ACS Board elects Paul W. Jagodzinski chair, among other actions

The American Chemical Society Board of Directors met virtually Dec. 12–13 and elected Paul W. Jagodzinski as board chair for 2021. It elected Dorothy J. Phillips, Wayne E. Jones. Jr., and Ingrid Montes to fill terms on the board’s executive committee. Phillips will fill a 2-year term, and Montes will fill a 1-year term. Jones will serve the remaining year of Jagodzinski’s 2-year term on the committee.

Among its other actions, the board approved a 2021 operating budget with a net from operations of $31.1 million. It approved a capital budget of $41.8 million. It approved changes to the ACS Strategic Plan, including updating the core value of diversity, inclusion, and respect to include equity. It approved the addition of an ACS goal, “Embrace and advance inclusion in chemistry,” to specifically address the core value of diversity, equity, inclusion, and respect.

In addition, it approved extending the eligibility requirement for the Petroleum Research Fund’s Undergraduate New Investigator Grants Program. The program will now accept principal investigators who are within the first 5 years, not 3 years, of their academic appointments. And the board approved a framework for a comprehensive and authoritative learning portal that supports the professional development of chemists throughout their education and careers.