{"id":5716,"date":"2015-03-27T11:22:33","date_gmt":"2015-03-27T15:22:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/?p=5716"},"modified":"2022-03-23T14:46:11","modified_gmt":"2022-03-23T18:46:11","slug":"chemistry-explosion-at-kalamazoo-college","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/chemistry-explosion-at-kalamazoo-college\/","title":{"rendered":"Chemistry Explosion at Kalamazoo College"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Three<\/a>Some chemical reactions are simply impressive\u2014the vibrant flash of light when magnesium is ignited or the blast and subsequent grains of salt that appear after mixing sodium metal and chlorine gas.<\/p>\n

Equally impressive is the reaction to the chemistry major at Kalamazoo College in recent years.<\/p>\n

Sixty-eight students\u201441 males and 27 females\u2014declared chemistry as their major at Declaration of Major Day. The annual event, held the fifth week of winter quarter, requires sophomores to declare their majors, minors, and concentrations.<\/p>\n

\u201cFifteen percent of the sophomore class [the class of 2017] chose chemistry,\u201d says Laura Lowe Furge<\/strong>, the Roger F. and Harriet G. Varney Professor of Chemistry and current chair of the department. \u201cOn a per capita basis, it probably makes K the largest chemistry program in the country.\u201d<\/p>\n

To accommodate the growth of chemistry majors, a new faculty member will join the department this fall, and additional classes and lab times have been added to the schedule, Furge explains.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a good problem for us to have,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Space, she admits, is an issue as labs and lecture halls in the 23-year-old Dow Science Center were built to house a much smaller student population. In 1998, for example, only six students at K graduated with a chemistry degree.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve had to make some allowances,\u201d she says. \u201cThe hope is to eventually expand the building to provide additional lab space, classrooms, and faculty offices.\u201d<\/p>\n

While the number of recently declared majors is impressive, it is part of a growing trend. The class of 2016 includes 55 chemistry majors and this year\u2019s senior class will graduate 30 students with degrees in chemistry.<\/p>\n

According to Greg Slough<\/strong>, professor of chemistry, the faculty has worked to change the perception of difficulty associated with a chemistry major.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re making chemistry doable for students,\u201d Slough explains. \u201cThere is a real student focus among every faculty member. The students know that we\u2019re here for them, we\u2019re approachable, and we\u2019re here to help when the work gets tough.\u201d<\/p>\n

Professor of Chemistry Jeffrey Bartz<\/strong> adds that the department\u2019s deep commitment to evidence-based education has helped it evolve.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery class changes, every single year,\u201d Bartz explains. \u201cWe\u2019re not teaching students the same thing, the same way, year after year.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of those students is Bryan Lara, a sophomore from California, who selected chemistry on Declaration of Major Day.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery chemistry professor knows my name,\u201d Lara says. \u201cI\u2019m not just a number. There is a real sense of community among the faculty and students.\u201d<\/p>\n

He adds that extracurricular chemistry activities such as the Dow Open, a miniature golf event held inside the Dow Science Center, the October 23 Mole Day celebration, and the annual Dow-B-Q help keep students engaged and excited about the major.<\/p>\n

And if recent years are any indication, this excitement won\u2019t be waning anytime soon. (Text by Erin Dominianni \u201995<\/em>)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Some chemical reactions are simply impressive\u2014the vibrant flash of light when magnesium is ignited or the blast and subsequent grains of salt that appear after mixing sodium metal and chlorine gas. Equally impressive is the reaction to the chemistry major at Kalamazoo College in recent years. Sixty-eight students\u201441 males and 27 females\u2014declared chemistry as their […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":5719,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[233,231],"tags":[53,17,50,38],"post_formats":[],"class_list":["post-5716","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-faculty-staff","category-students","tag-biochemistry","tag-campus","tag-chemistry","tag-students"],"yoast_head":"\r\nChemistry Explosion at Kalamazoo College - News and Events<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Some chemical reactions are simply impressive\u2014the vibrant flash of light when magnesium is ignited or the blast and subsequent grains of salt that appear\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\r\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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aria-label=\"archive of category Faculty & Staff\" href=\"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/category\/faculty-staff\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Faculty & Staff<\/a><a aria-label=\"archive of category Students\" href=\"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/category\/students\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Students<\/a>","tags_info":"<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/tag\/biochemistry\/\" rel=\"tag\">biochemistry<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/tag\/campus\/\" rel=\"tag\">campus<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/tag\/chemistry\/\" rel=\"tag\">chemistry<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/tag\/students\/\" rel=\"tag\">students<\/a>","social_share_info":"<a data-share=\"facebook\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/chemistry-explosion-at-kalamazoo-college\/\" class=\"pl-facebook-share social-share-default pl-social-share\" target=\"_blank\"><i class=\"fab fa-facebook-f\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/a><a data-share=\"twitter\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/share?url=https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/chemistry-explosion-at-kalamazoo-college\/\" class=\"pl-twiiter-share social-share-default pl-social-share\" target=\"_blank\"><i class=\"fab fa-twitter\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/a><a data-share=\"linkedin\" href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/shareArticle?url=https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/chemistry-explosion-at-kalamazoo-college\/\" class=\"pl-linkedin-share social-share-default pl-social-share\" target=\"_blank\"><i class=\"fab fa-linkedin-in\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/a>","wordExcerpt_info":"<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/files\/2015\/03\/hemistry.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignright wp-image-5717 size-full\" src=\"\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/files\/2015\/03\/hemistry.jpg\" alt=\"Three chemistry students wearing goggles in the laser lab at K\" width=\"350\" height=\"315\" \/><\/a>Some chemical reactions are simply impressive\u2014the vibrant flash of light when magnesium is ignited or the blast and subsequent grains of salt that appear after mixing sodium metal and chlorine gas.<\/p>\n<p>Equally impressive is the reaction to the chemistry major at Kalamazoo College in recent years.<\/p>\n<p>Sixty-eight students\u201441 males and 27 females\u2014declared chemistry as their major at Declaration of Major Day. The annual event, held the fifth week of winter quarter, requires sophomores to declare their majors, minors, and concentrations.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFifteen percent of the sophomore class [the class of 2017] chose chemistry,\u201d says <strong>Laura Lowe Furge<\/strong>, the Roger F. and Harriet G. Varney Professor of Chemistry and current chair of the department. \u201cOn a per capita basis, it probably makes K the largest chemistry program in the country.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>To accommodate the growth of chemistry majors, a new faculty member will join the department this fall, and additional classes and lab times have been added to the schedule, Furge explains.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s a good problem for us to have,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<p>Space, she admits, is an issue as labs and lecture halls in the 23-year-old Dow Science Center were built to house a much smaller student population. In 1998, for example, only six students at K graduated with a chemistry degree.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve had to make some allowances,\u201d she says. \u201cThe hope is to eventually expand the building to provide additional lab space, classrooms, and faculty offices.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While the number of recently declared majors is impressive, it is part of a growing trend. The class of 2016 includes 55 chemistry majors and this year\u2019s senior class will graduate 30 students with degrees in chemistry.<\/p>\n<p>According to <strong>Greg Slough<\/strong>, professor of chemistry, the faculty has worked to change the perception of difficulty associated with a chemistry major.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re making chemistry doable for students,\u201d Slough explains. \u201cThere is a real student focus among every faculty member. The students know that we\u2019re here for them, we\u2019re approachable, and we\u2019re here to help when the work gets tough.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Professor of Chemistry <strong>Jeffrey Bartz<\/strong> adds that the department\u2019s deep commitment to evidence-based education has helped it evolve.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEvery class changes, every single year,\u201d Bartz explains. \u201cWe\u2019re not teaching students the same thing, the same way, year after year.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>One of those students is Bryan Lara, a sophomore from California, who selected chemistry on Declaration of Major Day.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEvery chemistry professor knows my name,\u201d Lara says. \u201cI\u2019m not just a number. There is a real sense of community among the faculty and students.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He adds that extracurricular chemistry activities such as the Dow Open, a miniature golf event held inside the Dow Science Center, the October 23 Mole Day celebration, and the annual Dow-B-Q help keep students engaged and excited about the major.<\/p>\n<p>And if recent years are any indication, this excitement won\u2019t be waning anytime soon. <em>(Text by Erin Dominianni \u201995<\/em>)<\/p>\n","comment_info":"No Comments","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5716","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5716"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5716\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9415,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5716\/revisions\/9415"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5719"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5716"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5716"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5716"},{"taxonomy":"post_format","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_formats?post=5716"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}