President’s Letter - Fall issue
As individuals who benefit from the training and experience provided to members of a diversity organization, we have the responsibility to not only grow our potential but also to confidently extend the invitation to prospective members: “Join SHPE. It’s good for you!” Indeed, diversity organizations are instrumental in supporting our personal and professional pursuits, but they also are critical in achieving a greater cause. For SHPE, that means acting as The Source for Quality Hispanic Engineers and Technical Talent.
At the Regional Leadership Development Conference held at the University of Utah, many of us were fortunate to hear Vice Provost Dr. Octavio Villalpando discuss the results of his research on diversity organizations. His findings? Students who are involved in diversity organizations become more effective critical thinkers and leaders. They also have better communication and organizational skills. “Hispanic peer groups help students mitigate the isolation they feel in education and present some of the central cultural resources that empower and nourish their success,” Dr. Villalpando concluded. “Their altruistic values are reinforced, and their commitment to pursuing careers in service to their communities is increased as a direct result of having been part of a peer group during college.”
When coupled with a recent study by the Pew Research Center, the findings underscore the critical role SHPE has in preparing Hispanic technical leaders. According to the Pew report, in 2008 minorities accounted for three-quarters of the increase in college freshman enrollment, with Hispanics representing the largest percentage. Yet two out of three of these students won’t graduate college, and those that do graduate won’t be majoring in the STEM fields. The unfortunate outcome leaves a vacuum of technical talent at a time when the world is facing scientific issues of enormous magnitude.
Now more than ever, Hispanic engineering students must anchor themselves to their education and their culture, harnessing their combined power to complete their degrees and join America’s technical work force. As I attend SHPE conferences and events across the nation, I am encouraged by the quality of our student members. They prove that SHPE is meeting its responsibility to fill the talent gap through the programs and services it provides to middle, high school and university students as well as professional members. But we can − and must − do more.
Today SHPE has 241 student chapters, 40 professional chapters and 29 junior chapters who are buoyed by 53 corporate partners and $2 million in grants generated through AHETEMS, our nonprofit foundation. In January SHPE joined 22 partner organizations in receiving a $250,000 grant from Google. Barely a year old, our Washington, D.C., office has already established stronger ties between SHPE and the federal government as well as sister organizations such as the National GEM Consortium, National Society of Black Engineers and the National Society of Professional Engineers.
In May, our Management Growth Training program enabled 35 professional members to obtain all the credits required to take the Project Management Professional exam and gain certification. As SHPE expands and improves on such programs, it deepens my conviction that we can go beyond preparing qualified members to become team or project leads. Why not vice president of engineering or president of a business unit? We can fill any gap by expanding our emphasis on serving as a learning organization. As we increase our visibility and improve recruitment and retention, the organization will grow. Through it all, it will be important for us to continue leveraging our community involvement, emphasizing performance excellence and strengthening our partnerships.
While assimilating to certain norms and practices is expected in the workplace, Dr. Villalpando discovered that true success is intrinsically linked to diversity, even on a personal level. “In the lives of minority students,” he said, “claiming and maintaining a critical identity grounded in their cultural beliefs, values, norms and languages become an issue of endurance, resilience and self preservation.” Ultimately, SHPE seeks to validate the individual and collective contributions of its members and ensure the success of their every endeavor.
