1994 Eleanor Siebert

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Dr. Eleanor Siebert
Recipient of the 1994 Agnes Ann Green Distinguished Service Award

If volunteers go straight to heaven, then Eleanor Siebert is well on her way there! Eleanor Siebert’s volunteer effort with ACS started in 1984 with her work on the High School Chemistry Contest. Eleanor’s principal contribution to the Section is her editorship of the Section’s newsletter which spanned from 1988 to 1992. The demands of this position are among the most severe of an Section office. In this position, Eleanor introduced desktop publishing to produce camera ready copy, thereby reducing lead time for publication and costs.

In 1993, Eleanor was the Program Chair for the Section. She organized a superb set of speakers for our dinner meetings. She chose the venues to provide the maximum opportunity for members to attend. The traditional poor turnout at some of the meetings did not undermine her enthusiasm for the project.

Also in 19993, Eleanor was the general chair of the Western Regional Meeting of the ACS, the Pacific Conference, held in Pasadena. This was a major undertaking, involving at least 18 months of planning. Due to the economic climate, this meeting required constant evaluation and timely decision making. Eleanor Siebert met this challenge and the meeting was a scientific success and made a modest profit. A less resourceful chair might easily have repeated the 1992 meeting which incurred a considerable financial loss.

Eleanor is currently the Chair of the Section. Once again, she is on top of things, shepherding the Section through 1994. The prognosis is that once more, she will uphold her own high standards of excellence.

Eleanor’s primary interest seems to be in the educational aspects of ACS. She has been active in Update Conferences for High school Chemistry Teachers, organizing, working and always attending these conferences. As General Chair of the Western Regional Meeting of the ACS (Pacific Conference), she was an enthusiastic supporter of the workshops presented. I think her interest in the local educational programs of our Section and National ACS in general can be summed up in two words: Professional Development.

The Awards Committee is to be congratulated on making such a popular and deserving choice.