Course Objective:

This course is the first half of Eckerd College's two-semester organic chemistry sequence and is designed to provide the student with an introduction to the various aspects of organic chemistry, including reactions, stereochemistry, mechanism, synthesis, and spectroscopy.

Required Textbooks and Supplies

Text: Organic Chemistry, 4th Ed., Jones & Fleming.  Study Guide and Solutions Manual, Jones, Gingrich, and Fleming (available in bookstore).
Lab Text: Signature Lab Series Manual in Organic Chemistry (specially prepared for Eckerd College). This is available at the Eckerd College bookstore.
For the Lab: Safety Glasses,  Lab (composition) Notebook, and Sharpie Pen, and Ruler. Safety glasses may be purchased from the Chemistry stockroom.

The Lecture

Lectures will feature PowerPoint presentations. The presentations will use slides that are incomplete. I will "mark-up" the slides during the lecture (with an HP Notebook) in response to comments and questions from students. The original slides, with no mark-up, will be available to you on the course's Moodle page. You should print these out and bring them to class; you will "complete" the slides as I mark them up during the lecture. The final slides, with "mark-up," will not be posted to the Moodle, but you may come by and ask me to assist you in completing the slides.

The lectures will be fast-paced, more so than in most other classes. You may have some trouble at the beginning keeping up, so you may need to make some adjustments. You should read the chapter before you come to lecture, otherwise you may find youself struggling to understand the lecture. Please feel free to ask questions any time.

Organic chemistry covers a lot of new material, and covers it rapidly. There are always complaints of "you're going too fast." The fast pace of the course is necessary, unfortunately. Importantly, you cannot "cram" organic chemistry: there is too much to memorize, too much to know, and too much to understand. I encourage you to work at understanding organic chemistry. This will pay dividends far down the road, although it may not seem like it at the current time. Study organic chemistry a little every night, including Saturday and Sunday evening; an hour-and-a-half to two hours is about right. Do all the problems in a neat, organized manner, and keep the problems for future reference.

Exam Schedule

        Examination #1: Friday, September 30.
        Examination #2: Friday, October 28.
        Examination #3: Wednesday, December 7.
        FINAL EXAM-Sec. 1 (MWF 9:30): TBA; Sec. 2 (MWF 8:30):         TBA.

Examinations & Quizzes:

The three examinations will be closed book hour exams given according to the above schedule. These exams will be multiple choice exams; Scantron sheets will be provided for you. There are no make-up exams and exams are given only on the dates and times indicated. Unexcused absences will result in a grade of zero. In case of emergency or serious illness, call the NAS office (X8432) and leave a message; an e-mail message is not acceptable.  The final exam will be cumulative. In addition to the exams, there will be at least four quizzes. Like the exams, the quizzes will be multiple choice.

Course Evaluation

Quizzes        100 pts

Exams        300 pts

Final Exam       150 pts

Lab        150 pts

Total = 700 pts

Any questions regarding your lab grade should be directed toward your laboratory instructor.  Remember, it is necessary to receive at least a C in this course if you intend to take the second part of the course.

Assigned Problems

It is your responsibility to do all the reading and assigned problems; the latter will be given in class at the beginning of each chapter. It is also your responsiblity to seek help from your instructor when you need it. Please don't be afraid to do this: we do not bite.  Collaborative work with other students is often very helpful in gaining an understanding of the course material.  The answers to the assigned problems may be found in the solutions manual for the text.  Some, but not all, of the problems on exams and quizzes will be taken directly from the assigned material.

The lecture presentations should be the second (or third) time you encounter the course material, and the lectures should help to clarify questions you might have after a first reading of the material (2nd and 3rd readings are almost always necessary for this course). You might also consider bringing your textbook to each class so you can write any relevant notes in the margins.

The Laboratory

Lab Attendance Policy

Students are expected to complete all labs associated with this course. Excused absences from lab will be granted for illness and participation in off-campus, College-sponsored events (athletics, conferences, etc.). Participation in field trips associated with other lab courses will not constitute a valid excuse for missing lab. When a student misses a lab because of illness, the professor must be informed of the putative absence before the laboratory period (not after); written documentation from a physician or healthcare professional will provided to the professor within two days of the missed lab. A student who plans to miss a lab because of participation in a College-sponsored event must inform the professor of the planned absence at least three weeks in advance of the event. When a student receives an excused absence from a lab, a grade for the missed lab will be calculated based on the average score of all labs completed in the course. THERE WILL BE NO MAKE-UP LABS, except under special circumstances. STUDENTS ARE NOT ALLOWED TO ATTEND ANOTHER PROFESSOR'S LAB SECTION UNLESS THIS HAS BEEN PREVIOUSLY ARRANGED AND AUTHORIZED BY BOTH PROFESSORS INVOLVED. NO EXCEPTIONS. Students who miss lab without valid excuse will receive a grade of zero for that lab. Students are expected to be to lab on time.

Students are expected to attend all scheduled laboratory meetings. You will be informed of the evaluation method the first week of lab. A grade of zero will be will be given for any lab reports not completed.  Experimental results are to be recorded in a bound lab notebook in the proper format (see below).

The Pre-Lab exercises referred to in the experiment links (at the end of each experiment in the CER Lab Manual) should be completed before coming to lab. The laboratory instructor or T.A. will check to see that these exercises are completed before you begin your laboratory work.

Laboratory Schedule

Hurricane Syllabus

In the event that we must evacuate the campus for a major storm or hurricane, please consult the course Moodle site on a daily basis. We will post reading assignments, handouts, problems, etc. here. We will also provide quizzes and, if necessary, exams, via Moodle. When you evacuate, take your textbook and solutions manual with you. Check your Eckerd e-mail from your off-campus location and continue with the course work according to the the posts on Moodle.

Eckerd College Honor Code

On my honor, as an Eckerd College student, I pledge not to lie, cheat, or steal, nor to tolerate these behaviors in others.