The Tau Beta Pi Association Chapter Project Report

Tau Beta Pi Chapter Project Report Texas Alpha Chapter Fall 2011 to Spring 2012 Executive Summary During the previous 2011-2012 academic-year, here at the University of Texas at Austin, the Texas Alpha chapter welcomed 60 new undergraduate initiates and one eminent engineer into our organization. These new members, chosen for their academic excellence in the field of engineering, have also demonstrated integrity and a love for liberal culture throughout the completion of our chapter’s 14 requirements prior to initiation; these requirements include attending five social events, one faculty fireside, passing a TBP constitution quiz, and completing at least ten hours of community service. This report contains herein the summary of all 97 projects sponsored by the Texas Alpha chapter and completed by our initiates to satisfy the aforementioned requirements necessary for membership as a TXA Tau Bate. Every semester we are presented with a list of students in their final years of study who have shown proficiency in their respective fields of engineering curricula; this is not enough to become a member of Tau Beta Pi. The students who are invited to become candidates, already having demonstrated academic success, must ensure they are of quality character, honorable, ethical, and support/remain active within the liberal culture that surrounds our university. Our chapter’s social events provide opportunities for candidates to branch out beyond their major and network with other engineers; whether it be officers, actives, alumni, or professors, the TBP bond is there for our candidates to make and hopefully strengthen as their involvement within our chapter develops a history. Faculty firesides involve meeting with professors in a non-academic setting and provide our members the ability to appreciate the incredible faculty we have at UT Austin in a personal and unique manner. The requirement for a constitution quiz familiarizes candidates with the tenants of our organization and hopefully sets Tau Beta Pi apart from other engineering honor societies in the minds of our initiates given the organization’s history, notable members, focus on integrity, and national collegiate presence. Finally, the most important requirement for membership is the completion of at least ten hours of community service with three of those hours coming from an independent team project. Although ten hours of service might seem meager to other organizations, it can become quite substantial in the minds of our candidates when coupled with engineering coursework, other extra-curricular activities, and the additional 13 chapter requirements for initiation. The goal of our service hours is to motivate candidates to make a habit of giving back to the surrounding Austin community which looks to the University of Texas and its students/graduates for guidance and leadership. Whether it is helping to feed the homeless, giving literature to prisoners, helping grammar school students with academia, walking for a cause, or cleaning up our parks and lakes, the Texas Alpha chapter serves to instill pride in those that foster and preserve the health of our shared Austin community. As an organization, we hope our presence in the community will encourage the continued service of our members and inspire others around Austin to volunteer as well. This year our candidates were required to complete 600 hours of community service, but instead put forth approximately 750 hours; this is a good indication of those candidates’ continued community involvement as active members in the future. A major focus of our chapter is on instilling the importance of integrity and fostering the love for engineering within the minds of the next generation of students here at the University of Texas at Austin. Our chapter volunteers regularly for K-12 events on and off campus. Every year our Texas Alpha chapter gets involved with Explore UT, Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day, Engineering Day at the Museum, and SEEK Tours; all of which are designed to impact potential future engineers in a fun and positive way. Our claim to fame from these events, in the minds of the young students who have shared the experience we hope, is the Texas Alpha trebuchet. The trebuchet was originally a machine built in medieval times to wage war; we however use it to launch water balloons! Through the use of this device at these K-12 events our members can teach the kids about history, physics, and engineering in a memorable and hands-on manner that will hopefully inspire a love for applied sciences. The Texas Alpha chapter also likes to keep traditions alive (just like UT Austin). This year we continued our hosting duties of the Texas Alpha Alumni Tailgate and of two events during our college’s Engineering Week. The Alumni tailgate isn’t just about having fun while supporting the home team, it’s also about bringing current TXA members together with alumni who can share stories, reflect on past times at UT in our always cluttered TBP office, or give career advice. Our showing at Engineering Week or E-Week was an astounding success; we took home the gold for small organizations, a true feat of triumphant underdog glory! These activities on campus promote liberal culture within the engineering community, increase awareness about TBP, and can serve as a recruitment tool for future students (especially when we win). As another year passes by, the Texas Alpha chapter remains strong and committed to upholding the values of Tau Beta Pi. We promote integrity and excellence in engineering by continuing to have a strict and rigorous initiation process, maintaining active/alumni involvement, providing scholarships to worthy members, and staying involved in our community. The continued commitment of our outstanding officers, advisors, members, and alumni will only increase the number of candidates in the future as we aim for bigger and better things while also staying close to our roots; the Texas Alpha chapter moves closer to its 100th anniversary in 2016 and will hopefully present a winning bid for the 2016 TBP National Convention. Event Timeline and Table of Contents Project Number Event Date of Occurrence Community/Liberal Culture 1 Spiral Garden 09/22/2011 2 Cure Search Cancer Walk 09/24/2011 3 Austin Pets Alive! 10/01/2011 4 IBM Fun Run 10/02/2011 5 KAB Lady Bird Lake Cleanup 10/08/2011 6 Local Art Project 10/16/2011 7 Viva La Vida 10/22/2011 8 A Walk for Education 10/22/2011 9 ASE Fall Festival 10/28/2011 10 Live Oak Acorn Collection 10/29/2011 11 Trees for Pease 10/29/2011 12 Longhorn Halloween 10/30/2011 13 Austin Zoo Volunteering 11/06/2011 14 Webelos Cub Scout Meeting 11/08/2011 15 Barton Springs Cleanup 11/13/2011 16 KAB Lady Bird Lake Cleanup 02/11/2012 17 Wild Basin Wilderness Preserve 02/18/2012 18 Engineering Day at the Museum 02/19/2012 19 Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day 02/25/2012 20 Explore UT 03/03/2012 21 Zilker Park Kite Festival 03/04/2012 22 Day at the Blanton Museum of Art 03/18/2012 23 Capital 10K Run 03/24/2012 24 Trees for Pease 03/24/2012 25 Barton Creek Clean Up 03/24/2012 26 Music Under the Stars 03/28/2012 27 Engineering Day at Austin Children’s Museum 03/31/2012 28 Austin Zoo Volunteering 04/01/2012 29 Austin Pets Alive! 04/07/2012 30 Feed My People 04/10/2012 University/College 31 IM Football 10/11/2011 32 Alumni Tailgate 10/15/2011 33 IM Volleyball 10/28/2011 34 IM Basketball 01/29/2012 – 02/26/2012 35 Engineering Week (E-week) 02/19/2012 – 02/25/2012 36 IM Indoor Soccer 03/28/2012 – 04/15/2012 Chapter/Social 37 Active’s Meeting #1 09/08/2011 38 TBP Information Sessions 09/12/2011 – 09/19/2011 39 Candidate Meeting #1 09/22/2011 40 Game Night 09/22/2011 41 Bowling Night 09/29/2011 42 Candidate Meeting #2 09/29/2011 43 Signature Block Party 09/30/2011 44 TCBY Night 10/06/2011 45 Posse East Trivia Night 10/12/2011 – 11/30/2011 46 Candidate Meeting #3 10/13/2011 47 Dodgeball 10/13/2011 48 Bent Polishing Party #1 10/14/2011 49 Ultimate Frisbee 10/14/2011 50 Active’s Meeting #2 10/20/2011 51 Movie Night at the Alamo Drafthouse 10/20/2011 52 Candidate Meeting #4 10/27/2011 53 Capture the Flag 10/27/2011 54 Halloween Carbo-load 10/28/2011 55 Ultimate Frisbee Rematch 10/28/2011 56 Active’s Meeting #3 11/03/2011 57 Outdoor Movie Night 11/03/2011 58 Golf Tournament 11/06/2011 59 Candidate Meeting #5 11/10/2011 60 Bent Polishing Party #2 11/16/2011 61 Active’s Meeting #4 12/06/2011 62 TBP Information Sessions 01/30/2012 – 02/06/2012 63 Active’s Meeting #1 02/02/2012 64 Candidate Meeting #1 02/09/2012 65 Game Night 02/09/2012 66 Starbucks Social 02/12/2012 67 Posse East Trivia Night 02/15/2012 – 04/11/2012 68 Candidate Meeting #2 02/16/2012 69 Bowling Night 02/16/2012 70 Signature Block Party 02/17/2012 71 Bent Polishing Party #1 02/26/2012 72 Active’s Meeting #2 03/01/2012 73 Laser Tag 03/01/2012 74 Candidate Meeting #3 03/08/2012 75 Video Game Social 03/08/2012 76 Ultimate Frisbee 03/23/2012 77 Karaoke Social 03/25/2012 78 Candidate Meeting #4 03/29/2012 79 Dodgeball 03/29/2012 80 Camping Trip 03/30/2012 – 03/31/2012 81 Active’s Meeting #3 04/05/2012 82 SAC Movie Night 04/05/2012 83 Bent Polishing Party #2 04/08/2012 84 Candidate Meeting #5 04/12/2012 85 Active’s Meeting #4 05/07/2012 Education/Professional Development 86 Faculty Fireside – Admiral Inman 09/26/2011 87 Faculty Fireside – Professor Kiehne 10/20/2011 88 Faculty Fireside – Professor Thornley 10/25/2011 89 Faculty Fireside – Professor Metcalfe 11/01/2011 90 Faculty Fireside – Professor Mark 11/09/2011 91 Faculty Fireside – Professor Poehl

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