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| JANUARY 2021 | |||||||||
| Society Announces New Executive
“As we embark on the new year, we are starting a new chapter in NSPE’s history,” says NSPE President Tricia Hatley, P.E., F.NSPE. “It is thrilling to be in this place where NSPE’s volunteer leadership recognized the value that Monika’s expertise and authentic leadership style will bring to our organization. Her collaborative, yet-data-driven, approach to management will facilitate the successful execution of our strategic plan, and she’s demonstrated her ability to collaborate with state and local chapters to increase impact at her prior organizations.” Schulz has a long history in associations and a passion for the contributions they make to society. Before joining NSPE, she served for over five years as the CEO of the American String Teachers Association in Fairfax, Virginia. In this role, she collaborated with the organization’s board on strategic planning, implementing data-driven decision making, and carrying out a rebranding initiative. She also built stronger ties among the organization’s 50 state and local chapters, bolstered member engagement, and expanded a national conference and tradeshow as well as a national orchestra festival. “I’m very excited to be joining the NSPE team,” says Schulz, “and I look forward to collaborating with leadership, state societies, and the NSPE management team to further NSPE’s vision, mission, and initiatives. Engineers make the world a better place in which to live, and I feel incredibly fortunate and proud to champion the important work of professional engineers.” Prior to serving as ASTA’s CEO, Schulz spent 18 years at the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy, in multiple leadership roles, including six years as chief operating officer. The Virginia Tech graduate is active in the American Society of Association Executives and holds the CAE designation as a certified association executive. EWeek 2021 Focuses on the Future
Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day, or “Girl Day,” will also carry this theme forward and will be held on February 25. The focus will also be on virtual role models and diversity and belonging, but it will also feature special editions of DiscoverE’s “Chats With Change Makers” series in which a high school student interviews engineers and technicians who are working hard to make the world a better place. This year’s Future City Competition theme is “Living on the Moon.” To adapt to the pandemic, teams will be allowed to work remotely and competitions will be virtual. Teams will make a video presentation of their cities, and their models will be presented in a slideshow format. There will be a live Q&A for the teams to answer questions about their models and presentations. EWeek Event Dates
In Memoriam: Howard Blitman and Bob Miller NSPE sends condolences to the families, friends, and colleagues of NSPE Past Presidents Howard Blitman, P.E., F.NSPE and Bob Miller, P.E., F.NSPE. Both Blitman and Miller made significant contributions to the Society and to the engineering profession. They will be remembered fondly for their dedication to safeguarding the public. Past President Howard Blitman, P.E., F.NSPE
Read more about Blitman’s life and career in the “From the President’s Desk” message from RPI president Shirley Ann Jackson. Past President Bob Miller, P.E., F.NSPE
Miller joined NSPE and the Virginia Society of Professional Engineers in 1972, shortly before founding MSA P.C., a civil and environmental engineering, surveying, and environmental sciences firm. He soon became active in VSPE’s Tidewater Chapter and eventually served as VSPE president. He held numerous other positions in the Society and profession, including NSPE treasurer and president of the NSPE Education Foundation Board of Trustees as well as leadership positions in NSPE’s Professional Engineers in Private Practice, the MATHCOUNTS Foundation, and the Society of American Military Engineers. Miller, who graduated with a BS degree in civil engineering from Virginia Tech in 1967, was also very active in his community. He was recognized by the Virginia Beach Jaycees as “First Citizen of Virginia Beach” in 2020 and he received a commending resolution from the Virginia Beach City Council in 2009 for 30 years of volunteer service to the Special Olympics. Read more about Miller’s life and career. 2020 Government Relations Advocacy Stats and Best Practices NSPE’s Government Relations staff has released its year-end report “By the Numbers,” a look into advocacy campaign performance, the issues staff tracked, and the responsiveness of members of Congress. The report provides summaries of lessons learned and best practices. It also identifies NSPE allies on the Hill, and which offices need a little more prompting before they get on board. It’s an excellent capstone to an unexpected and difficult, but ultimately successful year! MIT Researchers Honored for Innovation in Tissue Engineering and Therapeutics
Linda Griffith is the MIT School of Engineering Teaching Innovation Professor of Biological and Mechanical Engineering and MacVicar Fellow, where she directs the Center for Gynepathology Research. She led development of the MIT Biological Engineering SB degree program, which was approved in 2005 as the university’s first new undergraduate major in 39 years. Griffith has pioneered approaches in tissue engineering, including the first tissue-engineered cartilage in the shape of a human ear, commercialization of the 3DP™ printing process for manufacture of FDA-approved scaffolds, commercialization of the 3D perfused LiverChip for drug development. She recently led one of two major DARPA-supported “body-on-a-chip” programs, resulting in the first platform to culture 10 different human mini-organ systems interacting continuously for a month. Douglas Lauffenburger is the Ford Professor of Bioengineering in the departments of biological engineering, chemical engineering, and biology. He was the founding head of the department of biological engineering and served in that capacity from 1998 until 2019. He also holds affiliations with the Center for Biomedical Engineering, Center for Gynepathology Research, and Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT, as well as the Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT, and Harvard. A central focus of his research program is systems biology approaches to cell-cell communication and cell signaling important in pathophysiology, with emphasis on translational application to therapeutics discovery and development in cancer, pathogen infection, and inflammatory disease. NCEES Opens April 2021 Test Registration The National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying will open registration for the pencil-and-paper April 2021 PE exams on January 27. Registration will close on March 4 (3 p.m. EST). The exam administration will take place over two days—Thursday, April 22 and Friday, April 23. Registration for the computer-based FE and PE exams will remain open year-round. According to NCEES, every effort will be made to accommodate all registered examinees in a manner that protects the health and safety of everyone involved. All sites for the April 2021 exam administration must operate in compliance with capacity and social distancing requirements. In most cases, this will reduce the number of examinees that can be accommodated at an exam site. Access information for registering. Upcoming Webinars: Investigating Insurance Claims, NICET Construction Materials Testing
NSPE’s PE Institute helps members stay current in the profession, earn PDHs, and advance in their careers through webinars on important topics. Members can access webinars for $99 ($129 for nonmembers). January 21 January 26
New Webinars for Members: 15 Free Begin January 15
*Webinar has been approved for continuing education credit in New York NSPE’s 15 free webinars for 2021 will be posted here. Don't Miss...
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©2021 National Society of Professional Engineers |
NSPE has announced Monika Schulz as the Society’s new executive director and CEO, beginning February 15.
Engineers Week, with the theme “Imagining Tomorrow,” will take place February 21–27, and this year’s focus will be on virtual role models, distance learning, and diversity and belonging.
Blitman joined NSPE and the New York State Society of Professional Engineers in 1961. He served as president of the New York Chapter of NYSSPE from 1974–75 and was elected president of the New York State Society of Professional Engineers for 1978–79. He served as NSPE president in 2002–03 and was the owner and president of Blitman Building Corporation. Blitman is also a benefactor of NSPE’s Maureen L. & Howard N. Blitman, P.E., 
The National Academy of Engineering has awarded the 2021 Bernard M. Gordon Prize for Innovation in Engineering and Technology Education to MIT professors Linda Griffith and Douglas Lauffenburger for the establishment of a new biology-based engineering education, aimed at producing leaders capable of addressing world problems with innovative biological technologies. The $500,000 annual award recognizes new methods and concepts in education aimed at developing effective engineering leaders.
To help members meet their continuing education requirements, NSPE will launch a new slate of 15 free webinars on January 15 that will be available throughout 2021.
