ACS Approval Program

ACS Approval Program News

Mini Grant Program for Development of Hands On Lab Skills Short Course

Program Overview

The Education Division of the American Chemical Society has developed a small grant program to provide funds to institutions interested in offering a short course focused on general and organic chemistry hands-on lab skills. This course is intended for undergraduate chemical science majors that may have missed out on hands-on, face-to-face laboratory courses in general and organic chemistry.

The main goals of the program are:

To give chemistry majors the opportunity to get the hands on skills in gen chem and organic that they may have missed during the pandemic
To do this in a way that doesn't present additional burdens for either the instructor or the students, thus
- Students should not receive a grade or be expected to pay tuition for the short course
- The course should be short! We suggest doing this bootcamp style over a couple of intensive days
- The honorarium is to compensate the instructor for the extra time & effort that they put in to develop and teach the course
  - The honorarium should not be used to purchase reagents or other items for the class (unless that is the ONLY way that the course can be delivered)

Honorarium

The ACS will provide a $3000 honorarium for a faculty member, laboratory instructor/manager, postdoc, or graduate student to facilitate the short course. The course contents (lab modules) can be developed by your institution or you can use the course template and modules developed by the ACS, which will be available for download August 27.

Applying

Application link: https://forms.gle/wwWcLKpZp86riAmQ7
Deadline: August 31, 2021 (fall), November 30, 2021 (spring)
Applications will be evaluated on a rolling basis and funds will be awarded based on 1) institutional need and 2) potential student impact. Funds are limited and only available for the 2021-2022 academic year.

Additional Information

Hands on Skills
Suggested Course Schedule
Lab Modules (available for download)
Deliverables
- Pre- and post-course student evaluation (distributed with award letter)
Frequently Asked Questions

Please feel free to reach out to Dr. Michelle Brooks in the ACS Approval Program Office if you have any questions.

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