Below is a reprint of the article published in the October issue of ReMix, a monthly newsletter published by the Stanford Libraries.
The American Chemical Society’s initial gift was nearly matched by contributions from faculty, colleagues, and friends to create a new endowment in honor of retiring Stanford science librarian Grace Baysinger.
Since 1989, the Stanford research community has relied upon the extensive expertise and steadfast service of Grace Baysinger, librarian for Chemistry and Chemical Engineering. Beloved by students and highly regarded by faculty, Grace retired recently at a celebratory gathering of friends and colleagues outside the Sapp Center for Science Teaching and Learning.
Representatives of the American Chemical Society (ACS), attending virtually, announced the creation of an endowment for materials at Stanford Libraries: The Grace Baysinger Fund for Chemistry and Chemical Engineering. “ACS Publications became the first sponsor of the fund,” said Melissa Blaney, Vice President of Global Marketing & Community Development, “to express our profound appreciation for Grace and for her service to the ACS and to recognize her unwavering commitment to improving lives through the transformative power of chemistry.”
ACS also presented a plaque, sent in advance of the celebration, acknowledging Grace’s roles as “a longtime partner, an ACS Fellow, a key participant in the Academic Roundtable, and an active member of the Chemical Information Division (CINF).” In total, she chaired six ACS committees, including the ACS Publications, Chemical and Engineering News Editorial Board, CAS Committee, and was named an ACS Fellow in 2017. Other ACS contributions include being chair of CINF and the Silicon Valley Local Section, a Councilor, co-editor of the ACS Guide to Scholarly Communication, and the editorial advisory board for the Journal of Chemical Education (JCE). She was guest editor for a special issue of JCE on Chemical Information. She has also served on the editorial advisory boards for the CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics and the Science of Synthesis.
“Some years ago, I came to this place, and one of the first persons I met was Grace,” said Mike Keller, the Ida M. Green University Librarian. “In a few short years we started HighWire Press, and that was our introduction to e-journals and e-publishing and e-reference works and so forth. Grace has contributed to research projects, helped students at all levels, trained many junior librarians, developed wonderful collections, and was head of our Science and Engineering Research Group from 1999-2005. In the 32 years of service for which she is now receiving emerita appointment, Grace stayed on top of changes, did everything with the patron in mind, and opened up the complexities of the literature of chemistry in which she was exceptionally knowledgeable.”
Grace’s career could fill a highlight reel of accomplishments. In 1996, she won the Marshall D. O’Neill Award for exceptional staff contributions to Stanford’s research mission. In 2006, she presented to the Faculty Senate about the serials crisis and advocated for new pricing models and proactive negotiations, at a time when Chemistry journals typically had the highest average cost of all subject areas. In 2011, she won the Wiggins-Roth Award for Outstanding Service given by the Chemistry Division of the Special Libraries Association. She spearheaded multi-year efforts at Stanford to migrate library resources and tools from print to online and to offer customized federated search tools that allow simultaneous search of multiple databases.
“We are greatly encouraged by the collegiality of the contributors to The Grace Baysinger Fund, by the securing of a new endowment for our disproportionately underendowed science and engineering libraries, and by its creation at such an important time for the academy and the Libraries,” Keller concluded.
To discuss contributing to the Grace Baysinger Fund or endowing a library materials fund in honor or memory of family, faculty, or friend, please contact Gabrielle Karampelas in the Library Development Office: gkaram@stanford.edu, 650-492-9855.
