SHPE - Winter 2009 - (Page 30)

CONFERENCE 2008 Professional Chapter Awards The End of Year Reports submitted by every professional chapter formed the basis for selecting this year’s awards. The National Board of Directors evaluated each report based on member participation and programs within the strategic areas of organizational development, professional development, community outreach and education as well as cooperation with local student chapters. When compared to chapters of similar size, these chapters received the best overall scores. National winners received $1,500 awards, with regional winners each receiving $700 and the most improved chapter $500. Connecticut Professional Chapter Small Chapter (Less than 30 members) By Maytelin Herrera-Batista, President SHPE-CT continued fulfilling its vision of how best to deliver SHPE as an organization for professional and leadership development as well as community outreach. In relation to its commitment to professional development, SHPE-CT partnered with other professional organizations to enrich networking opportunities. In addition to monthly membership events, it also hosted the Speaker Series with themes such as “The Science of Negotiation,” “Finance 101” and various tax seminars. SHPE-CT members are proud to serve as mentors and role models to college students at University of New Haven, University of Connecticut, University of Rhode Island and Brown University as well as the SHPE Jr. chapter at Hartford Public High School. In 2007, SHPE-CT sponsored 41 high school students to the SHPE Conference and hosted quarterly engineering competitions. SHPE-CT hosted the 2008 Region IV Leadership Development Conference. Working closely with SHPE-UConn, it provided leadership training for professionals as well as university and high school students. In June, SHPE-CT awarded four scholarships to graduating seniors during a reception to celebrate all of its accomplishments within the community. New York City Professional Chapter Large Chapter (30+ members) By Danny Cardenas, President SHPE-NYC is ecstatic to receive this recognition. We improved the quality of our chapter by deepening our relationships with 30 2007-2008 National Chapters of the Year New York City Professional Chapter (Large) Connecticut Professional Chapter (Small) 2007-2008 Regional Chapters of the Year* I Puget Sound Professional Chapter II Greater Phoenix Professional Chapter IV New York City Professional Chapter V Lockheed Martin Aeronautics, Fort Worth Professional Chapter VI St. Louis Gateway Professional Chapter VII North Carolina Professional Chapter *Nominations were not received from Region III. RVP IV Dora Abreu (center) with Chapter of the Year winners NYC’s Cardenas and CT’s Herrera-Batista. Most Improved Chapter New York City Professional Chapter New Professional Chapters Kentucky Blue Grass ❙ Huntsville, Alabama ❙ Treasure Valley Idaho ❙ Central Illinois ❙ Lockheed Martin, Morristown, New Jersey our stakeholders, corporate sponsors and members alike. By expanding the size of the executive board, we increased the frequency of our events and services. As a result, membership jumped by 50 percent. We grew the number of corporate partners, thus widening the pool of resources we could leverage for event venues, speakers and funding. During our Annual Holiday Banquet and Toy Drive, sponsored by five of our corporate partners, we collected more than 80 toys for deserving children and raised $13,500 for the chapter. Our networking events are well-attended as are the tax seminars and career transitioning workshops that we have provided. With corporate sponsorship and SHPENYC’s support, our SHPE Jr. Chapter has thrived in its first year, providing quality events for its members. We acknowledge the importance of our organization to the professional Hispanic community, and we are constantly refining our events and raising the bar. SHPE’s Renaissance Engineer IBM’s Nicolas Donofrio was recognized as SHPE’s Renaissance Engineer, a title which fit his contribution to SHPE and diversity in America’s technical work force. Renaissance Engineers possess broad and deep technical knowledge as well as strong analytical skills, practical ingenuity and creativity. They excel in communication skills and work well among Nicolas Donofrio interdisciplinary teams, while demonstrating strong business and management abilities, leadership, emotional intelligence and an aptitude for lifelong learning. For more than a decade, Donofrio has assisted SHPE in evolving into its current state. He has generated corporate support for recruiting SHPE students and further developing them into leaders. In addition to appointing an executive dedicated to help SHPE’s cause, he creating a team of top IBM Hispanic executives to work in accomplishing its mission to be The Source. “His support to diversity is unequal, and his efforts to develop Hispanics are unparalleled,” said Rodrigo Garcia, SHPE founder. “He has inspired SHPE and challenged us to achieve our greatest potential. Nick has called upon corporate America to increase Hispanic participation in engineering and science. We need more people like Nick. We want our students and professionals to be like Nick.” Ken Krehbiel Award winners (back row) Phoenix’s Francisco Gutierrez, NYC’s Danny Cardenas, NC’s Felicia Soto (front row) LM’s Pablo Trejo and STL’s Eyeri Comas. SHPE ❘ Winter 2009

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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