This week, October 15-21, 2023, celebrated National Chemistry Week (NCW). NCW takes place on the third week of October and usually coincides with Mole Day. NCW is a public awareness campaign of the American Chemical Society (ACS) that promotes the value of Chemistry in everyday life. The program aims to unite ACS local sections, student communities, technical divisions, businesses, schools, and individuals in sharing how important chemistry is to people’s quality of life. NCW’s main mission is to reach the public, especially K-12 students, and make their interest and experience in chemistry a positive one.

This year’s theme for NCW is “The Healing Power of Chemistry.” The theme focuses on health and medicine, including chemistry’s crucial role in developing medicines and vaccinations. The theme is reflected in the chemistry department’s curriculum at Colorado State University. The program offers Health Sciences as a concentration within the Chemistry major. Our department celebrated National Chemistry Week this year by promoting the undergrad research that is done in our labs.