Dr. Eefei Chen has demonstrated outstanding service to the section through her long-standing contribution of a unique talent: creating captivating communications graphics coupled with a deep understanding of the science behind it. Her artwork enlivens public-facing communications, from the website homepage to seminar flyers to logos for on-going programs. Examples abound, illustrated in the examples of logos for the SVACS programs: Teacher-Scholar Community College Teacher Award, the Bubble Grant, and Paving the Path.
Readers of the monthly SVACS newsletter are often greeted with a cover illustration of her creation. The SVACS newsletter archive illustrates that robust collection of cover art. Every year she assembles a collage of the past year’s illustrations into a tasteful year-in-review. See a collection of the past three years here.
Eefei Chen has been contributing her artistic talents to SVACS for nearly ten years. For the award-winning NoBelles performances in 2018, she generated all the advertising material and theatre playbills, overseeing the playbill commercial printing to assure high quality. Her professional-level graphics-rendering of many aspects in the planning and execution of the multi-day event undoubtedly contributed to the success of NoBelles.
Eefei has also taken responsibility for creating the section’s posters featured at ACS National and Regional events. For example, ChemLuminary receptions featuring SVACS as a finalist display Eefei’s posters illustrating the activity that merited the nomination.
Eefei’s contributions go beyond skillfully designing effective communication for the section. She is in the SVACS leadership team as an Alternate Councilor on the section’s Executive Committee. She also chairs the Bubble Grant Committee, having served on it for the past few years. Her community connections have generated multiple applications to the Bubble Grant program. The Bubble Grant is an award of equipment for local K-12 science classrooms.
When not wielding the virtual paintbrush, Dr. Chen is an accomplished scientist at UCSC. In her studies of protein folding and function, she has built a nanosecond laser temperature-jump optical rotatory dispersion system to study early events in protein folding/unfolding.
SVACS is fortunate to have the artistic and scientific and societal dedication of Dr. Eefei Chen, recognized by the 2026 Abraham Ottenberg Service Award.
