpage at http://membership.acs.org/V/VA/WCC/
Denise Walters
Denise Walters holds a Scientist I position in the Chemical Terrorism Group at DCLS. She has a Bachelor of Science in Forensic Science with a minor in Chemistry (VCU '06).
"The Virginia Chemical Terrorism Response and Preparedness laboratory supports the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the detection of exposure of humans to chemical warfare agents (i.e. nerve agent, mustard gas, blister agents, and cyanide). In addition to providing laboratory support in terrorism investigations, this group also supports federal and state environmental and law enforcement groups in environmental crime and hazardous material investigations throughout the Commonwealth."
Marilyn Miller
Marilyn Miller is a graduate of Florida Southern College with a bachelor's degree in chemistry. She earned a master's degree in forensic chemistry from the University of Pittsburgh and a Doctorate in Education from Johnson & Wales University in post-secondary educational leadership. She is currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Forensic Science at Virginia Commonwealth University. As a post-secondary educator, she teaches a wide variety of forensic science and crime scene investigation classes to both forensic science and criminal justice majors at the undergraduate and graduate levels.
Dr. Miller is a member of the criminalistics section of the American Academy of Forensic Science, the Southern Association of Forensic Scientists, and the American Chemical Society. Miller is a Fellow and faculty member of the Henry Lee Institute of Forensic Science and the National Crime Scene Training Center. She has presented and taught as part of hundreds of forensic seminars across the United States and Internationally.
Before coming to VCU, she worked as a supervisor and forensic scientist for law enforcement agencies in North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Florida. She has testified over 400 times in county, state and federal courts of law as an expert witness in the field of forensic sciences and crime scene reconstruction. She has participated in hundreds of crime scene investigations, both as an active investigator and as a consultant for both state and defense attorneys. Miller designed, opened and operated forensic laboratories on the West Coast of Florida.
