SHPE - Winter 2009 - (Page 11)

MEET THE PRESIDENTS 2008-2009 Professional Chapter Leaders Providing the Right Resources at the Right Time As The Source for Quality Hispanic Professional Engineers and Technical Talent, the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers takes pride in providing the critical services its members need in order to excel in corporate America and positively affect the local community. Such resources are especially valuable during tough economic times. In a recent survey of newly installed presidents, SHPE magazine was able to create a composite image of how chapters across the nation are supporting their members while achieving strategic goals related to professional and chapter development and community service. Congratulations to all the new chapter presidents, including those unable to participate in this year’s article. Sal Ledesma Fresno, California Janete Perez Puget Sound, Oregon Maria Reyes South Central Valley, California Robert Guzman Los Angeles, California Samuel Fernandez San Fernando Valley, California Steven Carrillo San Diego, California Adrian Zaragoza Treasure Valley, Idaho Isa Torres Mid Hudson Valley, New York Christian Acosta Western Pennsylvania Carlos Vazquez Lockheed Martin, South New Jersey Maytelin Connecticut Herrera-Batista Javier Irizarry Reinier Moquete Antonio Rodriguez Lourdes Palacios David Dávila Jr. Ben Gonzalez Juliana Ortiz Puerto Rico Boston, Massachusetts San Antonio, Texas Indiana Huntsville, Alabama Detroit, Michigan Atlanta, Georgia Region I Silicon Valley, California Region II Greater Phoenix, Arizona David Kim Silva Since its inception, SHPE-SV has focused on providing the best support and networking opportunities for its members. As an active SHPE member for four years at the University of Fostering Southern California, and now in his first year as interest in a professional member, David Kim Silva is comSTEM careers mitted to continuing the important work that is a priority SHPE is doing in Silicon Valley. “I was attracted for Silva. to SHPE because it helped me network with industry professionals and provided educational support while I pursued my engineering degree,” he said. This year, Silva hopes to lead the chapter in its work to support careers in STEM. In October, he helped organize a Noche de Ciencias to encourage students to pursue engineering and science careers. More than 275 students and parents attended the event, making the night a great success. Looking ahead, Silva envisions the role of SHPE-SV as connecting businesses with local SHPE professionals. “The professional chapters have an important role of communicating with companies in their local area about job opportunities and helping connect its professional members to those opportunities,” he said. “These tough economic conditions present an excellent opportunity for professional chapters to distinguish themselves as the source for its members to be connected with employers.” A software engineer at IBM, this is David Silva’s first year as a SHPE professional member. www.SHPE.org ❘ Winter 2009 Francisco J. Gutierrez When speaking about the current state of SHPE-Phoenix, Francisco J. Gutierrez is quick to credit his predecessor for passing on to him many experiences and insights. “I previously held the Gutierrez position of vice president for two consecutive believes that years,” he said. “I learned a tremendous amount SHPE conabout the organization from our past President tributes to the Gus Barajas, and really must credit him with keepknowledge, experiences and ing SHPE-Phoenix active and for encouraging the entire current board to continue pursuing goals aspirations of with much perseverance.” members. Last year, SHPE-Phoenix collaborated with Arizona State University in hosting the 2008 Region II Leadership Development Conference. It included a professional track that gave local professional members cultural insight into their role in the workplace. According to Gutierrez, SHPE-Phoenix will continuously seek ways to expand its member services. “This job market will indeed necessitate that we maximize the use of all our tools and resources within OneSHPE along with others to disseminate, share and post information that will benefit members locally and nationwide,” he said. “The culture of the organization inspires me to further develop our chapter, members and relationships to make a significant impact in the community.” Francisco Gutierrez is a project manager at Wilson Engineers LLC. He joined SHPE four years ago. 11 http://www.SHPE.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of SHPE - Winter 2009

SHPE - Winter 2009 Contents President's Letter Browser Calendar Professional Chapter Leaders - Providing the Right Resources at the Right Time Closing the Expectation Gap - Summit Addresses ‘Diploma to Nowhere’ Conference 2008 A Career Building Diversity in Engineering Education Graduate STEM Degrees Extend Technical Reach Programs & Services Inner Circle Employer Profile Regional Roundup Annual Report Advertisers Index

SHPE - Winter 2009

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