SHPE - Winter 2008 - (Page 18) MEET THE PRESIDENTS REGION II Santa Barbara, California Armando Veloz During his 30-year tenure with SHPE, Armando Veloz has held all official positions except treasurer. Veloz was attracted to the organization because of the opportunity to help local students get interested in engineering and the sciences, especially young students in elementary schools. “I believe that establishing steady SHPE-SB’s Veloz gets Advancing Careers in Engineering (ACE) programs a thrill out of seeing such as teaching science classes and contributing to young students science clubs is making a difference,” Veloz said. enjoy the sciences “The establishment of our Women in Science and and building projects. Engineering Day for girls has also been a great achievement by our chapter, especially for our women engineers.” Veloz plans to continue the chapter’s involvement with students of all ages. SHPE-SB provides motivational speakers for MESA meetings at local junior high and high schools. He believes that several good things have resulted from the E-Buddies mentoring program for students at University of California, Santa Barbara, including employment opportunities with local industry that have led to permanent job placement. “On a personal level, there is great satisfaction in knowing that we are making a difference for the students in our community,” Veloz explained. “On a professional level, I have had the opportunity to meet many professionals that are passionate about SHPE’s objectives, and they have inspired me to do a better job.” Armando Veloz is a senior electronics/EMI engineer with Advanced Integrated Systems and holds an electrical engineering degree from UCSB. REGION IV Baltimore, Maryland Yamaris Soto Yamaris Soto has been busy with SHPE since relocating to Baltimore from Puerto Rico four years ago. “I enjoyed the fact that through the organization I could make a difference in my community and, at the same time, grow both personally and professionally,” she said. Previously, Soto was vice president of professional development. Now, she is excited For Soto, serving as a role model and about serving as president of the chapter she leaving a lasting, helped establish. She considers her most positive impression outstanding achievement with the Society to be on youths has the establishment of a strong partnership been particularly between SHPE-Baltimore and Northrop rewarding. Grumman. The support and the resources that the company has provided from the chapter’s inception have been essential in the success of the chapter’s events and outreach activities. Under Soto’s leadership, SHPE-Baltimore will continue its active involvement in the community by providing outreach opportunities to students in elementary school through college. Activities include Zoom into Engineering, Discovery E, the Sally Ride Science Festival, the Maryland Hispanic Youth Symposium and Engineers Week. “The most rewarding element of being involved with SHPE is having the opportunity to reach out to our youth, being that role model who can leave a huge impact and a positive lasting impression on them,” Soto said. Yamaris Soto is a systems supportability engineer with Northrop Grumman Electronic Systems. A four-year veteran of SHPE, she completed graduate studies in electrical engineering at the University of Puerto Rico. REGION IV Mid Hudson Valley, New York Elianne Bravo REGION IV Rochester, New York Miriam Jurado Since its inception in 2005, SHPE-MHV has been committed to fostering careers in science and engineering. Elianne Bravo has been active with the chapter since that time, first as social co-chair and later as president. “Our most outstanding achievement has probably been our membership recruiting in an area with a low Hispanic population,” Bravo said. “While I was SHPE Jr. chapters will enable Bravo to president in 2006, our membership grew from promote engineering 14 members at the beginning of the year to in an area with a over 30 members.” low Hispanic This promises to be another exciting year of population. outreach. SHPE-MHV has already started a SHPE Jr. chapter at Poughkeepsie High School and is currently working to get another chapter started at Beacon High School. In addition, SHPE-MHV has partnered with IBM to strengthen the STEM pipeline through activities such as National Engineers Week and EXCITE Camp. “I think the most important thing I have learned in my time with SHPE is the importance of giving back and helping people as I was once helped,” Bravo added. “This has made me a better person and, in turn, a better engineer. Through my involvement with SHPE, I have met some incredible people whose paths I wouldn’t have crossed otherwise.” Elianne Bravo is a hardware development engineer with IBM. She joined SHPE in 2005. When she was just a high school student, local engineers inspired Miriam Jurado to pursue engineering. “Mentors during those years told me: ‘Don’t close the doors on you,’” she recalled. “These words still echo in my head and in my personal and professional life.” Jurado plans to have her revived professional chapter play a vital role in the For Jurado, mentoring is key to growing Rochester community. SHPE-ROC is strengththe number of ening its Mathematics, Engineering and Hispanic engineers. Science for Hispanics (MESH) program. “When a student comes up to you and tells you that they participated in MESH and are now either going to college or starting their careers, you feel that you are making a difference one life at a time,” she explained. “I benefited as a student, and now I’ve come full circle.” Jurado wants volunteers that are passionate about educating Latino youths, leading by example and giving back to the community “so that the generation following behind us will likewise keep the cycle going.” She added, “Perhaps in your own job or major you may be the only person of Latin descent, yet an organization like SHPE helps to bridge that gap. With SHPE, the relationships you form seem to transcend time, because they’re based on a goal so much bigger than yourself.” Miriam Jurado is a senior staff engineer with the Center for Integrated Manufacturing Studies at Rochester Institute of Technology. Her 10-year SHPE membership began as a mechanical engineering student at the University of Rochester. 18 SHPE R Winter 2008
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