2025 PCMNCG

The Pittsburgh Conference on Analytical Chemistry and Applied Spectroscopy (a Pennsylvania non-profit Corporation), also known as Pittcon, and its co-sponsoring technical societies, The Society for Analytical Chemists of Pittsburgh (SACP) and The Spectroscopy Society of Pittsburgh (SSP) proudly sponsor the Pittsburgh Conference Memorial National College Grant (PCMNCG).

Grants will be awarded to small college science departments for the purchase of scientific equipment, audio-visual or other teaching aids, and/or library materials for use in the teaching of science at the undergraduate level.

This year the maximum funding available for each grant is $10,000.

Grant application will be available in the fall. Selected schools will join the list of over 300 institutions honored since the start of this program in 1974.

About PCMNCG

The Pittsburgh Conference Memorial National College Grant, originally established in memory of R.K. Scott, 1955 President of the Pittsburgh Conference, serves as a memorial to deceased members of the Pittsburgh Conference Committee by promoting excellence in science education.  Through the program, small colleges (enrollments <5000) can enhance their science curricula through grants to purchase equipment and course materials.

Eligibility Requirements

To be eligible for an award, schools must meet all of the following criteria:

► Enrollment must not exceed 5000 full-time students.

► No more than 25% of the operating budget may come from national or state governments. Two-year community colleges sponsored by political subdivisions of a state are not bound by these first two criteria.

► Requests for materials to be used only for research purposes will not be funded.

► Awards may be used as part of “Matching Grant” programs; use of matching funds to increase the overall impact of the grant will be considered in the evaluation of proposals and is highly encouraged.

► Schools are ineligible for the PCMNCG program for a three-year period following receipt of the PCMNCG grant (award recipient colleges from 2022, 2023 and 2024 are not eligible for the 2025 program).

Past Recipients (3 year period)

General Information

The net proceeds generated by Pittcon, sponsored by The Society of Analytical Chemists (SACP) and The Spectroscopy Society of Pittsburgh (SSP), are used to promote science education at all levels. The Pittsburgh Conference Memorial National College Grants (PCMNCG) Program is one aspect of the efforts of the Pittcon volunteers and the sponsoring societies to support science education.

This year, the maximum funding available for each grant is $10,000.

Last year we received approximately 60 proposals from small colleges and universities who met our requirements. Each proposal was reviewed by members of our evaluation committee, made up of members of the SACP and SSP.

Strong proposals had the following characteristics (in no particular order)

► All information requested on application form are completely and accurately filled out

► Good development and organization

► PCMNCG funds leveraged by matching contributions from the university or another source

► Specific examples of how the requested equipment would be integrated into the science programs

► Requested equipment and materials impact a large number of students

► Brief descriptions of specific experiments that demonstrate broad use of the equipment

► Funds were not requested for computers, notepads and/or generic software

Examples of equipment and instruments funded in previous years are listed below. In some cases, more than one school requested a particular type of instrument.

► AA Spectrometer

► UV/VIS Detector for HPLC plus columns

► Gas Chromatograph, Software and Supplies

► Human Muscular Torsos

► UV/VIS Spectrophotometer

► Automated Pipettes

► HPLC

► NMR Workstations and Software

► 1H/13C Dual-Channel NMR Probe

► FTIR Software Upgrade and Spectral Libraries

► Camera and Software for a Fluorescence Microscope