Hello SWE members, The Region Collegiate Representatives(RCRs) and Region Collegiate Communications Editors(RCCEs) represent the collegiate voice on the SWE region level which is then transferred to all the way up to SWE headquarters.

As a team we are working to make your SWE experience even better but we need your help! We would like to know some information about your SWE experience. Please take the time to fill out this survey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=O2hRLANHXjhT_2fW0UTMsIBw_3d_3d

Please distribute this to your section team to fill out also. With more input we receive the better we can help you! It should take you no longer than 5 minutes to fill out. Please fill it out as soon as you can.

Thank you!

Extra, Extra, Read all about it. The Hot Topic of the Month.  Attracting and Retaining Membership!

Advertise: It’s really important to advertise.  Be creative in your advertising. Facebook, Twitter, friends, teachers, family, creative posters. Do everything you can to promote SWE.

Free Food! Free Items! Auctions! College students love everything that’s free. We are poor and we will take anything that you throw our way. That’s how it works it in the world of college.

Offer Leadership Positions: Give potential leaders more responsibility. When they are given more responsibility, they feel more obligated to the club to more work put into the club. Therefore, you have strong members. These members will bring more of their friends, therefore it grows.

Attract Freshmen! Have a freshman Representative on the Executive Board. If this freshman is enthusiastic about everything, she will bring many people to join. If you have very active freshmen, you are increasing the longevity of the organization

There are many other ideas such as giveaways for being an active member or being present at the general body meetings, subsidizing national memberships, etc. Get creative and get noticed. There are millions of suns and stars in this universe and they are circling around one point and make sure that point is you! Therefore stand out, be positive, and have fun!

If you have more ideas, please email me: poojitha.ennamuri@gmail.com

The UofL SWE section hosts an annual summer sleepover for the incoming freshmen class. The sleepover allows girls to meet both upperclassmen and girls they will see in their classes. It allows gives the freshman the opportunity to meet and talk to professors and professionals who understand the field they are working in better. This year’s sleepover was very successful! Twenty four girls attended the event; this was the largest number of incoming freshman girls that have attended since the sleepover began. Also, we started a mentor program with the freshman to make their first semester on campus even more successful.

The girls began arriving at four in the afternoon, allowing for early introductions and ice breakers. The ice breakers included a team work game that involved them not talking to each other. Soon after, members from PEACC (Prevention, Education and Advocacy on Campus and in the Community) came to discuss staying safe against violence and assault. At five, a faculty panel discussion began. Members of the panel introduced themselves to the girls and gave them the opportunity to ask questions about their intended field and the upcoming year. This was followed by a small professional panel, which discussed the various work opportunities.

After the panel discussions, dinner was served, giving both the incoming freshman and the upperclassmen the opportunity to get to know each other. After dinner, the mentors introduced themselves to their mentees. All the mentees were really excited about the program.

When dinner ended, the girls participated in a scavenger hunt to get them even more familiar with all of campus. The winning team was awarded gift cards to the movies and boxed candies. Although it took some of the teams a while to finish, everyone finished the activity and was rewarded with popsicles.

Once everyone was cooled off and relaxed from the scavenger hunt, they partook in a maze on a masking tape grid. Each girl had to make it through the maze with the help of everyone else. If a girl chose the wrong direction, she had to go to the end of the line. The game didn’t end until everyone made it through the maze. After these activities, the girls were given a chance to relax with a raffle, movies, and catch phrase.

The next day, the girls woke up early and attended one of two Engineering Calculus classes. They had the option of choosing either calculus II or III. This gave them the opportunity to see what it’s like to be in a college class. The sleepover ended at eleven with goodie bags and more games.

Section: University of Louisville
Event: Freshman Sleepover
Date: July 16-17, 2009

Submitted By: Lindsay Ferguson

Hello Region G members!

Welcome to a brand new year for Region G! I am very excited for this new position. I would like to welcome you to our brand new Region G Blog.

As the Region G RCNE, I will update this blog with SWE regional and national news, along with monthly hot topics and posts from our Governor – Jessica Rannow, Regional Collegiate Representative (RCR) – Rebecca Murphy from Ohio State University and Collegiate Senator – Amanda King from Pennsylvania State University. Feel free to contact any of us if you have any questions or concerns.

If you like to contribute to the blog in the form of posts, pictures, videos, etc., please contact me. This is YOUR blog and if there is something you want to see, don’t hesitate to ask

Here are some tips from the FY09 Region H RCNE, Jessica Nayes, for preparing for the year ahead:

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Can you believe it? Another year in SWE is nearing the end. As we all finish up classes, projects, final exams and moving on to our summer adventures, keep in mind a few things you can do to plan for “the year ahead”!

• National Conference: October 15-17, 2009. Start making your travel arrangements early, because you won’t want to miss the next national conference, being held in Long Beach, California! I’m sure many of us midwesterners enjoy getting out to see an ocean now and again!
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• Upload a current resume to the SWE Career Center. No time like the summer when you’re free from classes (well, unless you’re in a summer session) to do that always fun job of updating your resume! By the time those fall career fairs come around, you’ll be ready to focus on getting that next job with an already-polished resume. (Don’t forget that the National Conference always has a career fair too!)
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• Connect with SWE through social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
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• Visit My SWE Communities to connect with other members, network and gather information on leadership resources, reports and documents.
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• Renew your SWE Membership.
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• And last, but not least, enjoy your summer!

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….stay tuned for more useful planning tips, including a “Checklist” of what SWE Officers needs to accomplish each month!

To:          Region G Members

From:      Mary Ann Walsh, Govenor, Region G

REGISTER for the Region G Leadership Summit
Saturday – May 30, 2009
Athens, Ohio
Ohio University and Holiday Inn Express

Region G is hosting our 2^nd annual Leadership Training Summit on Saturday, May 30, 2009!  The local host for the weekend is Ohio University and the OU Collegiate SWE Section.

The weekend is targeted to all SWE officers and leaders: Section president, Section vice president, Treasurer, Secretary, Section committee chair, Section committee member, Region Officer, Council Representative (COR), Region Collegiate Representative (RCR), Region Collegiate Newsletter Editor (RCNE), Newsletter, Senators, Webmaster, Counselor to Collegiate section, Advisor to Collegiate section, National and Section Committee members.  Registration for the training summit is now OPEN.  Registration is unlimited and Region G will also sponsor the hotel for up to 4 members from each section in Region G (collegiate and professional) to attend this Leadership training weekend!  Section presidents should coordinate which 4 members from the section will receive the sponsored hotel accommodations.

Please register to attend the training by May 23:

via the attached spreadsheet and email to Mary Ann Walsh or Deb MacKay or via Survey Monkey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=Kvdxf2ENuJnSi4_2b8T57iag_3d_3d

Please complete Hotel Accommodations by May 8, 2009:

If you are traveling from greater than 3 hours driving distance to Athens, OH and will be arriving on Friday, the region will reimburse you for maximum of 2 nights at the hotel.

All others, with exception of those who live in Athens, OH, will be reimbursed for maximum of one night.  You are requested to share a hotel room.  Reimbursement will be at ½ the hotel room cost for professional members and at ¼ cost for collegiate members.

You must reserve your hotel accommodations directly through the hotel by May 8, 2009.  You will be responsible for any cancellation fees and other charges to the room.

Holiday Inn Express 11 East Park Drive
Athens, Ohio 45701
Phone:  740-592-4640

SWE rate is $65.00/room (+12.75% tax).
The hotel will allow up to 4 names to be listed for the room.

Program :

The program will be listed on the websites and will include training and working sessions covering: SWE officer duties, reporting to SWE, awards and applications, tactical and strategic plans, SWE Region G policy making, Region G website development, and SWE national conference readiness.  Saturday Training will begin around 8:00 am and finish around 4:30 pm.  The weekend also provides the opportunity for all SWE officers and leaders to learn from each other and share best practices; your participation will make the weekend a success.

See the Region G website; Region G Blog and SWE Community, Region G Goings for details and information updates.

Thank you,
Mary Ann Walsh, Governor, Region G

To:       SWE Professional and Collegiate Members

Cc:       Board of Directors, Board of Trustees, Region Governors, and
Committee/Task Force Chairs

From:    Nora C. Lin – SWE FY09 President-Elect
____________________________________________________________________

I am pleased to announce the call for FY10 Committee and Task Force Member Volunteer applications.  The power of our committees and our volunteers is what moves SWE forward to do outreach, networking, and professional development.  Our committees and task forces are also a major aspect of our talent development pipeline process.  Make plans now to join our SWE volunteer team for FY10!

To indicate your interest, please complete the online volunteer interest form or go to SWE Committees on the web site. Please submit your form by May 8, 2009 . You will also find a complete list of committees and taskforce seeking volunteers, a description of the committee/task force, and a description of specific volunteer needs, if applicable.  You will be contacted by the leader of the group in June to kick off your involvement.

I encourage all of you to think about the opportunity of serving on a committee or task force.  Thanks to all who are currently serving.  I am looking forward to another great year of progress!

If you are a SWE officer, you are probably worrying about finals, training incoming officers of your SWE section, and possibly graduating from college.  To make the officer transition process go smoothly, here are some tips:

+ Hold a “SWE Officer Transition Dinner” – give the incoming officers a chance to ask questions and give the seasoned officers a chance to share their knowledge of SWE with the new officers!

+ Register for the REGION G LEADERSHIP SUMMIT!!!!  This will be an amazing opportunity for new officers to meet members of the Region G Council, to be trained by Collegiate Leadership Coaches, and to share best practices with other collegiate leaders from across the Region!

+ Collect all of the computer files that your officers created or filled out and save them to a flash drive or a CD.  Then, make sure to transfer all of the electronic files to the incoming officers, so that they will have examples of how to fill out Section Reports, Student Organization Registration Forms, Financial Forms, etc!

…Speaking of those Financial Forms, don’t forget that the SWE Annual Report, Financial Forms, and Section Bylaws are due at the END of the SWE Year!

Penn State SWE named outstanding student organization

The Society of Women Engineers (SWE) was honored with the 2009 Outstanding Student Organization Executive Board Award from the University’s Center for Student Engagement at a banquet.

The recipients were selected by the Student Leadership and Service Award Committee. The Center for Student Engagement is administered by the Division of Student Affairs.

The award recognizes a student organization that ”demonstrates excellence” in programming events, building a sense of community and finding ways to positively promote its mission.

Among other service activities, SWE sponsors American Red Cross Blood Drives and a high school stayover for girls interested in engineering. The organization is also active in the Penn State Dance Marathon, intramural sports and homecoming.

http://live.psu.edu/story/38924/nw54
–
Natalie L. Bryner
Email: nlb5002@psu.edu