ACS Outreach Volunteers of the Year recognized for outstanding service

WASHINGTON, March 9, 2021 — The American Chemical Society (ACS) announced 36 winners of the 2021 Outreach Volunteer of the Year awards, which recognize the immeasurable efforts made by volunteers from ACS local sections and international chapters to conduct outreach and teach the public about chemistry.

Of the 36 awardees, one chemist earned the special honor of ACS Global Outreach Volunteer of the Year. Christine Skaggs, a chemistry graduate student at Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis and an officer of the Indiana Local Section of ACS, is being honored for her work as secretary of the local section and for chairing the COVID-19 Chemistry Kits for Kids event, which distributed resource kits including masks, hand sanitizers and winter accessories to more than 200 students from underserved areas around Indianapolis.

“We want to be able to provide resources to those who need them, and it’s very rewarding to be able to give back, even if it’s in a small way,” says Skaggs. “ACS allows me to bridge my two passions, which are chemistry and outreach.”

The full list of awardees is published in Chemical & Engineering News, and more details about this honor and this year’s winners are available at www.acs.org/voty.

ACS presents award winners with a small gift and a certificate during a meeting or event, and they are recognized during the annual ChemLuminary Awards ceremony.