LSU National Society of Black Engineers Highly Decorated at Conference

November 20, 2009

The LSU Chapter of National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) placed in all of the competitions at a regional engineering conference in Tulsa, OK, notably winning two of the region's top awards.

Gaynelle Brown, Jared Roussel, Taylor James-Lightner, and Lauren Thomas won first place in the Academic Technical Bowl. The competition is designed is to encourage and showcase academic excellence and understanding of the fundamental principles of engineering covered in the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE/EIT) Examination. Program participation occurs through healthy competition in a "Jeopardy!" style game show format with multiple choice questions. Questions cover a wide variety of topics, from NSBE and African American scientist and inventor's history to general engineering and science curricula from the FE/EIT.

"Before the fall regional conference, I was unclear about what NSBE was designed to do," said Mark Harris, freshman in electrical engineering. "Now, I know that it's about networking and promoting minority involvement among our nation's engineers. It isn't all work and no play, we learn how to enjoy working with our fellow members and we form friendships that I envision would last a lifetime."

Marcia Onyeanusi, graduating senior in biological engineering, won the Esprit de Corps Award. This award recognizes the member in the region who has best dedicated his or her time and other support to NSBE and the fulfillment of its mission. This member is involved and supportive of NSBE events and can often be found doing things to raise NSBE spirit.

Jordan Howard, sophomore in chemical engineering was named Humanitarian of the Year, recognizing someone who has greatly impacted lives through service to the community and gone above and beyond the call of duty to help others. This member has reached out to the community both on and off campus by benefiting organizations and coordinating events dedicated to community service.

"The Office for Diversity Programs is extremely proud of the success of LSU's National Society of Black Engineers Chapter. LSU's NSBE chapter continues to be a positive example of diverse student's professional and academic success. The LSU 2009-2010 NSBE Executive Board is on a mission to lead the chapter to greater levels, which I believe is unmistakable by the numerous awards and recognitions during the conference" said Vaneshette Henderson, NSBE staff advisor.

LSU member, Marcia Onyeanusi placed first in the oral presentation and second in the poster session of the Technical Research Exhibition (TRE) Competition. Members Marcus Toussaint won first place and LaKaila Greenup won third place in the poster session as well. TRE's objective is to encourage underrepresented undergraduate and graduate student members to participate in technical research projects and gain experience delivering technical presentations that may lead to the pursuit of advanced degrees in technical fields.

"Although the conference was great in itself, the experience that I found most rewarding was actually interacting and getting to know my fellow members more," said LaKaila Greenup, sophomore in electrical engineering. "We have gotten closer, and that helps tremendously in becoming a strong chapter."

LSU NSBE conference attendees included:

The Fall Regional Conference (FRC) is a premier event for all Region V membership demographics to network and strive to fulfill the mission of the society. The FRC encompasses several mini-conferences with targeted audiences that include the following, Pre-College Initiative (PCI) Students, Undergraduate and Graduate Students, International Members, and Technical Professionals. Each mini-conference seeks to provide its constituents with the resources necessary to be effective in their academic, professional, and personal lives.

The LSU chapter of NSBE was founded in 1983. NSBE promotes the recruitment, retention, and graduation of black and multicultural students in engineering. The chapter consistently participates and provides leadership to the regional efforts with John White, sophomore in industrial engineering and chapter member serving as the first Senate Speaker for Region five. The chapter's supporters are Centerpoint Energy, ConocoPhillips, Fluor Enterprise, The Dow Chemical Company, Chevron Products and the bp Foundation.

-30-

Article by Mimi LaValle, LSU College of Engineering, 225-578-5706, mlavall@lsu.edu