Chair's Comment
Committee on Community Activities (CCA)

It is an exciting year to be involved with National Chemistry Week (NCW) because this year’s celebration marks the 20th anniversary of this community outreach program.

I am pleased to invite you to celebrate the 2007 theme, “The Many Faces of Chemistry,” which will focus on both the many settings in which chemists are employed—the research laboratory, the executive office, the classroom, the patent office, for example—as well as the diversity of chemists themselves—people of all ages, races, genders, ethnicities, and backgrounds.

NCW began as a single day’s celebration. ACS Past-President George C. Pimentel had a vision to set aside one day every other year to focus on how chemistry is used “to solve societal problems and to improve the quality of life for us all.” National Chemistry Day (NCD) was first held on November 6, 1987, and 173 of 182 local sections participated in a variety of activities and events in their local communities. As a result of the program’s great initial success, NCD was expanded to a week-long celebration and was renamed as National Chemistry Week in 1989. In 1993, NCW officially became an annual event, although many ACS local sections had already been celebrating it every year.

In recognition of the volunteers who have contributed to the success of NCW, a special reception was held at the fall national meeting in Boston. Jeanne Pimentel, Dr. Pimentel’s wife, made a few comments about how impressed Dr. Pimentel would have been with the enthusiasm the program has received over the past 20 years. In addition, the ACS Committee on Community Activities (CCA) publicly acknowledged and thanked NCW coordinators who have been organizing and implementing activities in their communities for 5 or 10 years or even for all 20 years!

An all-day symposium called the 20th Anniversary of National Chemistry Week: The Many Faces of Chemistry was also held during the national meeting. The symposium, organized by CCA as part of the Division of Chemical Education’s program and cosponsored by the Committees on Minority Affairs and Technician Affairs, examined the history of NCW, the spirit of volunteerism, and how to communicate chemical concepts in age-appropriate ways to elementary school students.

Listed below are just a few of the resources available to assist NCW coordinators, educators, students, and enthusiasts planning for this year’s celebration. Please visit http://www.acs.org/ncw to find more information about the resources or contests listed.

• Celebrating Chemistry is a publication geared for students in elementary school and is available for the first time in both English and Spanish. This newspaper highlights careers in chemistry as well as the best themes and activities of past NCW celebrations. To obtain copies of the publication, visit the website or contact your local NCW coordinator.
  
• NCW Public Relations Tool Kit. The Office of Local Sections has created a public relations tool kit in honor of the 20th anniversary celebration of NCW to assist with advertising NCW events while promoting a positive image of chemistry. We encourage you to begin using this kit immediately, and we look forward to hearing about your successes.
  
• NCW Poster Contest. Please encourage students in grades K–12 to submit an entry for the national poster contest. The poster should be fun and motivational and should inspire students to pursue a science- or chemistry-related career.
  
• Chemvention. Encourage your local active ACS Student Affiliates chapters to participate in this competition. Chapters are challenged to develop a hands-on activity for elementary students based on the 2008 NCW theme, “Having a Ball with Chemistry —Chemistry in Sports.”
  
• Community Event. ACS local sections are encouraged to conduct a chemistry career fair, which should be held during NCW (or just before or after).
  
• ChemMatters is a magazine for high school chemistry students and will devote its October issue to NCW. The Journal of Chemical Education will celebrate NCW 2007 by making special materials available for the October issue of ChemMatters. A print issue will be available to each ACS local section NCW coordinator, and all NCW coordinators will have online access to these special materials.
  
• NCW Greeting from ACS President. Katie Hunt recorded a special 20th anniversary greeting for NCW which is available on the website for viewing and downloading.

Building on two decades of success as the premier community outreach and informal education program of the ACS, CCA looks forward to another successful celebration of NCW during this special anniversary year!

Finally, I would like to thank everyone who contributed time and energy to the success of the NCW program. Thank you for sharing your enthusiasm for chemistry, and happy 20th anniversary!

Ingrid Montes, Chair
ACS Committee on Community Activities

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