Tau Beta Pi

The Engineering Honor Society

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August 2026 Officer and Advisor eNotes

These eNotes contain important and up-to-date information and links to help you and your chapter as the academic year is underway. A summary is at the top of the page with links to more detailed information and references. If you have questions about the information provided, contact Headquarters toll free at 1-800-TAU-BETA (1-800-828-2382) or 865-546-4578 or by .

CHAPTER OPERATIONS:

ASSOCIATION NEWS & DEADLINES:

Annual Convention and Voting Delegate Credentials

Tau Beta Pi's 120th Convention will be held in Tucson, AZ, October 8-10, at the Westin La Paloma Resort & Spa (3800 East Sunrise Drive, Tucson, AZ, 85718), and is hosted by Arizona Alpha at the University of Arizona and the Tucson Alumni Chapter. The Association expects each collegiate and alumni chapter to send a voting delegate to this year's Convention. Voting delegates should plan to arrive by the evening of Wednesday, October 7, in order to attend the Thursday morning Business Meeting, and plan to depart on the morning of Sunday, October 11. All hotel reservations will be made through the Convention registration system. Do not book through the hotel directly.

Each chapter received an email regarding Convention Credentials – if you haven't already, please review the instructions. The deadline to submit credentials was June 1. It is essential that your chapter identify a delegate and alternate before the summer. The credentials are to be submitted in the Chapter Reporting System. This is a graded report towards a Chapter Excellence Award. After submitting credentials, TBP will email your chapter president that the report has been approved. TBP 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. If you have any questions, please contact the .

Convention Registration is now open. Everyone must register no later than September 1.

Please note that you now must be REAL ID compliant to travel domestically by air. If you're planning to attend the Convention, please make sure you have a REAL ID or other acceptable identification (like a U.S. passport) well in advance.

Recruiting Fairs

There will be an in-person Recruiting Fair this year on Thursday, October 8 at Convention in Tucson. A Virtual Fair will also be held on Thursday, September 24 from 10am – 7pm ET, for ALL members. There is no charge for members to attend the recruiting fairs, and we will announce when registration opens. We are looking for engineering companies and graduate programs to participate! Please contact Erin Andrews at with any leads, suggestions, or questions.

Chapter Report Grading

Information on Chapter Excellence Requirements and the scoring process are provided here.

Membership Process and Virtual Resources (Tips for New Officers!)

NOTE: Tau Beta Pi has updated the Officer Resources button in the Electronic Reporting to include a number of initiation related resources (links) including script replacement ordering, kit parts ordering form and instructions, initiation fee tracker and payment links, and the hybrid initiation electee form.

A checklist of your required reports and deadlines is available on the home page of the Electronic Reporting System. Review each of these items ahead of time to keep your chapter on track throughout the year. This included membership, Convention, and chapter operations reports.

Chapters must use the Electronic Reporting System for all undergraduate membership reports. Your chapter has only one user name and password; if you do not have or remember your login or password, please contact HQ at to have your credentials reset. Details on how to submit the membership and chapter reports are available online. You are strongly encouraged to review the model Membership Process Schedule when planning your chapter's activities.

  • Send professional membership invitation or email; sample electee invitations are here and sample electee materials are here.
  • Work with the dean's office to send a letter to candidates and their parents; sample student letter here and sample parent's letter here.
  • Discuss TBP member benefits during meetings with eligible candidates; a list of benefits is here.

Your Report of Eligibility is due at HQ within the first five weeks after the start of your school term. Bylaw III requires that a fine be levied if the report is not received. Your chapter may submit its Report of Eligibility using an Excel spreadsheet. Instructions are available here.

Your report must list the entire top-fifth of the senior class and the entire top-eighth of the junior class, (including those who are already members) even if some names are below a GPA cutoff set by your chapter. If your chapter has one, indicate the GPA minimum on the Report of Eligibility. Round any fraction up to the next whole number. For example, 1/8 of 100 is 12.5, so you would list the top 13 students. Also, if a tie exists you must list all students with the same GPA in the last position. It's okay to exceed the total number of eligible students in this case.

After contacting your eligible candidates, the chapter members must vote on those candidates and submit to HQ as the Report of Election. This report must be submitted with each electee's online catalog card (which should be completed by the electee) and APPROVAL RECEIVED BEFORE you hold your initiation. Contact Kelly Caro at if you have not received approval at least two days in advance. DO NOT HOLD AN UNAPPROVED INITIATION as your chapter could be fined and placed on probation. Online catalog cards must be completed before membership items can be ordered. If you want keys and certificates for initiation, plan to submit at least three weeks before initiation.

Reporting Extension Reset

With the new academic year, all reporting extensions have been reset in the electronic reporting system. Chapter officers are reminded to email or call (800-TAU-BETA) for an extension on a report BEFORE it is due. Your request should include your chapter, the name of the report, and how long of an extension you need.

Host an Engineering Future Leaders Session on Your Campus

Engineering Future Leaders (EFL) is TBP's award-winning professional development program. The EF web page allows members to learn more about the program, submit their interest in becoming a facilitator, and request an in-person session.

Request a Campus EFL Session: TBP chapters may submit requests to host an in-person EFL session for your members and/or as a service or outreach activity for your campus or community. Go here to learn more and to request a session.

Important: Sessions are open to the public, so they are not limited to TBP members only. You also must have at least 15 people pre-registered two weeks prior to the requested session. Contact Kimberly Smolter at if you have questions about scheduling an EFL session.

Order Chapter Image Materials for the Semester!

Headquarters provides chapter supplies including: two poster options, information and decision brochures and a brochure holder, invitation to orientation sessions, and invitation to membership cards, envelope, and reply cards. Many supplies are available for order from the TBP Store.

Involve Your Advisors

Each chapter should have at least four advisors. If not, you should locate additional advisors, perhaps someone local in industry or an alumnus of the chapter. They must be a member of Tau Beta Pi. If you need help determining if faculty members are Tau Bates, email your list to Kelly Caro at . Invite all advisors to chapter meetings, activities, and initiations. Include them on the membership email distribution list, if they are not already on it. Request they display a TBP Poster outside their office. Ask them to promote TBP in their classes.

Fall Information Update Due

Although your chapter may have completed a Report of Officer and Advisor Election, you must complete the Fall Information Update within two weeks after the start of the term. This informs HQ of any updates from earlier reports (in case an officer moved over the summer). The report also requests information about your dean of engineering, the president of your institution, and start dates of your school terms.

Initiation Fee Increase

The 2024 Convention approved an increase to the initiation fee from $60 to $65 on August 1, 2026; $70 on August 1, 2027; and $75 on August 1, 2028.

Town Hall

The next Town Hall is scheduled for Wednesday, September 2, at 8:30 pm. It is published on the TBP Calendar with a link to register.

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, 2026: President Thomas Pinkham, Vice President Colleen Hill-Stramsak, and Treasurer Henry Houh. Each is eligible to serve an additional term on the Executive Council.

In response to a call for candidates, five alumni have been nominated to serve in these three positions on the Executive Council for the 2027-29 term. The election will take place at the 2026 Convention with details being announced at a later date. The nominees include:

  • Colleen L. Hill-Stramsak, P.E., MI Epsilon '00, nominated by the Southeastern Michigan Alumni Chapter
  • Henry H. Houh, Ph.D., MA Beta '89, nominated by the Central Connecticut Alumni Chapter
  • Thomas A. Pinkham IV, MA Epsilon '88, nominated by NY Pi and the Rochester Alumni Chapters
  • Christopher Stemple, AZ Alpha '10, nominated by the AZ Alpha Chapter
  • Anitra C. Wilson, Ph.D., FL Alpha '91, nominated by the FL Alpha Chapter

Biographical information on each candidate will appear in the Fall 2026 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 formal letter with the nominees' contact information is here.

Announcement of the 2026-27 Tau Beta Pi Scholars

The Fellowship Board of Tau Beta Pi announces the selection of 256 engineering students from 743 applicants for undergraduate study during the 2026-27 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 2027-28 TBP Fellowships and Scholarships will be available on the website beginning December 1 and February 1, respectively.

Association Policy Updates

The 2025 Convention requested that any policy updates be communicated to the chapters within 30 days of the revision. The following policy was not distributed when it was published in 2025, but we are including it here for official notification purposes: