Val Kuck
Director-at-Large - American Chemical Society
Director-at-Large - American Chemical Society
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For over 30 years I have worked to meet the
needs of the members and have been active in
the Society at both the national and local level.
needs of the members and have been active in
the Society at both the national and local level.
| Learn more about Val Val Kuck - A National Volunteer and Leader Val Kuck - A Driver of Local Activities |
Supporting Our Members
I have helped hundreds of unemployed members by
Finding a Home in Our Society
I have been a co-originator of two national meeting events, SciMix and the Town Hall Meeting.
tool for graduate students to determine the reasons they joined the Society, the value they received by
becoming a member, and the ACS services that they are aware of and value the most. There were
almost 2,000 respondents which have given the Board a better understanding of the needs of this
important group of members and future members.
In another effort, I pushed for expanding the ways that the Society reaches out to graduate students and
post-docs and supported an event where individuals from those two groups could socialize and become
more aware of the value in becoming a member of a Division. At the Washington, DC meeting there
were over 500 attendees at the Inaugural Meeting for this group.
Reaching Out to the Community
For more than fifteen years, I have chaired the North Jersey Section’s National Chemistry Week
activities.
Learning About the Latest Breakthroughs
Just a few weeks before a national meeting, I organized and chaired two special Presidential Symposia
on late breaking area.
Increasing Member Involvement
I have worked to increase the diversity on committees, in local section leadership, and on candidate
slates. In recent years, many women and younger chemists have been given an opportunity to serve the
Society and develop leadership skills. We need to better involve more young people and individuals
from under-represented groups in the Society.
I was a member of a team that developed the protocol for implementing electronic balloting. Coupled
with two Comments in Chemical & Engineering that explained the candidate selection process, it is
hoped that a greater percentage of the members will participate in elections in the future.
Vote for Val!
I have helped hundreds of unemployed members by
- Holding monthly workshops for the past three years on resume preparation, targeting the job
market and interviewing tips - Presenting career workshops at national and regional meetings
- Reviewing resumes as a career consultant
- Offering workshops for students on job hunting and resume preparation
Finding a Home in Our Society
I have been a co-originator of two national meeting events, SciMix and the Town Hall Meeting.
- SciMix has become the most popular event at the national meetings and has been recognized as
a wonderful opportunity to meet other researchers with similar scientific interests. - The Town Hall Meeting is becoming a “don’t miss” event. Members have found the Town Hall
Meeting very informative in hearing candidates for the Board of Directors answer a wide variety of
questions from the audience.
tool for graduate students to determine the reasons they joined the Society, the value they received by
becoming a member, and the ACS services that they are aware of and value the most. There were
almost 2,000 respondents which have given the Board a better understanding of the needs of this
important group of members and future members.
In another effort, I pushed for expanding the ways that the Society reaches out to graduate students and
post-docs and supported an event where individuals from those two groups could socialize and become
more aware of the value in becoming a member of a Division. At the Washington, DC meeting there
were over 500 attendees at the Inaugural Meeting for this group.
Reaching Out to the Community
For more than fifteen years, I have chaired the North Jersey Section’s National Chemistry Week
activities.
- With the assistance of hundreds of industrial chemists, retirees, college and high school teachers,
Girl and Boy Scouts, and college and high school students, the Section has presented a wide
array of hands-on activities to thousands of children and their parents. - Armed with our handout sheets, many budding scientists have been able to show their classmates
and family that “Chemistry is Fun”!
Learning About the Latest Breakthroughs
Just a few weeks before a national meeting, I organized and chaired two special Presidential Symposia
on late breaking area.
- The symposia on Cold Fusion drew over seven thousand attendees and gave all the opportunity to
hear and question the speakers on this science. - The symposium on High Tc Superconductors attracted over two thousand individuals, including the
President’s Science Advisor, who heard scientists discuss this phenomenon. - The presentation of these two highly successful events paved the way for significant breakthroughs
to be presented at a meeting as quickly as possible.
Increasing Member Involvement
I have worked to increase the diversity on committees, in local section leadership, and on candidate
slates. In recent years, many women and younger chemists have been given an opportunity to serve the
Society and develop leadership skills. We need to better involve more young people and individuals
from under-represented groups in the Society.
I was a member of a team that developed the protocol for implementing electronic balloting. Coupled
with two Comments in Chemical & Engineering that explained the candidate selection process, it is
hoped that a greater percentage of the members will participate in elections in the future.
Vote for Val!
| Val receives the 2006 Chemluminary Award for her Careers in Transition program in the North Jersey Section |
| For the last 3 years I have served as an ACS Director-at-Large. I hope that you will cast one of your votes in the upcoming national ACS for me and allow me to continue to serve our members on the Board of the ACS. |
