Among all the organizations supporting the analytical community, the Analytical Division of ACS is the only one that has a mandate to support the broadest definition of Analytical Chemistry and also has a membership. People elect to pay from their own pockets to belong to ACS and its divisions. People do not belong to Pittcon. This voluntary membership aspect obligates ACS and its divisions to provide personal and specific member benefits. Professional identification and the support of Society goals are no longer sufficient motivators to join. The Analytical Division has particular challenges as well as special opportunities in providing additional benefits to its subset of ACS. The first goal in The Division Mission Statement is �Provide forums for discussions (sharing) of advances in Analytical Chemistry.� Fortunately, Analytical Chemistry is a terrific journal that carries the print aspect of that goal.  Increased coordination between The Division and AC has been mutually beneficial. Unfortunately, ACS meetings are not the meeting of choice for most of the analytical community. Programming in other venues such as Pittcon has immensely broadened the impact of The Division at professional meetings. Similarly, our joint venture with the Analytical Sciences Digital Library has greatly enhanced our presence on the web. The Division Strategic Planning Session in 2006 stimulated the identification of other means by which we could become more supportive of the analytical community and even essential in the professional lives of our members. This template has continued to inspire further efforts. What member benefits would be most welcome? How could they be achieved? Some possibilities will be explored as well as potential hindrances to their implementation. Bring your ideas to share!

Our Division: Challenges and opportunities in serving the analytical community

248th National Meeting (2014)

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.