News & Events

Event Recap: Moon Day at the Frontiers of Flight Museum

by Dallas SWE on in Outreach

Kids were over the moon for SWE!

On Saturday, July 19, The Frontiers of Flight Museum hosted the MOON DAY celebration to commemorate the 45th anniversary of the first manned landing on the moon. The event featured over 25 exhibitors and plenty of fun, family-friendly activities. Dallas SWE and Fort Worth SWE partnered up to provide visitors with two hands-on, engineering-based activities.

Building and testing solar-powered robots.
Building and Testing Solar Powered Robots

Kids of all ages tried their hands at building a solar-powered robot, snapping together parts with a solar cell to demonstrate principles of Mechanical Engineering and Renewable Energy. The kids loved watching their robots roll along when under our makeshift sun (a study lamp!). One little boy said he thought engineering only involved buildings until he made the robots while a little girl was excited she could build a more stable robot faster than her brothers!

Kids got their hands wet by building boats from one piece of aluminum foil. The boat had to stay afloat while adding more and more weights. Each “boat-engineer” made a guess about how many weights their boat could hold… we had a record of 163! Several participants came back to design a better boat or go head to head with their siblings. We even had a contest between a father-son pair; the son walked away with bragging rights.

Which boat holds the most?
Which boat holds the most?

Over the course of the day’s celebration, over 150 kids visited the SWE exhibits with their families and participated in the activities with the volunteers from Dallas SWE (Zaineb Ahmad, Stephany Alanis, Sara Brandt, Teri Cate, Ashley Dunn, Barbara Read, Shelley Stracener, Tram Trinh, Jennifer Vilbig) and Fort Worth SWE (Carrie Ballester, Birdena Milligan, Candy Robinson). Several parents commented on the fun activities that made their children think outside the box and were interested in getting similar robots or giving the boats another try at home. Looks like the ladies of Dallas SWE and Fort Worth SWE met some future engineers!

The Dallas Morning News also featured our activities in their photo review of Moon Day.

~ Zaineb Ahmad, Dallas SWE Award Committee Chair

Registration is OPEN for the Fall 2014 Design Your World – Stem Conference for Girls!

by Dallas SWE on in Outreach, Special Events

DYWlogoWe are excited to announce that Registration is officially OPEN for our Design Your World – STEM Conference for Girls at the UT Dallas Jonsson School of Engineering Saturday, November 1, 2014!

The “Design Your World” event is designed to be an opportunity for girls to meet female engineering role models and see that girls can succeed in science, technology, math, and engineering (STEM). Teachers: encourage your students to attend this event! We anticipate hosting 120 students and 100 parents/educators. Throughout the day professional and college student volunteers will interact with the girls. The volunteers will share their enthusiasm for science and technology!

Students will start their day getting inspired by engineers and a dynamic, inspirational keynote speaker. Then, they will participate in three design sessions in various STEM fields. Activity choices include Bio-Medical, Computers, Electrical, Materials, and Mechanical. The day’s finale will include information on college admissions and encouraging anecdotes from engineering students and recent graduates. Student registration also includes lunch and an event t-shirt.

Design Your World also includes a session for Parents and Educators.  Adults will engage in conversation with panel members on topics including encouraging girls in STEM, tips on communication, guiding girls through their decision-making processes, and resources to assist girls interested in STEM careers. The Parent and Educator sessions will also include lunch and a tour of the engineering college.

When: Saturday November 1, 2014, 8:30am-4:30pm
Where: Jonsson School of Engineering, UT Dallas, Richardson, TX.
Cost: $10 for students and adults. Go to the Registration page for details and to reserve your spot today!

Volunteers are needed to help with the Design Your World – STEM Conference, please complete the volunteer response form!

Sponsor information has been posted on the DYW Sponsor page. If you or your company are interested in donating funds for this year’s Design Your World – STEM Conference for Girls, please review the sponsorship letter and form and follow the instructions!

Renew your SWE membership for FY15!

by Dallas SWE on in Announcements

SWErenewalDid you know that at the end of the month (September 30), if you haven’t renewed your SWE membership for FY15 it will be considered officially lapsed??  That’s a big deal!  Visit the SWE Member Services Center to renew and update your information today!!

Dallas SWE is a diverse organization devoted to supporting engineers in North Texas through professional development meetings, technical site tours, and dynamic guest speakers.  We are also committed to encouraging young women to pursue STEM careers by sponsoring outreach activities throughout the year, most notably our Design Your World: Stem Conference for Girls event series. As a SWE member, you’ll receive discounts on annual conference and other paid event registrations.  Our membership dues are also significantly less costly than other professional engineering organizations. SWE is a great value!  Please visit our website, dallaswe.org, for more information about upcoming activities and our mission. Your membership and participation enriches our section!

After you renew your membership, please take our FY14 Member Survey to let us know what you’d like to see from Dallas SWE in this fiscal year!

If you choose not to renew your SWE membership, please participate in the above-linked Membership Survey or email us at dallas.swe@gmail.com to share your thoughts on how we can improve our service to our members.   Thank you!

Volunteers Needed for Design Your World STEM Conference

by Dallas SWE on in Outreach, Special Events

We need YOUR help at the next Design Your World STEM Conference for Girls in grades 6 through 12 to be held at Jonsson School of Engineering, UT Dallas on November 1st, 2014.

Volunteers are needed to prepare for the conference and for specific activities on the day of the event. If you’d like to volunteer at the Design Your World STEM Conference, please complete the  volunteer response form!

More information on the event (including a tentative schedule for the day) cab be found at the Design Your World: STEM Conference for Girls website.

Interested in Leading the Next Generation of Women in Tech?

by Dallas SWE on in Meetings

So often we simply follow the path of least resistance, instead of challenging the status quo. What would happen if we focused on the ‘what’ we want, not the ‘how’ we think we can or can’t get it? We know that women opt out in mid-career for many reasons, the most obvious being for family priorities.  But – we also know that Women in Tech opt out at a significantly higher rate than all of their industries – over 50%.  What is different about male dominated organizational cultures or about women with a knack for technology?  What rules can we change that will enable us to hire and retain more women in technology?  How can we make it better for both women and men…and for the organizations we serve?

Join us for our first Professional Development meeting of FY15 as Sheri Jenkinson shares her insights into the future of Women in Tech.

When: Tuesday, September 16, 2014.  Networking starts at 6:00pm, Main event from 6:30-8:00pm
Where:  Coffee House Cafe, 6150 Frankford Rd, Dallas, Texas 75252
Cost: FREE!  Meals and drinks are available for purchase.
RSVP now for Dallas SWE’s September Professional Development Meeting! 

About the Speaker:
Sheri JenkinsonMs. Sheri Jenkinson is a professional coach and change agent. She was bitten by the tech bug early in her career as a telecom product manager. She has always been energized by the opportunity to collaborate and develop next gen tech.

In founding WATT and Ipseity, she combines her interest in emerging technologies with her passion for helping people to reach their full  potential.  She believes that with the natural collaborative style (stereotypically) inherent to women, we can leverage technology as a catalyst for improving quality of life around the world.  Ms. Jenkinson can be reached via LinkedIn at Sheri Jenkinson.

FY15 Dallas SWE Scholarship Recipients

by Dallas SWE on in Collegiate, Outreach

Recently, our Dallas SWE section was able to fund three new $650 scholarships to incoming college freshmen who are from the Dallas area and one renewal scholarship from a previous year’s recipient! Applicants were evaluated based on need, academics, community involvement, and their plans to become engineers.  Recipients are also eligible for renewal for up to four years when they demonstrate their ability to maintain a high GPA and continue in their engineering studies.  Thanks to the Dallas SWE Scholarship Committee for taking the time to review a record number of applications!  Congratulations to this year’s recipients: we wish you all the best!

Elizabeth Keener of Midlothian

ElizabethKeener

Elizabeth Keener is the daughter of Andy and Lori Keener. She is a graduate of Midlothian High School and plans to attend LeTourneau University where she will study mechanical engineering. Among Elizabeth’s honors and achievements are Valedictorian; Engineering Club; Photographer & Writer for Midlothian Messenger and Pride newspapers.

Crystal Hernandez of Dallas

CrystalHernandez

Crystal Hernandez, Valedictorian of Skyline High School, will major in construction engineering and technology at University of North Texas.

Suzie Ghidei of Dallas

Suzie Ghidei

Suzie Ghidei graduated from Lake Highlands High School where she was the captain of the Varsity Tennis Team and a member of NHS, Mu Alpha Theta, and the Student Council.  She will major in mechanical engineering

Scholarship Renewal – Anna Larsen of Dallas

Anna Larsen is a senior at Texas Tech majoring in industrial engineering.  She participated in a co-op in 2013 at Ethicon, a subsidiary of Johnson and Johnson, in San Angelo, TX.  Her experience in their Process Excellence Department confirmed her decision to work in industrial engineering.  Anna was also chosen for an internship at Owen Corning in Albany, NY in the summer of 2014.  This year she is serving as an Engineering Ambassador for Texas Tech and plans to graduate in May 2015.  Anna is a member of the Texas Tech SWE section and met all academic qualifications for the renewal of her scholarship sponsored by Dallas SWE.  Keep up the good work, Anna!

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