Inspiring the Future @ascefoundation - Tumblr Blog

WRYMC, ERYMC, CRYMC, Oh My!

The Multi-Regional Leadership Conference (MRLC) took place in LA, Newark, and Minneapolis. Theses conferences bring together leaders, younger members and student chapters for a time of community building, networking, personal and professional development, resources availed to members from ASCE HQ and being brought up to speed on internal ASCE programs.

During the Conference, the ASCE Foundation took grant applications for a $500 grant to be awarded at each MRLC. Applicants from sections, branches, younger members and student chapters were invited to apply. The Foundation asked about the group’s need and how the group plans to use the funds. The Foundation awarded $500 to Student Chapters at the San Diego State University, University of Maine and the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology. The San Diego State University Student Chapter plans to use their grant money for purchasing supplies to attend and host community event through their ambassador program which reaches out to k-12 kids and community colleges. The University of Maine Student Chapter plans to use their grant for outreach to younger children and to help foster an interest to consider engineering in their futures. Students at the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology plan to use the grant for desperately needed supplies for the lab to compete in Concrete Canoe and Steel Bridge competitions.

ASCE President- Elect Nominees Robin Kemper and Kancheepuram (Guna) Gunalan, both shared on their visions for civil engineering and where they see ASCE in the future. During the Q&A section, both answered questions about how they plan to make a difference for the greater good of ASCE and our members.

ASCE’s current President Elect Kristina Swallow eloquently spoke about the importance of asking for help and saying “yes” when opportunities are presented as careers begin and change during one’s lifetime. She attributed her success to people who personally invested in her, along with her relationships within the ASCE.

At each MRLC, attendees had the opportunity to see a prescreening of the “fine cut” of the Dream Big IMAX movie, after which was a leadership celebration and awards dinner. At the dinners, awards were given to the younger members who celebrated their achievements.

The Foundation supports many programs that promote lifelong learning, including the MRLCs. It is important to bring together different generations of engineers to engage and network with each other; and encourage seasoned professions to share their insights and experiences and give of themselves. Student and Younger Members are anxious to receive those lessons and share their enthusiasm back to the older generations. We encourage the conversations to continue to occur outside the walls of the MRLC conferences throughout the year.

Photos from ASCE YM Group

#ASCE #MRLC17

Thank you for making #givingtuesday a success in 2017! Because of generous donors, the ASCE Foundation raised $27,000 for vital ASCE programs, and collectively the engineering societies raised $90,000! Thanks for helping up Engineer A Better World.

#givingtuesday

Don't Put Off Making a Will

As you get further along in life, a will becomes more and more important, especially if you want to make a future gift to a charity that matches your values. In addition to solidifying plans for your family and assets, it allows you to make a more sizable contribution to charitable organizations. Here are some ways to get started: http://legacygift.ascefoundation.org/making-a-will

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!

As 2016 is coming to a close, I would like to thank all of our donors for their support of the ASCE Foundation throughout the year. It is because of you, that we are able to make the ASCE Foundation and the programs that we support a huge success. Your generosity allows us to provide funds to programs that support Civil Engineering and in return gives us the opportunity to fulfill our mission, which is to “provide support for ASCE programs that enhance quality of life, promote the profession, advance technical practices, and prepare civil engineers for tomorrow. The Foundation seeks to help build a stronger civil engineering profession to meet tomorrow's national and global challenges”.

So, on behalf of the ASCE Foundation staff, Thank You for your support, this allowed us to Pay it Forward to build a stronger future for the civil engineering profession.

Almost time for the 2017 Western Region Younger Member Council (WRYMC) Conference! This annual conference is a great opportunity to gain leadership skills through professional development courses, learn about the challenges and innovations of recent construction projects through our technical tours, and build stronger relationships with other leaders of our profession through many exciting social networking events. Learn more at: http://www.wrymc2017.com/

#ASCE #wrymc2017

Giving Thanks

On November 29, the ASCE Foundation celebrated the 5th annual Giving Tuesday. Giving Tuesday celebrates philanthropy during a season that has become focused on holiday shopping.

This year, over 125 ASCE members and staff showed their support for civil engineering with a gift to the ASCE Foundation, and we experienced a record amount of donations totaling $28,200! We also joined forces with our sister societies (IEEE, ASME, AIChE, SME, AIAA, and SPE) to increase the power of philanthropy in the engineering profession. Collectively, we raised $80,000 to create a better world through engineering!

Thanks to all who helped us work towards our goal of $30,000!

#givingtuesday

Don’t Forget About Year End Giving.

Generosity knows no season, but October through December are historically the months that Americans are most likely to give to their favorite charitable organizations. It’s the time of year when many of us look back on how fortunate we have been throughout the year.

Your decision to support the American Society of Civil Engineers Foundation comes from the heart, and for that we are truly grateful. A bonus is that your gift may also qualify for a tax break this year when you itemize deductions on your federal income tax return. If you are interested in giving back, and potentially maximizing your tax benefits, here are three options to consider.

Cash. This is the most common and easiest type of gift to make. Make your gift online, via phone (703) 295-6342, or through the mail at 1801 alexander Bell Dr. Reston, VA 20191 by December 31st for benefits in 2016. You may receive an income tax charitable deduction for the full value of your gift up to 50% of your adjusted gross income.

Donor Advised Fund. This vehicle allows you to make a charitable contribution one time to a donor advised fund, and receive an immediate tax benefit for the year 2016. You can also avoid paying capital gains tax on the appreciated asset, and allow grants from the fund to be distributed over time. This is a great way to make a large gift. If you don’t contribute to a donor advised fund, give a gift directly to the Foundation.

Stock or mutual funds. Stocks and mutual funds that have significantly appreciated in value may be part of your investment portfolio. Both are easy ways to make a charitable contribution. Making a contribution of appreciated securities directly from your investment portfolio to the ASCE Foundation may provide you with a significant deduction on your 2016 taxes. The value of a gift from your mutual funds or stocks is generally determined as of the date the security is fully transferred to the Foundation’s account–not the date you ask your broker to make the transfer.

Remember, contributions through the mail are deductible if they are postmarked by midnight on Dec 31st.

The end of the year is the perfect time to show your appreciation for a cause that matters most to you. Your gift to the ASCE Foundation can reflect your spirit of giving, as well as, maximize your tax benefits.

The information is not intended as legal or tax advice. For such advice, please consult an attorney or tax advisor.

Setting Goals

Have you ever set a New Years goal and failed miserably? Whether it was dieting, going to the gym, improving your career track, going to college or going back to college; we all set goals. These goals could involve personal improvement or just a new strategy for life.

However, success can be difficult, especially if we are not passionate about what our goals. Other times, we simply get in over our heads because we are not prepared correctly.

We are often told to shoot for the stars, and we can be anything we want to be! So what do we do? How do we reach the stars? Sometimes it is so simple ...

1. Set a goal that interests you; something you are passionate about.

2. This goal should be clear -- so you are tackling something that is doable and has measurable outcomes to determine success

3. Plan your steps to get to your goal

4. Stay with the plan!

5. Place calendar reminders -- this helps you keep track of your successes and give you something to look forward to -- the completion!

6. Ask for accountability -- have somebody you trust and who cares about to keep you on track!

Is getting your PE License a goal for you? Get the tools you need to prepare for the P.E. Civil Exam and earn your professional license. http://www.asce.org/pe_exam_review/

Renew and Give

Every year around this time ASCE sends out their membership renewal forms. And did you know that on your renewal form you have a chance to take your Society and professional commitment to a further extent by making a gift to the ASCE Foundation? You have the opportunity to donate to the Foundation’s annual fund, or to one of the voluntary funds listed below, and by doing so, will support vital ASCE programs that need your help.

Annual Fund Provides support for critical ASCE programs that support Lifelong Learning and Leadership, Advocacy for Infrastructure Investment, and Civil Engineers’ Role in Sustainability.

Disaster Response Fund Post disaster (natural and man-made) assessment teams, disaster mitigation, and response programs.

Diversity Fund Strategic partnerships, projects, and resources that aim to increase the retention and recruitment of a diverse civil engineering workforce.

Infrastructure Fund State and national report cards and training for advocacy volunteers provides resources to civil engineers so they can encourage public officials to make informed decisions regarding our nation’s infrastructure needs.

K-12 Outreach Fund Training, information, and resources, support members’ activities to promote the education of civil engineering and inspire future generations.

Raise the Bar Fund Supports the expansion of credit hours for undergraduate engineering degrees in order to keep up with new knowledge, technologies, regulations and social issues.

Sustainability Fund Outreach for best practices which helps engineers incorporate sustainable principles into planning, design and construction of civil engineering projects.

It’s always inspiring to receive contributions from the ASCE membership renewal forms, either to the ASCE Foundation annual fund or one of the voluntary funds. As the philanthropic arm of ASCE, the Foundation depends on the additional support of members like you, to maintain innovative civil engineering programs that go above and beyond member benefits. Here is how you helped in 2015 through your membership renewal.

The Annual Multi-Regional Leadership Conference had 989 Student and Younger Members attend the conference in 2015, providing a venue for upcoming ASCE leaders to develop personal leadership skills, and engage in networking opportunities.

The State Infrastructure Report Card program released five reports in 2015. Two of the state reports, Iowa and Utah, come on the heels of the state passing transportation legislation. This continues a trend, as 12 of the 15 states that took significant action on infrastructure have a recent Report Card.

The Disaster Response Fund allowed Deane McKinney, Ph.D., P.E., D.WRE, M.ASCE to lead a research team on a two-month mission to study potential new threats to Nepal’s mountain villages following the devastating 7.8 earthquake in April.

Your generosity fuels are Foundation to help fund valuable ASCE programs. Please consider making a gift on step two of your renewal form and help bring us closer to realizing our vision of a sustainable world, and enhanced quality of life for all.

Reflections from the International Conference on Transportation & Development

The ASCE International Conference on Transportation & Development (ICTD 2016) conference brought transportation and development leaders from around the world to discuss advances in transportation and modes of travel as well as the interconnection with new developments such as airport cities, planned neighborhoods, and urban city centers. These leaders are researchers, engineers, planners, designers, project managers, construction managers, and contractors.

One item that resonated is Multimodal Development and Delivery (M2D2). According to Smart Growth for America, M2D2 “… is a technical assistance approach that helps transportation agencies meet changing demands on their systems by building internal capacity to plan, design, construct, operate, and maintain context-sensitive transportation networks that work for all modes of travel.” It is really about improving our communities and analyzing how to improve our communities' safety by adding sidewalks, widening or adding bike lanes, adding guardrails to narrow winding roads, building a light rail to help decrease traffic and more. These engineers are focusing on annualizing their community’s needs, safety and improving the quality of life with practical solutions.

Mayor Sylvester Turner, who serves as the Executive Officer of the City of Houston, shared about Houston’s need to expand in other models of transportation for commuters who travel to Houston for work. He explained during the 90’s Houston was focused on building up their highways and today there is a lot of congestions. Houston has 577,000 people commuting to the city for work. That is a 27% increase in population during the workweek, and these commuters utilize the highways.

Houston grew 40,000 in 2015, and by 2050, Houston is projected increase its population to 50 million making it the third largest in America.

Mayor Turner desires to connect the different villages in the city and to make Houston a walkable and pedestrian friendly city. Some of his plans include adding biking/hiking lanes, improve their light rail system, adding more HOV lanes and commuter rails. Mayor Turner says this is a high priority, and his office will aggressively move forward to give options for the people to use.

To see someone in public office, a representative of the people, connect and speak with the engineering community was highly effective. It shows the need for a continued relationship between engineers, whose expertise in transportation and development, and the those entrusted with governing our cities. Both have a vital role in improving our community's way of life.

You can be a part of building relationships between engineers and politicians by learning more about the ASCE Key Contacts Programs. Key Contacts influence the policy process at the state and federal levels by developing relationships with elected officials. By meeting and making contacts with your elected officials in several ways, you can achieve true conversations about issues important to the profession, and become a trusted advisor when bills are drafted or considered. Learn more at: http://www.asce.org/keycontacts/

Let’s Go!

This year école de technologie supérieure took Overall winner for the 2016 National Concrete Canoe Competition! They came on top during the races placing both in women’s and men’s endurance, and also won best design paper and best oral presentation. There canoe, LETSGO, a LEGO theme, was the most innovative constructed canoe and we congratulate them on this victorious win.

école de technologie supérieure theme LEGOS coincide with their tagline LETSGO, which in French is pronounced allons-y!

2016 National Concrete Canoe Huge Success!

Star Wars, LEGOS, and draw bridges, where some of this year’s themes for the 2016 National Concrete Canoe Competition (NCCC). Down south, Tyler Texas to be exact, 21 teams out of 203 qualified to see who was going to take overall winner for the 2016 NCCC. Drums and war cries from école de technologie supérieure, songs and dances from universidad de puerto rico Mayaguez, and even an occasional, “it’s great to be a Florida gator,” echoed throughout the University of Texas at Tyler, our gracious host for the 2016 NCCC. And although some teams didn’t stay afloat in the water, McNeese and Maryland, this year’s competition was a huge success.

The National Concrete Canoe Completion is a three-day event that takes place during the summer. Each team is judge on four different components worth 25 percent; technical paper, a detailed analysis and explanation on the design, concept, mixture and method of building the canoe; display, an optical assessment on the engineering of the canoe that further explains the method usually with a theme attached; oral presentation, a chance for teams to briefly explain their process and design while answering panel questions from the judges; racing, the ability to test the performance of their canoe and its durability along with the strength of the teams paddlers. The overall winning team receives a $5,000 scholarship and a trophy. The second place team receives a $2,500 scholarship and a trophy, and the third place team receives a $1,500 scholarship and a trophy. Everyone gets bragging rights.

It takes leadership, organization, patience, enthusiasm and over a thousand hours to construct a concrete canoe, and the ASCE Foundation is proud to sponsor such an event that allows students the opportunity to gain hands-on experience that’s practical.

Are you wondering who the winning team is? This year école de technologie supérieure took over all winner for the 2016 NCCC. They came on top during the races placing both in women’s and men’s endurance, and also won best design paper and best oral presentation. There canoe, LETSGO, a LEGO theme, was the most innovative constructed canoe and we congratulate them on this victorious win.

Concrete Canoe is a legacy and dates bake to the 1980s, and the Foundation hopes to continue to be a sponsor for an event that inspires current and future of civil engineers to think outside the box. Thank you to all the ASCE staff, the host school UT at Tyler, and the students who helped make this year’s NCCC a huge success. Can’t wait to see everyone next year at the 2017 National Concrete Canoe Competition at Colorado School of Mines!

Give a gift today to support vital ASCE programs, including Concrete Canoe at www.ascefoundation.org.

#concretecanoe

Giving in the U.S. At Highest Level Ever

Giving USA released its 61st report on the state of philanthropy in the United States in June – and it is good news. Giving recovered to pre-recession levels in 2014, and 2015 continued the trend in growth reaching $373.25 billion in contributions. This represents a 4.1% growth in giving from 2014 to 2015.

The vast majority (80%) of the giving is being driven by individuals (71%) and their estates (9%) – that includes our very generous ASCE Foundation donors last year!

This phenomenal amount of philanthropy is even tops (since Giving USA has been collecting the data) when adjusted for inflation. The only troubling statistic is that philanthropy, as a percentage of the Gross Domestic Product, continues to hover around 2% for the four several decades. 2015 was no different, with charitable contributions accounting for just 2.1% of the GDP. This indicates giving is driven by more disposable income becoming available to donors as salaries/profits increases, not an inclination to give a larger share of charitable contributions.

Photo: Giving USA Annual Report - The Giving Institute

Brand: YOU

Your brand is you; it is your online presence. It is everything connected to your name and product. This can be an institutional or company website, a personal LinkedIn, or a personal Twitter account.

Before you start, Google your name. Is that the “you”, you want potential clients, employers, and recruiters to see? Your personal brand is how you appear to the world. It is important in today's open world to have a professional online presence.

Now that you have Googled yourself, are you satisfied? If not, here are five steps you can take today to clean up your online profile.

1. Keep it clean! Today's social media platforms make it easy to share every aspect of your life. Before you post, think. Is this something that needs to be shared with the world? Is it consistent with your professional persona?

2. Be honest. Do not oversell yourself. Anything that is not true will be quickly found out -- on the job or via a background and references check. What are your passions, strengths, and interests? What is your area of expertise? Share that content!

3. Be active, but do not spam you followers or friends. People will start to ignore you if you overshare. Daily activity should be limited to whatever best practices dictate for your particular field. A great place to start is ASCE News at http://news.asce.org/

4. Stay current and relevant. The goal is to be the go-to person in your field. Your followers will want to hear from you daily but with relevant, new, and interesting information that helps them. Make sure you "know your stuff", so what you are sharing is accurate and relevant. The ASCE Linkedin page is a great place for up to date civil engineering items: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/143956?trk=hp-feed-group-name

5. Be consistent. This means if you have more than one platform on which you are active, cross post all your content. Some people that follow you on Twitter will not follow you on LinkedIn. Also, keep the same logo, profile pic, and header on all platforms. This helps your audience keep you, your company, your content, and your message together.

Now go and build your online presence!

Apply for the Vilas & Ingrid Mujumdar Risk & Resiliency Convention Grant

Are you a civil engineering student with an ASCE membership (p.s. student membership is free!)? Or do you know an ASCE student member? Then you will be interested in this opportunity to secure a $1,000 travel and registration grant to ASCE’s Convention in Portland, Oregon this year (September 28 – October 1, 2016).

ASCE Foundation donors, Vilas & Ingrid Mujumdar, have established a grant that will provide civil engineering students interested in risk and resiliency, and how that intersects with policy and design, an opportunity to attend the Convention. Grant recipients must commit to attend the Risk & Resiliency panel at the Convention, as well as provide a 1-2 page statement on your experience.

The competitive application process is open now until June 17th – hurry to complete the brief, 3 question application and you could be on your way to Portland!

“BUILD THAT BRIDGE” could be heard yelled loud and clear across the gymnasium at the 25th National Student Steel Bridge Competition. 400 students for 48 teams were all cheering their teammates to a hopeful victory, and hoping for a bridge that successfully passed a vertical load test.

The best and brightest engineering students from all over North America, Canada, Puerto Rico, Mexico, and China gathered in Provo, Utah for this year’s National Student Steel Bridge Competition (NSSBC). The 25th annual installment of this competition, hosted May 27-28 by the Brigham Young University Ira A. Fulton College of Engineering & Technology, featured the eligible winners and runners-up from the competitions held in conjunction with 18 ASCE student conferences.

Generous donors to the ASCE Foundation provides funding for the competition offering future structural engineers the opportunity to display their skills in steel design, steel fabrication, and teamwork. The bridges designed by the student teams were scored by panel of 40 judges in the areas of how long it took to construct the bridge, its stiffness, its lightness, how economically it was built, how it was displayed, and how efficiently it was built. An overall score determines the national winner.

The champions of the 25th annual National Student Steel Bridge Competition are from a school winning it for the first time — École de Technologie Supérieure of Montreal, Québec, Canada. While ETS did not place first in any individual category, the team and its bridge were strong enough across the board to capture the overall championship. California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo finished second. The defending 2015 champions, the University of Florida came in third, but could celebrate first place finishes in efficiency and lightness.

Competitions like Steel Bridge and the upcoming National Concrete Canoe Competition (also supported by the Foundation) are just the beginning of the ways ASCE builds our future engineers. Collegiate competitions and student chapters at the university level are teaching students to apply some of the same structural engineering principles used to design and construct Steel Bridges into real world applications.

Student competitions are fun and engaging ways to show a new generation of young people how civil engineers shape the world around them.

To see over 400 photos from the two day competition, visit the Foundation Facebook photo album at https://business.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1294560853892117.1073741850.331193106895568&type=1&l=9e5dc98948

Fundraising for Your Student Chapter

Finding it hard to raise money for your student chapter? Need help with your Concrete Canoe or Steel Bridge team? Or do you want to attend the next ASCE Conference? The ASCE Foundation is here to help with a few useful suggestions on how to raise donations and revenue so that your chapter can engage with all the fun things ASCE has to offer.

Consider charging membership dues.

Membership dues are a guaranteed source of income for your student chapter. Many chapters have dues ranging from $5 a semester, to $20 a year. When you want to increase participation, keep the amount of dues low to promote growth. But don’t be afraid to raise them – a little – when participation is booming!

Reach out to your local ASCE Section or Branch.

Many of the local leaders have great ideas for fundraising because they do it for their own Section and Branch. It’s also a double win, because having a relationship with them can also provide you with a source of expertise on managing your chapter and create a valuable network for post-college job hunting.

Check out Yelp!

Peruse the restaurant listings for your area in Yelp, then ask a local restaurant to host a fundraiser night. Many already have a program in place, where you help drive traffic and in return they give you a percentage of the proceeds. Don’t forget to spread the word through social media or your student bulletin board, and make sure to open the event up to your local community (like your Section or Branch), not just your chapter and civil engineering department.

Solicit local firms.

Don’t be afraid to ask companies, from the lone consultant to the largest civil engineering firms for help. Draft a letter outlining your need for support and what you will do with the contribution. Before you approach sponsors, develop a way to recognize them and share it with them when you ask for support. For example, offer to put their logo on your team t-shirts or banners. Invite them to chapter meetings or competitions to see your gift in action. And don’t forget to thank them for their contribution by writing an acknowledgement letter.

If you get a “no”, ask again for in-kind support.

If a company isn’t willing to sponsor with a monetary contribution, it’s not a “no” to any support. Ask them if they would be willing to consider an in-kind donation. This could be anything from materials for your canoe or bridge, services for your chapter; design help on a brochure, a free speaker for your meeting, or more.

We are always here to help.

Need help finding out who your Section and Branch leaders are? Ask the ASCE Foundation, we will provide you with contact information and how to get in touch with the president or vice president of your local Section or Branch.

Need help drafting a sponsorship or in-kind ask letter? Ask the ASCE Foundation, we can provide examples and edit your draft letter.

Need help writing thank you letters for sponsorships and contributions? Ask the ASCE Foundation, we will share with you how to acknowledge donors and cultivate them to try to get additional support.

Just a Few Things to Keep in Mind.

Don’t be afraid to ask for help, many professionals are willing to help local student chapters. Don’t give up looking for extra income to increase your student chapter budget. If you need any assistance in fundraising and want to know better ways to cultivate (get donors) and steward (keep donors) people, don’t be afraid to ask the ASCE Foundation, we are here to help. Contact us at [email protected] or (703) 295-6342.

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