Michigan State University
Department of Chemistry
East Lansing, MI 48824

The Michigan State University Local Section has
participated in and sponsored a very wide variety of
activities with the goals of education in the chemical
sciences, outreach to our community, and greater
participation by minorities and women in the
field of chemistry. The cornerstone of these
activities in the past year occurred around National
Chemistry Week. The largest event sponsored was
"Chemistry Day at Impression 5". Impression 5 is a
local science activity center located in downtown
Lansing. In order to bolster community support for the
activity center we held an outreach activity there
centered on demonstrations and hands-on activities for
the public. The demonstrations were performed by many 
volunteers from MSU as well as high school groups.  
Both Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts attended and were 
rewarded for participation by receipt of a patch 
expounding the  theme 
of the event. Nearly 2000 people 
attended the event (including more than 700 scouts) 
which was publicized through the 
scout councils, in area newspapers, and on the web. 
The Women in Chemistry (WiC) program is 
extraordinarily active with numerous engagements 
during the past year. For example, WiC organized a 
Chemistry Merit Badge Day, presented 
workshops at the annual Girls' Math 
Science Conference, held a welcoming luncheon for 
incoming graduate students, and more.  The local 
section was also heavily involved in the education of 
students below the college level. Some of the 
activities for grade school level students are listed 
above such as Chemistry Day at Impression 5, 
Chemistry Merit Badge Day, and 
the Girls Math Science Conference. 
In addition, the MSU local section 
held a Chemistry Olympiad competition.  We are also 
in the fourth year of participation in Project SEED.  
The Younger Chemists Committee of the local section 
is also active.  The 
local section also sponsored the Organic Chemistry 
Club, which is co-organized by Babak Borhan and the 
treasurer of our local section (Prof. Rob Maleczka). 
The group meets weekly to discuss problems in organic 
chemistry, watchlectures, etc. In addition to the 
activities above, the local section gave financial 
support to students to attend national ACS meetings 
and presented 
outstanding undergraduate students with awards.   As 
can be seen from the brief description above, the MSU 
local section has been extremely active in the 
education and involvement of people of all ages in 
the chemical sciences.

The Michigan State University Local Section has
participated in and sponsored a very wide variety of
activities with the goals of education in the chemical
sciences, outreach to our community, and greater
participation by minorities and women in the
field of chemistry. The cornerstone of these
activities in the past year occurred around National
Chemistry Week where we sponsored "Chemistry Day at
Impression 5", which had nearly 2000 people in 
attendance.

Department of Chemistry
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI 48824

Chemistry Day at Impression 5
 
The MSU Local Section once again ushered in National
Chemistry Week with our 20th annual Chemistry Day
hands-on activity/demonstration event held from 10 am
to 3:30 pm on Saturday, October 28, 2006 at Impression
5 Science Center, a local hands-on science museum. 
This activity stimulates lots of member involvement. 
This year ~40 ACS members participated in the event. 
This is 10% of the MSU local section membership.

Admission to the event and hands-on museum was free,
thanks to a generous donation from MBI International, 
a
Lansing biotechnology firm.  The total attendance for
the event was approximately 2,000 people.

Though the event was open to the public, Girl Scout 
and
Boy Scout troops were specifically invited to
pre-register and attend by publicizing the event
through the local councils.  Any scout attending
received a scout patch (this is the seventh year we
have done this; the patch is the NCW theme patch
purchased from the ACS).  The total scout attendance
was 732, including 565 Boy Scouts and 167 Girl Scouts.
 Forty tables of hands-on activities, most consistent
with the theme, were presented by graduate and
undergraduate students from the Michigan State
University Department of Chemistry, freshman chemistry
students from the MSU Lyman Briggs School of Science,
undergraduates from the MSU Chemical Engineering
Department, representatives from the MSU Chapter of
NOBCChE (National Organization of Black Chemists and
Chemical Engineers), the MSU student-led science
outreach troupe Science Theatre, and several members 
of
the Alpha Chi Sigma professional chemistry fraternity.
 Two local high schools also sent teams of student
demonstrators.  Theme related activities included
demonstrations and hands-on activities involving 
making
paints, testing the hardness of water, paper
chromatography of household inks, using red cabbage
indicator to test the pH of household items, synthesis
of nylon rope (pictured), fruit batteries, the
chemistry of stain removers, a carbon dioxide leaky
faucet, calculating the speed of light using
marshmallows in a microwave, absorption and remission
of light (and many more!).  In addition to the
participation patch, each participant received an NCW
activity newspaper, a Hooray for Chemistry bag, an
NCW pencil, and an NCW helium balloon.  Total number 
of
volunteers (member & non-member): 156. 
Visit our website: 
http://www.chemistry.msu.edu/chemday

Chemistry Day at Impression 5 is the MSU Local 
Section's annual NCW celebration.  This is our 
biggest event each year with 10% of our membership 
participating.  Over 2000 people attended this hands-
on activity/chemical demonstration event, including 
approximately 730 scouts who earned participation 
patches.

Department of Chemistry
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI 48824

The women graduate students at Michigan State 
University founded ACS Women in Chemistry (WiC) in 
1997 after recognizing the need for a support network 
on both personal and professional levels.  WiC 
provides a venue for women who have or are pursing 
advanced degrees in chemistry or other related fields 
to interact, build networks, and support each other 
through their graduate careers and beyond.  WiC is 
primarily composed of graduate students, postdocs, 
specialists, and faculty members in the MSU 
Department of Chemistry, but also involves women in 
other departments and schools on campus, as well as 
undergraduate students and professional women in the 
community.  The ninth year of WiC has been very 
successful and rewarding for the members.  
Membership, participation, and activities continue to 
increase in an effort to constantly change and evolve 
as the interests and needs of the group change.  The 
women of WiC set goals for 2006 including expanding 
and diversifying participation in WiC activities, 
continuing the extensive community outreach program, 
and building and supporting the womens network at 
MSU.

To expand and promote participation in WiC activities 
from the community beyond the Department of 
Chemistry, WiC hosted luncheon at the ACS Central 
Regional Meeting in Frankenmuth, MI.  The guest 
speaker was Patricia Moore, a chemist from Dow 
Corning in Midland, MI.  With over 50 attendees, 
including both male and female graduate students and 
professionals, Ms. Moore focused her presentation on 
what it means to her to be a member of the chemistry 
community.  She impacted the audience by describing 
her activities in the community and how she feels it 
is important to touch a life and leave a legacy on 
younger members of the community.  The event provided 
a welcoming atmosphere for attendees to meet and 
discuss current issues for chemists.  WiC was pleased 
with the turnout of the event and was happy to have 
the opportunity to host such a function.  

Another major focus of 2006 was to continue and 
strengthen the outreach program that WiC deems an 
important way to give to the community and build the 
interest of young people in the sciences.  This year, 
Women in Chemistry served as state event coordinators 
for the chemistry laboratory event in the Michigan 
Science Olympiad.  WiC wrote and proctored a 
laboratory practical exam for high school students 
competing in the event.  WiC also continued their 
annual participation in Chemistry Day at Impression V 
Science Center in Lansing, MI, performing hands-on 
demonstrations for children in the area.  Women in 
Chemistry held the third and fourth-annual Scout 
Chemistry Merit Badge Day at MSU.  This event 
provides the opportunity for area boy scouts to earn 
their chemistry merit badge, and area girl scouts to 
earn a chemistry interest project patch (IPP).  WiC 
designed activities and requirements for the IPP for 
girl scouts in 2004, as the Girl Scout Council did 
not formerly have the option of a chemistry patch.  
This year over 40 girl and boy scouts registered for 
each event.  WiC also participated in the annual 
Girls Math/Science Conference which invites sixth-
grade girls with an expressed interested in math and 
science to participate in a day of experiments.  WiC 
members held two experiments and 
demonstrations: Chemical Properties of Soil 
and Solving Murder with Makeup.  WiC holds the idea 
of cultivating interest in chemistry and the sciences 
in young girls and boys at the highest regard, and 
find such outreach activities to be an integral part 
of our mission.

Women in Chemistry also sees the need to contribute 
to the community at large in building awareness about 
womens issues outside of the laboratory.  In 2006, 
WiC participated in the American Cancer Societys 
Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk for the 
fourth consecutive year, raising $3,800 for breast 
cancer research and awareness.  Sixteen WiC members 
and other concerned members of the MSU community 
walked with the WiC team, contributing to the growing 
number of total supporters.  WiC raised funds for the 
walk through personal donations, an ice cream social, 
and sale of pink bracelets, pins, and pink ribbons, 
the symbol of breast cancer awareness.  
WiC focuses on constantly building and strengthening 
the network of women in sciences at MSU, and 
recognizes the need for social activities as a way to 
create this supportive environment.  Some activities 
towards this end in 2006 included an end-of-the-
semester potluck dinner at the home of Dr. Kathryn 
Severin for women in the department, the annual 
welcome luncheon for incoming graduate students, and 
an evening creating dinners at Main Dish Kitchen. 
These activities serve to create a supportive, 
familiar environment for women to discuss their 
concerns, as well as provide a way for WiC to 
increase membership.

MSU WCCs various activities, both within the 
university and beyond, prove that it is an 
Outstanding Overall Local Section Women Chemist 
Committee.  WCCs contributions to the Department of 
Chemistry, the University at large, and the local 
community through outreach to children and adults, 
have established WiC as a well respected and reliable 
organization that constantly strives to better the 
environment for all people, especially women in the 
sciences.  Our group is very proud of our 
accomplishments, and looks forward to future growth 
and opportunities.

ACS Women in Chemistry at Michigan State University 
provides a supportive environment for women graduate 
students, faculty, and postdocs and has continued to 
grow and change in 2006.  To meet the needs of a 
broader audience, WiC hosted a luncheon at the ACS 
Central Regional Meeting where Patricia Moore 
discussed how members of the community should touch 
a life and leave a legacy.  WiC also has continued 
to provide extensive outreach activities to the youth 
of the area through activities such as Scout 
Chemistry Merit Badge Day, Science Olympiad, Girls 
Math/Science Conference, and National Chemistry 
Week.  WiC has had an extremely successful 2006 and 
looks forward to helping support graduate students 
and the community in the coming years.

Department of Chemistry
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI 48824

The MSU Local Section once again ushered in National
Chemistry Week with our 20th annual "Chemistry Day"
hands-on activity/demonstration event held from 10 am
to 3:30 pm on Saturday, October 28, 2006 at Impression
5 Science Center, a local hands-on science museum. 
Admission to the event and hands-on museum was free,
thanks to a generous donation from MBI International, 
a
Lansing biotechnology firm.  The total attendance for
the event was approximately 2,000 people, including 
732
Boy and Girl Scouts.  The event was publicized to the
general public through the local newspapers,
entertainment weeklies, web calendars, and before
science-themed movies at the local IMAX Theatre.  The
event was also publicized to the MSU community via a
posting in the weekly printed news bulletin.  

Though the event was open to the public, Girl Scout 
and
Boy Scout troops were specifically invited to
pre-register and attend by publicizing the event
through the local councils.  Any scout attending
received a scout patch (this is the seventh year we
have done this; the patch is the NCW theme patch
purchased from the ACS).  The total scout attendance
was 732, including 565 Boy Scouts and 167 Girl Scouts.
 Forty tables of hands-on activities, most consistent
with the theme, were presented by graduate and
undergraduate students from the Michigan State
University Department of Chemistry, freshman chemistry
students from the MSU Lyman Briggs School of Science,
undergraduates from the MSU Chemical Engineering
Department, representatives from the MSU Chapter of
NOBCChE (National Organization of Black Chemists and
Chemical Engineers), the MSU student-led science
outreach troupe Science Theatre, and several members 
of
the Alpha Chi Sigma professional chemistry fraternity.
 Two local high schools also sent teams of student
demonstrators.  Theme related activities included
demonstrations and activities of making paints, 
testing
the hardness of water, paper chromatography of
household inks, using red cabbage indicator to test 
the
pH of household items, synthesis of nylon rope, fruit
batteries, the chemistry of stain removers and drain
cleaners (pictured), a carbon dioxide leaky faucet,
calculating the speed of light using marshmallows in a
microwave, absorption and remission of light (and many
more!).  In addition to the participation patch, each
participant received an NCW activity newspaper, a
"Hooray for Chemistry" bag, an NCW pencil, and an NCW
helium balloon.  Total number of volunteers (member &
non-member): 156. 
Visit our website: 
http://www.chemistry.msu.edu/chemday

Chemistry Day at Impression 5 is the MSU Local
Section's annual NCW celebration.  Although the event
is open to the public, area Boy and Girl Scouts are
specifically invited to participate.  This year 156
volunteers brought hands-on activities and chemical
demonstrations to over 2000 people, including
approximately 730 scouts who earned participation
patches.  The event was made possible by the
collaboration of MSU Local Section, MSU Department of
Chemistry, MBI International, Lansing Area Girl Scout 
&
Boy Scout Councils, two local high schools, and
Impression 5 Science Center.