Once upon a time (circa 2000), a 50-ish woman began a late career as a chemical educator at Texas Woman’s University. Although she had a sincere desire to encourage and educate her students, she was equipped with only the standard model for how to go about this—lectures and labs, along with three or four exams per course. Through exposure to the SENCER community of practitioners, particularly Cathy Middlecamp, in 2007 this faculty member began the transformation to an engaging, civically involved way of presenting chemistry topics to her students. As her toolbox grew, her students learned how to educate themselves and how to use their new knowledge to benefit their communities. Her colleagues also adopted this real-world context style in their courses, literally transforming their department and their institution. Over a decade later, the rewards are obvious to all as TWU’s chemistry program was nationally recognized twice in 2018—once for how they have transformed their academic program for majors, and again for the way they approach core science courses for non-majors. In addition, the faculty presenter received a statewide award, recognizing her commitment to civic engagement and getting her students involved.

Reflections on transforming chemistry education, one faculty member at a time

2019 Spring National Meeting

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