Section News & Happenings

Pittsburgh Local Section CCEW Poetry Contest Winner Takes National Award

The Pittsburgh Local Section K-2 winner took second place in the national competition! Congratulations, Shri A. from Bradford Woods
Elementary School! You make Pittsburgh proud!

Dr. Anna C. Balazs from the University of Pittsburgh was named a 2021 ACS Fellow.  Election to NAS, which is more than 150 years old, recognizes scientists and engineers for their distinguished and continuing achievements in original research and is considered one of the highest scientific honors bestowed in the US.  Congratulations, Anna!

ACS Pittsburgh Section Member and 2021 YCC Chair Kristin Nuzzio was recently featured in C and E News!  Read Looking to lead? ACS offers opportunities for younger chemists. Congratulations, Kristin!

​Dr. Noa Marom from Carnegie Mellon University has won the Spring 2021 OpenEye Outstanding Junior Faculty Award in Computational Chemistry from the American Chemical Society Division of Computers in Chemistry (COMP). The OpenEye Outstanding Junior Faculty Award in Computational Chemistry assists new faculty members in gaining visibility in the COMP community.  Congratulations, Noa!

2021 CCEW Illustrated Poem Contest – Results

2021 Earth Week Poem Contest Winners - 
Reducing Our Footprint with Chemistry

As part of the American Chemical Society’s (ACS) 2021 Chemists Celebrate 
Earth Week (CCEW) celebration, the Pittsburgh Section ACS sponsored an 
illustrated poem contest for students in grades K-12.  Students could pick 
topics related to the 2021 CCED theme “Reducing Our Footprint with 
Chemistry.” Poems could be any style (free verse, limerick, haiku, etc.). 
Entries were judged based upon relevance to and incorporation of the theme, 
word choice and imagery, colorful artwork, adherence to poem style, originality 
and  creativity, and overall presentation. 

Each 1st place winning entry will receive a check for $50 and their winning 
poem was entered into the national ACS CCEW poetry contest sponsored 
by the ACS’s Committee on Community Activities. National ACS CCEW 
poetry contest winners will be announced the week of June 1, 2021. 

And the winners of the 2021 Pittsburgh Section ACS’s CCEW poem contest:

K-2nd Grade
Shri A. (2nd Grade),  Bradford Woods Elementary School 

3^rd-5^th Grade
Efua K. (5^th Grade), Peebles Elementary School

6th-8th Grade
Aiden Q. (7^th Grade), Linton Middle School

9^th-12^th Grade
Andrea K. (12^th Grade), Ringgold High School

Congratulations to all our regional contest winners and good luck in the
national ACS CCEW poem contest.

Michael Mautino
CCEW Coordinator

May 2021 Issue of The Crucible

We are pleased to provide the May 2021 issue of The Crucible.  If you have something you would like included in future issues, please email Alysia Mondato at [email protected].  Enjoy your summer and see you in August!

2021 Call for Pittsburgh and Distinguished Service Award Nominations

Click here to download flyer.

The Pittsburgh Award was established in 1932 by the Pittsburgh Section of ACS to recognize outstanding leadership in chemical affairs in the local and larger professional community. This Award symbolizes the honor and appreciation accorded to those who have rendered distinguished service to the field of chemistry. The Award consists of a plaque presented annually at a section dinner. Members of the Pittsburgh Section, or in exceptional cases, nonmembers, who have done work worthy of recognition toward increasing chemical knowledge, promoting the chemical industry, benefiting humanity, or advancing the Pittsburgh Section, are eligible for consideration. Nominate today.  

The Distinguished Service Award was established in 2007 by the Pittsburgh Section of the ACS to expand and replace the predecessor Chairman’s Award of the section. Both recognize outstanding volunteer service to the Section. The Award, consisting of a plaque, is presented annually at a Section dinner, which is open to the public. Members of the Pittsburgh Section, past or present, who have provided outstanding service in advancing the Pittsburgh Section, are eligible for consideration.  Nominate today.    

ACS National Chemistry Olympiad

The local ACS chemistry exam as part of the ACS National Chemistry Olympiad took place virtually on Saturday March 27th. We had over 20 participants who took the examination through the ACS online learning portal. Students from Avella Area High, Central Catholic, Franklin Regional Sr. High, Mars Area High, Mount Lebanon High, North Allegheny High, North Hills High, Seneca Valley, Shaler High, Taylor-Allderdice and Upper St. Clair participated in the local event.  We want to thank all the high school students for their participation and contribution to the Chemistry community and ACS. We also want to recognize the eleven students who participated in Part 1 of the National Exam on April 17th, and our student who participated in Part 2 on April 25th. Thank you on behalf of the Pittsburgh Local Section! All participants will receive certificates of recognition and our top 3 scorers on the local exam: Claire Z. from North Allegheny, Grace W. from North Allegheny and Owen O. from Central Catholic will receive cash prizes for their achievements. Thanks for making the event a successful one, and we hope to see all the students in person for next years’ Chemistry Olympiad!

Congratulations to our 2021 50 Year Members

We are proud to recognize our long-standing ACS members for their service and accomplishments over the years. We offer a humble thank you for being part of the ACS community, and we appreciate your commitment to our society.

Congratulations to our 2021 60 Year Members

Mr. Stephen Piskor
Dr. G. Warren Smith
Dr. Roger Steiger
Dr. Donald Wysocki

We are proud to recognize our long-standing ACS members for their service and accomplishments over the years. We offer a humble thank you for being part of the ACS community, and we appreciate your commitment to our society.