Tau Beta Pi

The Engineering Honor Society

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Tau Beta Pi August 2024 Officer eNotes

Welcome Back! This page contains important and up to date information and links to help you and your chapter as the new academic year begins. A summary is at the top of the page with links to more detailed references. Please share this information with your chapter members.

CHAPTER OPERATIONS:

ASSOCIATION NEWS:

Chapter Resources and Chapter Chats

Headquarters has prepared various tools to help collegiate chapters for both in-person and virtual situations. Chapter officer resources can be located through this web page.

While Tau Beta Pi provides numerous print and electronic resources to its chapter officers and members, sometimes direct interactions are more beneficial. The Chapter Development Committee will continue offering Chapter Chats which were piloted in the early stages of the pandemic in 2020. These Chapter Chats will be held to answer questions, offer resources to the chapters in a more personal manner, and provide an opportunity for leaders of the collegiate chapters to interact with each other, members of the Headquarters team, and Association Officials.

The dates for the 2024-25 Chapter Chats have not yet been set. You can view the schedule in late August here.

Should you have any questions, please feel free to contact us.

Officer Elections and Transitions

Many chapters have not yet reported their new officers while current officer terms have expired. It is critical to report the election of new officers within two weeks of the election to avoid missing important Association emails and grade deductions. If you elected new officers for this term, submit your Report of Officer & Advisor Election and an updated Officer Signatures Report within two weeks of election or as soon as possible if you have already held your election.

After you have elected new officers, meet with them and pass on the acquired knowledge for your position. This includes obtaining the eligibility list, reserving rooms for initiation banquets, location of initiation kit, responsibilities of officer positions, etc. Keep good notes and pass them on to your successor. Ensure that all Advisors and new officers are acquainted.

Order Image Materials for the semester!

Last year, headquarters created two new posters and updated the Information and Decision brochures. Also updated with the new logo are the information brochure holder, invitation to orientation sessions and invitation to membership cards, envelope and reply cards.

Samples of all of the above, plus more, will be available at the 2024 Convention. The posters, brochures, and invitation cards are free and are available to order from the TBP Store.

Also, a TBP mouse pad is now available for $8.00. New t-shirts and hoodies will be offered later this month, so check back here often.

2024 Convention Information

This year's Convention will be held in Rapid City, SD, October 24-26, at The Monument.

Convention registration is now open! This provides the opportunity for you to select your role at Convention, submit a travel request, secure a hotel reservation, and more. Please complete the registration process by September 15. You can access the system here.

A detailed Convention email from TBP Headquarters was sent June 13 that contained all Convention information including registration, travel, lodging, schedule, committee options, etc. This year's event will cover a variety of business, District & NICE meetings, professional development sessions, and recognition of Laureates,Distinguished Alumni, McDonald Mentor, and Outstanding Advisor. There will also be an in-person Corporate and Graduate Program Recruiting Fair on Thursday, October 26. If you have any further questions, please contact TBP HQ for additional information or assistance. You can also go here for all Convention details.

Each collegiate chapter must send one voting delegate to the Convention at the Association’s expense. Chapters are also encouraged to send non-voting delegates and advisors at their expense. Tau Beta Pi pays the full travel and on-site expenses of one voting delegate and 20 percent of airfare expenses (up to $200) for one non-voting delegate from your chapter.

Convention credentials were due June 1. If your chapter has not already submitted voting delegate credentials, please review the instructions and submit them immediately. After credentials are submitted, the chapter president will receive an email to verify the credentials. Please respond to the link in that email. The profile you complete will allow us to keep in touch with you over the summer as plans are finalized. If you have questions, contact Chapter Services.

Look for an additional detailed email from TBP Headquarters in the very near future.

Recruiting Fair Information

Tau Beta Pi will hold a Virtual Recruiting Fair on October 10 for all members and an in-person fair on October 24 at Convention. The events will include recruiters representing companies, government agencies, and many of the top engineering graduate programs in the country. See partial list of recruiters here. There is no charge for members to attend the recruiting fairs, but attendees must register in advance for the Virtual Fair beginning on September 10. Check back here for updates.

If you and/or your company or school are interested in recruiting, please contact Pat McDaniel at p.mcdaniel@tbp.org. More information plus booth prices can be found here.

Most recruiters will have access to member resumes uploaded through our website portal. Be sure to upload your resume here.

Upload your resume now!

A portal has been created on TBP's website for you and your chapter members to upload resumes. Most recruiters (grad school, government, and corporate) at the Virtual and In-person Recruiting Fairs will have access to them, so be sure to tell your fellow Tau Bates to submit their resumes by September 20. Don't forget to upload yours, too! See partial list of recruiters here. Recruiters are already browsing these resumes. This is a resource to get your resume in front of the recruiters now through April 1, 2025. Questions? Contact Pat McDaniel.

ConvResumes

Executive Council Nominees

The Executive Council is made up of nine members with each newly elected member serving a three-year term. The terms of the following three members of the EC will end on December 31, 2024: President Ron M. Hickling, CA E ’80; Councillors Joan M. Sciacca, CA Mu '87; and Ming De Lin, NY G '01. In response to a call for candidates, five alumni have been nominated to serve in these three positions on the Executive Council for the 2025-27 term. The election will take place at the 2024 Convention with details being announced at a later date. The nominees include:

  • David J. Cowan Jr., P.E., FL E ’14; nominated by the Florida Iota Chapter
  • Ronald M. Hickling, CA E ’80; nominated by the California Epsilon Chapter
  • Susan L.R. Holl, Ph.D., CA L ’76; nominated by the California Upsilon Chapter
  • Russell W. Pierce, WA A ’70; nominated by the Washington Alpha Chapter
  • Steve E. Watkins, Ph.D., MO B ’83; nominated by the Missouri Beta Chapter

Biographical information on each candidate will appear in the September 2024 Bulletin, the Fall 2024 issue of The Bent, and will be published on the website in August. We encourage you to share this information with the member who will be representing your chapter at Convention this year. The letter from Executive Director Gomulinski with the nominees' contact information is here.

Announcement of the 2024 Tau Beta Pi Scholars

The Fellowship Board of Tau Beta Pi announces the selection of 253 engineering students from 1,328 applicants for undergraduate study during the 2024-25 academic year. Most recipients will receive a cash award of $2,000 for their senior year of engineering study and a few will receive $1,000 for one semester. The press release and list of the awardees is here. Applications to apply for the 2025-26 TBP Fellowships and Scholarships will be available on the website beginning December 1 and February1 respectively.

Tau Bate Talks Series

The Association continues to offer Tau Bate Talks, a series of monthly virtual presentations given by Tau Bates who have used their engineering background to pursue fascinating experiences. The talks are scheduled on one Sunday of each month. After a summer hiatus, the next event, "Advancements in Autonomous Technology and Active Safety in Road Vehicles," will take place on September 8 at 7 p.m. ET. This Talk will be presented by Brendan Chan, Ph.D., MI B '03, Sr. Chief Engineer of Autonomy and Active Safety at OshKosh Corporation, an ASME Fellow, and 2023 Tau Beta Pi Distinguished Alumnus. Read more about the talk and distinguished career of Dr. Chan here. To register for this event and to view a list of all past presentations and videos, visit our website.

Concluding Remarks

We are looking forward to working with you this year. Be sure to check on HQ and Convention updates here. Please stay connected to Tau Beta Pi and keep your address up-to-date by going to tbp.memberupdate@tbp.org. If you have questions about any of the information on this page, contact HQ at 865-546-4578 or Chapter Services.