Q A : When was your first Annual Convention experience? : My first convention experience was back in 2012 in Region II, in Pittsburgh. A group of about eight of us attended Convention that year. The experience was fun. The Annual Convention is always during spring break for me. When I returned home that year, I was glad to see that my spring break was not wasted. The workshops were fun and gave me a different perspective on life. The networking was great: I still keep in contact with some of the people I met. The main reason why I attended Convention was to get practice speaking to company reps. I had already had an internship for the summer of 2012. The experience I received speaking to so many people was invaluable. Q A : What did you like most about the convention? : The atmosphere is what I liked most about Convention. During the day, people were focused on their agenda at hand. In the evening, people were more relaxed and very friendly. Everybody had something in common and were very accepting of meeting new people and speaking about their own experiences. Q A : What do you look forward to at the Annual Convention this year? : I am looking forward to having my chapter encouraged to continue on their routes as engineers. I want them to be proud of their region, the mighty "VI House." I am looking forward to meeting new people as well as connecting with old friends whom I have not been able to see for a while. I am looking forward to having everybody remember how great the convention was in "the VI" for years to come. Q A : What are you doing to prepare for the convention? : As a chapter, we have received Dean's Funding to help pay for members' convention registration. We also planned multiple fundraisers to increase our chapter revenue. We have weekly board meetings to keep in contact with each other constantly and keep the excitement in the chapter high. We have biweekly general meetings to stay in touch with general members. We hold weekly study jams, and we tutor and mentor students at a local high school, to encourage academic excellence. Dominique Stewart-Thomas is the public relations chair for NSBE's 2015 Annual Convention Planning Committee. www.nsbe.org 35http://www.nsbe.org