Submitted by Darrell Piatt, Area 6 Chair on 6 April 2000
The Alabama Section is actively transitioning its operations to a calendar year schedule, with current officers planning to serve through December 31, 2000. A major update of the Section Guide, including key date changes to implement the new schedule, was undertaken starting in Summer, 1999, with guidance from a committee of 11 experienced Section members. The updated guide is being posted on the Section's web site for additional review and member inputs.
The Section is preparing a formal proposal to host the IEEE Vehicular Technology Conference in Birmingham in 2002 or 2003. Several key committee members have been recruited and budget details are being developed for approval by the Executive Committee.
The Section is honored by the recent appointment by the Governor of Preston Jackson to serve on the Alabama State Board of Licensure for Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors.
Participation in local Engineers Week activities was active, with members representing electrical engineering and IEEE to about 900 high school students who attended the annual Engineering Expo at UAB. Our three nominees and their supporters also attended the 41st annual Engineering Awards Banquet organized by the Engineering Council of Birmingham.
Earlier in February a very successful student night meeting accounted for a total section meeting attendance of 124. This meeting was preceded by a mini student job fair, with representatives from several local firms available to discuss employment opportunities with the students.
The information content on the Section's web site continues to grow, and Internet e-mail is used on a regular basis to inform members of the regularly scheduled meetings and special events of interest. Currently about 700 members receive the monthly bulletin SignificantBits via e-mail. It is also available on the Section's web site.
Members of the Professional Activities Committee and other interested members plan to attend the third annual Pride in Engineering - Legislative Reception on April 18 in Montgomery. This event provides an opportunity for members of the engineering community to meet informally with their state legislators and to highlight the accomplishments of engineers within Alabama. The reception is sponsored by the Joint Engineers Council of Alabama (JECA) and is supported by the Engineering Council of Birmingham (ECOB) and the American Consulting Engineers Council of Alabama. The Alabama Section continues to participate actively with JECA and ECOB.
The following entities continue to hold regular meetings and events: GOLD, Power Engineering Society, Computer Society, Communications Society, Engineering Management Society, and Industry Applications Society.
The Huntsville Section normally holds 24 administrative meetings a year and is pleased to report that the Officers Report, Meeting Report and Finance Report were submitted on time.
The Section revised the bylaws a couple of years ago and are on a calendar year basis. The bylaws are again under review because of the new suggested bylaws, some of which will probably be incorporated. The chairs of the two student branches are voting members of the Section's ExCom, but they do count in the pool that is used to determine how many people are needed for a quorum. This way the section is not penalized in getting a quorum during the summer when they are not in town.
Mr. Steven Johnson's nomination as a Fellow of the IEEE was accepted. He will be officially inducted in May at the International Radar Conference. Dr. Bob McMillan, also a Fellow of the IEEE, was Steve's main sponsor and we thank Bob for all the work he put into the nomination process. The Section is preparing to submit three more Fellow Nominations.
Our Graduates Of the Last Decade (GOLD) Committee had a very successful kickoff meeting, which is being followed up with several training meetings (personal finance and project management). This success was due to the enthusiasm and hard work of our co-chairs Sonya Hutchenson and Jan Heering, and the very generous cooperation of ADTRAN Corp. who hosted the kickoff meeting.
The Section held its 18th annual IEEE Computer Fair in February 1999 and this year's fair will be held on 8/25-26. Scott Trites and a small group of dedicated volunteers have handled this for the last seven years. A large debt of gratitude is owed for all the work they have put in over the years and all the money they have raised for section activities.
The Section participated in the local Engineers Week Banquet and presented the following awards:
Outstanding Engineer to Mr. Larry Fullerton, Founder and Chief Technology Officer of Time Domain Corporation.
Outstanding Educator to Dr. Trent Montgomery of AA&MU.
Outstanding Service to Scott Trites of Huntsville Utilities.
The Section has converted from a hard copy newsletter to an Internet based version. We are using a combination push-pull process. We e-mail a brief summary of the newsletter with a link to our web site (https://home.att.net/~albanes/ieeehsv.htm ). This is saving the section a substantial amount in postage and printing costs, and allows us to communicate in a timelier manner. Venkata Atluri, Willy Albanes and Merv Budge have put a lot of work into this project. Jim Kennedy donated a copy of Office 2000 Professional for use in preparing the HTML version of the newsletter. The accuracy of the e-mail addresses that we receive from IEEE HQ is a continuing problem as well as the rate of change of the addresses. The Section is IEEE aliases at every opportunity and the response has been good.
The Mobile Section submitted no information was for this report.
The Mississippi section began the year by holding elections for new officers in January. Elected where Joe Savage, Chairman; Dr. Ray Franco, Vice-Chairman; John Marshall, Program Chair and PACE Chair; Mr. Carl Hovermale, Secretary; Dr. Steve Daniel, Treasurer and Past Section Chair; Ms. Dorothy Boswell and Dr. Cary Cox, Co-Chairs Membership Development; and Ms. Michelle Picou, GOLD Chair.
The January meeting, coordinated by Mr. John Marshall, was a tour of Multicraft, Inc., Brandon, MS, manufacturer of automobile valves and control sensors. (See photo #1). The February meeting was part of National Engineers Week activities in Vicksburg, MS. Mr. Joe Savage, Mississippi Section Chairman, served as the General Chair for all activities sponsored by ASCE, ASME, MES, SAME and IEEE. Other IEEE members were activity chairs and participated in statewide teleconferencing to high schools and community colleges, as speakers at junior and senior high schools in Vicksburg and Warren County, as tour guides at engineering firms and enjoyed an evening E-Week Banquet. Mr. Dale Caston, IEEE-USA Secretary/Treasurer from D'Lo, MS attended the Banquet with his wife Alma. (See photo #2). The March meeting was a tour of Howard, Inc., Laurel, MS. Howard, Inc. is the largest manufacturer of power transformers in the USA. They build pole mounted, pad mounted, and underground transformers in an ever-expanding 1.6 million square foot plant. IEEE members employed by Howard conducted the tour. (See photo #3). The April and May meetings are planned as plant tours in the Vicksburg, MS area. During August, the Mississippi Section members will participate in a program with other professional and engineering societies (IAAP, AGA, AFGE, BIG, and SAME) for federal government employees about "Meeting Facilitation Scenarios-How to Run a Meeting" at the US Army Corps of Engineers Engineer Research and Development Center.
Contacts are being made with the Student Chapters at Mississippi University and the University of Southern Mississippi to coordinate activities and plan joint meetings. GOLD Chair Michelle Picou will be contacting recent graduates to encourage their participation in the Section programs and to develop new and interesting activities for them.
Goals for the year are better communications with the membership by use of newsletters, e-mail and a web page, more participation of members by conducting interesting technical and social meetings throughout the state, assist the North Mississippi Sub-Section to become active for our members in their area, and increase membership.
Caption photo #1. IEEE members tour the Multicraft, Inc. plant in Brandon, MS.
Caption photo#2. IEEE members participate in the National Engineers Week activities. From the left, Joe Savage, Mississippi Section Chairman, Dale Caston, IEEE-USA Secretary/Treasurer, and John Marshall, Mississippi Section Program and PACE Chairman.
Caption photo #3. Members enjoying a tour of Howard, Inc. plant in Laurel, MS. Tour guide is Mr. Richard Hollingsworth.
Dr. Mark Halpin is to continuing in his efforts to revitalize this subsection.