John C. Bailar, Jr. Award in Coordination Chemistry

The ACS Division of Inorganic Chemistry (DIC) is pleased to announce the establishment of and solicit nominations for the inaugural 2026 John C. Bailar, Jr. Award in Coordination Chemistry, sponsored by the John C. Bailar, Jr. and Florence C. Bailar Lectureship Fund in Inorganic Chemistry at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

The award is named after Prof. John Christian Bailar, Jr., an Illinois Chemistry faculty between 1928 and 1991. Through his research and mentoring, Professor Bailar became known as the father of American coordination chemistry. Among his many awards, Bailar received the ACS Award in Chemical Education, the ACS Award for Distinguished Service to Inorganic Chemistry, the Priestley Medal, and the Werner Gold Medal. He was also president of the ACS and cofounder of the Division of Inorganic Chemistry of ACS, and of the journal Inorganic Chemistry.

The John C. Bailar, Jr. Award in Coordination Chemistry is meant to recognize sustained excellence, dedication, and perseverance in research in the area of coordination chemistry, broadly defined. The award consists of $1,000 to the winner, as well as a plaque presented to the recipient at the Fall ACS meeting. Recipients are expected to be at the mid-career stage (i.e., post-tenure and no more than 15 years from the beginning of their independent research career, or the equivalent in a non-tenured position). Preference will be given to nominees who have not won an ACS award during the past ten years. The recipient of the award will be also invited to visit the Department of Chemistry at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign as the Emerging Leaders in Inorganic Chemistry Bailar Seminar Speaker, during the year they receive the award.

The deadline for receipt of nominations is March 15, 2026, and the nomination materials must include:

· A 2-page curriculum vitae

· A list of the nominee’s 10 most significant publications

· A 1-2 page nomination letter highlighting key research discoveries that merit a national award in the area of coordination chemistry, broadly defined. The letter must include:

o A one-sentence award citation suitable for public announcements

o The date the nominee began their independent career

o An explanation of any extenuating circumstances, if applicable, should the nominee exceed the eligible career stage

o Affirmation that the nominee is an active member of the DIC, including the nominee’s ACS member number

· In addition to the nomination letter, one seconding letter (no more than 2 pages) from an individual familiar with the nominee’s work is required.

Submission instructions:

All materials should be combined into a single PDF, ordered as listed above, and titled using the nominee’s last name (e.g., LASTNAME.pdf). The PDF should be emailed as an attachment to bailarawards@gmail.com, with the nominee’s last name included in the subject line.

Questions concerning the nomination process should be directed to the Illinois Chemistry representative Liviu Mirica (mirica@illinois.edu) and the 2026 Coordination Chemistry Subdivision Chair (Jacqueline Veauthier, Veauthier@lanl.gov).