Juniors Ashley Geohas and Caroline Tzur know that the chemistry curriculum can be stressful and fast-paced, and that students want an outlet where they can focus solely on what makes chemistry fun: labs.

That drove them to form Chemistry Club earlier this year.

“I wanted to create an opportunity for student to get more lab experience and to have fun with chemistry,” said Geohas.

So far, the club has created spider web-like material, determined the number of calories of food, such as Cheetos, and, when they mixed iodine with sodium hydroxide, changed the color of the iodine repeatedly.

When Chemistry Club member Ella Cohen took chemistry in a hybrid format, she had fewer chances for lab work than she wanted. Chemistry Club has helped make up for that.

“[In Chemistry Club], I’ve learned the most about lab work and how to format a lab and how to use the supplies,” said Cohen.  

Chemistry Club is also a way for students to see what scientific path they may want to head down.

“Maybe biology is the option, and they’ll go to Biology Club, but I just want [students] to get a sense of what chemistry is like,” said Geohas.  

The club started in March, and attendance has been consistent since then, with at least ten students at each meeting. 

Geohas hopes freshmen and sophomores come to the club in the future. She acknowledged that freshmen are harder to get since they must be driven or bused over from Northfield.

Cohen said that she comes back to Chemistry Club because she has met new people, and the community of people is “really nice.”

­­“Everyone has [the] shared goal of learning more about chemistry and having fun with it outside of a classroom setting,” said Cohen.  

When Geohas and Tzur proposed the club, they turned in an application, where they wrote the purpose of the club and the names of potential club members. In total, that took about an hour and a half. 

Once the application was approved, they met with a few Student Council representatives, and a week later, their club was approved for a three-month trial period. When the trial period ends at the end of the school year, Student Council will determine, based on club membership, activities, and agendas, whether Chemistry Club is viable and should move to active status.

As summer nears, club leadership is preparing for next school year, hoping to grow what activities they offer.

Geohas hopes to host debates on “hot” chemistry topics, such as nuclear fusion.

“Now [nuclear fusion] is creating more energy than was put in. People are wondering about the viability of it, especially with climate change. If nuclear fusion did become commercially viable, we could basically get to zero carbon emissions,” said Geohas.  

Geohas also wants to host guest speakers, such as professors from local universities and product line engineer Juan Trujillo, her boss at chemical and automotive company Old World Industries.

Cohen hopes more people join Chemistry Club next school year.

“It’s not as nerdy as people think it would be. We’re just really having fun and it helps you learn more,” said Cohen.