SEAS Colonial Cable
Message from Dean Timothy Tong
 As we approach the end of the year, I look back and reflect on what SEAS has accomplished in 2005. I'd like to share just two highlights to give you a sense of these accomplishments, as well.
Students: We had a 50% increase in our freshman class enrollment this year compared to last year. This class is also our highest-quality entering class ever. The average SAT composite score of this year's class was 1300, and 84% of the students were in the top 20% of their respective high school classes.
Research: Faculty from our Departments of Computer Science and Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering teamed with faculty from GW's School of Medicine and Health Sciences to win a four-year, $2.8 million grant award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to improve the success rate of a surgery designed to correct voice disorder. This is the first major NIH research "R-01" grant that SEAS has ever received.
These are only two examples of the kinds of successes SEAS is creating. There are others, too; and you -- our alumni -- play an important role in them. One of the tools I rely heavily on to move the School in promising directions is the Dean's Excellence Fund, and thanks to your support and the support of others, the fund grew in both dollars and number of donors in 2005.
I know there are many worthy charities seeking your help as the year comes to an end, but I hope you will consider making a gift to the Dean's Excellence Fund to help us continue making the kind of strides that we have been making for the past several years. If you would like to join in and make a gift, please click here to access our easy online giving form. Alternatively, please feel free to contact Doug Honker, our executive director of advancement, by phone at 202-994-4121 or via e-mail at dhonker@gwu.edu.
Thank you all for your support of SEAS and your commitment to its continued growth. I am grateful to you and wish you a safe and happy holiday season.
Sincerely,
Timothy W. Tong, Ph.D.
Dean
SEAS Research Profiled in GW Research Magazine
 GW recently published its Fall 2005 issue of GW Research magazine, and SEAS professors and researchers were well-represented in the issue. Among those whose research was mentioned or profiled in an article on technology transfer ("Getting Out of the Ivory Tower") were: Jose Hernandez-Rebollar (Electrical and Computer Engineering); Rajat Mittal (Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering) and James Hahn (Computer Science); Jason Zara (Electrical and Computer Engineering); and Simon Berkovich (Computer Science). Dianne Martin and Lance Hoffman (both of the Computer Science department) were mentioned in "Protecting Cyberspace", and Mona Zaghloul (Electrical and Computer Engineering) was highlighted in "Mighty MEMS". SEAS researcher Ioana Voiculescu was also mentioned in "Mighty MEMS." To read these or other articles in GW Research, please visit: www.gwmagazine.com.
SEAS is proud to announce the GW Engineering group on LinkedIn, an independent, commercial, online networking tool.
SEAS has partnered with LinkedIn to provide this service for SEAS alumni, students, faculty, and staff, and we invite you to join the GW Engineering group. We hope that you will find it a useful tool for business networking, job searches, or simply for locating other members of the SEAS community.
To join the GW Engineering group, just click here and complete a LinkedIn member profile. Access to the group is free, completely optional, and is available only to members of the SEAS community.
About online business networking: You can use LinkedIn to expand and track your network in an organized and systematic way. The GW Engineering group on LinkedIn provides an ideal starting point, and it also provides a point of contact for people outside the SEAS community who are connected to your fellow GW Engineering group members.
About privacy: Please read the LinkedIn privacy policy to answer any concerns about privacy.
A Big Success: The EAA Resume Critique Event
More than 60 SEAS alumni and students participated in our first-ever resume critique event, sponsored by the Engineer Alumni Association (EAA) on Monday, November 14th. Response to the event was so positive that the EAA hopes to make it an annual event in the fall semester.
Targeted toward young alumni and students, the resume critique event was a part of the EAA's goal to provide professional development events for SEAS alumni, as well as to provide benefits to current students
Six reviewers-all from the engineering industry-participated, including AOL; DMJM H&N; Thales Communications, Inc.; Food and Drug Administration; Northrop Grumman TASC; and Alion Science & Technology/John J. McMullen Associates, Inc. (JJMA). GW Career Services and SEAS Career Services also participated by providing information on resume writing, interview tips, job search strategies, and more.
This was one of what the EAA hopes will be several events to bring together current students and alumni and build relationships between them. The EAA thanks all reviewers, alumni, and students for participating in its very successful resume critique event.
EAA Achievement Award: Call for Nominations
The EAA Achievement Award is offered annually to SEAS alumni who have achieved outstanding success in their chosen field of endeavor. The award is presented in May at the SEAS commencement ceremony and allows for recognition of outstanding alumni before the assembly of faculty, graduates, and the families of the graduates.
The EAA is requesting nominations from SEAS alumni, faculty, and university staff, as well as friends or relatives of the nominee. Please click here to download the eligibility criteria and instructions for the Engineer Alumni Achievement Award, including the nomination form.
A nominee should have an earned degree from SEAS and not be a member of the faculty or administration of GW. Posthumous awards are not considered.
Please include education and career details, organizational affiliations, vocational information, awards and publications, and any media reporting concerning the nominee. Typed submissions of no more than ten (10) pages including accompanying supporting material are appreciated.
Nominations must be received on or before January 3, 2006, and may be sent by postal mail to: GW EAA Awards Committee
School of Engineering and Applied Science
725 23rd Street, NW
Tompkins Hall, 210
Washington, DC 20052
Nominations may also be sent via e-mail to seasalum@gwu.edu. Please indicate "EAA Achievement Award Nomination" in the subject line.
Call for Alumni Help with Student Internships
Dear SEAS Alumni:
Last year, the SEAS Career Services Office was able to place 45 SEAS students in summer internships and more than a dozen students in part-time positions during the school year. This experience serves as a great differentiator when our students seek full-time jobs after graduation, and, therefore, one of my major goals is to help every student who desires either a summer internship or a part-time position during the spring and fall semesters to get one.
We are currently polling SEAS students for their interest in these opportunities in the coming year, and we believe that over 170 undergraduates and graduates will want such an opportunity. The SEAS Student Career Services Office, now in its second year under the voluntary direction of GW alumnus Scott Amey, has contacted more than one hundred IT and engineering companies and federal agencies about summer internship and part-time opportunities for the 2005 - 2006 academic year.
We need your help to achieve our goal of placing every student who wants this valuable experience. These students are majoring in civil engineering, environmental engineering, computer science, computer engineering, electrical engineering, biomedical engineering, systems engineering, mechanical engineering, and aerospace engineering. They could help your company or agency by providing enthusiastic technical support at a relatively low cost, and in turn, they would be able to enhance their educational experience through exposure to the workplace.
I ask that you e-mail Scott Amey (scott@scottamey.com), with the name and contact information (either phone number or e-mail address) of the person at your company or agency who handles summer internships and/or part-time positions.
Thank you for helping to make The George Washington University an exceptional and complete experience for our students.
Sincerely,
Timothy W. Tong, Ph.D.
Dean
Upcoming SEAS Events
Entrepreneurs Roundtable - Faculty/Student Affiliated Start-ups
Date: |
Monday, December 12, 2005 |
Time: |
12:00 - 1:30 pm |
Location: |
Alumni House, 1925 F Street, NW |
Come hear how SEAS Professor Simon Berkovich and doctoral student Alexander Kuznetsov teamed up with local entrepreneurs Andrew Polcha, Michael Polcha and Ram Singh of Snapp Technologies Corporation (a start-up) to commercialize GW technology. Listen to their start-up story and learn whether you can do the same thing!
Join us for this free event sponsored by the SEAS Council of Entrepreneurial Tech Transfer and Commercialization, the GW Engineers Council, and the GW Entrepreneurs Roundtable. No RSVP or registration is required.
For more information about the GW Entrepreneurs Roundtable and how you can get involved, please contact Joe Bondi.
EAA Board Meeting
Date: |
Wednesday, December 14, 2005 |
Time: |
6:15 pm: refreshments; 6:30 pm: meeting begins |
Location: |
107 Tompkins Hall, Dean's Conference Room (725 23rd Street, NW) |
For more information on the EAA, please visit www.seas.gwu.edu/eaa. RSVP your attendance to Anita Ponchione, associate director of advancement, at apytlarz@gwu.edu or 202-994-9866.
Save the Date - SEAS Alumni Reception at the Transportation Research Board 85th Annual Meeting
Date: |
Tuesday, January 24, 2006 |
Time: |
5:30 - 7:30 pm |
Location: |
Omni Shoreham Hotel, Cabinet Room, 2500 Calvert Street, NW (at Connecticut Ave) |
The School of Engineering and Applied Science will host a reception for SEAS alumni during the Transportation Research Board (TRB) 85th Annual Meeting. The TRB 85th Annual Meeting program will cover all transportation modes, with more than 2,500 presentations in 500 sessions addressing topics of interest to all attendees: policy makers, administrators, practitioners, researchers, and representatives of government, industry, and academic institutions. The 2006 meetings spotlight theme is "Transportation 2025:
Getting There from Here." Also highlighted will be "The Interstate Highway Systems 50th Anniversary - What Have We Learned?" TRB will attract approximately 9,000 transportation professionals from around the world to Washington, D.C., January 22-26, 2006. For additional information on TRB, please visit http://www.trb.org/meeting/.
GW vs. Dayton Men's Basketball Tailgate - Hosted by the Engineer Alumni Association
Date: |
Wednesday, February 8, 2006 |
Time: |
6:00 - 7:15 pm: Tailgate; 7:30 pm: Game begins |
Location: |
Tompkins Hall, Dean's Conference Room (725 23rd Street, NW) |
The EAA will host a pre-game tailgate for SEAS alumni before the GW Colonials take on the Dayton Flyers on February 8, 2006. The tailgate will feature food and beverages and will take place from 6:00 - 7:15 pm in the Dean's Conference Room in Tompkins Hall, just a short distance from the Charles E. Smith Center. Tip-off is at 7:30 pm.
The cost of a game ticket and entrance to the tailgate is $10, payable when you arrive at the tailgate. Cash or checks (payable to The George Washington University) will be accepted. If you already have game tickets, the cost of the tailgate is only $5. Only a limited number of game tickets are available, so reserve your tickets soon!
To reserve tickets and/or RSVP to the tailgate, please email seasalum@gwu.edu (indicate "EAA Tailgate" in the subject line) by Friday, February 3, 2006. Please include the following information in your response:
Name:
Email address:
Daytime Phone Number:
Number of tickets (at $5.00 each):
Number of people attending the tailgate (at $5.00 per person):
Total Cost (tickets + tailgate):
Join the charge - cheer on for another Colonials Victory!
GW Colonial Cable
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