Hall of Fame 

Idaho Society of Professional Engineers Update – March, 2017

FROM THE PRESIDENT:

You hear that sigh of relief? It’s our chapters’ MATHCOUNTS committees!! They, once again, orchestrated successful chapter competitions and are sending their winning teams onto Boise in March – check out the Southeast Chapter’s Summary here. Thanks to all who donated their time and resources to the effort of promoting STEM education in our communities through this long-standing program. Hope you are all enjoying the extended winter that mother nature is providing – I know the Northern Chapter took advantage of the situation and set up a tour of Schweitzer’s new lodge and reviewed the monumental task (and cost!) of pumping water and draining sewer from the top of a ski hill! Hey, you have to get creative with PDHs sometimes! The Southwest Chapter recently held their annual E-week Luncheon where they had just shy of 100 attendees! They presented awards to some outstanding Boise State Juniors in a variety of engineering fields, introduced the new PEs in attendance, and listened to Boise State College of Engineering Dean Dr. Amy Moll tell us about the latest news and developments surrounding BSU’s College of Engineering.

If you are interested in being more involved in your chapter events, now is the time to reach out, as chapters begin selecting their proposed committee members and officers. Contact your chapter representatives or myself with questions and keep your thoughts on spring!

UPCOMING EVENTS: 

ISPE Southeast Chapter 2017 MATHCOUNTS Competition Summary and Photos

Visit and like the ISPE Facebook page to see information and photos from engineering activities around the state including the Southwest Chapter Engineers Week Lunch and the Northern Chapter tour and MATHCOUNTS competition.

The Idaho Environmental Health Association is holding its annual education conference in Boise on March 15-16, 2017. The conference is located at Boise State University. A large part of this year’s conference covers soil evaluation and classification related to subsurface sewage disposal. This is applicable to individual and community septic systems, land development proposed to have subsurface sewage disposal, and groundwater recharge under a reuse permit. Additionally, the conference is held in conjunction with the Idaho Solid Waste Association which will have many solid waste related topics. Click here for additional information and registration.

CALL FOR ISPE AWARD NOMINATIONS
Each year ISPE selects outstanding Idahoans in recognition of their engineering accomplishments and contributions to the engineering profession. Awards will be presented on June 8, 2017 during the 2017 Annual Meeting in Coeur d'Alene. Nominations must be submitted no later than May 1, 2017. Award criteria and nomination forms, as well as lists of previous winners, can be obtained from the ISPE web site, or by contacting the ISPE office at 208-426-0636.

The awards for which we are looking for nominees include:

Idaho Engineering Hall of Fame: Given by ISPE to recognize Idahoans that have made engineering contributions beyond Idaho i.e. nationally or worldwide.

Idaho Excellence in Engineering Award: To recognize an Idahoan who is distinguishing themselves in engineering.

Idaho Excellence in Engineering Educator Award: This award recognizes an Engineering Educator who has had a significant impact on the engineering profession in Idaho.

Young Engineer of the Year Award: To recognize an engineer that is making a contribution to their profession. Must be no more than 35 years old.

Self-nominations are welcomed and encouraged.

NSPE NEWS:

NSPE Executive Director, Board of Directors’ update for the period February 15-28, 2017

Board of Directors

·        NSPE Board of Directors to meet in San Francisco, March 17-18, for one and a half day strategic planning session and formal board meeting.

Championing the PE License

Ø  NSPE President and Executive Director meet with representatives of the Structural Engineering Licensure Coalition at NSPE Headquarters.

Ø  NSPE and State societies join forces on several advocacy fronts:

v  Maryland Court of Appeals affirms position asserted by NSPE and MdSPE in “friend of the court” brief protecting PEs from alleged tort claims by contractors for purely economic damages.

v  NSPE collaborates with the South Carolina Society to oppose legislative effort that could significantly impact the PEs ability to determine what type of piping to use in certain projects.

v  NSPE and the Kansas Society of Professional Engineers fight back against effort to erode qualifications-based selection in the state.

Ø  NSPE Action Alert results in 150 members of Congress contacted to support 2017 Engineers Week Resolution (sponsored by Congressman Daniel Lipinski (IL-3).

Ø  NSPE continues to provide State societies use of its Multi State Associates’ legislative /regulatory tracking system and its VoterVoice’ online action alert system.

Ethical Guide to the Profession

Ø  NSPE President to moderate panel on Artificial Intelligence and Autonomous Systems in Engineering at 2017 Annual Convocation of Engineering Societies.

Ø  NSPE Board of Ethical Review prepares 12 new ethics case studies.

Powering for Professional Advancement

Ø  NSPE’s Future of the Profession Task Force prepares draft report for BoD review.

Ø  PE magazine article highlights cybersecurity.

Ø  Dr. Bud Peterson, Georgia Tech president, to be keynote speaker at NSPE 2017 PE Conference.

Uniting the PE Community

Ø  NSPE website analytics expanded to track “user roles,” i.e. member, non-member, student, anonymous, etc.

Ø  NSPE Speaks adds “engineering in pop culture” as regular segment.

Ø  National Engineers Week/DiscoverE prepares for Global Marathon For, By and About Women in Engineering, March 8-9.

Ø  NSPE President and President-elect participate in 2017 Future City National Competition in DC.

Ø  Bureau of Reclamation engineer named NSPE’s  2017 Federal Engineer of the Year.

Ø  NSPE mourns the loss of Past President Robert L. Sylar, P.E., F.NSPE who passed away February 20.

NSPE Executive Director, Board of Directors’ update for the period February 1-15, 2017

Included in this report are the following:

Championing the PE License

Ø  NSPE’s 2016 “Year in Review” now available in narrative format and as an entertaining PowToon video.

Ø  NSPE and State societies join forces on several advocacy fronts:

                NSPE and the Oklahoma Society join forces to oppose Oklahoma House Bill 1281 that seeks separate   structural engineering licensure requirements.

                NSPE collaborates with the South Carolina Society to oppose a legislative effort that could significantly impact the PEs ability to determine what type of piping to use in certain projects.

Ø  NSPE’s Committee on Policy and Advocacy (COPA) updates position statements on five critical issues.

Ethical Guide to the Profession

Ø  NSPE’s Board of Ethical Review (BER) explores ways to leverage 60 years of authoritative content and case studies to encourage member engagement on ethics issues.

Ø  BER issues a call for participation in the annual NSPE Milton F Lunch Ethics Contest; winning entry receives certificate, recognition in PE magazine and a $1000 award to the author. Deadline is April 28.

Powering for Professional Advancement

Ø  NSPE offers four new webinars in March highlighting ethics, career enhancement and critical thinking.

Uniting the PE Community

Ø  February 2 webinar on the proposed NSPE Business Model now posted to the NSPE website.

Ø  Proposed rubric released for questions/comment on state capacity identification and proposed national offerings.

Ø  Members invited to highlight their membership in NSPE on business cards, letterhead, etc.  Rules of use and graphic standards apply.

Ø  NSPE officers, directors and staff begin a very busy travel season with participation at the 97^th annual Wyoming Engineers Conference, the 2017 Annual Meeting of the Arkansas Society and the 2017 Annual Conference of the National Academy of Building Inspection Engineers.

Ø  NSPE Past Presidents explore ideas for updating NSPE’s history from 1985 to present and beyond.

NSPE Executive Director, Board of Directors’ update for the period January 15-31, 2017

Included in this report are the following:

Championing the PE License

Ø  NSPE and State societies join forces on several advocacy fronts:

                NSPE and Alabama SPE oppose a proposed regulatory change eliminating current QBS requirements in that state.

                NSPE and Minnesota SPE oppose effort to create separate requirements for the practice of structural engineering.

                NSPE President issues public comment encouraging Georgia licensing board to carefully review a proposed amendment on structural engineering that could adversely affect PEs and professional licensure.

Ethical Guide to the Profession

Ø  NSPE’s Board of Ethical Review issues a call for participation in the annual Milton F Lunch Ethics Contest; winning entry receives certificate, recognition in PE magazine and a $1000 award to the author.

Ø  New York Project Manager convicted for falsifying Hurricane Sandy engineering projects (article in PE Scope e-newsletter).

Ø  Professional Liability Committee (PLC) announces CNA as NSPE’s official Commended Professional Liability Insurance Program for 2017.

Ø  PLC annual survey of all professional liability carriers available on NSPE website.

Powering for Professional Advancement

Ø  NSPE urges ABET to include the value of engineering licensure in its new engineering curriculum standards.

Uniting the PE Community

Ø  NSPE President and Executive Director attend workshop on Engagement of Engineering Societies in Undergraduate Engineering Education hosted by the National Academy of Engineering.

Ø  NSPE’s Professional Engineers in Government announces the Top 10 Agency finalists from which the 2017 Federal Engineer of the Year Award winner will be named; ceremony to take place February 17; Major General Timothy S. Green, US Air Force Director of Civil Engineers, to deliver keynote address.

Ø  Social media calendar of key events highlights Engineers Week 2017 and Future City’s 25^th Anniversary.

Ø  NSPE creates new marking brochure for Enterprise Program.

Ø  NICET initiates major communications effort as it launches its Transportation Construction Inspection (TCI) program.

Please check out page 4 of my report for a list of the most viewed online PE magazine feature/non feature stories in 2016 and also check out the attachment to my report (pgs. 8-14) for a detailed analysis of traffic to the NSPE website for the period Oct-Dec 2016.

NSPE Executive Director, Board of Directors’ update for the period December 20, 2016 – January 15, 2017

Included in this report are the following:

Championing the PE License

Ø  NSPE releases 2017 Legislative and Regulatory Watch List highlighting key issues expected to impact the engineering profession in this new year.

Ø  2017 expected to be a watershed year for the scrutiny of occupational licensure.

Ø  US Supreme Court decision may change oversight and composition of state licensing boards.

Ø  NSPE anticipates increased threats to QBS in 2017.

Ø  Longtime NSPE and WV-SPE member named West Virginia’s Secretary of Commerce.

Ø  NSPE assists state societies in promoting legislature to strengthen/protect the PE exam.

Ø  New hit film Rogue One presents an engineering ethics case study disguised as a Star Wars movie.

Ø  NSPE President Verhalen and NSPE staff to meet with members of structural engineering societies.

Ethical Guide to the Profession

Ø  NSPE invited to provide expertise on ethics of artificial intelligence/autonomous vehicles during annual NAE convocation.

Powering for Professional Advancement

Ø  NSPE unveils 15 free PDH online sessions; 11 of which have been pre-approved by New York.

Ø  PE magazine article - “Team Engineering” - to be used as resource for sophomore-level course on project engineering at University of New Hampshire.

Uniting the PE Community

Ø  NSPE Speaks adds podcast on resolutions and how PEs can make their mark in 2017.

Ø  NSPE’s community platform continues to generate insightful and interesting discussions.

Ø  NSPE to host webinar to update state and national leaders and staff on membership restructuring/integration project.

Ø  Twenty-one state societies adopt new NSPE logo.

Ø  NSPE’s Fall 2017 recruitment campaign is updated with results-to-date.

Ø  NSPE’s Director of Communications invited to participate in review of ASEE communications efforts.

Ø  Nominations for NSPE Honor Awards closes January 31; Nominations for NSPE Fellow membership closes February 1.

NSPE Calendar of Events

Idaho Society of Professional Engineers
PO Box 170239
Boise, ID 83717-0239
208-426-0636
Fax: 208-426-0639
E-Mail: ispe@idahospe.org
Web Site: www.idahospe.org 

ISPE MATHCOUNTS Program

 National Engineers Week - Future City Competition

Board of Professional Engineers and Professional Land Surveyors

--News Bulletins

--Meeting Minutes

PO Box 170239, Boise, ID 83717-0239 | 208-426-0636 | Fax: 208-426-0639 | E-Mail: ispe@idahospe.org
Copyright © 2003 Idaho Society of Professional Engineers
Last modified: 10/20/16