Achievers

PITTSBURGH — High school “green” chemistry and diversity/workforce development in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) fields are the focus of two innovative programs for teachers and students that the Bayer USA Foundation is sponsoring this summer in four cities within the United States.

The two programs — Green Chemistry High School Teacher Workshops and Project SEED — are initiatives of the American Chemical Society (ACS). A recent Bayer USA Foundation grant is enabling ACS to establish the programs in Pittsburgh, Houston, Raleigh, N.C., and Tyler.

“With these two key programs, the ACS is providing leading-edge educational opportunities in key areas that are both important to Bayer and among the most urgent for the country to begin addressing,” said Dr. Attila Molnar, President and CEO, Bayer Corporation, and President, Bayer USA Foundation.

Green chemistry is one of these areas. Through the design of chemical products and processes that reduce or eliminate the use and generation of hazardous substances, green chemistry provides the scientific underpinning for achieving sustainability by developing environmentally-friendly ways to produce everyday goods.

These intensive three-day sessions led by ACS education experts will introduce some 50 high-school teachers from around the country to the principles of green chemistry by conducting green-chemistry experiments that can be incorporated into the curriculum, providing examples of green-chemistry applications relevant to students, increasing awareness of green-chemistry education resources and developing strategies for integrating green chemistry into the curriculum.

“We’ll be doing experiments that are relevant to contemporary U.S. and global issues, such as alternative fuel development and energy conservation,” said Dr. Mary Kirchhoff, Education Director of the ACS. “For example, the teachers will be using a renewable resource – vegetable oil — to create an alternative fuel, biodiesel. We’ll also be conducting experiments that involve making silver nanoparticles and breaking down a plastic.”

The dual issues of diversifying the country’s STEM pipeline and reversing underrepresentation by women, African-Americans, American Indians and Hispanics in STEM fields are another key concern to Bayer. Celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, Project SEED addresses these issues by giving high-school students from economically disadvantaged families the opportunity to experience a career in chemistry-related science through eight- to 10-week hands-on summer internships in academic, industrial or governmental research laboratories.

This summer, with the help of the Bayer USA Foundation, Project SEED — a recipient of the 2001 Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring — is expanding to two new Texas cities — Houston and Tyler — and giving two new students that opportunity.

In Houston, a senior at Alief Taylor High School will be interning at Prairie View A&M University, working on a chemical-research project titled, “Oxidation of Alkenes,” an area of particular interest to both the pharmaceutical and industrial manufacturing industries.

According to Project SEED, 90 percent of participants, most of whom are minorities, plan to go on to college, compared to the national rate of 20 percent of all black students and six percent of all Hispanic students who leave high school college-ready. In addition, SEED alumni include Ph.D. scientists, process engineers, chemistry teachers and chemical engineers, among others.