Wesley College faculty and students mentor young chemists

Wesley College chemistry professor Dr. Malcolm J. D'Souza and his organic chemistry class conducted a “Kids & Chemistry” event recently for approximately 400 first through eighth -grade students. This annual event is held at the Independence School in Newark, DE, and is organized by the Delaware-Section of the American Chemical Society.

The Delaware Local Section of the American Chemical Society conducts a variety of activities for elementary school students throughout the year. Last year almost 2,000 students participated in events run by a host of volunteers including local companies, colleges and schools in addition to a senior chemist group called ChemVets.

The Wesley College students conducted more than a dozen safe-chemistry demonstrations that showed the participating kids and their parents the importance of chemistry in everyday life.  The 13 Wesley undergraduate participants prepared the necessary set-ups and had an opportunity to explain complex concepts to these future scientists.