Ron Valcarce
Professor
Chemistry
School of: Science, Mathematics & Engineering
What he teaches:
Organic Chemistry
Number of years teaching at SLCC:
25
Undergraduate:
Utah State
University
Master’s:
Utah State University
Ron Valcarce teaches high school students the science behind making lip balm in the lab.
Why working at SLCC
matters:
It has been my honor to teach at Salt Lake Community College,
a place where students can and do change their lives. During my time here at SLCC working with my colleagues
in the chemistry department, we have helped countless students find success in
our classrooms and transition to become scientists, pharmacists, doctors, dentists and physician assistants. We have former students practicing successfully in all areas of the
scientific and healthcare fields. Many,
if not most of them, would not be in those professional positions if it were
not for SLCC, which is the access point that
gives these students opportunities for personal and professional success.
How important SLCC is
for our community:
Having the opportunity to teach at SLCC I have seen how
valuable SLCC is to our community. I
know of a significant number of my past students who would not have been able to
access higher education were not for SLCC. For many, SLCC offered a second chance when their first attempt at
college did not go as expected. Almost
without exception, I have seen these students take advantage of this second
chance and go on to earn their degrees and ultimately build successful
careers.
Greatest professional
challenge:
Every semester we get a small group of students that,
because of previous “bad experiences” in their high school science or chemistry
classes, are certain they do not like or cannot be successful in our chemistry
courses. Enlightening these students is
a professional and enjoyable challenge. Fortunately, we have outstanding chemistry faculty who work as a
cohesive group and share the teaching philosophy that when students are shown
the chemistry that is used everywhere in their world, chemistry becomes accessible
and even enjoyable.
Greatest
professional accomplishment:
I helped establish the American Chemical Society Student Affiliate
chapter at Salt Lake Community College, which is supported by our chemistry
department and supervised by our chemistry and nanotechnology faculty. Since
its formation, the ACS-SA of SLCC has had steady membership growth and is now
one of the largest ACS Student Affiliates in the nation. Since 2001, our ACS
Student Affiliate has raised over
$200,000 for local charities and provided over 69,000 service hours. As ACS-SA advisors, we have supervised over a
hundred undergraduate research projects and given 240 students the opportunity
to attend one of the annual ACS national conferences, where students presented
their undergraduate research results and networked with professionals from all
areas of the chemical sciences. In 1995 we
created a community education outreach program that was originally called the
Faraday Project. Now called Elemental
Expeditions, this program was designed to promote STEM education to
disadvantaged K-7 grade students attending resource limited schools. Our Elemental Expeditions team members visit elementary
and middle schools, after-school programs and Boy’s and Girl’s Clubs in the Salt
Lake Valley to provide hands-on science demonstrations. In 2013 we
initiated an undergraduate research project to attempt to measure the
effectiveness of this educational outreach effort. The Chemical Information Series (CIS) is a
program managed by our ACS-SA that is designed to give students information about careers in the chemical
sciences and to provide professional development. This program works closely with five SLCC
clubs (SLCC Chemistry Club, Pre-Pharmacy Club, Pre-Medical Professions Club,
Nanotechnology Club and Biotechnology Club) and arranges or supports on- and
off-campus speakers, trips to local science-related businesses and academic
laboratories, pre-professional workshops, outreach projects and more.
Advice for students or others:
The best advice for students is summarized in my favorite
Thomas Huxley quote: "Perhaps the most valuable result of all education is the
ability to make yourself do the thing you have to do, when it ought to be done,
whether you like it or not." It is the first lesson that ought to be learned and, however early a person’s training begins, it is probably the last lesson that a
person learns thoroughly.
Hobbies:
Golf, Skiing, Beekeeping
