Council of Representatives (COR)

April 2010

FY11 Society Election

The FY11 Slate for Society Officers and Trustees has been presented by the FY10 Society Nominating Committee. The following FY11 positions will be included on the ballot: President Elect, Treasurer, Director (2 positions), Director of Regions, Deputy Director of Regions, Trustee (2 positions) and Deputy Speaker of the Senate. Additionally, the Region H Governor, Senator and Alternate Senator positions will be included on the Society ballot. Candidate biographies and statements will be available to voting members when headquarters sends out balloting instructions by April 1st. The FY10 Society Nominating Committee encourages each and every voting member of the Society to exercise their right to vote in the upcoming election. When you receive balloting instructions from headquarters, please take the time to access the ballot, read the candidates' statements, and cast your vote!

Electing SWE's future leadership is every voting member's responsibility!

New Section Chartering Banquets

Two newly added professional sections will be hosting their respective chartering banquets in the upcoming months. The Cedar Valley Chartering Banquet is scheduled for Saturday, April 24, 2010 in Waterloo, IA. The South Central Michigan Chartering Banquet is scheduled for Thursday, May 20, 2010 in Kalamazoo, MI. If you are going to be in either area during the times in which the banquets are scheduled, please contact Elizabeth Bierman, FY10 Region H Governor, at ekbierman@yahoo.com, or the respective section presidents if you would like to attend. The Cedar Valley FY10 president is Kari Zache, cedarvalleyswe@gmail.com. The South Central Michigan FY10 president is Sylvia Schonauer, Sylvia.Schonauer@kellogg.com.

WE10 – The Annual Conference for Women Engineers

WE10 is the largest and most comprehensive gathering of forward-thinking women engineers and technologists. Adding to the already high energy of WE10, the culmination of our year long SWE 60th Anniversary Celebration will provide inspiration and spike enthusiasm. Throughout the conference participants will experience numerous career-shaping opportunities, as well as draw from the energy of SWE’s strong past and promising future to launch innovation and define success. Registration for WE10 will be available on April 1st.

Mark Your Calendars!
WE10 – The Annual Conference for Women Engineers
Launching Innovation. Defining Success.
November 4-6, 2010
Orlando, Florida
http://we10.swe.org

Please feel free to contact us at cor@swe-mn.org with your comments, questions or concerns.

Jenna, Lindsey and Charlene

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March 2010

2010 Region H Conference – Preserving Through The Years

There is so much to report from our recent trip to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) to attend the Region H Conference. This was a record-breaking year with over 730 conference attendees. The conference was packed with exciting events, including workshops, tours, keynote speakers, business meetings and a career fair. The conference truly helped participants to define their personal success and determine the necessary steps to achieve their goals. We enjoyed celebrating the 60th Anniversary of the Society of Women Engineers, as well as the 50th Anniversary of the UIUC section. One of the highlights of the conference was the Saturday night social event “Still SWEet After All These Years!” which featured a buffet with several decadent desserts.


SWE-MN's COR representatives at the 2010 Region H Conference

The Region H Joint and Professional Business Meetings held at the conference were very productive and we would like to share some information that is pertinent to SWE-MN members.

Congratulations and welcome to the three new Professional sections that have been recently chartered within Region H: Mid-Michigan, South Central Michigan and Cedar Valley (Northeast Iowa).
The FY11 Region H Conference bid and vote was held at the Joint Professional and Collegiate Business Meeting. Two colleges put together fantastic bids to host the FY11 Region H Conference: the University of Michigan and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The votes came in and the next Region H Conference will be held at University of Michigan-Ann Arbor on February 4-6, 2011.
The slate for Region H elected positions starting in FY11 was announced. The Governor and Senator positions are included on the Society ballot. The Lieutenant Governor is voted on by the Region Council. The candidates are:

FY11-FY12 Governor – Wendy Landwehr (Chicago Regional)
FY11 Lieutenant Governor – Jenny Morikawa (Detroit) and Julia Spankowski (Wisconsin)
FY11-FY12 Senator – Christine Cabrera (Detroit), Lindsey Roberts McKenzie (Minnesota) and Julia Spankowski (Wisconsin)
FY11 Alternate Senator – Betty Leonhard (Wisconsin) and Kari Parsons (Chicago Regional)

There are several open non-elected Region H positions. Committees and activities in Region H with open position are: Awards, Assessment, Procedures, Collegiate Upgrade Event, Celebrate SWE, Fall Leadership Meeting and Region Programming Award. Contact us at cor@swe-mn.org if you are interested in learning more about any of these Region H leadership opportunities.
A motion to approve the updated Region H bylaws was brought forth and passed after some discussion at the Professional Business Meeting. All region bylaws needed to be updated for recent changes made at the Society level regarding the new senate structure. Given that the region template needed to change for the new structure, the Society's bylaws committee prepared a complete revision to the region template and incorporated many other changes to reflect current and best practices.
Lively discussion took place around the topic of planning for the next Region H Fall Leadership Meeting. Many of the leaders within Region H feel that the meeting should be held in a central location with reasonable travel access. One proposed solution was to rotate the meeting between Minneapolis, Chicago and Detroit, which are all major cities with easy travel access and accommodations. The current proposal is to host the 2010 Fall Leadership Meeting in Chicago.

FY11 Society Election

The FY11 Slate for Society Officers and Trustees has been presented by the FY10 Society Nominating Committee. An email announcing the Slate was sent out to members recently. The following FY11 positions will be included on the ballot: President Elect, Treasurer, Director (2 positions), Director of Regions, Deputy Director of Regions, Trustee (2 positions) and Deputy Speaker of the Senate. Additionally, the Region H Governor, Senator and Alternate Senator positions will be included on the Society ballot. Candidate biographies and statements will be available to voting members when headquarters sends out balloting instructions by April 1st. The FY10 Society Nominating Committee encourages each and every voting member of the Society to exercise their right to vote in the upcoming election. When you receive balloting instructions from headquarters, please take the time to access the ballot, read the candidates' statements, and cast your vote!

Electing SWE's future leadership is every voting member's responsibility!

WE10 – The Annual Conference for Women Engineers

Mark Your Calendars!
WE10 – The Annual Conference for Women Engineers
Launching Innovation. Defining Success.
November 4-6, 2010
Orlando, Florida
http://we10.swe.org

Please feel free to contact us at cor@swe-mn.org with your comments, questions or concerns.

Jenna, Lindsey and Charlene

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February 2010

2010 Region H Conference - Persevering Through the Years

We are just returning from the Region H Conference held January 29-31 at the University of Illinois (UIUC) in Urbana-Champaign, Illinois. The event was attended by over 400 SWE members and was packed with workshops, speakers, networking events, tours, and a career fair. UIUC did a fabulous job hosting the event. Look for more highlights from the Region H Conference in the March newsletter.

Senate Winter Meeting

The Senate gathered for its second face-to-face meeting for the year on Saturday, January 23, 2010 in Chicago, Illinois. The Senators from Region H presented a summary of the meeting to the Region at the Professional Meeting held at the Region H Conference. A recap of what the Senators presented at the Region meeting will be in the March newsletter.

Election Update

Society National Election – The final Slate will be announced in early February with the election wrapping up in March. The results will be announced in April. We encourage everyone to vote!

Region H Election –This fiscal year Region H will elect the following: Governor, Lieutenant Governor, 1 Senator, and 1 Alternate Senator

The Governor and Senator positions are two-year terms, while the Lieutenant Governor and Alternate Senator positions are a one-year term. The Governor and Senate positions are handled by the National ballot. The Lieutenant Governor is voted on by the Region Council.

The Region H Nominating Committee is in the process of finalizing the candidate nominations. If you have suggestions or input on the candidates for Region H leadership, please contact us at cor@swe-mn.org.

A big thank you to those of you that took the time to read the discussions we started on the Minnesota Communities. We are your voice to the Region and we appreciate you taking the time to review the topics and offer input.

Please feel free to contact us at cor@swe-mn.org with your comments, questions or concerns.

Jenna, Lindsey and Charlene

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January 2010

2010 Region H Conference – Preserving Through the Years

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) is proud to be hosting the SWE Region H Conference this year. The conference will be held on January 29-31, 2010 in Urbana-Champaign, Illinois, which is at the crossroads of Chicago, St. Louis, and Indianapolis. The theme for the conference is “Persevering through the Years” and the aim is to celebrate the achievements of women engineers as a result of their perseverance through ever-changing academic and professional environments. The conference will recognize the experiences of women engineers while celebrating the 60th Anniversary of the Society, as well as the 50th Anniversary of the UIUC Collegiate Section. The conference schedule is packed with workshops, keynote speakers, networking events, tours and a career fair that will help participants to define their personal success and determine the necessary steps to achieve their goals.

For additional information, check out the conference website at http://swe.ec.uiuc.edu/regionh2010/index.html. Questions? Email the conference committee at RegionHConference.UIUC@swe.org. If you are planning on attending the Region H Conference, then be sure to logon to the Minnesota Section Community and update the Region H Conference Attendance List. This list will enable you to coordinate with other SWE-MN members who are going to the conference.

Upcoming Elections

Society National Election – The Society Nominating Committee has received nominations for the Society National Slate. The final Slate will be out on February 1, 2010, with the election wrapping up in March 2010. The results will be out in April 2010. We encourage everyone to vote!
Region H Election –This fiscal year Region H will elect the following: Governor, Lieutenant Governor, 1 Senator, and 1 Alternate Senator

The Governor and Senator positions are two-year terms, while the Lieutenant Governor and Alternate Senator positions are a one-year term.

It is the Region H Nominating Committee’s responsibility to provide qualified candidates on the ballot, but it is our responsibility as members to identify all possible future leaders. The four key characteristics of SWE leadership that each potential candidate should possess include people skills, knowledge of the organization, strategic thinking, and be able to generate results. For additional information about how to nominate someone, please contact Lauren Thompson at lauren.thompson@swe.org. If you have suggestions for Region H leadership, please contact us at cor@swe-mn.org.

The Senate positions will be handled by the National ballot. The SWE Bylaws specify the minimum eligibility for Senators: All senators and alternates, except the collegiate senators and alternates and the special representatives, must be voting members of the Society. Recommendations for additional qualifications of professional senators and alternates include:

Prior leadership experience of at least one year within SWE (this would include service as a member of the Region Council)
Proficient understanding of their constituents
General working knowledge of the organization to which they are assigned, the Senate, Society, and Bylaws
Willing and able to communicate actively at the Region level, including ability to attend Region meetings
Ability to travel and attend senate meetings, discussions and teleconference

Senate Winter Meeting

The Senate will be gathering for its second face-to-face meeting for the year on Saturday, January 23, 2010 in Chicago, Illinois. They will be discussing this fiscal year’s Mega Issues. Region H senators will be presenting a summary of the meeting to the Region at the Professional Meeting held at the Region H Conference on Saturday, January 30, 2010. If you have any questions or concerns you would like presented to the Senate before its meeting in January, please feel free to email us at cor@swe-mn.org.

New Professional Section in Region H

SWE-MN would like to welcome the newest professional section to Region H, the South Central Michigan Section. Be sure to extend a warm SWE-MN welcome to the South Central Michigan Section members at the upcoming Region H conference!

Please feel free to contact us at cor@swe-mn.org with your comments, questions or concerns.

Best wishes to you in the New Year!

Jenna, Lindsey and Charlene

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December 2009

2010 Region H Conference – Preserving Through the Years – Registration has been extended to December 15th!

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) is proud to be hosting the SWE Region H Conference this year. The conference will be held on January 29-31, 2010 in Urbana-Champaign, Illinois, which is at the crossroads of Chicago, St. Louis, and Indianapolis. The theme for the conference is “Persevering through the Years” and the aim is to celebrate the achievements of women engineers as a result of their perseverance through ever-changing academic and professional environments. The conference will recognize the experiences of women engineers while celebrating the 60th Anniversary of the Society, as well as the 50thAnniversary of the UIUC Collegiate Section. The conference schedule is packed with workshops, keynote speakers, networking events, tours and a career fair that will help participants to define their personal success and determine the necessary steps to achieve their goals.

The registration deadline has been extended to December 15, 2009. You will need your SWE ID to register for the conference. The collegiate rate is $45.00, while the professional rate is $150.00 for double occupancy and $250.00 for single occupancy. The rates include two nights lodging, all networking events and Saturday programming. For additional information, check out the conference website at http://swe.ec.uiuc.edu/regionh2010/index.html. Questions about your registration? Email the conference committee at RegionHConference.UIUC@swe.org. If you are planning on attending the Region H Conference, then be sure to logon to the Minnesota Section Community and update the Region H Conference Attendance List. This list will enable you to coordinate with other SWE-MN members who are going to the conference.

Senate Annual Meeting

The SWE Senate Annual Meeting was held on October 17 at WE09 in Long Beach, CA. All 30 senators were present for the meeting. This face-to-face meeting at the National Conference allows the Senators to get together and conduct official SWE business. This year there were several items on the agenda for the Senate to discuss and vote on, including 15 bylaws amendments and 1 motion. Here is a summary of the changes that we felt would be pertinent to SWE-MN members:

Changes impacting eligibility:

Qualifications for Region Governor – The two year aggregate minimum service requirement to qualify for Region Governor was expanded to include time served as Professional Section and Members at Large Representatives.
Qualifications for Elected Positions on Board of Directors (Except Senate Speaker and Special Director) – The two year aggregate minimum service requirement to qualify for Elected BOD Positions was expanded to include time served as Region Governor or Professional Section and Members at Large Representatives.
Qualifications for Senate Speaker and Deputy Speaker – The Region Governor was removed from the two year aggregate minimum service requirement for the Senate Speaker and Deputy Speaker positions. The pool of candidates for speaker and deputy speaker should be drawn from those who have served as either voting or nonvoting members of the senate.

Election/Removal Changes:

Add Senators as Nonvoting Members of the Region Council – The Region Council needs to be included in Senate communication to know what is happening within the Society. This incorporates the Senate’s participation in the discussions of the Region Council and facilitates dissemination of information to all Region leaders.
Removal of Region Governor – This change simplifies the process for removal of a Region Governor to something more manageable and achievable but still rigorous enough to prevent unsubstantiated removals. A Region Governor may be removed by two-thirds of the voting members of the Region Council.
Removal of Senator – This change clarifies the language and thus number of votes needed to remove a Senator. A professional senator may be removed by two-thirds of the voting members of the Region Council.
Required Number for Petition Candidate for Speaker and Deputy Speaker – This change reduces the number of the number of voting members required (from 25 to 10) to petition a candidate for Speaker and Deputy Speaker. This is appropriate due to the smaller size of the Senate.

Miscellaneous:

Who Can Make Bylaws Amendment Motions – The change simplified the language and all other specified groups were removed. Amendments may be proposed by any ten members of the Society collectively as a group, provided that at least eight are voting members.
SWE Policy Paper on Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action – The motion passed to approve the SWE position as described in Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action position paper for distribution to Senate for final revisions/approval before adoption. Visit the Resources section on the Senate Community to review the position paper.

Kudos to the Senate for perfect attendance and a very productive Annual Meeting at National Conference this year!

Upcoming Elections

Society National Election – The Society Nominating Committee has received nominations for the Society National Slate. The final Slate will be out on February 1, 2010, with the election wrapping up in March 2010. The results will be out in April 2010. We encourage everyone to vote!

Region H Election –This fiscal year Region H will elect the following: Governor, Lieutenant Governor, 1 Senator, and 1 Alternate Senator

The Governor and Senator positions are two-year terms, while the Lieutenant Governor and Alternate Senator positions are a one-year term.

Prior leadership experience of at least one year within SWE (this would include service as a member of the Region Council)
Proficient understanding of their constituents
General working knowledge of the organization to which they are assigned, the Senate, Society, and Bylaws
Willing and able to communicate actively at the Region level, including ability to attend Region meetings
Ability to travel and attend senate meetings, discussions and teleconference

Please feel free to contact us at cor@swe-mn.org with your comments, questions or concerns. Watch out for more updates on the COR blog on the Minnesota Section Community.

Jenna, Lindsey and Charlene

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November 2009

WE09 in Long Beach, CA
The theme of the SWE National Conference this year was “Women Advancing the World of Technology”. WE09 was the third largest conference with just shy of 5000 attendees! Each year the COR has a face-to-face meeting at the National Conference. With the creation of the Senate, the COR face-to-face meeting was held at the Region H meeting. The Region H meeting on Thursday provided updates on general business, the 2010 Region H Conference (see below for registration details), and there was time for networking with other professional and collegiate members from Region H. Some highlights from the Region H meeting include:

Society National Election – The Society Nominating Committee has received nominations for the Society
National Slate. The final Slate will be out on February 1, 2010, with the election wrapping up in March 2010. The
results will be out in April 2010. We encourage everyone to vote!
Region H Election – Positions up for election are the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, 1 Senator (the Senator
will actually be on Society National Slate). The Governor and Senator are two-year terms, while the Lieutenant
Governor is a one-year term. If you have suggestions for Region H leadership, please contact us at cor@swemn.org.
SWE 2010 Yearbook Edition of SWE Magazine – Region H needs to highlight three programs. If there are suggestions,
please contact us at cor@swe-mn.org or the Region H governor, Elizabeth Bierman, at ekbierman@yahoo.com.
Region H has endowed its second scholarship, which is scheduled to be given out starting in FY11. This scholarship
will be awarded at the Society level, so those who want to apply for it must do so through the Society
scholarship application.

COR also attended the SWE General Membership meeting.
Some highlights from this meeting include:
The financial committee and Society treasurer are focusing this FY on educating and safeguarding section and
region finances. You can find this information on the “SWE Money” Community, which is open to all members.
The Society has initiated a task force to look in to better developing our “planned giving” process. The Society
would like to benchmark this against other organizations, as well as share best practices.
Membership is down significantly in FY10. This is assumed to be due to state of economy. On a positive note,
SWE now has 58 CPC members, which is a record (and a blessing, given the economy)!
SWE has a new digital copy of SWE magazine. You can opt out of receiving the print copy going to the SWE
database online and updating your preference for delivery of your copy of SWE magazine in your profile. Look
for an in-depth article about the digital copy of SWE magazine and its new features in the next SWE-MN newsletter!
Headquarters has established an electronic “suggestion box” for the Society. You can send your comments and
suggestions for SWE to swesuggestionbox@swe.org. This email account is monitored daily by staff at HQ.
Update on the contingency reserve fund – As discussed earlier, the Senate approved the withdrawal of
$625,000 from the Society Contingency Reserve Fund to maintain the FY10 budget. The condition of the approval
was that this money is paid back to the fund by FY15. As of September 30, 2009, the contingency reserve
fund had a balance of $2.674M.
SWE FY11 National Conference – WE10, is in Orlando, FL November 4 – 6, 2010. The theme is “Launching
Innovation and Promoting Success.” The conference will be taking place at the same time as the Rockwell
Automation’s “Automation Fair”, a tech show that will be in the same facility as the conference. This fair will
be free and open to conference attendees. Look for information on what the Senate accomplished at WE09 in the
next newsletter.

2010 Region H Conference - Registration is Open!
The University of Illinois Urbana Champaign (UIUC) will be hosting the SWE Region H Conference On January 29-31, 2010 in Urbana-Champaign, Illinois. This year’s theme is “Persevering through the Years” and will be celebrating the 60th Anniversary of the Society, as well as the 50th Anniversary for the UIUC collegiate section. You can register online for the conference at http://swe.ec.uiuc.edu/regionh2010/index.html. Registration closes on December 1, 2009 and you will need your SWE ID to register. The collegiate rate is $45.00, while the professional rate is $150.00 for double occupancy and $250.00 for single occupancy. The rates include two nights lodging, all networking events and Saturday programming. If you are planning on attending the Region H Conference, then be sure to logon to the Minnesota Section Community and update the Region H Conference Attendance List when it becomes available. This list will enable you to coordinate with other SWE-MN members who are going to the conference. Please feel free to contact us at cor@swe-mn.org with your comments, questions or concerns. Watch for a COR blog to come out on the Minnesota Section Community.

Jenna, Lindsey and Charlene

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October 2009

Region H Fall Caucus Meeting
The Region H fall caucus meeting was held on Saturday, August 29th in St. Joseph, MI. The Southwest Michigan Section in conjunction with Whirlpool Corporation hosted the meeting. The purpose of this face-to-face meeting was to allow our Section leaders to interact with the Region leadership in preparation for the National Conference. Section President Lisa Schmalhurst attended the meeting as a representative for SWE-MN. The focus of the caucus was on Region H business and training. The day started with a quick overview of SWE, including changes to the Board of Directors, Region structure, and the transition from the Council of Representatives to the Senate. The morning progressed with a presentation of the current SWE Strategic Plan. A copy of the document is available to all members on SWE Communities under the Resources portion of the Governance Documents Community. Senate proposals were intended to be reviewed during the morning session of the meeting, but were still in draft form and unavailable for discussion at that time. After lunch a sharing session of the Region’s Best Practices took place, as well as discussions about Outreach resources available to the Region and associated Sections. Finally, Director of Regions Alyse Stofer gave a presentation on the need for Regions to start thinking strategically, starting with the development of a pipeline of future leaders for the Region and Society levels. Overall, the meeting was considered a very productive and successful gathering of Region H leadership!

New Professional Section in Region H
SWE-MN would like to welcome the newest professional section to Region H, The Mid-Michigan Section. The section is based out of Midland, Michigan and hosted its chartering banquet on Thursday, September 24, 2009. Be sure to extend a warm SWE-MN welcome to Mid-Michigan Section members at the upcoming National and Region H conferences!

SWE’s 60th Anniversary Celebration
SWE will be celebrating its 60th anniversary this year, starting with the upcoming events being held at the 2009 SWE Na-tional Conference in Long Beach, California and extending through the end of the 2010 SWE National Conference in Orlando, Florida. National SWE leadership has asked Regions and Sections to host a local event to celebrate this stepping stone for SWE. The event would be a “Founders Day” type event, taking place May 27 -28, 2010. If you have any ideas for the event or would like to help SWE-MN plan the event, please contact us at cor@swe-mn.org. We welcome your comments and ideas!

WE09 The National Conference for Women Engineers – Register Now!
The Gateway to the World will open up wider than ever with opportunity as more than 6,000 women in engineering and technology will converge in Long Beach for WE09—the largest and most comprehensive gathering of forward-thinking women engineers and technologists. When these bright and energetic women come together great things will happen. Careers will advance, as will the world of technology.

Join us for WE09 as we move ourselves and our industry forward!
If you are planning on attending the National Conference, then be sure to logon to the Minnesota Section Community and update the National Conference Attendance List. This list will enable you to coordinate with other SWE-MN members who are going to the conference. A networking dinner is planned for SWE-MN members on Friday, October 16th. You can sign up for this dinner by indicating your interest in the National Conference Attendance List. Also, mark your calendars for the following meetings during the National Conference:
 The Region H Meeting - scheduled for Thursday, October 15, from 1:00pm to 4:00pm. This meeting covers the business of the Region and is open for all members to attend.
 The Society Membership Meeting – scheduled for Saturday, October 17, at 10:00am. This meeting covers the business of the Society associated with the general membership and is open for all members to attend.
 The Society Town Hall Meeting - scheduled for Saturday, October 17, at 11:00am. This meeting allows members of the Society to direct questions to the Board of Directors in an open forum manner. The Board of Directors requests that questions be submitted prior to the meeting on SWE Communities. You can find a link to the question submittal site on the right side of the main page for SWE Communities.
We look forward to seeing you in Long Beach!

Region H Conference – Mark Your Calendars!
The Region H Conference will be held at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) on January 29-31, 2010. The conference website with event details and registration information is expected to be up and running shortly after the National Conference, or approximately October 19, 2009. Mark your calendars and stay tuned for additional details.
Please feel free to contact us at cor@swe-mn.org with your comments, questions or concerns. Watch for a COR blog to come out on the Minnesota Section Community.

Jenna, Lindsey, and Charlene
FY10 SWE-MN COR

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September 2009

Please allow us to introduce ourselves, we are your Council of Representatives, or COR, Minnesota Section representatives for the upcoming fiscal year.
 Jenna Rendon, a Software Engineering Manager at Lockheed Martin, is your first veteran COR representative this year, having also served in FY09.
 Lindsey Roberts McKenzie, a Water Resources Engineer at Short Elliot Hendrickson, Inc, is your second veteran COR representative this year, having also served in FY09.
 Charlene Willenbring, a Project Engineer at Goodrich Sensors and Integrated Systems, is your new COR representative this year.

The role of the COR has changed due to the adoption of the SWE Senate for FY10. The COR is still the voice of the Minnesota Section members. However, the COR will focus primarily on local and regional Soci-ety concerns, programs and systems. The role of the COR is to represent the Minnesota Section membership on both local and regional issues. COR will also act as the official contact between the Region H Senators and the Minnesota Section to ensure that your voice is heard at the national level. The three Minnesota Section representatives will continue to report the information and business of the Society at all levels to the Minnesota members.

Starting this fiscal year, the new SWE Senate structure has been put into place. The following Senators are the new voice for Region H membership at the national level:
Region H Professional Senators:
Diane LaFortune – Chicago Regional Section Laurel Jaeger – Southwest Michigan Section
Region H Collegiate Senator:
Emily Carroll – University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

The new Senate is a high functioning deliberative body focused on the long-term strategic position of the Society. The Senate is responsible for legislative duties such as changing bylaws and setting individual dues. The Senate is a much smaller size governing body with 32 members: 22 Professional Senators (two for each region) and 10 Collegiate Senators (one for each region). This smaller size will enable more effective interaction and deliberation. The Senate will focus on national Society concerns, programs and systems. The Region H Senators serve as a direct conduit and point of contact for any member in Region H to express concerns and issues at the national level. If you have questions about the Senate or the new role of the COR, please don’t hesitate to contact us at cor@swe-mn.org.

National SWE Budget for FY10 – SWE Senate Motion Approved
Over the past few years, SWE has continued to increase its membership and the number and level of pro-grams and services offered to our members. However, like many other businesses and organizations, SWE has not been immune to the recent economic downturn. Over the past several months, National SWE has performed monthly financial reviews and has initiated efforts to cut expenses and pursue additional funding sources. Despite these efforts, the Board of Directors is ultimately looking at a 20% reduction in unrestricted income in FY10. On July 15th, the new SWE Senate convened for the first time to discuss a motion to au-thorize a withdrawal of funds (up to a maximum of $625,000) from the SWE Contingency Reserve Fund (CRF) to cover FY10 general operating expenses and to support the current level of programs, services and membership benefits. The motion was brought fourth by Jon Graf, National SWE Treasurer. The discussion began on July 15th and it was continued on July 22nd. An amendment was added that said that the funds must be returned to the CRF by the end of FY15. After the amendment was added, the motion was approved. We encourage you to email us at cor@swe-mn.org with your thoughts on this motion.

Region H Fall Caucus Meeting
The Region H fall caucus meeting was held on Saturday, August 29th in St. Joseph, MI. The Southwest Michigan Section in conjunction with Whirlpool Corporation hosted the meeting. The purpose of this face-to-face meeting was to allow our Section leaders to interact with the Region leadership in preparation for the National Conference. Meeting attendees included Region H Officers, COR and Section Presidents. The focus of the caucus was on Region H business and training. The agenda included plans to discuss Senate proposals and mega issues. This face-to-face meeting gave us the opportunity to review the SWE overall strategic plan and the Region strategic outlook. A Leadership Development training module was also conducted. It was a productive meeting for all!

WE09 The National Conference for Women Engineers – Register Now!
The Gateway to the World will open up wider than ever with opportunity as more than 6,000 women in engineering and technology will converge in Long Beach for WE09—the largest and most comprehensive gathering of forward-thinking women engineers and technologists. When these bright and energetic women come together great things will happen. Careers will advance, as will the world of technology.
Join us for WE09 as we move ourselves and our industry forward!

If you are planning on attending the National Conference, then be sure to logon to the Minnesota Section Community and update the National Conference Attendance List. This list will enable you to coordinate with other SWE-MN members who are going to the conference. A networking dinner is planned for SWE-MN members on Friday, October 16th. You can sign up for this dinner by indicating your interest in the National Conference Attendance List.

We look forward to seeing you in Long Beach!

Region H Conference – Mark Your Calendars!
The Region H Conference will be held at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) on January 29-31, 2010. April Privett, the Region H Lt. Governor, recently gave an update on the planning for this conference and things are going well. The UIUC collegiate section is working on fundraising and beginning to plan the logistics for the conference. Mark your calendars and stay tuned for additional details.
Please feel free to contact us at cor@swe-mn.org with your comments, questions or concerns. Watch for a COR blog to come out on the Minnesota Section Community. There is a lot to discuss with the move to the new Senate structure this year and we will be sure to keep you informed.