Overview
The prize is a memorial to Dr. Arno Heyn, a distinguished, long-serving member of the Northeastern Section. Arno occupied most of the offices of the Section at various times, but his most lasting contributions were made when he was the Editor of The Nucleus of the Northeastern Section. Under his guidance this publication became the outstanding newsletter among all those published by Sections of the American Chemical Society.
Arno Heyn served as NESACS Chair in 1968 and was the Henry Hill Award Winner for Outstanding Service to the Northeastern Section in 1986. Prof. Heyn taught for many years analytical chemistry at Boston University, notably one of his graduate students was Phyllis Brauner for whom the Phyllis Brauner Memorial Book Award is offered at NESACS.
The prize is awarded annually to a person or persons deemed to have made the most important contribution(s) to publications of the Northeastern Section. The awardee is chosen by the Arno Heyn Book Prize Committee which is chaired by the Chair of the Publications Committee. Other Committee members include the Editor of The Nucleus, two members of the Board of Directors appointed by the Section Chair, the Chair of the Awards Committee and the Section Chair, ex officio.
The prize is a book selected by the awardee, who is asked to choose a book that will have long time meaning and value to her/him. A bookplate mounted inside the book cover honors both the award recipient and the memory of Dr. Heyn.
Presentation of the award(s) takes place at the November meeting of the Section.
Ajay Purohit
2019 Arno Heyn Memorial Book Prize Recipient
For his significant and substantial contributions to the publications of the Northeastern Section of the American Chemical Society, Dr. Ajay Purohit has been selected to receive the 2018 Arno Heyn Memorial Book Prize.
Ajay received his Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from Northeastern University in 2002 and his Masters in Chemistry from the Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai, in 1995. He has worked at Biogen since 2015.
Ajay is being recognized for his service on the Board of Publications (BOP) of NESACS including service as the current Chair. He is also being recognized for a number of BOP efforts he has helped to spearhead.
These efforts include a substantial effort to web stream (infrastructure allowing) Monthly Meetings to our membership. Thanks to Ajay there is also a dial in option for our Monthly Meetings. He also had a leadership role in the successful revamping of the NESACS website to better match the current best practices of National ACS and to create a website that fully highlights and benefits from National ACS branding.
The prize is a memorial to Arno H. A. Heyn, a distinguished, long-serving member of the Northeastern Section. Arno occupied most of the offices of the Section at various times, but his most lasting contributions were made when he was the Editor of the Nucleus of the Northeastern Section. Under his guidance this publication became the outstanding newsletter among all those published by Sections of the American Chemical Society.
The prize is awarded annually to a person or persons deemed to have made the most important contribution(s) to publications of the Northeastern Section. The awardee is chosen by the Arno Heyn Book Prize Committee which is chaired by the Chair of the Publications Committee. Other Committee members include the Editor of the Nucleus, two members of the Board of Directors appointed by the Section Chair, the Chair of the Awards Committee and the Section Chair, ex officio.
The prize is a book selected by the awardee, who is asked to choose a book that will have long time meaning and value to her/him. A bookplate mounted inside the book cover honors both the award recipient and the memory of Dr. Heyn.
Ajay joins past recipients of the Prize, Sam Kounaves and Mark Spitler (2005), Vincent Gale (2006), Vivian Walworth (2007), Myron Simon (2008), Arthur Obermayer (2009), Donald Rickter (2010), Harvey Steiner (2011), Karen Piper (2012), Mindy Levine (2013), Morton Hoffman (2014) Mary Mahaney (2015) and Roy Hagen (2016). The prize was not awarded in 2017.
Past Recipients
2018
Ajay Purohit
2017
Prize not awarded
2016
Roy Hagen
2015
Mary A. Mahaney
2014
Morton Z. Hoffman
2013
Mindy Levine
2012
Karen Piper
2011
Harvey Steiner
2010
Donald Rickter
2009
Arthur Obermayer
2008
Vivian K. Walworth
2007
Myron S. Simon
2006
Vince Gale
2005
Mark Spitler
2004
Sam Kounaves
Katherine Lee, Chair
Craig Sergeant, Editor of The Nucleus
Dorothy Phillips, Chair of the Awards Committee
Position on Committee
Position on Committee
Some NESACS History by the 2012 Arno Heyn Book Prize awardee
By Karen Piper
I began working for the Section in 1987 when Janice Fineman had resigned as administrative secretary and David Howell had taken over those duties while the Section looked for a replacement. The company for which I was office manager had been sold two years earlier, and I was in the process of starting a bookkeeping/payroll services business. The Section hired me as the administrative secretary, and I recall going to Northeastern to pick up the Section’s files from Dave. Dave was a pillar of the Section’s Board, having been Editor of the Nucleus, Section Treasurer, and Secretary. He was, however, not notable for being organized, and I recall retrieving files from an office in which one’s physical welfare seemed threatened by the piles of paper inside. Fortunately, Janice had been an extremely organized secretary, and the files were in good order.
I had the good fortune to be the administrative secretary during the chairmanships of Lloyd Taylor, Tom Gilbert, Mike Strem, Joe Billo, Chuck Kolb, and Katie Stygall. At that time, the annual reports to National were all on paper, and during January, my living room was covered with piles of paper for the seven copies that needed to be made. It was gratifying to receive the ACS Large Section Award in 1990 for the chairmanship of Mike Strem. Recalling my work as administrative secretary brings to mind many stories, but the best memories are of the people I was privileged to work with. Phyllis Brauner was my mentor. She had large ideas and usually was able to get them to happen. Ed Atkinson, Dick Handrick, Arno Heyn, Dave Howell, Ted Light, and a host of others, now departed, were people who cared deeply about the Section and were easy to work with.
Janice Fineman had worked closely with Richard Handrick, and she kept records for the Trustees for which Dick acted as Treasurer. I took over these records, and then, when Bill Adams at Salem State decided to give up the position of Business/Advertising manager of the Nucleus, those positions passed to Russ McCann and Vince Gale. I inherited the Business Manager’s position from Russ McCann in 1991. Later, I took over the circulation manager’s responsibilities from Dick Handrick. Dick kept the Nucleus mailing list on 3X5 cards and transferred them to IBM punchcards, which were processed by Wang Laboratories. I was able to put the list into a dBase III file and print the cheshire labels in my office.
I was also administrative secretary during the first years of the Esselen Award, as a result of which I developed a close relationship with members of the Esselen family. I had the privilege of working with Arno Heyn when he became editor of the Nucleus in 1989. When Arno assumed the chairmanship of the Esselen Award Committee in 2003, I had the opportunity to renew that relationship. His graciousness coupled with his attention to detail made that year very rewarding. Receiving the Arno Heyn book award in 2012 in recognition of our relationship was an unexpected pleasure.
In 1992 I left the position of administrative secretary and it eventually passed into the very capable hands of Marilou Cashman and, now, to Anna Singer. I have retained my connections with the Trustees, The Nucleus, and the Esselen Committee. The Business Manager also serves as the circulation manager for The Nucleus, works closely with the Advertising Manager, Vince Gale, and is responsible for accounting. After 25-plus years of association with the Section, it is satisfying and rewarding to see the continuation of dedicated people carrying on the traditions of the Northeastern Section.
NESACS Meeting – Norris Award/Heyn Book Prize
NESACS Meeting – Norris Award/Heyn Book Prize
NESACS Meeting – Norris Award/Heyn Book Prize
