MILWAUKEE SECTION
AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY

Councillors' Report

1. The slate for president elect of The Society was presented to the Council with four candidates. The initial four candidates were; (1) Charles Casey (University of Wisconsin - Madison); (2) Ernest Davidson (Indiana University); (3) William Jackson (University of California - Davis); (4) Alvin Kwiram (University of Washington - Seattle). After ballots were counted in the election by councilors, two candidates will be forwarded to the membership for president elect. They are Charles Casey and Alvin Kwiram.
   
   
2. In his report, ACS President, Eli Pearce, strongly emphasized the need for diversity in the ACS and noted his activities designed to enhance diversity. He also noted his interest in enhancing the cooperation between Local Sections and Divisions, particularly at regional meetings of the ACS. A new grant program has been established to foster this cooperation at such meetings.
   
   
3. President Pearce also encouraged Local Sections to watch statewide educational policy as it relates to science education. In Ohio, based on input from the Columbus Section, Pearce was able to address education policy makers on behalf of the ACS and he is willing to contribute such efforts in other locations.
   
   
4. One final note from the address by Eli Pearce, he has charged the Society Committee on Chemical Education (SOCED) with looking into the possibility of recommending a complete overhaul of undergraduate and graduate chemistry education. SOCED will form a task-force whose charge will be to invent a chemistry curriculum for the 21st century as though there were no curriculum of any kind in place. This exercise might point out options for significant reform of Chemistry Education for the future.
   
   
5. President-elect Else Reichmanis also reported to the Council. She too noted an interest in strengthening regional meeting programming and indicated that an increase in interdisciplinary offerings (in research and education) might be one way to accomplish this goal. She noted her work to increase connections between chemists and chemical engineers, as one example of ways to enhance cooperation between disciplines. Finally she expressed a concern that a substantial majority of major ACS awards are presented to scientists in academia, and indicated that she would look into ways to make sure developments in industry are given appropriate credit in consideration of national awards.
   
   
6. The Board of Directors noted that it had spoken with Dr. John Marburger, Science Advisor in the Bush Administration at it's most recent meeting. They reported to him some concern that the Department of Energy was proposing an on-line resource for science information that is largely redundant with Chemical Abstract Services (CAS). CAS is a major source of funding to The Society so the prospect of a government subsidized competitor for this type of information source will be a continued concern.
   
   
7. The Committee on Committees reported that it has instituted a new 3-day workshop for new chairs of Society committees. The initial workshop was held this year in New Mexico and was considered helpful by those who attended.
   
   
8. The council acted to postpone to the Boston meeting the Petition to Increase the size of Society Committees. "It is not clear whether Committee on Committees needed more time to study the petition or whether the Society Committee on Chemical Education is not in favor to increase the size of the Society committees?"
   
   
9. The Council voted to change the status of the Women Chemists Committee to become a joint Board - Council Committee of The Society. This vote was unanimous.
   
   
10. The Committee on Committees is undergoing a complete review of the committee structure of The Society. As these committees carry out a sizeable fraction of the work of The Society, input from all members is encouraged. Any member who wishes to provide input on the committee structure may email such comments to committeereview@acs.org.
    
    
11. The Committee on Nominations and Elections reported that it is investigating the possibilities of electronic balloting. Some work in this area has been carried out by Divisions and by Local Sections. Any Local Section may submit a proposal for funding to support electronic ballot election. The proposal deadline is July 30.
    
    
12. The Society reported an operating loss in 2001 of $8.3 million. This deficit has two primary causes. First, the return on investments was weak due to the weakening economy. Second, the economy also had a negative effect on advertising revenue within ACS Publications. This occurred at a time when the Publications were investing in the back-logging of journals that were previously only available in print into electronic format. Cost cutting measures are being taken by Staff at ACS national offices.
    
    
13. The dues escalator calculation for dues for 2003 was used to establish a new dues rate. The calculation is as follows: Base Rate: Calendar Year 1 x ( Consumer Price Index: 2001 / Consumer Price Index: 2000) Using this formula the calculation is, $112.00 x (201.7 / 194.5 ) = $116.15. This value is rounded to the nearest dollar, so dues for 2003 will be $116. The council approved this new rate by a substantial majority on a voice vote.
    
    
14. SOCED has been asked to join the Committee on Professional Training (CPT), which approves college chemistry programs, and the National Science Teachers Association, to devise standards for the preparation of High School Chemistry teachers. This project will have a task force appointed in the near future.
    
    
15. The Committee on Science reported that it has sponsored symposia at the Orlando meeting on "Energy and the Future" and "Homeland Security". These two topics remain important, so future symposia are likely to continue to be organized at national meetings.
    
    
16. The Committee on Membership Affairs reported that it expects to allow on-line renewals of dues when members renew for 2003. The renewal process will include an ability to add or otherwise change memberships in divisions, subscriptions to ACS journals and address changes.
    
    
17. The Council voted to Approve a name change. The Division formerly known as Cellulose, Paper and Textile Division (CELL) will now be known as Cellulose and Renewable Materials (CELL). The vote for this name change was unanimous.
    
    
18. The National Employers Clearing House, held at each National ACS meeting, is moving to a paperless system. In Boston (this August for the next National Meeting) the entire process will be paperless, and there will be no on-site registration available.
    
    
19. The National Employers Clearing House in Orlando attracted 131 companies who posted 988 jobs. There were 867 candidates who participated, and by Wednesday morning over 3000 interviews took place.
    
    
20. Attendance at the Orlando National Meeting was 14,308 - with 12,246 registered attendees and 2062 exhibitors or exhibition only registrations. The Exposition was sold out and was the second largest exhibition for a national meeting. Boston is also sold out for the exposition.
    
    
21. The Committee on Meetings and Expositions noted concerns about programming at the National Meeting. An increasing number of committees are scheduling programming in addition to the technical programming scheduled by the Divisions. A request for a task force to establish guidelines on what should be present in sessions at National Meetings was forwarded to the Council Policy Committee.
    
    
22. The Council will consider for action a petition to amend the by-laws of The Society at the Boston Meeting of the ACS. This petition seeks to redefine how people from overseas may become a Society Affiliate of the ACS. The rights and responsibilities of these members is quite similar to what is currently referred to as a National Affiliate, except that Society Affiliates will not have access to members insurance programs. Members who wish to see this petition or relay concerns about it may contact either Tom Holme or Dimitri Gorjestani in advance of the Council Meeting in Boston.
    
    
23. Additional bylaw changes have been proposed that would change the way financial resources are allocated to Divisions and Local Sections. Under the proposed legislation, both Divisions and Local Sections would receive an increase in funding. The increase for Divisions will be larger than that of Local Sections to balance some of the current inequity in this distribution. The cost of this motion would be in excess of $500,000 per year. Again, members are invited to discuss concerns about this proposal with the Councilors.
    
    
24. Committee on Local sections activities received 85% of the annual local section reports which were filed by an EZ method .... a simpler, faster way to fulfill reporting requirements. The annual report review will be available for local sections to view on line. The Committee also announced that the theme for NCW 2002 will be " Chemistry Keeps Us Clean." The focus will be the chemistry of soaps, detergents and other cleaning products.
    
    
25. The Committee on Professional Training reported that library holdings in chemistry are feeling the pinch of reduced funding. The availability of resources such as Chemical Abstracts is becoming increasingly difficult for smaller Chemsitry Departments.
    
    
26. The Committee on Professional Training has revised its requirements for the Chemistry Education option of the ACS certified degree. It is also proposing a new minor in chemistry for high school teachers and is inviting comment from members about these proposals. Watch for the CPT newsletter to find outlets for comments on these proposals.
    
    
27. The Committee on Patents and Related Matters is revising its booklet called "What every Chemist should know about patents". This booklet will be available through the Government and Legislative Affairs site on chemistry.org beginning in April Hard copy version will be available in May.