Two Chapter Petitions Will Be Presented in 2006

     Two petitions for new collegiate chapters of Tau Beta Pi have been received and will be presented in October to the 2006 Convention in Denver, CO.

    Tau Beta Kappa local engineering honor society has operated at San Francisco State University since 2002, when its first members joined. This group submitted a preliminary petition for a new chapter in May 2005. After an inspection visit in September 2005, the committee recommended granting a charter after the implementation of improvements in operations.

    Established as San Francisco Normal School in 1899, SFSU established an engineering school in 1959 and received its present name in 1974. One of 23 campuses in the California State University system, the metropolitan teaching and applied-research institution is home to 30,000 undergraduate and graduate students on a 97-acre campus near the Pacific Ocean. Students may choose from more than 100 undergraduate and 97 master's programs among eight academic colleges.

    The school of engineering (in the college of science and engineering) now comprises three ABET-accredited programs - civil, electrical, and mechanical - plus computer engineering in four departments. There were 636 undergraduate and 56 graduate engineering students during 2005-06, and enrollment is growing rapidly. In 2004-05, the school awarded 121 engineering degrees.

    The West Point Engineering Honor Society was organized at the United States Military Academy in West Point, NY, in 2003. This group also submitted a preliminary petition for a new chapter in May 2005. After an inspection visit in September 2005, the committee recommended granting a charter after the implementation of improvements in operations.

    Established by Congress as the original U.S. academy in 1802 to meet the nation's needs for civil and military engineers, the institution is home to approximately 4,000 undergraduate cadets on a 16,000-acre campus above the Hudson River. Students choose from 42 undergraduate majors among 13 academic departments.

    The first school of engineering in the U.S. offers six ABET/EAC-accredited programs - engineering management and civil, electrical, environmental, mechanical, and systems - plus chemical and nuclear-engineering in four departments. There were 835 engineering cadets at the academy during 2004-05, and enrollment is increasing. In 2004-05, the school awarded 185 engineering degrees in accredited programs; however, the annual total has been falling steadily for 11 years.

    These petitions have the support of the administrative officials and faculty of the institutions and will go to the 2006 Convention with Executive Council approval.