Student organization honored by American Chemical Society

December 4, 2006

The Georgia Southern University chapter of the American Chemical Society (ACS) Student Affiliates program has been recognized for its activities during the 2005-2006 academic year.

The University chapter will receive an Outstanding award, which is the highest honor bestowed by the ACS Student Affiliates program.

To earn the award, the University chapter organized successful programs, including free tutoring sessions for Georgia Southern students and after-school demonstrations for Bulloch County school children.

The ACS is comprised of more than 158,000 members at all degree levels and in all fields of chemistry. The organization provides a broad range of opportunities for peer interaction and career development, regardless of professional or scientific interests.

The ACS Student Affiliates program supports undergraduate students, their faculty and local section members in promoting professional development, mentoring and peer-support mechanisms for those who are interested in the chemical sciences. Student affiliation allows students to network with top professionals, attend scientific meetings and directly access research.

The Georgia Southern chapter has 25 members, according to advisor Michele Davis McGibony, an associate professor in the Department of Chemistry.

During the 2005-2006 academic year, the chapter offered a pair of two-hour tutoring sessions each week for general and organic chemistry students. Each session attracted as many 18 students.

In addition, the chapter visited a number of Bulloch County schools and put on a chemistry ‘magic show” that was designed to make the subject fun and interesting for young students.

The chapter was also involved in a number of Bulloch County community service events, including Adopt A Mile, Habitat for Humanity and the Relay for Life.

Finally, the chapter attended national and regional ACS meetings and hosted a number of guest speakers on campus.

‘We have the most dedicated students in our organization,” McGibony said. ‘They give much of their free time to philanthropic efforts and to encourage student towards chemistry.

‘I am very proud of their accomplishments and honored to be their advisor.”

With chapters at more than 980 colleges and universities in the U.S. and Puerto Rico, the ACS Student Affiliates program has an enrollment of over 10,000 students. Each chapter is required to submit an annual report of its activities, and the reports are reviewed by the ACS Committee on Education, which selects the top chapters for recognition as Outstanding, Commendable or Honorable Mention.

This marks the fifth year in a row that the Georgia Southern chapter has been recognized. The chapter received Outstanding awards for the 2002-2003 and 2003-2004 academic years, and Commendable awards for the 2001-2002 and 2004-2005 academic years.

ACS President E. Ann Nalley praised McGibony’s role in the continued success of the Georgia Southern chapter.

‘Few faculty members are willing to make the great commitment of time and energy that a successful chapter requires of its advisors,” Carroll said. ‘It takes more than exceptional effort to be an award-winning chapter  it takes the nurturing attention of dedicated advisors.”

For the 2005-2006 academic year, the ACS recognized 34 Outstanding chapters, 56 Commendable chapters and 75 Honorable Mention chapters. The awards will be presented at the 233rd ACS National Meeting, which will be held in Chicago in March.