Georgia College & State University's (GCSU) Chemistry Club is highlighting the fun side of learning this week for students at several of the District's schools. In honor of National Chemistry Week, the GCSU Chemistry Club will visit Vineville Academy of the Arts from 10 a.m.-noon and Union Elementary School from 2-3 p.m. on Wednesday, October 19, to perform experiments and speak to students about studying science in college.

GCSU Associate Professor of Chemistry Dr. Catrena Lisse said the group's purpose is to show students that chemistry is "not a scary subject."

"So many students, when they hear the word chemistry, they cringe," she said. "I want them to see that it can be fun and, more importantly, I want them to think about college and not just settle with high school."

The GCSU Chemistry Club visited Northeast High School and Alexander II Math and Science Magnet School on Monday where they went through about 10 different activities for classes. Students were pulled to the front of the room to participate in experiments that demonstrated combustion reaction, precipitation reaction, center of mass, and more.

Northeast Academic Coach Donna Walker Thompson said she hoped the visit from the GCSU Chemistry Club would show students some of the concepts that have been taught in class from a different perspective.

"I think a lot of times we get really caught up in standardized testing and a lot of the fun has been taken out of science," she said. "Science can be really, really fun and I wanted them to see that aspect of our subject area."