A Welcome Message from the Chair

It is my distinct honor and privilege to welcome you to the ACS Division of Analytical Chemistry (ANYL). Whether you are a valued member of our Division or a prospective colleague exploring our community for the first time, we are pleased to have the opportunity to share with you the vision, mission, and aspirations that define our Division. Should you have arrived here by happenstance, we warmly invite you to engage with the ANYL and discover the depth and breadth of our contributions to the field of measurement science. As one of the preeminent international organizations dedicated to the advancement of analytical (measurement) science, the ACS ANYL is committed to fostering innovation, supporting professional growth, and promoting scientific excellence. Our strength resides in the diversity of our membership and the many ways in which each individual advances the field of measurement science through research, education, and collaboration. As a reminder, our Vision and Mission Statements were updated and enhanced in 2024 as one of the major outcomes from our Strategic Planning Initiative:

• Vision: Advancing chemical measurement science to empower all people.
• Mission: Strengthening the global chemical measurement community to drive discovery and innovation, enhance professional opportunities, educate members and society, and foster connections.

I am deeply honored to serve as Chair of the Division for 2026 and look forward to working together as we continue to uphold and expand the legacy of analytical chemistry and measurement science. We are well-positioned for continued progress, thanks in large part to the dedicated leadership of our Immediate Past Chair, Mark Hayes, whose excellent forward thinking management and decision-making skills has reinvigorated our Division Committees with energetic leaders, developed robust relationships with our sister measurement science societies and initiated steps toward the creation and establishment of a new ANYL mass spectrometry subdivision.

I am also delighted to welcome our incoming officers: Jackie Besinaiz Thomas as Chair-Elect and Michelle Rivard as Secretary. We are especially thrilled to have Jackie on the Executive Committee as she has attained many years of ACS experience at the local level that is invaluable for helping to promote ANYL’s value proposition to current and potential new members. Special congratulations to Michelle for her re-election as our Division Secretary as she has been a champion of high-level organization and making sure that our Division remains relevant at the local, regional, and national levels. We are also truly fortunate to have two new outstanding Councilors, Anna Cavinato and Jonathan Shackman, and two new equally outstanding Alternate Councilors, Christine Skaggs (also Chair of the Younger Chemists Committee) and Junyong Jo, joining the Executive Committee. Ben Garcia is now stepping into the role of Program Chair and with his vast domestic and international scientific connections, our membership is in store for an exciting year of innovative and diverse technical programming and networking events. A huge thanks goes out to Wendy Flory (Division Treasurer) and Miquela Sena (Division Business Manager) for ensuring that both our finances and internal/external business operations are consistently stellar.

We are eternally grateful to Mirlinda Biba for helping to sponsor and ensure the success of the “ACS Future Pharma Innovators Program”. This new program recognizes individuals who are interested in the pharmaceutical industry as a career path. This cross-divisional collaborative mentorship initiative with ACS Divisions of Organic Chemistry and Professional Relations, connects industry professionals with highly qualified students and post-docs, to establish long-lasting career networks.

The Co-Chairs of the Long-Range Program Planning Committee, Si Wu and Amit Vaish, continue to do impressive work helping to create exhilarating and inspirational symposia at our National Meetings by identifying high quality symposium topics and symposium Chairs. They both helped to ease my work load during my tenure as Program Chair and their contributions to the strength of the Division’s programming are invaluable.

Rebecca Zangmeister, Chair of the Membership Committee, is one of the key players generating and managing the membership data and surveys that help us to enhance the ANYL member experience. Jacky Jhingree, Volunteers Chair, as well as one of our superlative Councilors, continues to do an outstanding job at maintaining the connections between our numerous volunteers and our Committees.

Under the skillful leadership of Kelvin Yuan, Chair of the Communications Committee, ANYL continues to be committed to the clear and effective dissemination of information regarding its extensive array of programs, e.g., student travel awards, National programming, career networking events, etc., as well as other developments of significance to the measurement science community. To this end, the ANYL maintains an updated website that serves as a comprehensive resource, offering a wealth of practical information and curated links of professional relevance. Kelvin and his team compile timely announcements and updates into a monthly electronic newsletter, which is distributed to all members and archived on the Division website. Moreover, the ANYL actively engages the broader measurement science community by sharing pertinent information across its extensive social media network (X, Facebook, LinkedIn), ensuring wide visibility and timely communication of important initiatives and opportunities.

The Education Committee, under the leadership of Michelle Kovarik, continues to play a vital role in advancing the Division’s educational mission at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Central to its efforts is the coordination of several distinguished student awards and fellowships, including the Kolthoff Award, the Undergraduate Award in Analytical Chemistry, and the Graduate Student Fellowships, which are made possible through the generous support of Agilent, Eli Lilly, Eastman, and Pittcon. Beyond awards administration, the Committee actively fosters professional development and community engagement through the organization of virtual workshops, roundtable discussions addressing topics of interest to educators, profiles of rising analytical chemists and networking events designed to strengthen connections across the academic community.

Our Division is rich in intellectual diversity, and we remain strongly committed to celebrating, promoting, and protecting this. As the 2026 Chair, I hope to accomplish a number of key objectives that will build upon the successes of 2025, including the following two:

• Strengthening Strategic Industry–Academia Partnerships to Support Research and Training: Federal funding for fundamental research has plateaued or even decreased in many areas, and industry is increasingly looking to academic collaborators for innovation, workforce development, and translational solutions. Analytical chemistry is uniquely positioned to be indispensable in life sciences, energy, materials, climate research, and advanced manufacturing. I intend to facilitate the development of a suite of formal partnership programs with major industrial stakeholders (e.g., pharma, biotech, instrumentation companies, energy sector) like the ACS Future Pharma Innovator’s Program. This effort will be supported by industry-led symposia and training modules at National ACS meetings to highlight emerging technologies and skill sets. This strategy will lead to expanded funding streams for academic research and to enhanced career development opportunities for ANYL students and postdocs.
• Enhancing Membership Recruitment and Retention: This is a multi-pronged initiative that will be enabled by (1) updating and enhancing our Website presence so that it is engaging and relevant to the widest measurement science audience possible, (2) revamping our Long Range Program Planning Committee membership to enable the selection of the most innovative and timely symposium topics that attract world-class plenary speakers from academia, government and industry, and finally, (3) updating the ANYL By-Laws so that the Chair has a significant role in securing/enhancing the long-term viability of the Division.

Your perspectives, insights, and recommendations are invaluable as we seek to further enrich the member experience within the Division of Analytical Chemistry. I look forward to collaborating with you to ensure that 2026 is a year marked by innovation, engagement, and shared success. Even though the current funding climate does not appear to be supportive of science or of scientific research, we all know that the research that we care so deeply about enhances the quality of life, facilitates global competitiveness, and provides benefits to humanity far beyond the immediate impacts.

P.S. Not a member of the Division? Please join us by signing up here!

Bryant C. Nelson
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)
Chair, ACS Division of Analytical Chemistry – 2026