FOCUS ON DIVERSITY

Abstract

THE AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY has long demonstrated its commitment to promoting diversity in the chemical profession through the work of some of its various committees, including the Committee on Minority Affairs, the Women Chemists Committee, the Younger Chemists Committee, and the Committee on Chemists with Disabilities. Now, ACS has an official Statement on Diversity that serves as a “formal affirmation” of its commitment to this effort, says Carolyn Ribes, past-chair and a founder of the Joint Subcommittee on Diversity, which spearheaded the effort to draft the diversity statement. The ACS Board of Directors approved the statement on Dec. 4, 2007. Maria Rosenthal, chair of the Joint Subcommittee on Diversity, says that having a diversity statement “will help institutionalize practices that effectively sustain the diversity of ACS and the chemistry professions.” For example, she says, “ACS can be the leader in improving access to textbooks and other publications for the visually impaired.” ACS has long ...