Angela K. Wilson, the John A. Hannah Distinguished Professor of Chemistry at Michigan State University is the new president of the American Chemical Society. Founded in 1876 and chartered by the U.S. Congress, the American Chemical Society is one of the world’s largest scientific organizations with more than 155,000 members in 150 countries.
Dr. Wilaon has been a member of the American Chemical Society for 33 years. “ACS has been my source of information for career advice and training, research opportunities through the technical divisions, and activities that have benefited my students,” she said. “So for me, becoming president was a chance to give back to the society. I hope other people realize the importance of ACS and the impact it can have on their career.”
As president of the society, Professor Wilson said “my focus is upon the future of the chemical sciences, ensuring that we, as a profession, are well prepared to address the challenges of the present and future, such as those included in the United Nations’ sustainability goals. This entails a strong, diverse workforce; knowledge of emerging fields; greater support by the public; partnerships to tackle science and technology challenges; and a vibrant chemical industry.”
Professor Wilson is a prominent scholar in the fields of theoretical and computational chemistry. Her research focuses upon the development and understanding of computational methodologies, and studies in heavy-element chemistry, catalysis, protein modeling, drug design/understanding of disease, metal organic frameworks, green chemistry, and many other areas.
Before joining the faculty at Michigan State, Dr. Wilson was the director of the Chemistry Division at the National Science Foundation from 2016 to 2018. She served on the faculty of the University of North Texas from 2000 to 2016. There she rose through the ranks to the position of Regents Professor and served as director of the Center for Advanced Scientific Computing and Modeling and as vice provost for faculty. Earlier in her career, she taught at Oklahoma Baptist University and the University of Oklahoma.
Dr. Wilson is a graduate of Eastern Washington University, where she majored in chemistry. She holds a Ph.D. in chemical physics from the University of Minnesota.