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UA College of Engineering student group hosts collegiate conference for black engineers

By Alana Norris

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Minority engineering students from across the southeast will convene in Tuscaloosa this weekend for a collegiate conference aimed to help them learn and grow.

The University of Alabama chapter of the National Society of Black Engineers along with the College of Engineering are hosting the Region 3 Leadership Conference on campus July 28-30.

The annual leadership conference brings together NESBE collegiate chapter leaders from Region 3 for a weekend of workshops and networking. Throughout the conference, attendees will discuss ways to facilitate chapter growth, learn how to better serve their chapter members and participate in leadership training.

“We get trained on how we can better serve [our members] to take advantage of the full benefits that NSBE as a whole has [to offer],” said Nivory Gordon III, UA NSBE president and a mechanical engineering senior from Selma.

Around 150 chapter leaders from Region 3 are expected to attend the weekend conference that will take place in multiple buildings across campus including North Lawn Hall. The UA chapter was selected to host the conference this year after an application process.

“This is our first time in a little over ten years that we’ve had RLC hosted on campus,” Gordon said. “It was long overdue to have RLC on campus.”

The attendees will be working with the regional chair and regional executive board during the conference. The national organization’s top-ranking officer, National Chair Matthew Nelson, is also scheduled to be in attendance at the conference.

Gordon said the event is a good way to make connections with other chapters across the region and to get the new school year started.

Region 3 is comprised of 30 chapters in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, Tennessee, the Caribbean and South America.

NSBE, with more than 30,000 members, is one of the largest student-governed organizations in the country. Founded in 1975, NSBE now includes more than 394 college, pre-college, and technical professional/alumni chapters in the United States and abroad.

NSBE’s mission is “to increase the number of culturally responsible black engineers who excel academically, succeed professionally and positively impact the community.”

In 1837, The University of Alabama became one of the first five universities in the nation to offer engineering classes. Today, UA’s College of Engineering has more than 5,200 students and more than 170 faculty. In recent years, students in the College have been named USA Today All-USA College Academic Team members, Goldwater, Hollings, Portz, Boren, Mitchell and Truman scholars.


Author: Alana Norris    /    Posted on: July 27, 2017    /    Posted in:   Events, Mechanical Engineering, Students