NSBE - January/February 2009 - (Page 20)

CHAptER news Success Catches on i By Eric Addison s Chapter President Alex Morrison excited about the growth NSBE’s Marquette University chapter has experienced lately? Let’s just say that the 260-word e-mail he sent to NSBE’s national secretary in August had more exclamation points than periods. Some recent highlights: A new chapter website on the launch pad; Region IV Chapter of the Year honors at the 2007 Fall Regional Conference; founding of a NSBE Jr. chapter at the Milwaukee Academy of Science in 2008; positive articles about the chapter in the Marquette University newspaper and magazine, and an increase from approximately 10 members at the end of the 2006 program year to more than 50 at year-end 2007. “I think the student body just saw how active we were in the community. They saw the bond the individuals in our chapter had and the relationships we all built with one another. And I just think that it became contagious,” Morrison says. Marquette’s College of Engineering, in Milwaukee, Wis., has also provided a big boost to NSBE–Marquette, financially and otherwise, Morrison says: “Even this year, they see how motivated we are, and they really want to help us out.” Meanwhile, NSBE–Marquette is trying to refine “helping out” to a science, with initiatives such as a FIRST Robotics program for its NSBE Jr. chapter. “We have a rotation system. We rotate our mentors,” he reports. “Four or five of us meet with the kids on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Obviously, we’re students, we’re engineers, so we have to be smart with the time that we have.” The chapter held a freshman/sophomore workshop at the beginning of the current academic year to promote academic excellence and retention of NSBE members in engineering programs. Providing tutoring and networking events for chapter members has also been a high priority. But the chapter’s top priority this year, Morrison says, is to “keep our members involved. We want them to feel they have decision-making power in NSBE.” ■ grad Conference seeks Heavyweights t B y C h r i s t i a n n a Ta y l o r he theme for the 2009 Georgia Tech Graduate Technical Symposium [GT] 2 is “Responsibility and Technology: How Big Is Your Footprint?” Now in its seventh year, this twoday conference, to be held March 12–13 in Atlanta, Ga., has become the premier event of Georgia Tech’s Black Graduate Student Association. For NSBE members pursuing graduate education, [GT] 2 supplements the benefits of membership by offering a new network and venue for students to exchange technical ideas. In the symposium’s active, open environment, participants benefit from interactions focused on advancing state-of-the-art technologies and scientific breakthroughs. The participants of the symposium are the next generation of technologists poised to make a tremendous, beneficial impact on how the world collaborates, communicates and relaxes. With more African Americans pursuing graduate degrees, the [GT] 2 symposium is the perfect place for students to come together and share 20 • january/february their experiences, as they expand their contributions in their fields. One of the symposium’s goals is to have participants understand how their work today has a ripple effect on the technology of tomorrow. [GT] 2 boasts an invited talk, innovative workshops, a political debate, motivational speakers and more than $3,000 worth of prizes to the top presenters. The [GT] 2 Symposium provides an unprecedented synergy of graduate students from across the country who are eager to present their cutting-edge research in engineering, applied sciences and other fields. If you are interested in presenting at the 2009 [GT] 2 Symposium, please go to the website, www.gtbgsa.org/gt2, for registration information. Abstracts are due Jan. 30, 2009. Lodging grants are available for students traveling more than 500 miles. Please e-mail your questions to symposium@ gtbgsa.org. We hope to see you there! ■ www.nsbe.org 2009 • http://www.gtbgsa.org/gt2 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