SWE-News March 2006

Celebrating our engineering contributions continues as we move from Engineers Week right into Women’s History Month, giving us even more reason to publicly encourage girls and women to consider engineering careers. During the excitement of Engineers Week, it was my privilege to represent you at many events in Washington, D.C.

Those events supplement the essential work you are doing at the local level. Through our Congressional Briefing, media interviews, the launch of the new book, Women Engineers: Extraordinary Stories of How They Changed Our World, the exciting Future City final competition and many other special activities, we highlighted the urgent need for more engineers. Thank you for your contributions, and, please, continue to raise awareness of just how rewarding engineering careers are.

In numerous radio interviews, I explained that engineers make lives better, safer and healthier and that we touch everything people use at work or home. Many interviewers asked whether engineering is a lucrative career. I assured them it is. This month, we need to continue this dialogue as we celebrate Women’s History Month. You’ll find interesting information to share with people – especially girls -- in your community on these Web sites:

Every day, we are hearing more about dire consequences of not increasing the number of engineers entering the workforce as engineering is essential to our economic stability and national security. As you know, not enough girls or boys have the academic preparation for university engineering programs, and too many who study engineering opt out and go on to other careers. What can we do to turn this around? Here are a few ideas.

EWeek's Yearlong Initiatives and How You Can Help
Did you realize that our Connecting Educators to Engineering initiative lasts through the end of this school year and that the Web site will continue through the end of 2006?
The first phase is training engineers and developing a toolkit for you to approach an educator in more meaningful ways.

The second phase has now been rolled out with our new Connecting Forum for educators and engineers to discuss and share ideas. This forum will be active through April and we have started promoting the forum to teachers and counselors. Join in and share your expertise!

The third phase is driven by you--the SWE volunteer. We need your enthusiasm to carry the positive message about engineering to educators so they can enrich the learning experience of children and renew interest in engineering and technology.

Connecting is different than other initiatives because we ask you to create relationships with an educator and sustain it over a period time. Rather than rushing in with a program, activity or event….start with a discussion. Ask questions, listen, and collaborate! Our eight Connecting Webinars are available for replay to give you practical tips on how to start the essential communication with educators that will be the foundation for a prolonged relationship.

Phase 3 – Are you ready to bring new resources to Educators or try some new activities? We have new educational materials to help with your implementation of Connecting Educators to Engineering.

The materials are FREE. You need only pay a nominal charge for shipments. The fee is $5/per pack of five resource guides

Mission: Define Your Future.
As part of their EWeek sponsorship, Northrop Grumman has provided SWE with a new teacher guide resource: Mission: Define Your Future. Developed and produced by Scholastic, the guide contains a complete curriculum chart, including national standards and benchmarks for science, math, technology and language arts. Also included are a poster and four pages of student reproducible worksheets on topics ranging from GPS calculations, geo-spatial mapping, discoveries in space science, and submarine turbine operations. There is student resource guide, as well as thirty short and colorful student magazines. The magazines profile young Northrop Grumman engineers. One of our own, Erin McGinnis (SWE-Los Angeles) is proudly featured! (Grades 6-12)

Physical Science and Engineering Design
Kimberly-Clark Corporation has generously sponsored new educational product: Physical Science and Engineering Design, which includes engineering activities and resources developed by the acclaimed NASA SCI files series. Each activity is mapped to grade level and national science standards. This 120-page activity book is printed on durable cardstock making it easy to use the many pages of reproducible masters, patterns, and templates. You will find an impressive collection of activities for teaching Force of Motion, Machines, Engineering Design, and Innovation and Inventions (Grades 3-8).

Please click here to order.

● COMMITTEE: Awards
Chairperson: Annmarie Uskert

Now Accepting Submissions for SWE Outstanding Collegiate Section Competitions
The Society of Women Engineers welcomes submissions for SWE Outstanding Collegiate Section (OCS) Competitions. The Outstanding Collegiate Section Awards (OCSA) were first established in 1975 to recognize outstanding Collegiate Sections. Sections must submit a report to SWE HQ based on the requirements in the 2006 OCS Awards packet. First, second, third place will be awarded in each size section: large, medium, and small. One Outstanding New Collegiate Section (ONCS) will also be awarded. Also, Certificates of Merit will be presented to Collegiate Sections in recognition of outstanding collegiate activities, either associated with a special project or for their overall program. Recipients will be selected by the committee judges and based on Report content.

The submission deadline for the OCS/ONCS report is May 31, 2006. Awards will be presented October 14, 2006 at the Celebrate SWE! Banquet at SWE's National Conference in Kansas City, MO.

The 2006 OCS awards packet can be downloaded at www.swe.org, just click on Awards|Section. Please also view the reports of past section winners.

Now Accepting Nominations for SWE Emerging Leaders Awards
The Society of Women Engineers welcomes nominations for SWE Emerging Leaders Awards. The Society offers seven different Emerging Leaders Awards, including (1) Academia, (2) Manufacturing and Construction, (3) Procurement/Logistics, (4) Product Research, Design, and Engineering (sponsored by Intel), (5) Quality, (6) Safety, Health and Environment, and (7) Sales and Marketing. Award requirements and judging basis can be found within the Emerging Leaders awards packet.

All nominations for Emerging Leaders will be accepted online. Please download the Emerging Leaders Award Packet to find out all the information you will need to complete a nomination online.

The nomination deadline for all Emerging Leaders Awards is May 1, 2006. Awards will be presented October 13, 2006 at the Awards Banquet at SWE's National Conference in Kansas City, MO.

The Emerging Leaders Awards packet also can be downloaded at www.swe.org, just click on Awards | Individual. Please refer to the Emerging Leaders section under Awards | Individual for biographies of past recipients.

Specific questions concerning Emerging Leaders Awards can be directed to Annmarie Uskert.

The Awards & Recognition Committee is currently seeking seven volunteers to coordinate each of the seven Emerging Leaders awards. Responsibilities include soliciting a selection panel, working with the selection panel to select the recipient, and working with the recipients on their conference publication materials. If you would be interested in participating in this type of role, please contact Annmarie Uskert by March 31, 2006.

● COMMITTEE: Multi-Cultural
Chairperson: Larisa Schelkin

The Multi-Cultural Committee (MCC) is calling for judges for Space Camp applications. We need about 8 - 10 judges. Expected time commitment is about 1 week – 10 days in mid-May depending on the actual number of applications (usually about 35-100 applications). FYI: The deadline for the Space Camp application submission is May 2, 2006. The deadline for the Judging Committee to finalize its decision is June 1, 2006 (judging criteria will be provided).

By judging Space Camp applications you could help provide a great opportunity for young minority women to attend Space Camp for one week and get them excited about engineering! Please, consider serving as a judge for Space Camp applications! Please contact Larisa Schelkin with any questions.

More information about Space Academy (8th - 9th graders) or Advanced Academy (10th - 11th graders) can be found on the SpaceCamp site.

The updated nominations package, instructions, and requirements for each award in the K-12 programs can be found under the Space Campership section of the SWE Web site

SWE's Space Camp program is generously sponsored by Chevron and General Motors.

The Multi-Cultural Committee welcomes everyone to a newly launched “Discussion Forum for Multicultural Engineering and Diversity." (When logging onto the Forum make sure you have your login and password ready.) This forum is a very effective way not only for our committee, but for ALL SWE members who are interested in DIVERSITY to communicate about issues and trends, share ideas and best practices and to collaborate via the Web. I would like to encourage topic suggestions that would guide us in understanding the value of diversity and help us raise the awareness and promote diversity. I look forward to talking to you all online!

● COMMITTEE: Professional Development Grant
Chairperson: Connie Truong
As a reminder, the next proposal call is due May 1, 2006. Please plan to submit your section's proposal for professional development grants (PDG) accordingly. All overdue reports must be closed prior to new submission.

It's Region Conference Time!
Have you made plans yet to attend your region conference this spring? Don't miss the fun, energy, and excitement of a weekend filled with personal and professional development! You can find information on a conference near you by linking to the Events page of the SWE Web site, where each conference is listed.

SWE Chicago Regional Section shares best practice for fostering excellent corporate relations through an Executive Advisory Board.

9th Annual Internet Science and Technology Fair
The Central Florida SWE Section is working with the University of Central Florida 's College of Engineering and Computer Science and the National Medal of Technology Program on the 9th Annual Internet Science and Technology Fair (ISTF). Please consider participating as a national judge for this online competition. ISTF includes 267 student teams in 3rd - 12th grade. Students work with technical advisors via email, innovate technical solutions to real-world problems, follow ISTF Content Guidelines (based on AAAS National Science Content Standards), and present their projects in a Web page format. The judging, will occur April 7 - April 16. Each judge is asked to review up to six projects in their area of expertise. It should only take a few hours of your time and the benefit to these students will be enormous! Please access Newcomers - Judges for more information about participating as a judge. Should you wish to participate, please go to My ISTF, click on New Account under "Final Judges" and complete the information as requested. If you have any questions or comments, please contact Donna Friis.

Intel Science and Engineering Fair
The Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (Intel ISEF) is the world's largest pre-college celebration of science. Intel ISEF will bring together more 1,400 students from more than 40 nations to compete in Indianapolis, Indiana, May 7–13, 2006. Individuals with a Ph.D. or a B.S. and a minimum of six years of related professional experience are invited to apply to be a judge. For more information check out the Intel ISEF 2006 Web site.

Casting for Two TV Hosts
An exciting new show for 9- to 12-year-olds, produced by WGBH Boston, for Public Broadcast Service (PBS), is seeking two co-hosts for the show to begin shooting this spring in Boston. Host One must have an engineering degree, or basic engineering education. Host Two should have art/design skills and a great personality for television.
The show is part reality competition, all engineering, and major fun. Two teams of real high school kids (ages 14 -17) compete using their problem-solving skills to design, construct, and test functional, whimsical machines—one that makes peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, for instance, or an elevator to get you up to your tree house. Mentored by an engineer and cheered on by her sidekicks, the kids demonstrate during the course of the show that solving an engineering challenge requires creative thinking, experimentation, and an understanding of science and math.

Interviews for these positions will be held March 2006 in Boston. Contact Maura Tighe for more information.

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FY07 Leadership Opportunities
Watch for the 'Call for FY07 Committee Chair/Task Force Leaders/FIG leaders' e-blast and the 'Call for FY07 Collegiate Rep' coming out in early March.

Check out the opportunities for SWE leadership positions in the coming year.

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ASME Looking for Program Evaluators
As a Participating Society of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET Inc.), the American Society Of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) is responsible for 428 degree programs in the U.S. and for establishing a diverse cadre of highly qualified and highly committed ME/MET program evaluators to assume the very sensitive and important role of assessing undergraduate degree programs against established criteria. All ASME program evaluators must submit a completed nomination, be selected, participate in a training workshop, and serve as an observer on an on-campus evaluation team visit prior to being placed on the roster of "active" evaluators for a period of five years. Serving on an assessment team for a degree program is very professionally and personally rewarding and an important means of "giving back" to and supporting the future advancement of the engineering profession.

Interested SWE members are encouraged to apply. Additional information including an application form can be found on the ASME Web site. Nominations should be submitted by March 30 and forwarded to Amy Bentow, manager, Education ASME, Three Park Avenue, New York, NY 10016, 212-591-7880.

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Make Project Management Best Practices Your Best Friend
Mark your calendars for a project management one-day workshop Friday, March 31, 2006. Learn tips and tools for your boss, your employees, your organization and even your family!

All of these questions will be answered in this workshop designed to take middle managers through the concepts, models, and real world examples of project management best practices.

The workshop, which will take place at Dell Parmer South 2, Austin, TX, from 8:00am - 4:00pm., will cost $365 for SWE members and $465 for non-members. The complete program overview is available online.

This offering will be worth 7.5 PDUs for Project Management Professionals (PMPs) or 7.5 contact hours if you are not a PMP® (35 hours are required to sit for the PMP® certification test). The course numbers to use with the Project Management Institute will be provided during the workshop.

Register today! On site registration will not be available, space is limited, please register by March 28.This one-day workshop is generously sponsored by Dell.

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Save the Dates
Mark your calendars for the three-part Communications Web Seminar Series "Speak with Confidence, Clarity and Credibility – How to Get Heard and Get Results" in March and April.

Part two of our three-part communications series moderated by SWE member Stacey DelVecchio, focuses on speaking at a higher level to make sure you get heard and get the results you’re looking for. Connie Dieken will be back as our speaker and will use the post seminar survey comments from Part 1 to make this seminar tailored directly to your needs!

For more than 20 years as a television news anchorwoman, talk show host, Emmy© award-winning news reporter, and Telly© award-winning voice talent, Connie has been one of the country's most respected journalists and one of the few women inducted into the Radio & Television Broadcasters Hall of Fame©.

Register today and walk away with an action plan of how to connect, convey and convince ANYONE.

Don’t miss part three of our communications series:

Series #3 April 25, 2006 3:00 p.m. EST
The New Communication Mine Fields – How to Be a Top Performer in a Global Environment - Register Today!

The three-part communications series is generously sponsored by IBM Corporation.

Log onto the SWE site for a list of upcoming professional development programs.

SWE Washington Representative Spotlight Article
Each month SWE NEWS will provide a spotlight update on our public policy initiatives related to Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education. March's spotlight includes the SWE Board of Directors’ recent approval of a general position statement on STEM education.

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Member Recognition and Accomplishments
Read more about these exciting news items in the Member Recognition and Accomplishments section of the SWE Web site.