Chapters of Excellence 1999-2000 Awards
Certificates of Excellence are awarded to chapters for overall outstanding activities during the past fiscal year. The activities highlighted below are among a wide range in which these chapters participated.
The Alaska Chapter's range of activity included research programs for high school, undergraduate and graduate students and numerous programs devoted to public understanding of science including working with the media and elementary schools.
The Clemson University Chapter worked closely with other organizations and departments on campus to provide programs including high school, undergraduate and graduate research awards and a Noble Laureate address on campus. The chapter also instituted a Young Investigator of the Year Award.
In cooperation with Ford's High School Science and Technology Program, theFord Motor Company Chapter hosted a Saturday session on "Invention and Intellectual Property" for approximately 200 local students and their teachers, including 65 minority students from the Detroit area. Ford also provided engineers and scientists to work with area middle school students.
This year's highlights for the National Institute of Standards and Technology Chapter included the annual Postdoctoral Poster Presentation, a popular public colloquium series that included nine invited lectures and promotion of research and education through participation in area science fairs.
A variety of programs characterized the activity of the Northern Michigan University Chapter including lectures, awards for outstanding science teachers and a poster presentation event for undergraduate or graduate students which included television interviews with two of the students.
The Northwestern Pennsylvania Chapter's public forum on evolution attracted an audience of about 70, plus television and newspaper coverage. It was held at Gannon University, and five Sigma Xi panelists covered the topics of archaeology, physics, astronomy, biochemistry and anatomy/theology. The chapter also hosted a panel discussion for high school students on being educationally prepared for careers in science and medicine.
In addition to its annual bioethics forum, the Pace University Chaptersponsored a number of lectures, a workshop for science teachers and a high school science day that included a lecture, "Forensics: The Art and Science of Catching Criminals" and student research posters.
Reflecting the diverse nature of its membership, the Research Triangle Park Chapter hosted a half-day roundtable on risk assessment with panel members representing government, academia and industry. With three significant hurricanes hitting North Carolina in recent years, the chapter has also focused programming on the environmental impacts of weather.
The San Diego Chapter had three successful new initiatives this year including supporting a new chapter in Ensenada, Mexico, launching a chapter newsletter, and raising $6,000 from a charitable trust to support both middle and high school science fairs and a news bureau.
The Texas A&M University Chapter promoted science education at both the K-12 and undergraduate levels with an essay and drawing contest for K-12 students and a workshop on alternatives to the traditional teaching of science.
In addition to its successful High School Enrichment Program, the University of Calgary Chapter has run for over 20 years a thematic lecture series that is widely recognized and attended by the public and chapter members.
Science education was a top priority for the University of Hawaii-Hilo Chapter. Chapter activities included co-sponsoring and judging the state science fair in which 180 prizes were awarded to more that 50 students and a science open house on campus for over 250 students and teachers.
The University of Minnesota at Duluth Chapter organized a science equipment fair that included over 20 scientific suppliers displaying their products to more than 500 attendees. The chapter's annual poster session attracted over 35 posters with more than 150 people attending the opening ceremony.