Supporting the goals and ideals of National Chemistry Week.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Res. 751, a resolution I have introduced supporting the goals and ideals of National Chemistry Week, which starts today, October 22, 2007.

During the next 5 days, millions of people, particularly students in elementary and secondary schools, will be engaged in chemistry-related activities that show the importance of chemistry to our quality of life. With assistance from American Chemical Society, ACS, staff, thousands of volunteers will conduct these activities in venues from shopping malls, to classrooms, to university labs.

National Chemistry Week was created by ACS in 1987 to draw attention to the positive contributions chemistry makes to our everyday lives. These contributions include helping feed, house, and clothe the world's population; tapping new energy sources; providing renewable substitutes for limited materials; improving public health; strengthening our national security; and protecting our environment.

During this year's 20th anniversary of National Chemistry Week, we are celebrating ``The Many Faces of Chemistry.'' This theme was chosen to emphasize the extensive variety of careers available in the world of chemistry and to honor the tremendous diversity of people who have contributed and will contribute to the advancement of chemistry and all of its branches. This year's theme takes added importance when you consider that a disproportionately low number of minority, underprivileged, and young women students are taking up careers in science and technology.

The inclusion of women and under-represented minorities in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields, STEM, is not just important to correct for historical employment inequities, but to provide under-represented minorities an opportunity for prosperity. The increased education and participation of this segment of the workforce is also essential to supplying the American economy with the STEM expertise the country needs to innovate and remain competitive. According to the U.S. Census, 39 percent of the population under the age of 18 is a racial or ethnic minority. That percentage is on a path to pass 50 percent by the year 2050. Yet, in 2000, only 4.4 percent of the science and engineering jobs were held by African Americans and only 3.4 percent by Hispanics. Women constitute over half of the post- secondary students in the Nation, but represent a little more than one- quarter of our science and engineering workforce. We must correct these disparities, and fast.

This is not an issue of compromising high standards. If America is to achieve its strategic objectives in STEM, the enormous potential of groups that are currently under-represented in the STEM fields must be realized through expanded and focused educational opportunity. Some see tension between policies that focus resources on certain groups and the pursuit for excellence, but the simple truth is that the general achievement of excellence is strongly linked to the prevalence of opportunity.

Scientists from these under-represented groups have demonstrated excellence through important contributions to our understanding of the environment and the sciences. Two notable examples include Mario Molina, an atmospheric chemist who received a Nobel Prize for his work establishing the link between CFCs and atmospheric ozone destruction, and Percy L. Julian, who was the first black chemist elected to the National Academy of Sciences and whose work in synthesizing a compound used to treat glaucoma led to his having been ranked by ACS as one of the top 75 Distinguished Contributors to the Chemical Enterprise.

If we are to remain an innovative and economically competitive nation, the face of our high-tech workforce must reflect the true face of America. Our workforce will not be the best America has to offer if we do not ensure that we are taking advantage of all pools of domestic talent. ``The Many Faces of Chemistry'' theme is especially significant because it focuses on promoting diversity, which will help ensure national competitiveness by encouraging broad participation from all sources of talent in the sciences and chemistry.

I thank the American Chemical Society for their work in promoting the chemical sciences and the important role of diversity. I urge my colleagues to support this resolution.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 751) supporting the goals and ideals of National Chemistry Week.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on H. Res. 751, the resolution now under consideration.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I rise today in strong support, Madam Speaker, of H. Res. 751, a resolution recognizing the importance of chemistry and honoring National Chemistry Week. I want to congratulate the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Reyes) for introducing this important resolution.

The importance of chemistry and chemical engineering in our lives cannot be overstated. These disciplines contribute to public health by helping to keep our water clean and our food pure. They contribute to advances in medicine through new biomaterials, drug design and drug delivery techniques. They help make cleaner and more efficient energy technologies possible, and they help keep toxins out of our home and our natural environment through the development of green chemicals and materials.

In short, chemistry and chemical engineering contribute in immeasurable ways to the economic strength, security and well-being of our Nation and all of its citizens.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of National Chemistry Week. National Chemistry Week was started as an annual event by the American Chemical Society in 1987 to make elementary and secondary school children and the general public more aware of what chemistry is and its importance to our everyday lives.

National Chemistry Week activities are carried out by local sections of the American Chemical Society located in all parts of our Nation. They work with local industry, schools and museums to develop hands-on activities, provide demonstrations and develop exhibits. Through these activities, they help stimulate the interest of young people in science and in pursuing careers in science and technology.

This Congress recently passed into law the America COMPETES Act. That bill was an important bipartisan effort to keep America competitive in the 21st century by supporting innovative research at universities and in industry, and by ensuring that there is a sufficient pipeline of students pursuing studies and careers in science and technology fields well into the future.

The goals of the National Chemistry Week fit well with the goals outlined in the COMPETES Act.

The theme of this year's National Chemistry Week is, ``The Many Faces of Chemistry.'' This theme emphasizes the diversity of chemistry careers, from science teacher to laboratory researcher, as well as the diversity of people in chemistry professions.

While women and minorities continue to be underrepresented in chemical science fields, they have made important contributions to chemistry.

Women received about one-third of all chemistry Ph.D.s in 2003. Hispanics and African Americans combined represent only 7 percent of all chemistry Ph.D.s awarded in 2003, even though they make up more than 25 percent of the entire U.S. population.

We will need to make use of all the talent we have to stay competitive in the 21st century, but it isn't just a numbers game. The interaction and collaboration of diverse individuals with differing perspectives enriches the process of discovery and innovation and helps give the U.S. an edge over countries that easily beat us on numbers.

Madam Speaker, I congratulate the American Chemical Society for its efforts to establish and sustain National Chemistry Week, and once again, I commend Mr. Reyes and his cosponsors for introducing this resolution and urge my colleagues to join me in recognizing the importance of chemistry in our daily lives and the positive impact of National Chemistry Week by voting in favor of H. Res. 751.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, we have no further requests for time, and I ask my friend from Washington State if he has no further requests.

Madam Speaker, I yield back my time.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Res. 751, which recognizes National Chemistry Week. I am proud to support this resolution, as I have done in past years, which acknowledges the critical role chemistry plays in maintaining and improving our quality of life. I thank the gentleman from Texas, (Mr. Silvestre Reyes) for sponsoring this resolution and I thank the leadership for providing Members of Congress with the opportunity to show our support for this bill on the floor.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of National Chemistry Week. Started by the American Chemical Society in 1987, this year's National Chemistry Week brings together businesses, schools, and nearly 200 ACS chapters to raise awareness of chemistry in our daily lives. Through aggressive outreach, hands-on demonstrations within local communities and laboratory open houses, National Chemistry Week engages millions of Americans, particularly elementary and secondary students, asking them to think about the how chemistry surrounds us all.

National Chemistry Week's theme for 2007, ``The Many Faces of Chemistry,'' highlights the diverse roles chemistry professionals play in our society. From teaching in the classroom to conducting research in the laboratory, chemistry professionals provide countless services to society. ``The Many Faces of Chemistry'' is also a challenge to educators to promote diversity in chemistry and the sciences.

Madam Speaker, while ACS organizes National Chemistry Week to celebrate the contributions of chemistry to the common good, as well as the progress in achieving diversity within the field, ACS is also issuing a challenge and a warning to Americans.

Issues such as climate change and infectious disease pose threats not only to the United States, but also to the entire world. In order to solve these problems, we must insist that science education be a priority in our elementary and secondary schools to cultivate the next generation of scientists.

Additionally, this year's National Chemistry Week reminds us that our work is not done promoting diversity within the sciences. While the number of women, African-Americans, and Hispanics earning advanced science and engineering degrees has increased, growth has stagnated recently, and these groups remain underrepresented, when compared to the general population. If the United States is to remain the locus of scientific research and innovation in an increasingly competitive global playing field, we must continue to broaden these groups.

Once again I commend the American Chemical Society for establishing National Chemistry Week in 1987 and thank the organization for two decades of promoting science education. I urge my colleagues to support this resolution recognizing the goals and ideals of National Chemistry Week.

Madam Speaker, today I am pleased that we are considering this resolution recognizing the 20th anniversary of National Chemistry Week, which was established by the American Chemical Society to teach children about the chemical sciences. This year, the National Chemistry Week theme is ``The Many Faces of Chemistry,'' emphasizing the diversity of chemistry careers and the diversity of the individuals working in chemistry professions.

Ensuring that our science and engineering workforce accurately reflects the diversity of our population is necessary for our country to succeed. But right now we are falling short. For example, Hispanic Americans constitute 12 percent of the population yet they represent less than three percent of the engineering and scientific community in the U.S.

Last week the Research and Science Education Subcommittee heard testimony from a number of witnesses on the topic of gender equity within science and engineering faculty. Freeman Hrabowski, the president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore Campus--a campus noted for recruiting and retaining both minority students and faculty-- remarked, ``Producing well-prepared scientists and engineers for our increasingly diverse workforce is perhaps our most important and lasting contribution to the Nation's economic development and national security.'' Furthermore, a 2004 survey of the ``top 50'' science engineering departments at U.S. universities revealed that there are few tenured and tenure-track women faculty in these departments in research universities, even though a growing number of women are completing their Ph.D.s, and that underrepresented minority women faculty are almost nonexistent.

Clearly, we have a problem. I have often said that we are throwing away more than 40 percent of our workforce if we do not actively encourage more women and underrepresented minorities to consider these fields. The American Chemical Society is helping to draw more attention to this issue with the choice of this year's National Chemistry Week theme. ``The Many Faces of Chemistry'' recognizes the important contributions of chemical educators, scientists and engineers to technological progress and the health of many industries.

I commend the American Chemical Society for stimulating the interest of ALL of our Nation's children in the chemical sciences so that they will consider careers in these fields and potentially discover the innovations of the future, and I urge my colleagues to support this resolution recognizing the goals and ideals of National Chemistry Week.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res. 751, supporting the goals and ideals of National Chemistry Week, and I yield myself as much time as I may consume.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of National Chemistry Week, a concept that was first introduced in 1987 by the American Chemical Society to educate Americans about the contribution chemists and chemistry have made to our society. We first celebrated National Chemistry Day on November 6, 1987, with a parade in Washington, D.C. Because of the overwhelming enthusiasm for the day, 2 years later the

concept was expanded to celebrate National Chemistry Week.

The National Chemistry Week program is designed to reach out to the public, especially elementary and secondary school children, to foster an appreciation for chemistry. The theme of this year's celebration is, ``The Many Faces of Chemistry,'' which is designed to educate the public on the many different types of careers in chemistry and the many different ways chemistry has contributed to our society.

As a part of the activities for this week, the American Chemical Society has chosen to honor chemists working in the fields of biosensors, cosmetics, food, nutrition, dye, materials, natural products, and environmental processes, as well as chemists who work as teachers. These varied fields contribute to our society on a daily basis.

For instance, biosensors may be used to test air quality, drinking water quality, help dentists find cavities, and test for biological and chemical weapons. Material chemists may work on ways to help make new products that are less harmful to the environment, such as making threads and plastic out of renewable biological materials. Nutritional chemists may develop products that contain more vitamins and minerals in an effort to make people healthier and fight malnutrition throughout the world.

National Chemistry Week is intended to honor all of these contributions, as well as encourage our Nation's schools to cultivate the finest scientists, engineers and technicians from every background to ensure we remain globally competitive.

This week, more than 10,000 National Chemistry Week volunteers from industry, government, and academia will reach out to educate millions of children across the country. I urge my colleagues to join me in honoring them and these activities through the passage of this resolution.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back my time.