Board of Directors Webex Conference

DRAFT

Academy of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineers

Board of Directors WebEx Conference

Re: Department Centennial Celebration
March 30, 2016

This special meeting of the Board of Directors was held at the request of President John Eash for the purpose of making the Board aware of the plans being made for the celebration of the Department Centennial and to invite them to share their ideas with the Centennial Committee.

The meeting was called to order by President John Eash at 9:00 AM.

Attendees: John Eash, Paul Niewald, Randall Wood, Steve Moss, Travis Durand, Steve Bass, Randy Foster, Russell Flye, Nolan Brunnworth, Lila Kolker and Debi Willy.

John suggested that we get into the habit of using WebEx so people could follow along a little better.

John thanked everyone for calling in and stated the purpose of the meeting was to give an update on the department planning of the centennial celebration and to talk about what we want to do as an academy to celebrate at homecoming this year.

Topics:

Department Committee: The committee consists of Dr. Drallmeier, Dean Bristow, Lila Kolker, Kimber Crull, Al Crosby, Dan Stutts and Nolan Brunnworth. John Eash is serving on the committee as the liaison to the Academy so we will know how the department needs us to support them and what is being planned for the event so we stay coordinated with their efforts. John stated that he would send the minutes of their meeting and the actions resulting from the meeting to the Academy as soon as they were ready. We are looking at ways to attract more alumni back to campus and to get them more involved.

Engineering Management is also celebrating this fall. It is their 50th Anniversary. John stated that they have talked with him about the possibility of some combined events.

Initial Centennial Celebration Committee Meeting Results: The first meeting was held about three weeks ago. There were many ideas that came out of that meeting.

·  The primary focus for the Academy’s celebrations of the centennial will be the fall meeting.

·  There will be other events held before and after that event.

·  We will try to get some input from Past Presidents of the Academy as to what they think we could do to celebrate.

·  Other things talked about have included a Speaker Seminar Series, Fundraising and a Centennial Professorship.

·  Boeing is celebrating its’ 100 year anniversary as well and it was discussed if perhaps we could do something to connect with that celebration.

Potential AMAE Events include

·  Trivia Night in conjunction with the Academy meeting in the fall. This would be a way of tying in part of our history in the form of questions.

·  An open House

Our traditional timeline for the event is as follows:

THURSDAY (October 13, 2016)

·  1:30 – 3:00 Board of Directors Meeting

·  4:30 AMAE Induction

·  6:30 Social/Dinner

FRIDAY (October 14, 2016)

·  7:00 – 8:00 AM Academy Presidents Forum

·  8:30 – 1:00 General Membership Meeting

There was some confusion about the dates of the Academy meeting. The meeting is always scheduled to coincide with Homecoming. The date for homecoming was changed after it had been publicized. This had led to confusion. The original date was the 22nd but it was changed to the 15th. Our Annual Meeting dates are October 13th and 14th.

John reported that the Academy of Engineering Management has approached him about the possibility of partnering on some events leading up to the weekend. He said that we would be open to that but that he needed to get the feeling of the Academy before he committed. They have a campus reception planned for Friday the 14th from 4:00 to 5:30 with drinks and hors d’oeuvres. They were hoping that we could coordinate so that we are not competing for the same people to be at our individual events. A joint social would not work because we want people in our individual buildings. Thursday they normally host a picnic from 12:00 to 2:00 and invite students and faculty as well as alumni to attend. It was questioned if we would want to do that jointly with both departments, faculty, students, etc… We at least need to sort of coordinate our events to avoid people having to choose between events.

Nolan shared that he remembered an event where we had key faculty giving lab and building tours to visitors. This was well received and he suggested that incorporate that into our event. It was discussed that this had happened after the design teams had pitched their ideas to the Academy.

Nolan said that University Advancement hos done trivia nights and that he could get some ideas from them and possibly folks to help with the event so we don’t have to “reinvent the wheel.”

John said that we had done the casino night before and that was well received. It was done during the social. The trivia would be a more formal event with people sitting down to participate. Perhaps we could have stations set up and do it that way. It could still have a networking atmosphere but less structured. Nolan said that perhaps we could have an unstructured part for the social and when the trivia starts number the tables and have people collect the answers.

Johns stated that he would follow up with Travis after the meeting to talk to him about his willingness to take the lead on this or if we need to find another volunteer.

John asked for thoughts and opinions on partnering with Engineering Management. It was suggested it is a good idea if we can boost the attendance at our event by doing that. John will continue discussion with ME in this regard.

Bart had a couple of thoughts.

·  It is Boeings anniversary as well, and they are the largest hirer of our MS&T graduates, especially with regard to mechanical and aerospace engineers. He suggested we should be able to make some sort of connection with them with regard to our mutual celebrations. Bart joked that perhaps they could fly a jet down or a helicopter or something for the celebrations. Steve Bass (who currently works there) said that the branding people have become very selective as to what events they might partner with. It’s not out of the question but not a given either.

·  It was discussed that September 14th is Boeing Day on Campus.

·  It was suggested to see if the University could be mentioned in the Boeing anniversary stuff.

·  Bart suggested we have a display in the atrium of a timeline of the past 100 years. Historic photos could be displayed along the timeline in the right years. Include what courses were taught then, the technology of the era, and how teaching has changed. Some things are still applicable, like Bernulis equation, but other things have changed.

·  Nolan suggested that we need to be aware of how we can engage the students. Janis Ridalti in Annual Giving is an expert in engaging students. He suggested he could bring her in to make sure that we are doing something tangible with the students to make sure they are involved. To get the attention of the students, things have to be tangible and repetitious to garner their interest.

Johns stated that he could talk with the executive folks at Boeing about ways that we could connect with their celebration and they could connect with ours in sharing this milestone event. Steve felt that a request from the university would have greater weight than from an alumni employed at Boeing. John said he would take the lead on that.

The idea of a picnic on Thursday was discussed. It would mean we need to change our timeline. It was suggested we could move our board meeting to follow the picnic and have the picnic from noon to 2:00. This could be the area in which we partner with ME. Lila stated that we used to do a picnic on Friday but that it scrunched the Academy events. John said he would take the idea of the picnic back to the larger committee and see if the event could work out for Thursday. Members of the Academy would need to come earlier to be a part of the picnic and would be staying later.

It was questioned what activities would be taking place on Saturday, the day of Homecoming. Johns stated that there would be the homecoming game and tailgating. For people involved in the alumni association there is an Alumni Board meeting that morning. Lila stated that we usually have something that weekend, we just haven’t determined what that will be.

Nolan stated that we may have a board member who is receiving an alumni award at the Alumni Awards Banquet. On Friday there is a lunch for the Academy Members that are invited to the Alumni Association Awards Recipient Banquet because they are Award Recipients.

Nolan suggested that we harness the power of the student organizations within the department. Lila responded that we have already enlisted the help of the advisors of the teams. There has been discussion of breaking up the 100 years into segments and having each group responsible for a portion of that time. There would be pictures and those would be rotated once a month. Nolan suggested they may enjoy a scavenger hunt. They could find information by exploring the building and get bonus points for interviewing an academy member off the cuff since Board members will be out in the lobby area. We need to find ways for the students to interact with the academy and to celebrate the department in some way.

Lila reported that the Committee wants to have monthly student activities. Possibly having buttons or something that they would collect each month so at the end of the year they would have a full set. Nolan suggested that Melpo (in his department) is really good at finding commemorative stuff. There was a discussion of the popularity of commemorative coins and how that could be a good draw. John stated that a coin would be a wonderful idea as a gift for the Academy.

Travis asked what has been done to find out what the students would like to do to celebrate the centennial. Travis said he liked the idea of collaborating but wanted to know that the students were being asked. Lila reported that the advisors of the student groups have been contacted and that the plan is have another meeting with the students to involve them in planning and deciding upon the activities. The next meeting will take place within the next two weeks. Officers representing the student groups will be invited to attend and offer their ideas.

Travis suggested designated rooms with a graduation year. You would be able to visit with your fellow graduates by going to the room designated for your graduating year and be able to find other students you went to school with but did not graduate with by going to their designated room. Alumni class photos could be taken by arranging a schedule with a time for each graduating class.

John asked if there were any other thoughts.

Randy Foster asked if there would be a promotional t-shirt for the students. Lila responded that we are hoping to have a competition for the design of a t-shirt. We would hope to have the design contest end before the spring semester ends. We would be able to produce the shirts over the summer and have them available for sale to the Academy and on the internet. The shirts would be ready for the fall. We only have 6 weeks left when the students come back rom Spring break.

John thanked everyone for taking part in the meeting and for their input. It will help us make sure that the plans of the Academy are well in line with the plans of the department in celebrating our 100 years of existence. John stated that as soon as the larger committee has made decisions he will let them know what the plans are.

Meeting ended at 9:35.