News & Events

Event Recap: January Meeting at Southwest Airlines

by Dallas SWE on in Meetings
Group photo in Southwest Airlines lounge.
Group photo in Southwest Airlines lounge.

The Society of Women Engineers (SWE) goals and objectives include professional excellence. SWE develops engineers at all stages of their personal and professional lives.  The Society’s objective is to develop an education, experience, and exposure-based portfolio for all career and life stages. SWE Dallas has accepted this challenge to provide presentations from leaders in engineering and tech industries who can give insight into opportunities for personal and professional excellence. On Tuesday, January 19th, SWE Dallas members had the opportunity to meet Jamita Barnett-Machen who hosted a professional development meeting at Southwest Airlines headquarters. Jamita is an honoree selected by the Dallas Business Journal in partnership with TeXchange DFW in the 2015 inaugural North Texas Women in Technology Awards program. The program highlights an amazing group of twenty-five trailblazers and honors their incredible achievements. Currently, Jamita is the only female Information Technology Architect at Southwest Airlines.  One of Jamita’s responsibilities is overseeing Southwest Airline’s complex technical life cycles from inception, requirements analysis and design to fluid implementation phases. Jamita has made significant contributions in software development, engineering, and architecture solutions. She’s also a doctoral candidate at SMU.

Jamita Burnett-Machen
Jamita Barnett-Machen

Jamita spoke to Dallas SWE members about work-life balance.  She provided her personal insight into taking vacations at home commonly called staycations. She mentioned her staycations in Dallas where she books a hotel for herself, spends the weekend reading, relaxing or going to a spa. She challenged the audience to do something that you want to do just because.  She mentioned that women often times are responsible for home and work but don’t get a lot of time to do things just for themselves. Jamita’s thing to do outside of her work life is being a DJ part time under the name DJ Rojas. Overall, the advice she gave to the audience is not saying yes when you should be saying no.  The most important thing that Dallas SWE members are encouraged to do is to organize yourself to reduce stress and to check your calendars in advance before taking on any extra responsibilities.

SWE Dallas thanks Jamita for hosting such an incredible event and providing our members the opportunity to relax and enjoy a quality professional development experience.

~Alicia Morgan, Dallas SWE Program Committee Member

Full Bio

Upon graduating from Texas A&M University in 1994 with a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science, Jamita Barnett-Machen, MBA, continues to shatter through glass ceilings. Jamita has many leadership roles during her career spanning the defense, mobile, e-commerce and travel industries with a focus on Information Technology. Some key highlights include being a part of the Executive Mentorship Program at IBM and becoming the first African-American female Principal Application Architect at American Airlines. Currently, Jamita is the only female Information Technology Architect at Southwest Airlines. The Dallas Business Journal and TeXchange DFW also recognizes her as one of the top 25 North Texas Women in Technology.

Simultaneously, Jamita has continued to broaden her skillset by acquiring various degrees such as a Master of Science in Computer Science from DePaul University and an Executive MBA from the University of Texas at Dallas. Currently, she is pursuing a Doctoral Degree in Computer Science from Southern Methodist University.

Outside of work, Jamita volunteers her time with multiple organizations such as being the President of the Arlington Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., sitting on the board of the Fort Worth Metropolitan Black Chamber of Commerce, sitting on the Strategic Council for the Texas A&M Computer Science Department and as the Vice President for the Black Former Student Network of Texas A&M University.

Jamita currently resides in the Dallas area with her husband, Russell Machen and daughter, Reya.

SWE Merchandise for Sale!

by Dallas SWE on in Announcements

We’re very excited about our new FY16 fundraising initiative! We’ve printed some SWE-branded merchandise that we’ll sell at our upcoming Jan 19 Professional Development Meeting, at the Region C Conference in February, and other upcoming Dallas SWE events. Unfortunately we are not offering online orders or shipping at this time. Get yours while supplies last!

Funds raised will support our professional development offerings, K-12 outreach events in our local communities, and annual scholarships to local college-bound engineering students!

Prices are as follows:

  • SWE Polo Shirt (purple cotton), sizes S-XL: $30 each
  • SWE Mousepad: $10 each
  • SWE Bumper Sticker (vinyl): $5 each

FY16 Merch

Spotlight on Outreach Resources

by Dallas SWE on in Outreach

This week, we would like to highlight some local Outreach resources that help connect our members with folks who are involved in STEM education and activities.

We get a LOT of messages from Dallas area residents requesting classroom visits, STEM club and activity support, and individual students looking for an engineering mentor. Unfortunately the great majority of our all-volunteer leadership team and members are working professionals who have a hard time supporting requests during the work day or outside of our SWE-hosted events.

Rather than reinvent the wheel, we encourage our members and anyone wanting STEM outreach support to participate in the below programs. This way, those seeking visitors or speakers can connect to not just Dallas SWE members, but also a wide range of other engineers and STEM professionals who might be able to help.

Volunteers: sign up to be connected with local event leaders who need your help!
Parents and Educators: submit your requests for STEM speakers to these service providers to get connected to volunteers from Dallas SWE and other organizations!

SWEnextThe Society of Women Engineers has rolled out a new outreach program for parents and students!  SWENext is a way to become part of the Society of Women Engineers as a student up to the age of 18. Joining is free.  Share this promotional flyer with your outreach event attendees and visit the SWENext website to get details on how to join.

TechTitansstemfire

STEMfire connects North Texas STEM Professionals with local ISDs Educators who have a need for a speaker or mentor in their classrooms or at special events.  Submit your need to STEMfire and it will be shared to their network of volunteers automatically!

HTHHlogoHigh-Tech High Heels funds programs to prepare girls to pursue degrees in STEM by working with both educators and students.  They also connect Volunteers to Educators who need speakers for STEM events.

 

 

neprisNepris is an innovative tool to connect industry professionals via web conferencing to classrooms to help evaluate student projects and inspire students to continue their interests in STEM education. Check it out!

EGlogoEngineer Girl is a great resource for parents and students who want to learn about what being an engineer is like!  This site features profiles of women engineers from all over the world!  Students can submit their questions about STEM topics for the engineers on the site to answer.  Check it out!

googlegroupiconTo get the latest info on K-12 STEM activities in DFW, join the DFW K-12 STEM Outreach Google Group. This group creates connections and collaborations and more. It’s an easy way to be engaged in K-12 STEM Outreach and to see the latest opportunities. Be sure to sign up for the weekly email to keep you up to date!

SMU SWE Event – She Networks, She Wins!

by Dallas SWE on in Collegiate

Our sister SWE section at Southern Methodist University has hosted She Networks, She Wins for more than ten years and we are pleased to be a continuing partner in their success! This is SMU SWE’s biggest event with alumni, students and corporate sponsors getting together to network for the night. There will be a panel discussion to start off the event focusing on the book The Defining Decade. The conversation will be geared towards important events and defining milestones of early adulthood. Heavy hors d’oeuvres will be served and parking is available in Binkley parking garage for $1/hour.

When: Tuesday, February 23, 2016, 6:00 – 7:30 p.m.
Where: SMU, Lyle School of Engineering, 3145 Dyer St, Dallas Tx, 75225
Caruth Hall (4th Floor, Palmer Conference Center)
Parking Map: Binkley parking garage is building #63 on the map and the event is in building #52
Cost: Free!

RSVP here!

LogoLyle

Dallas SWE Winter Updates

by Dallas SWE on in Announcements, Meetings

We hope you had a safe and fun holiday. Here’s what’s coming up for Dallas SWE in 2016!

January 19 Professional Development Meeting

JamitaMachenJoin Dallas SWE for our January Meeting featuring speaker Jamita Barnett-Machen at Southwest Airlines! Jamita Barnett-Machen received her Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from Texas A&M University, Master of Science in Computer Science from DePaul University, and an Executive MBA from the University of Texas at Dallas. After a continuously exciting career, she is currently the only female Information Technology Architect at Southwest Airlines, while she pursues a Doctoral Degree in Computer Science from Southern Methodist University. She was also recognized as one of the top 25 North Texas Women in Technology by the Dallas Business Journal and TeXchange DFW.

SWAWhen: January 19, 6:00 – 8:30pm
Where: Southwest Airlines
2702 Love Field Dr. Room: Heart Three. Dallas, Texas 75235
Click here for a campus map.
Cost: FREE, thanks to our sponsors at Southwest Airlines!
Please register on Eventbrite by January 14!
Eventbrite - Dallas SWE January Professional Development Meeting

SWE Region C Conference – Feb 5-7, 2016 in Rogers, AR

Attending conferences are also great opportunities to get to know how SWE works and network with SWE members from the four states in Region C. Plus you can hear three Dallas SWE members who will be facilitating conference workshops. Registration is now open for the hotel and the conference. Early bird rates end December 31, 2015.­ More information is available at the conference website.

Outreach Volunteer Opportunities

Volunteers are requested for Dallas STEM Day, February 6th at Skyline High School from 11:30 to 3 pm.
An outreach kit will be provided. Please contact Nandika D’Souza if you are available.

Dallas SWE has several STEM Outreach Partners who need women engineers to help inspire the next generation. High-Tech High Heels seeks volunteers for its speaker bureau for periodic requests across the metroplex. Tech TitansSTEMfire connects North Texas STEM Professionals with local ISDs and educators looking for speakers or mentors in the classroom or special school events. Nepris connects industry professionals to classrooms via web conferencing technology that supports our work schedules. You can find links to these organizations on our Outreach page.

Save the Dates

Remember Dallas SWE in your Charitable Giving!

amazon-smilePlanning to do any shopping online in the days ahead?Amazon will donate 0.5% of the price of your eligible AmazonSmile purchases to Society Of Women Engineers whenever you shop on AmazonSmile. Click here to set up Dallas SWE as your AmazonSmile beneficiary!

Consider making a year-end donation to Dallas SWE! 

Dallas SWE is a 501 (c) 3 non-profit and your donation is tax deductible. Donations help fund our STEM outreach activities, scholarship funds, and administrative costs such as PO Box rental. You can send your donation to that PO Box 852022, Richardson, TX 75085-2022. Checks can be made out to Society of Women Engineers Dallas.

Event Recap: 2015 Holiday Mixer Sponsored by Lennox International

by Dallas SWE on in Meetings

LayoutOn December 15th , SWE Dallas celebrated the holidays at the Lennox International headquarters in Richardson Texas.  The evening was enjoyed by all with 45 people attending, including SWE professional members, collegiate SWE members, Lennox employees, and guests.

Cherrie Fisher, Executive VP of Dallas SWE opened the event reminding the audience to “Breathe” and enjoy family and friends during the holiday season.  She advised attendees to unplug from daily responsibilities and challenged and encouraged everyone to live in the moment.

Manny Molera, VP of Commercial HR Lennox International, shared the history of Lennox International’s partnership with SWE and the importance of diversity and inclusion to foster innovation. Everyone is looking forward to seeing how this mutually beneficial relationship will improve both Dallas SWE’s organization and Lennox International’s employee resources!

Barbara Read, President of Dallas SWE, reviewed upcoming events, including the SWE Region C Conference which will be held February 5-7, 2016 in Rogers, Arkansas. Barbara also recognized SWE Officers and volunteers who make our programs possible and thanked Lennox for the company’s continued support.

Evening activities included a Networking Icebreaker, Door Prizes, and refreshments. The Icebreaker activity was a sort of engineering BINGO card: attendees were encouraged to meet new people and have them sign off on squares where they knew the answers to various technical questions. Collegiate attendees, fresh out of fall semester finals, had a definite advantage for some of the more esoteric trivia!

Later, a Door Prize raffle was held to give away goodie bags and poinsettia plants to 10 lucky winners. At the end of the evening, Lennox presented each attendee with a Lennox International SWE Dallas 2015 Holiday Celebration travel coffee mug.

“The Society of Women Engineers’ tag line is Aspire, Advance and Achieve. Their goals are not only for students in college, but also for working professionals to help them achieve their full potential in careers as engineers and leaders. I am incredibly excited that our Lennox team is getting involved with SWE.”
~ Jamie Son, Lennox

“This was such a great event hosted by our Lennox partner. I had so much fun! I can’t wait to see what the new year brings!”
~ Cherrie Fisher, Dallas SWE Executive VP

SWE is an inclusive organization focused on issues of interest to women specializing in engineering and technical careers. The organization assists companies to advance their women engineers and technologists, achieve their diversity recruitment and retention goals and support their leadership training initiatives.

If you are a Lennox employee, please contact either Amanda Widell or Jamie Son, HR Business Partner (and SWE relationship manager) to find out how you can get involved in SWE! Click here for the Society of Women Engineers website.

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