Lab Manager Earns National Outreach Award
March 27, 2024
Rigel Rilling, laboratory manager for Angelo State University’s Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, has been named a 2024 Outreach Volunteer of the Year by the American Chemical Society.
An ASU staff member since 2012, Rilling earned the ACS award for the Permian Basin Local Section. Only 26 ACS members received a 2024 national award.
As posted on the ACS website:
Rigel enthusiastically presents to students grades K-12 with the wonders of chemistry. Rigel and his team of Angelo State undergraduate students engage over 500 students annually with “mysterious” chemical demonstrations and interact with these students through inquisitive questions and simplified answers. Rigel has a passion for sharing these “wonders” with students and he thoroughly enjoys the “oohs” and “aahs” from his audience, as well as the subsequent discussions/explanations that follow the presentations.
When asked what he enjoys most about chemistry outreach, Rigel said, “Not only is it great to get young people interested in science, but the demonstrations are a delight to conduct.”
Rilling earned his B.S. in biology from the University of Dallas and his M.S. in biology at ASU (Class of 2012). Prior to joining ASU, he taught summer courses at Howard College in Big Spring and for two terms at Lertlah Academy in Bangkok, Thailand.