BASF creates chemistry with over 1,000 NJ students during National Chemistry Week

Company taps into the natural curiosity of children with its award-winning Kids’ Lab program

FLORHAM PARK, NJ, November 5, 2015 – BASF celebrated National Chemistry Week (October 18 – 24) by creating fun and exciting chemistry with 1,000 New Jersey students through the company’s popular Kids’ Lab program.

“BASF Kids’ Lab encourages students to explore their interest in chemistry through safe and engaging hands-on experiments,” said Robin Rotenberg, Vice President, Corporate Communications & Chief Communications Officer of North America. “Through our science education efforts and STEM focused programs, we are supporting the next generation of our workforce.”

Designed for children between the ages of 6–12, Kids’ Lab also teaches students though interactive Q&A, which demonstrates how BASF creates chemistry that affects our daily lives. The Kids’ Lab program is offered to schools in communities where the company operates.

BASF outreach for National Chemistry Week included K-8 grade students at Thomas Jefferson Elementary School, The London Day School, Washington Elementary School, Parsippany Troy Hills School, Carlstadt Public School, Liberty Science Center and Morris Museum.  

“Thanks to BASF’s Kids’ Lab, students at TJ Elementary had the opportunity to experience this special program that would not have been in the budget to deliver. The kids left loving science more than ever before,” said Gabrielle Meyer, Science Specialist at Thomas Jefferson Elementary School in Morristown, NJ. “At TJ Elementary, BASF is the rock star celebrity of science.”

The BASF Kids’ Lab is a global program established in 1997 and is currently available in more than 30 countries worldwide. It was launched in North America in 2010 and has engaged more than 85,000 participants. BASF’s science education offerings in North America, include Kids’ Lab, the BASF Science Academy, the BASF Tech Academy, a special science theme edition of Kids X-Press Magazine, national sponsorship and participation in the Chemical Educational Foundation’s You Be The Chemist® challenge, have reached more than 300,000 schoolchildren in grades K – 12 over the past five years. The programs have received numerous awards for excellence in science education, most recently, in 2014 from the North Jersey Section of the American Chemical Society.

BASF Celebrates National Chemistry Week

Download photo on right, suggested caption: Third grade student at Thomas Jefferson Elementary School in Morristown, NJ, smiles while creating chemistry with BASF.

National Chemistry Week is an American Chemical Society program that encourages chemists and chemistry enthusiast to build awareness of chemistry at the local level and promote the value of chemistry in everyday life.

About BASF

BASF Corporation, headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, is the North American affiliate of BASF SE, Ludwigshafen, Germany. BASF has more than 17,000 employees in North America, and had sales of $20.6 billion in 2014. For more information about BASF’s North American operations, visit www.basf.us.

At BASF, we create chemistry – and have been doing so for 150 years. Our portfolio ranges from chemicals, plastics, performance products and crop protection products to oil and gas. As the world’s leading chemical company, we combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. Through science and innovation, we enable our customers in nearly every industry to meet the current and future needs of society. Our products and solutions contribute to conserving resources, ensuring nutrition and improving quality of life. We have summed up this contribution in our corporate purpose: We create chemistry for a sustainable future. BASF had sales of over €74 billion in 2014 and around 113,000 employees as of the end of the year. Further information on BASF is available on the Internet at www.basf.com.

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