NSBE - January/February 2009 - (Page 12)

Your Time By S. Gordon Moore Jr. NSBE National Advisor S. Gordon Moore Jr. is managing partner and director of the Georgia Institute of Technology, OMED: Educational Services. “…If this nation is as ready as it seems to consider all of its citizens as leaders, then the time is truly right for NSBE’s best.” I t is a new year, and our nation has a new president, Barack Obama. With the inclusion of the first black U.S. presidential candidate on one side and the first female Republican vice presidential candidate on the other, an historic election outcome was guaranteed. But even before the election, over the past eight years, our nation had experienced many crises and historic firsts: terrorist attacks on the World Trade Towers and the Pentagon, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the mortgage crisis, Hurricane Katrina, the gas hikes and shortages, and the worst economic collapse since the Great Depression. As a result, the messages from those hoping to become our nation’s next leader were clear: CHANGE! Although this theme of change has resonated well among the nation’s voters, I believe it is merely a superficial treatment of the condition we as a nation are in. The true problem has been leadership, or, rather, the lack thereof. There have been many debates about which of the presidential candidates will be the better leader, but it is clear to me that what this nation truly needs is a fundamental shift in its leadership paradigm. Since its founding, the National Society of Black Engineers has produced leaders. Many observers have even argued that leadership development is NSBE’s greatest asset and that the organization’s student governance creates young leaders ready to take charge of large-scale initiatives and projects. NSBE is a place where leaders are made, whether they are ready or not. If you are a member of NSBE and have not held a leadership position or at least managed a NSBE project at some level, then you have failed to take advantage of an opportunity few young folks have. In fact, we know most of you are not taking advantage of this opportunity, since each year during elections, we watch many national, regional and chapter positions go uncontested and unapplied for. Our corporate and government partners often tell us they covet NSBE leaders, who manage multimillion-dollar projects; plan conferences and meetings for hundreds or thousands of attendees; run programs that affect the entire engineering career pipeline, from elementary school to the technical workplace, and communicate with the entire world. This experience sets the NSBE leader apart from every other young person in this nation. Membership in NSBE definitely has its privileges, but leadership in this organization clearly has its advantages. More important, at a time when the country clearly is looking for change, it must come from leaders who are not cut from the traditional mold. For the first time, the U.S. is viewing a black person as a legitimate candidate for the presidency. And if this nation is as ready as it seems to consider all of its citizens as leaders, then the time is truly right for NSBE’s best. This is about more than simply holding a position on a board. It’s about changing the world, one (NSBE) leader at a time! ■ www.nsbe.org 12 • january/february 2009 • http://www.nsbe.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NSBE - January/February 2009

NSBE - January/February 2009
Contents
Image or Action?
Bringing It Home
Your Time
Nigerian Students Celebrate
Region III Makes ‘iImpact’
Fall Regional Energy
A Walk for Education
Member Benefits from Microsoft!
Success Catches On
Grad Conference Seeks Heavyweights
Al Collins of Fluor Corporation
What the meltdown may mean for U.S. engineers
Boosting NSBE on Wall Street
“Energizing Creativity to Achieve Exponential Growth”
NSBE Golden Torch Awards
The AE Niche
Jobs in Green Industries
AE Members on the Move
NSBE for Life!
Toronto 2010: Making It Happen
NSBE Calendar
Advertisers Index

NSBE - January/February 2009