Voting for next year's AIChE Board of Directors is under way as of September 8th at http://www.aiche.org/election. Have your say and help direct the future of AIChE by voting!
The Young Professionals Committee (YPC) asked potential members of AIChE's board four questions about Young Professionals and AIChE. They were asked to answer two main questions, and were given the option of choosing to respond to additional questions, so you may not see responses from every candidate for every question. Answers are shown in alphabetical order by position and the candidate's last name.
In addition to learning about the candidates here, you can also learn more about candidates and the election process on the AIChE election page. You can also hear from candidates for president-elect in this debate.
Q: How has AIChE leadership impacted your personal and professional life?
For President-Elect
T. Bond Calloway
AIChE leadership has led to strengthening my knowledge base in the field of energy and expanded my professional network. I was asked by my company to investigate initiating a clean energy research business—essentially my goal was to answer the question, “What should we be doing in energy?” Our organization, which is a national laboratory, had business lines in national security and environmental research. During the same period, I was a member of AIChE’s Research and New Technology Committee, which is a “think tank” for new ideas. The committee, as well as others across the Institute, were also asking the same question, “What are chemical engineers doing about energy?” The staff and volunteer leadership at AIChE allowed me to place an energy survey into the Confex conference system.
The survey was designed to poll members who were presenting papers at national conferences. Thousands of chemical engineers answered the survey and the results were published in three CEP articles. Thus, I was able answer the Institute’s and my company’s questions at the same time. The survey also gave me a broad understanding of clean energy topics and, as a result, I was promoted. Chemical engineering touches so many aspects of the industry that I am a part of. When the lab director was asking questions such as, “What is process intensification and smart manufacturing?” (two topics of interest to chemical engineers), I was able to leverage my professional contacts to quickly answer these questions.
From a personal standpoint, AIChE leadership has allowed me to give back to my community which has been developing energy related outreach projects within the state. The broad understanding of energy related topics I have learned through AIChE has helped me educate community leaders looking to establish focused clean energy civic projects.
Wendy Young Reed
My various volunteer roles within AIChE have enabled me to build a network of not only professional contacts but friends throughout the globe. I found my current job, or it found me, because of colleagues that I met while starting the Young Professionals Group in the South TX Section.
In addition to the satisfaction of giving back to the profession, this network has had the most impact on my life.
For Secretary
Freeman Self
Chemical engineers work in two intersecting worlds. There is your current company, which provides interesting and satisfying work, but one may change organizations several times during a career lifetime. Then there is your professional life, which includes continual learning, networking with other engineers in different fields, attending professional meetings and other career matters. For example, the leadership skills acquired in a professional society such as AIChE offer broader experiences than supervisory practices.
AIChE’s Volunteer Leadership Development program is geared to offer the leadership opportunities that one needs to excel regardless of industry or job function.
Rosemarie Wesson
AIChE leadership has had a profound impact on both my professional and personal lives. I began my AIChE leadership roles as a Session Chair. In an effort to schedule interesting and thought provoking sessions, the Session Chair positions challenged me to interact one-on-one with leaders in the field and establish connections that I may not have otherwise made. These interactions quickly developed into research connections, as well as personal friendships.
As Treasurer of the Management Division I grew professionally by learning accounting procedures that have helped me in my career. I also interacted with other Leaders in the Division and developed new friendships.
As co-Chair of the AIChE Washington Internships for Students of Engineering (WISE) program, I have had the privilege of continued interactions with undergraduate chemical engineering students. These students are interested in learning more about policy related careers and have definitely kept me on my toes technically and have really expanded my everyday knowledge.
Finally my membership on the AIChE Board of Directors has also impacted me both personally and professionally. I learned a great deal from the interactions with both industrial and academic colleagues on the Board and made life long friendships.
For Director
Heriberto Cabezas
The leadership of the AIChE impacted my professional life as young graduate by helping me to see and work with our changing profession. This is important because I am always looking for the place, the task, the job where I can do the most good, and that works best when I am part of a community addressing a challenge. This goes back to my days as a chemical engineering undergraduate at NJIT.
When I had the opportunity to become a leader in the AIChE first as a Director and eventually Chair of the Environmental Division, I was pleased by the opportunity to help shape the course of my professional organization. I am currently a candidate for AIChE Director, and, if elected, I look forward to being a leader of my professional organization at the national level.
Gregory T. Frank
Early involvement with AIChE has a number of benefits for the young professional. These include life-long learning opportunities, staying current on new developments within and outside of your field, career services, networking, and opportunities to grow in leadership and organizational skills. For me the latter has been the most valuable benefit. Developing new programing areas at AIChE provided me the invaluable experience early in my career of working with others having different backgrounds and skills as we transformed ideas and aspirations into real life results. You learn many things about yourself and others in this setting. Situations like this are common in many of our lives, both personal and professional, so these skills have broad applicability.
I quickly learned that working effectively with others requires many abilities including interpersonal skills, public speaking, and team management. In our professional lives as chemical engineers you’ll find that being able to communicate well in team settings, the ability to quickly develop effective and convincing presentations that lead to support for your ideas and confidence in your plans and results achieved are absolutely critical. Many of us won’t have opportunities to fully develop these skills in our academic lives, or even as we begin our professional life. I found that being involved with AIChE can lead to these opportunities and has provided lasting value. I encourage young professionals to get involved with AIChE. I think you’ll find it benefits you as it does AIChE and you’ll probably make many new friends in the process.
Zenaida Otero Gephardt
I have been most impacted by the commitment to the profession and global society in the AIChE leadership. The Institute is a vibrant and vital organization bringing understanding of the role of chemical engineers in the global community and in finding opportunities in the Grand Challenges. I have learned a great deal from my colleagues and have been inspired to participate and contribute more.
AIChE is a leader among professional organizations in its commitment to service to its members, technical excellence, the profession and the global community. I had the opportunity to present an AIChE-Societal Impact Operating Council project at the American Association of Engineering Societies and saw this first hand. My AIChE involvement has increased my commitment and broadened my scope of what we can accomplish as chemical engineers in technology development and in improving the quality of life throughout the world. I have also met many inspiring colleagues and have made great friends.
Meagan Lewis
This may be cliche, but AIChE has opened up new doors for me from what I have done on both a local and institute level. A few months after I started in the professional world, a co-worker who was much more experienced than me, convinced me to attend a local section meeting. That day started my continuous involvement in AIChE and widened my circle within my own company even as a young engineer.
AIChE leadership has given me the chance to take on responsibility and leadership roles that may have taken many more years in the professional world. AIChE is an outlet to work with people from all over the world and from every industry. Having the responsibility of leading teams and running conferences as a National Program Co-Chair has given me more confidence to take on bigger roles at work. If my engineering education did not teach me how to multitask and prioritize, volunteering in AIChE definitely has enhanced it.
Timothy O. Odi
It is undisputed fact that AIChE is the world's leading organization for chemical engineering professionals, with over 45,000 members from over 100 countries. The breadth of experience and expertise of the members span core process industries and emerging areas, such as nanobiotechnology.
I have gained in knowledge by association with such diverse and intelligent resourceful colleagues. I have enriched my professional network by association and service in committees with these members.
I have also gained useful knowledge for work from the various AIChE publications and webinars, notably, Knovel, AIChE Journal, etc.
Joseph B. Powell
AIChE leaders have inspired me to "do more" throughout my career. The networking and friendships established via volunteering for AIChE provide a sense of belonging to a life-long professional home, which is rewarding and enjoyable, and becomes part of one's identity.
I would not have been promoted to chief scientist if I had not participated in AIChE via programming and volunteer activities: the external networking and learning opportunities are important to that role and job description. I know more, have more connections and contacts, and am more valuable than I otherwise would have been.
Edward M. Trujillo
AIChE and its leadership has been an important part of my life for over 40 years. In my years as a student it gave me the opportunity to meet other students from other universities and the chance to learn about new and developing technologies (applications of the principles I was learning). Later, as a professional engineer, AIChE was instrumental in helping me develop my communication and leadership skills through various meetings, workshops and conferences. I also was fortunate to meet and work with some of the top chemical engineers in the country.
A common thread among them was their enthusiasm for chemical engineering and their concern for the future of chemical engineering. Now, in the later stages in my professional career, I can see the importance of service, not only to our technical organization, but to society in general. As chemical engineers, we have an obligation to make sure we improve the lives of the people around us in an ethical and environmentally responsible manner. AIChE has a number of volunteer programs that give me the opportunity to give back to society.
On a personal level, AIChE has enabled me to meet some outstanding people and make a number of friends that I can call for advice and assistance.
Ranil Wickramasinghe
Over the last 25 years, AIChE has become a large part of my life. On a personal level, we are in fact an AIChE family! My wife, who is a faculty member in Biomedical Engineering, regularly attends AIChE annual meetings. Our son has been at every annual meeting since he was born in 2006. This year will be his 10th annual meeting! It is always a challenge looking after him especially when both of us want to attend a session at the same time or have presentations at the same time. Now he looks forward to annual meetings as he can miss a week of school! AIChE annual meetings have become a major family event!
On a professional level AIChE has had a significant impact on my career on multiple levels. My first two jobs were in the Boston area. I then accepted a position at Colorado State University as an assistant professor. About 5 years ago I joined the University of Arkansas. AIChE provided a lot of stability during these professional and geographical transitions. I was able to maintain close interactions with other chemical engineers and did not feel professionally isolated. I have attended almost every annual meeting since I graduated. I have made many new friends and contacts through AIChE. As I have become more involved in leadership positions in AIChE I have gained a much better appreciation of the diversity of our profession and the tremendous impact we can have on society. Particularly significant is that I have found my involvement in AIChE has changed during my career but at each stage it has been tremendously rewarding. I believe AIChE has the breadth and depth to be my professional home throughout my career.
Comments
Its very nice to get to know the fellow candidates. Good luck everyone!