Please save the date for our annual Membership Appreciation Event on Saturday, June 11th, from 2 – 4 PM at Fox & Hound! We will be wrapping up FY22 by celebrating all of our wonderful members. In addition to mingling with other SWEsters, we will be recognizing members with awards and highlighting some of their amazing contributions during the past year.
Please RSVP by June 10th.
Event Location: 112 W Campbell Rd, Richardson, TX 75080
We look forward to seeing you!
RSVP on Eventbrite or below.
When it comes to negotiating, women do it less than men. But the cost of not negotiating could add up to years of additional work to catch up to the salary of men who negotiate. You have worked hard to earn your degree and become an engineer; don’t let off the gas when the time comes to evaluate an offer and advocate for your worth. In this session, you will hear why it’s critical that we as women negotiate to help close the pay gap, understand common pitfalls to a successful negotiation, and learn how to develop and execute a negotiation strategy. Join Dallas SWE for this special presentation on June 15th at la Madeline Plano, registration closes June 12th!
RSVP for this event on Eventbrite or below.
Congratulations to Kimberley Reid, Dallas SWE’s May 2022 Member of the Month! Check out Kimberley’s story below.
I started my engineering journey at the University of Michigan. Upon graduation, I joined Occidental Chemical and spent 11 years there working as a Chemical Engineer in a variety of roles supporting the chemical manufacturing operations. While working full-time, I attended the business administration program at Canisius College and earned my MBA degree. Through the MBA program I learned about management information systems which helps companies run their business operations. This opened the door to join a corporate team focused on helping our company implement a new Enterprise Resource planning solution called SAP. The SAP software solution served as a launchpad for me into a business and information technology consulting career that has spanned nearly 24 years.
I now work for Hitachi Vantara and serve as the Vice President for Digital Enterprise Solutions focused on SAP. In this role, I am responsible for managing a team of consultants who advise clients on strategic information systems planning initiatives, business cases for change, implementations of the software, and training in the SAP applications to ensure high user adoption rates and attainment of business value through the software. I never imagined that my process engineering days at the chemical manufacturing plant would lead to the role that I have today. It is quite a dream come true to help clients solve business challenges through software solutions. I work with customers in a variety of industries ranging from Food processing, Consumer Products, Aerospace and Defense, Life Sciences, Industrial Manufacturing, and Chemical manufacturing.
While in college, there were not many women in my engineering classes. SWE was a great resource for me and helped to provide a support network and pathway to develop my leadership skills in college. The opportunity to support the local SWE initiatives here in Dallas and volunteer for the great programs is quite rewarding. I am grateful for the chance to help. Giving back is a way to say Thank You to the long list of mentors, coaches, tutors, and encouraging people who have influenced my career journey to date. I like how SWE shows that careers in engineering can be rewarding and open doors to adventures that you might not ever imagine.
What I like most about SWE is the chance to influence young people to pursue careers in science, engineering, and math. The chance to share how engineering careers can be the launchpad to amazing life journeys is just awesome.
Voting for FY23 Dallas SWE Leadership
Your voice matters! Please cast your vote for our Dallas SWE FY23 Leadership Team. You must be a paid member of the Dallas SWE Professional Section and in good standing with the Society to vote. The Nominating Committee will verify each voter’s member status. No nominations for any roles were received during the petition period. Additionally, no nominations were accepted prior to or during the petition period for Executive Vice President. In abiding by our bylaws, this position did not need to be slated prior to the petition period; however, we highly encourage you to nominate or self-nominate on the ballot if there is interest and qualifications for the role.
Voting starts May 1 and closes on May 31. Vote here today.
Thank you!
Dallas SWE FY22 Nominating Committee
Zaineb Ahmad, Malia Kawamura, Gretchen Landego, and Haley McKeefer
On Saturday, March 19th, Dallas SWE delivered our award winning flagship outreach event, Design Your World, to over 60 Girl Scouts from across the Northeast Texas area. Dallas SWE partnered with Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas to deliver this year’s program and the event was held at the Girl Scouts STEM Center of Excellence at Camp Whispering Cedars in Dallas.
Design Your World Spring 2022 was held after a two year break from in-person, hands-on outreach. Dallas SWE greatly appreciates all of the volunteers that helped support the continuation of this event post-pandemic. Dallas SWE had a terrific volunteer turnout, with over 60 volunteers from across the Dallas metroplex representing a variety of industries and backgrounds.
The event consisted of rotating through three hands-on, STEM activities: Structural Towers, Prosthetic Design, and Floatation Devices, with guided mentorship from our volunteers. Through these activities, the girls were introduced to a variety of engineering concepts and methodology.
The Structural Towers activity was led by Ana Gonzalez. Ana explained the concepts of structural engineering and common design elements in architecture. Ana then led the girls through the marshmallow tower activity where the girls were able to design and build a tower using these structural principals and compete for the tallest structure.
The Prosthetic Activity, led by Cyonna Holmes, introduced biomedical engineering and the real-world impact of prosthesis on society. Cyonna explained the design thinking process and the iterative methodology used when designing a new device. During the activity, the girls applied this methodology to design, build, and test a prosthetic leg that had to withstand their body weight while being comfortable and easy to put on.
The Floatation Device activity, designed to explain materials science to the girls, was led by Ashton McCary. Ashton shared. The girls were able to explore and test physical properties of common materials and test their buoyancy by designing a floatation device designed as a life vest for a corgi. During the activity, the girls utilized the iterative design process by refining their designs after testing.
Between the activities, the girls heard an engaging panel of professionals in engineering discuss their careers and STEM journeys. Our panelists, Ashanti Napper, Ashley Johnson, Kimberley Reid, Liz Hainey, and Carla Blickensderfer, gave advice on learning about STEM as a girl and shared their experience on how they overcame any challenges they faced. After the panel, the girls participated in speed networking with the volunteers which allowed the girls to learn more about STEM fields in a small group setting. As there were a variety of volunteers with different backgrounds and paths, the girls were able to hear about many exciting engineering disciplines.
Here is what some of our volunteers had to say about the event:
“The students were very engaged, and it was fun working with them and seeing how they came up with ideas for the prosthetic activity!”
“The activities were great, very well organized, fun and engaging for the girls (and volunteers!)”
“It was very inspirational to see the panelists and girls being inspired.”
“I had so much fun volunteering with SWE today! I love talking about engineering careers, so being on the career panel was an honor and pleasure.”
“I am honored to have had the chance to experience this event and I am excited for more opportunities to volunteer and give back to the Dallas community.”
Dallas SWE would like to thank several teams that helped make this day possible. First, the Design Your World Outreach Committee, consisting of Sammy Zellner, Zaineb Ahmad, Pratiksha Jaju, Ana Gonzalez, Cyonna Holmes, Ashton McCary, Amanda Alsbrook, Lynn Mortensen, and Rana Karimi, for helping to plan and coordinate the event. In addition, we would like to recognize the 60+ volunteers that supported this event. Thanks to our committed volunteers, we were able to have a strong ratio of volunteers to girls, allowing the girls to explore many engineering fields and opportunities. Dallas SWE would also like to recognize the support of our partner, Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas, for allowing us complete creative control in designing the program and activities for the girls. Finally, event sponsor, Amazon, graciously provided all of the funding to deliver a day of quality programming for the girls.
Design Your World Spring 2022 was a highly impactful day of learning and engaging in STEM for girls from our community. Dallas SWE would not have been able to conduct this event without the support of our volunteers and community partners. If you would like to be a part of a future offering, or if your company would like to help sponsor a future event, please contact us at dallas.swe@gmail.com
The Dallas SWE FY22 Nominating Committee is pleased to present the following slate of candidates for your consideration to serve during FY23 (July 1, 2022 – June 30, 2023). Please note, the role of treasurer is not on the ballot this year, as it is a two year term; Katie Mills is currently serving as Dallas SWE Treasurer through FY23. Ballots will be distributed to members electronically on May 1st and voting will conclude 30 days thereafter. Final results will be announced on June 1, 2022.
President: Rana Karimi
Executive Vice President: Open*
Secretary: Sammy Zellner
Vice President of Membership: Claire Jordan
Vice President of Outreach: Cyonna Holmes
Investment Committee (3-year): Amanda Alsbrook
Per the Dallas SWE Section Agreement with the Society, as amended in FY21, additional candidates may be nominated by petition, provided that:
1. The member is eligible for the position;
2. The member has given written consent to being placed on the ballot;
3. A minimum of two percent or five of the voting members of the section, whichever is greater, have signed a petition or endorsed an email to place the candidate’s name on the ballot and
4. The petition, together with the written consent, is submitted to the chair of the nominating committee by April 30 or fifteen days after the slate is announced to the members of the section, whichever is later.
*There is currently an opening for the role of Executive Vice President. If you or anyone you know is interested in EVP for FY23, please reach out to the Nominating Committee Chair during the petition period. If no candidate is slated, Dallas SWE will move forward with elections as scheduled and the FY23 board will have an open EVP position as this role is not required to be filled by the SWE Bylaws.
The petition endorsement minimum is 5 members. Please send any nominations by petition with the required endorsements and consent of the candidate to the FY22 Nominating Committee Chair, Haley McKeefer, at haley.jm.mckeefer@gmail.com by April 30th.
Thank you!
Dallas SWE FY22 Nominating Committee
Zaineb Ahmad, Malia Kawamura, Gretchen Landego and Haley McKeefer
