December Hot Topic – Rewarding Members
Rewarding Members
Throughout the year, it’s always a good idea to recognize the most active and involved members of your collegiate section. Each year, there is always the outstanding group of members who come to most of the meetings, who organize and attend events, or who volunteer their time to serve on committees.
Here are some ideas for how to reward these members who go above and beyond the requirements of being a SWE member:
+ Create Awards for your collegiate section to hand out at the end of each semester. Base awards on the member’s involvement, SWE spirit, and commitment and dedication to your section. These awards can be as simple as “Most Active” or “Most Involved” and can be awarded at the Freshmen, Sophomore, Junior, and Senior levels.
+ Hold a “Distinguished Member” banquet for a top percentage of members who have outstanding participation! This can be as simple as having a dinner for these members at a local restaurant and hand out awards and small prizes. The honor of having a special banquet can also be used as motivation to have more involved members in the future, so be sure to share a recap with to inspire the rest!
+ If your “outstanding” members are freshmen or sophomores, nominate them as SWE-Future Leaders. More information on the nomination process for “SWE-FUL”s will come out next semester!
+ Send thank you notes. If you are a section president, let your “outstanding members know that you appreciate all of their hard work at SWE this semester by sending them a note (either in person or via email).
Don’t forget to recognize your hard-working officers too!
Governor’s Update – Region G Leadership Summit Survey
If you haven’t already done so, please fill out the survey to help us determine the date of the Leadership Summit for Region G next May!!!
If you HAVE already completed the survey, great! One of the dates listed on the survey was over Memorial Day weekend, so if you need to change your “vote”, please email your changes to Mary Ann at her email address.
Here is the link to the survey:
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=TutUVihOHX7IUMOMkdISCA_3d_3d
Governor’s Update – SWE Business from WE’08
Notes from Region G Meeting, November 6:
* Council Passed Region G budget
* Region G has a SWE Community: Region G Going’s http://communities.swe.org/COP/RegionGGoings/
* Powerpoint slides from the meeting are posted on the community!
* A lot of other information from SWE conference and meeting, Region business, etc is on Region G Goings under various headings…
* Region G has a Blog at http://regiong.wordpress.com/
Notes from COR Meeting November 8, 2009
Passed several Bylaws changes, including:
The Council of Representatives is changed to the SWE Senate. Each Region will have 2 professional Senators, with no more than one from a section or MALs. The professional Senators will be elected by the voting members of the region. A region may elect an alternate Senator. A professional-member Senator will serve a two-year term.
Each Region will have one collegiate Senator, elected in the same manner as the RCR and RCNE are currently elected. A collegiate Senator will serve a 1-year term.
COR Governance Committee
As a result of the approved change to a SWE Senate, the Governance committee is meeting (phone call) on Monday evening, November 17. They will be determining the details for the election process for the professional, international, and collegiate representatives to the Senate.
Region Council
It is noted that the Region council remains the same as defined in the Region bylaws. A region Senator will not serve as a voting member of the Region council.
CONTINUATION OF REGION G BUSINESS FROM SWE08 CONFERENCE MEETING ON NOVEMBER 6, IN BALTIMORE:
Region G Nominating Committee – the nominating committee is waiting for instructions from COR and the Governance committee before sending out their call for nominations. This is delaying the call which was expected to go out this week.
The positions of governor, lt. governor, and Senate will be open for nominations. The governor is placed on the national SWE ballot and is elected by the members of the region. The Lt. Governor is elected by the Region council. The election process for Senators is being decided, most likely scenario is that Senators will probably also be placed on the national ballot, the same as the governor, as s/he is also elected by the voting members of the Region.
Region G Awards Program
Region G members Laura Iannacci/Deputy Chair CLC and Mary Ann Walsh/governor have drafted a Region G Awards and Recognition Program. This is on the Region G Going’s Community.
Region G Travel Grant Program
Region G members Judy Simmons/Treasurer and Mary Ann Walsh/governor have drafted a travel grant program. This is posted on the Region G Going’s Community.
Region G needs YOU to apply to be Senator!
Below is the call for applicants for the FY10 Region G Collegiate Senator! If you’re interested in becoming more involved with the Society of Women Engineers on the national level, then this role is perfect for you!
Saturday, February 1st is the deadline to apply!
___________________________________________________________________________________
Call for Applicants!
Are you interested in taking your SWE leadership to the next level? Do you want to make a difference in programs for collegiate members? If so, this is your opportunity to apply! You could be your region’s next Collegiate Senator and serve on the SWE National Senate!
The Senator is a vital collegiate voice within the Region and to National leaders in SWE. The Collegiate Senator will help set the direction for the Society working with 2 Professional Senators from the 10 Regions, 2 International Senators, and 2 Special Senators. Senators will attend 2 face-to-face meetings each year: one at the National Conference and one in the spring in conjunction with the annual strategic plan review. In addition, Senators will participate on monthly conference calls and in online community discussions. Funding assistance for travel reimbursement to the spring meeting is available, with additional funding from each region being requested. Plus, all Senators will be trained together to enhance regional cooperation and collaboration.
Both the Collegiate Senator and RCR/RCNE positions provide invaluable interaction and coaching from SWE leaders. These leadership opportunities sharpen your career skill-set in the areas of leading and facilitation, group dynamics and communication, and project leadership. Please click here to get started on your (online) Collegiate Senator application.
What does it take to be Collegiate Senator?
- Applications are due by Saturday, February 1st.
More Questions
If you have any more questions, please contact us:
Charleen Laughlin, Senator Transition Team,
Jessica Rannow Flasche, Senator Transition Team
___________________________________________________________________________________
- Officer at any level
- Committee chair at section level
- Committee member at regional and/or national level
- previous RCR/RCNE
Governor’s Update – Region G Awards and Participation at National SWE’08 Conference
Celebrate SWE
Congratulations to the SWE members who participated in a wonderful rendition of the Glamorous ENGINEERs from Region G! Some photos can be found on Facebook. Special acknowledgments go to Penn State – lyrics, University of Kentucky – awesome dance moves, University of Akron – props and costumes, and to all who participated.
It was great fun and I hear we are already excited about and planning for next year’s Celebrate SWE!
SME bowl
Thanks to the team of collegiate members who represented Region G !!!
Awards – Congratulations to the following sections in Region G:
Outstanding Collegiate Section – Silver Awards went to:
University of Pittsburgh
Pennsylvania State University
University of Cincinnati
Membership Retention Award
Large Section – Ohio State University
Undergraduate Collegiate Poster Competition
Laura DeWalt, Pennsylvania State University, Erie, 2nd place
Ten SWE Scholarship Recipients within Region G:
• Kathryn Olesnavage, Carnegie Mellon University, Electrical Eng, Soph.
• Emily Griffin, Carnegie Mellon University, Mechanical Eng, Freshman
• Faith Bazley, Case Western Reserve University, Biomedical Eng, Junior
• Danielle Grage, University of Cincinnati, Aerospace Eng, Junior
• Shelli Jones, University of Cincinnati, Chemical Eng, Senior
• Racquel Redwood, University of Cincinnati, Biomedical Eng, Soph.
• Michelle Sing, Case Western Reserve University, Polymer Science and Eng, Sophomore
• Stephanie Momich, University of Pittsburgh, Industrial Eng, Sophomore
• Karin Bodnar, University of Akron, Electrical Eng, Junior
• Angela Holmen, Carnegie Mellon University, Chemical Eng, Graduate
The section and region awards are now listed on the national website:
http://societyofwomenengineers.swe.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=747&Itemid=42
Please take a look at the winners and I suggest researching the websites of the sections and regions who did receive awards and get ideas on how to improve our Region G sections, so that we can win more awards! Also, note that the majority of the awards are for collegiate sections, so we need to encourage and help our collegiate sections to apply. Pay attention to those awards where an award was not given to all three – large, medium, small sections – this means that not enough applications were received. I encourage you to keep up the good work in Region G and plan to apply next year.
Mary Ann
Collegiate Postions – The Senator, RCR, and RCNE
RCR/RCNE Elections
To: SWE Collegiate Members
Cc: RCRs/RCNEs and Region Governors
From: Pam Snyder, RCR/RCNE Coordinator,
Jennifer Vallero RCR/RCNE Coordinator Elect,
Charleen Laughlin Senator Transition Team,
Jessica Flasche Senator Transition Team
Date: December 11, 2008
__________________________________________________________________________________
Collegiate Members,
The time to start thinking about Region Collegiate Leadership positions for next year has arrived. This is a great opportunity to take your leadership experience to another level in SWE. We would like to take this opportunity to tell you more about the Region Collegiate Representative (RCR) and Region Collegiate Newsletter Editor (RCNE) positions and the changes coming in FY10. In addition to RCR and RCNE positions, the COR has approved a new collegiate leadership role – the Senator.
SENATOR
At National Conference this year the Council of Representatives (COR) voted to create the position of collegiate Senator, one to serve in each of the ten regions. Senators will serve on the National Senate (the new body in FY10 replacing the current COR).
What does the Senator do?
- The Senator is a vital collegiate voice within the Region and to National leaders in SWE.
- Serve as the collegiate voice for the region on the National Senate. They will help set the direction for the society working with 2 Professional Senators from the 10 Region, 2 International Senators, and 2 Special Directors.
- Attend 2 face-to-face Senate meetings at National Conference and in the spring, as well as monthly conference calls.
- Trained with the other Senators
What does it take to be Senator?
- Member of SWE for at least 2 years and in good standing
- Be a collegiate member during term (graduate or undergraduate)
- Have been in a leadership role in their section, region or national SWE. Acceptable leadership roles:
- Officer at any level
- Committee chair at section level
- Committee member at regional and/or national level
- Have attended at least one regional or national conference
- Good Academic Standing
How/When Do I Apply?
Elections for Senator are unique from those for RCR/RCNE and will follow the timeline outlined below.
| Date | Event |
| Dec 11th | Call for nominations |
| Jan 21st | 2nd call for nominations |
| Feb 1st | All nominations due |
| Feb 13th | Publish nominees to region and allow for petition process |
| Mar 1st | Photos and bios of all nominees sent to SWE HQ |
| Apr 1st | Electronic ballots sent to all collegiate members |
| Apr 30th | Voting ends |
| May 15th | Winners notified |
RCR
There will continue to be 2 RCRs in Regions with more than 1,000 collegiate members by Dec 31st 2008. Right now this includes regions D, E, and H. Several other regions are very close and could need 2 RCRs when numbers are final on December 31st 2008.
So great we have more RCRs, but what do they do?
- Vital collegiate voice within the Region and to Region leaders in SWE.
- Serves on Region Council as the voting collegiate member for the region.
- Serves on the Region Collegiate Team working to make sure collegiate and section interest and concerns are discussed among the region leadership and plans are made to improve the region collegiate experience.
- Prepares the Collegiate Report to the Governor 3 times a year after collecting Collegiate Section Reports. In regions with 2 RCRs sections will be split between the 2.
- Leads the Collegiate sections of the Region meeting at the National and Regional Conferences.
- Works with other RCRs and RCNEs on yearly goals to improve the collegiate experience in SWE.
- Attends Collegiate Leadership Forum (CLF) in the summer to receive Leadership and SWE Training.
What does it take to be RCR?
- 2 Years in SWE
- Current Paid Member
- Collegiate Member in FY10 (Graduate or Undergraduate Member)
- Good Academic Standing
- Interest in getting involved in SWE at Regional and National Level
- Ability to Travel (CLF – paid, National – some help available in some regions, Region Conference – some help available in some regions)
RCNE
There is 1 RCNE in each region. They maintain the Region Collegiate Blogs and support the RCR(s).
So what does the RCNE do?
- Maintain the Region Collegiate Blog, by working with the Region Web Master, Region Governor, RCR and Collegiate Sections.
- Write and Post Monthly Hot Topics on the Blog – Topics could include Membership, Fund raising, Rewarding Members, Program Ideas, etc. You don’t have to know all the answers there will be resource to help write these.
- Work with Collegiate Sections to get 2 postings/articles a year from each section.
- Serves on the Region Collegiate Team working to make sure collegiate and section interest and concerns are discussed among the region leadership and plans are made to improve the region collegiate experience.
- Prepares Report to the Governor 3 times a year updating the Governor on the blog, region collegiate team and other happenings.
- Works with other RCRs and RCNEs on yearly goals to improve the collegiate experience in SWE.
- Attends Collegiate Leadership Forum (CLF) in the summer to receive Leadership and SWE Training.
What does it take to be RCNE?
- 2 Years in SWE
- Current Paid Member
- Collegiate Member in FY10 (Graduate or Undergraduate Member)
- Good Academic Standing
- Interest in getting involved in SWE at Regional and National Level
- Ability to Travel (CLF – paid, National – some help available in some regions, Region Conference – some help available in some Regions)
How/When Do I Apply?
As many of you know Region Collegiate Representative (RCR) and Region Collegiate Newsletter Editor (RCNE) election occur during Region Conference in the spring. Applications will be coming out from National ~ 2 months before each Region conference and need to be completed 3 weeks before conference, see the Region Schedule below.
|
Region |
Call for Applicants |
Applications Due |
Regional Conference |
Collegiate Members 11/08 |
RCRs FY 10 based 11/08* |
|
A |
Jan 2nd |
Feb 6th |
Feb 27th – Mar 1st |
379 |
1 |
|
B |
Dec 5th |
Jan 9th |
Jan 30th – Feb 1st |
888 |
1 |
|
C |
Dec 12th |
Jan 16th |
Feb 6th – 8th |
916 |
1 |
|
D |
Jan 9th |
Feb 13th |
Mar 6th – 9th |
1,185 |
2 |
|
E |
Jan 9th |
Feb 13th |
Mar 6th – 8th |
1,169 |
2 |
|
F |
Feb 6th |
Mar 13th |
Apr 3rd – 4th |
605 |
1 |
|
G |
Jan 2nd |
Feb 6th |
Feb 27th – Mar 1st |
916 |
1 |
|
H |
Dec 12th |
Jan 16th |
Feb 6th – 8th |
2,124 |
2 |
|
I |
Dec 12th |
Jan 16th |
Feb 6th – 8th |
900 |
1 |
|
J |
Feb 20th |
Mar 27th |
Apr 17th – 19th |
268 |
1 |
* # of RCR will be based on collegiate membership as of 12/31/08. Regions with 1 RCR could increase to 2 if collegiate membership in the region increases over 1,000.
More Questions
If you have more questions, please contact your current RCR or RCNE, Region Governor, or any of us.
Pam Snyder, RCR/RNCE Coordinator
Jennifer Vallero, RCR/RCNE Coordinator Elect
Charleen Laughlin , Senator Transition Team
Jessica Flasche, Senator Transition Team
___________________________________________________________
Section Spotlight: Penn State University
Check out the following article on the workshop that the Penn State SWE Section held for a local day camp. Their workshop was called “Egg-xtraordinary Engineers — Splat!”.
