Georgia Southern professor re-elected to board of world’s largest scientific society
Professor of chemistry and chair of the Department of Biochemistry, Chemistry and Physics Will Lynch, Ph.D., has been re-elected to the American Chemical Society’s (ACS) board of directors. This marks his second three-year term on the board. With ACS serving as the largest science organization in the world, Lynch says the society’s work impacts lives every day.
“We support the scientific enterprise by advocating for everything from research funding to laboratory safety,” said Lynch. “That work strengthens scientific integrity that ACS champions and ultimately shows up in the things that people rely on daily. Bottled water, medicines, cellphones and computer screens all come from chemistry. Many people do not realize how deeply science shapes their world.”
With a budget close to $900 million and a global community of over 200,000, planning is essential to the success of ACS. Lynch is proud to have chaired the committee that created the society’s next five-year strategic plan. Lynch hopes that his work will continue to put the society’s vast resources to use helping advocate for scientists around the world.
“My focus now is implementing ACS’ strategic plan, which envisions a world built on science and setting up the indicators to measure our success,” said Lynch. “We want to make sure we support chemists whether they are in academia, industry, government labs or retired.”
Serving in a leadership role for a world-renowned scientific organization is part of Lynch’s calling to help others. He began his service with ACS over 40 years ago when he volunteered at a regional meeting while pursuing his bachelor’s degree. He began making connections immediately and grew his professional network from the local to the national level. Forming friendships in the scientific community and witnessingthe ways their work changed lives inspired Lynch to continue to grow his own knowledge so he could do more for others.
“Getting to do research as an undergraduate pulled me in, and I knew that chemistry was where I could make a difference. I realized I had a path to help society through science and I never looked back.”