COOKEVILLE – The American Chemical Society recently handed out 49 Outstanding Awards and 27 Green Chemistry Awards to student chapters for 2020-2021. The Tennessee Tech chapter brought home one of each.
“I believe this is our chapter’s ninth consecutive year for receiving the Outstanding Award and our fifth consecutive year for receiving the Green Chemistry Award,” Amanda Carroll, chapter advisor, said.
The Society Committee on Education selects ACS Student Chapters to receive special recognition on the basis of their programs and activities, as described in their chapter reports. Awards are classified as outstanding, commendable and honorable mention.
“The number and variety of events is what earned our chapter the Outstanding award. Our report review said the reviewers were very impressed with how our chapter was able to do so many events while maintaining a safe environment through COVID-19,” Carroll said.
They were one of 27 student chapters who received the Green Chemistry Award for successfully completing green chemistry activities throughout the year.
“This puts our chapter in the top 10% of student chapters both nationally and internationally,” Carroll said.
The Green Chemistry Student Chapter Award provides national recognition for ACS student chapters who have shown outstanding commitment to incorporating green chemistry into their annual activities. It is an acknowledgement of green chemistry activities conducted by a student chapter.
To be eligible to be recognized as a green chemistry student chapter they must engage in at least three green chemistry activities during the academic year.
Student involvement in green chemistry principles and practices is essential to the integration of environmentally benign technologies in academia and industry, according to the American Chemical Society.
Recipients are recognized at the Green Chemistry Student Chapter Awards Ceremony held at ACS National Meetings, receive information on green chemistry travel awards and scholarship opportunities and gain connections with faculty engaged in green chemistry research.
The Tech chapter also drafted a proclamation for National Chemistry Week in October that was signed by the vice mayor.
They had a week full of activities that the campus and community participated in. It included walking a mole of zeptometers around the stadium track, a lecture on Green Chemistry and how it relates to human and environmental safety, an ACS webinar about the chemistry behind a good cup of coffee and a periodic table of cupcakes and a bake sale.
They viewed the ACS ChemLuminary awards program where they found out one of their events won an award for Fostering Interactions between Local Sections and Student Chapters, had movie night and handed out free chemistry activity bags, color changing cups and baked goods to the community at the Putnam County Library.
“Our chapter strives to serve our members, campus, and community through professional development events, service activities, and chapter development and social activities,” Carroll said.
