Events
- Annual Convention
- Great Teaching Round-up
- Leading from the middle
- fall conference for faculty leaders
- The Texas Network
"I think there is something more important than believing: Action! The world is full of dreamers, there aren't enough who will move ahead and begin to take concrete steps to actualize their vision."
Events: 2009 Chemistry Schedule
Chemistry Summary
Friday, 9:30-11:00 a.m.
Thinkwell Chemistry"
Speaker:Connie Hundley, Senior Academic Consultant, Thinkwell Corporation
Friday, 2:30-3:45 p.m.
"Classroom Demonstrations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly"
Speaker:Paul McCord, Department of Chemistry and
Biochemistry Lecturer, University of Texas at Austin
Saturday, 10:30-11:45 a.m.
"The ACS Guidelines for Chemistry Programs in Two-Year Colleges: A Resource for Enhancing Chemistry Programs"
Speaker: Dolores C. Aquino, Professor of Chemistry, San Jacinto College - Central Campus
Friday, February 20th, 9:30-11:00 a.m.
Thinkwell Chemistry"
Speaker:Connie Hundley, Senior Academic Consultant, Thinkwell Corporation
Founded in 1997, Thinkwell has succeeded in creating a "next-generation" textbook, one that helps students learn and teachers teach. Capitalizing on the power of new technology, Thinkwell products prepare students more effectively for their coursework than any printed textbook can. The Thinkwell premise of the power of great professors as great communicators is illustrated in every Thinkwell title.
Hundley will demonstrate the key areas of Thinkwell's General Chemistry: Video lessons, lecture notes, online homework, an online interactive Periodic Table, and professor access information.
Biography:
Connie Hundley is a Sr. Academic Consultant with the Thinkwell Corporation in Austin, Texas. Ms. Hundley joined Thinkwell in 2002 and since that time has been involved with promoting Thinkwell’s multimedia materials into colleges and universities around the U. S. In her role as Sr. Academic Consultant, Ms. Hundley is responsible for supporting the Thinkwell sales efforts in the Southwest Region of the United States, including Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico and Utah. She has been actively involved in promoting the use of technology within the classroom.
Prior to joining Thinkwell, Ms. Hundley was employed with Steck-Vaughn Publishing Company. She began her career at Steck-Vaughn in 1990 as a Customer Service Representative but quickly moved into a sales role as one of the company’s first Inside Sales Representatives. As the company grew, so did Ms. Hundley’s responsibilities. She became a team leader in 1993 and in 1994 became the Inside Sales Manager for a small technology group promoting multimedia products into elementary classrooms. In 1997, she was inducted into Steck-Vaughn’s Leader’s Club which honors outstanding leadership within the organization. She has also worked as a Sales Manager in various technical industries within the Austin, Texas area including local ISP and data center operator, Texas.Net/DataFoundry and Sunset Direct, outsource provider of sales and marketing services for technology companies.
A graduate of Sam Houston State University, where she earned a Bachelor’s degree in Teaching in English and Business, Ms. Hundley taught 12th grade English at Bryan High School in Bryan, Texas before relocating to Austin, Texas and beginning her career in the publishing industry.
Friday, February 20th, 2:30-3:45 p.m.
"Classroom Demonstrations: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly"
Speaker:Paul McCord, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Lecturer, University of Texas at Austin
In teaching chemistry we are faced with choices about how best to
incorporate classroom demonstrations into our lectures. Some
demonstrations are very effective at illustrating a concept or
principle while other demos can leave students even more confused. In
this talk, I will describe demos that are appropriate and have proven
to be effective teaching aids in the introductory level chemistry
courses.
Biography:
Dr. Paul McCord has been a lecturer for the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Texas at Austin for the last 14 years. His PhD was earned at UT in 1992 in the field of
electrochemistry. He also was an adjunct faculty member at Austin Community College for 7 years. He has taught chemistry courses ranging from organic chemistry to physical chemistry although his primary
classes have been introductory and general chemistry. His classes at UT have typical enrollments of 300 to 400 students.
Saturday, February 21st, 10:30-11:45 a.m.
"The ACS Guidelines for Chemistry Programs in Two-Year Colleges: A Resource for Enhancing Chemistry Programs"
Speaker: Dolores C. Aquino, Professor of Chemistry, San Jacinto College - Central Campus
The ACS Guidelines for Chemistry Programs in Two-Year Colleges, last updated in 1997, are undergoing a significant revision. Comments from those who participated in the TCCTA session in 2008 and from across the country have been used while producing a working draft of the revision. One of the goals of this revision is providing a more useful resource for strengthening programs at two-year colleges. This interactive session will introduce the key messages of the draft revision and discuss how faculty can use the guidelines to enhance program activities and leverage for resources. Input on the draft revision will be solicited.
Please review: Sept. 15, 2008 DRAFT of the ACS Guidelines for Chemistry Programs in Two-Year Colleges
Biography:
Dolores C. Aquino is Distinguished Professor of Chemistry at San Jacinto College Central, where she has been employed since 1993. She received a B.S. in Chemistry from the Illinois Institute of Technology and a Ph.D. from Ohio State University. Her employment record also includes industrial experience as a Research Chemist with Exxon Research and Engineering Company.
In ACS, Dolores has been actively involved in the Greater Houston Section (ACS-GHS) since 1994. She is currently serving Section as Alternate Councilor (2007-2009). She has been serving on the ACS-GHS Executive Committee since 2003; including serving as Section Chair in 2005. She was Chair of the High School Scholarship Exam writing subcommittee 2003-2004. She has been actively involved in the annual ACS-GHS Summer Social, National Chemistry Week and Educational Rainbow Challenge programs and the Education Committee for the section.
Dolores is currently working on an ACS national task force that is revising the ACS “Guidelines for Chemistry in the Two-Year College”. She has served on a writing committee of the ACS Division of Chemical Education Examinations Institute. She currently serves the ACS Division of Chemical Education on the Executive Committee of the Two-Year College Chemistry Consortium (2YC3) as Past Chair/Future Sites Coordinator. Previously she was 2YC3 Chair (2006) and Membership Chair (1999-2004).
Chemistry Section Chair: Larry Wiginton, Clarendon College