Message

The Acadiana Pipeline

Newsletter for the Acadiana Branch of the American Society of Civil Engineers

Volume 21, Issue 7 www.asceacadiana.net April 2003

President's Message

Dear Branch Members,

The Acadiana Branch is very excited to receive funding from the State Public Affairs Grant. This Grant is directed towards the civil engineering book donations, purchasing airtime for the Civil Engineering Commercial and funding the Career Connections Expo. The Board has decided that the book donations will be made this year to the New Iberia Parish School Board. The Commercial will be aired during premium slots on Fox 15 and KLFY during times that will target elementary and middle school aged children. Additionally, Fox 15 and KLFY will air televised public service announcements at various times. These commercials continue to stress the importance of Civil Engineering to the general public. Thanks to Mr. Jeff Duplantis for his hard work as the Public Relations Chairman.

After a period of being down, the Acadiana Branch’s web page is back online. The Acadiana branch website has been changed to www.asceacadiana.net . Thanks to Kim Landry for the excellent job she has done.

It’s that time of the year when the Acadiana Board nominates individuals for the following ASCE Awards; Outstanding Young Civil Engineer, Outstanding Civil Engineer, Outstanding Government Civil Engineer, Outstanding Young Government Civil Engineer, Outreach Award, Lifetime Achievement Award and Wall of Fame. If any member has any nomination suggestions or would like more information on the awards, please contact me at 232-0777. Board officer elections will be held during the April Branch membership meeting.

Finally, I would like to extend my condolence to the families of men and women overseas that have died fighting for their country. May God bless them and the men and women who are still fighting for the pursuits of peace and justice.

Larry Cramer, P.E.

Acadiana Branch Meeting

DATE: Thursday, April 17, 2003

TIME: 12:00 PM

LOCATION: Lafayette’s Restaurant

1025 Kaliste Saloom Rd

Lafayette, LA 70503

DINNER: Luncheon Buffet

PRICE: $15.00 for Professional / $6.00 for Student

GUEST SPEAKER: Round Table Discussion

TOPIC: “Transmission of Files, Seals and Signatures”

* Please RSVP with John at 337-837-7160, by Friday, April 11, 2003

Member Profile

William H. Miller of Lake Charles, LA holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from the Louisiana State University, and is a registered professional engineer in Louisiana. Beginning his career in 1950, Miller is currently Vice President at F. Miller and Sons, Inc. His career has been concentrated in the construction engineering field, and much of his professional experience has involved heavy construction requiring the driving of many types of pilings on land and in water located in the State of Louisiana. Notable among those projects are the Calcasieu River Bridge and Approaches (US-171), the Vermilion River Bridge (Pinhook) and the Bayou Teche Swing Span Bridge (St. Martinville). Miller has served as a member of the Design of Shore Protection Standards Committee of ASCE. He is currently serving on the Louisiana Board of Registration for Engineers and Surveyors and is Secretary of that Board. The Acadiana Branch would like to congratulate Mr. Miller on his recent election to Fellow Grade in the American Society of Civil Engineers.

ATTENTION! Update Your Contact Information!

ATTENTION! Update Your Contact Information!

Due to increased distribution expenses, the Acadiana Branch is in the process of converting the newsletter to email format. Once converted, there will no longer be a hard copy mailed out; therefore, please visit www.asce.org/myprofile or call 1-800-548-2723 or 703-295-6300 to update your e-mail address. You may also update your mailing address, phone number, and other personal information there also.

The 2003 Member-Get-a-Member Drive promises to be one of ASCE’s most successful drives yet.

You can participate in two ways: Simply submit colleagues’ names and e-mail addresses at www.ASCEDrive.org . ASCE will send the potential members an e-mail notification of their nomination with a link to the Membership Drive Web site, where they can get complete details on ASCE membership and complete a membership application online. You can also participate by asking colleagues to join ASCE. Either way, potential members can include your name in the “sponsor” section of their membership application to give sponsorship credit.

In response to a survey of ASCE members regarding the Membership Drive, the 2003 campaign is structured with exciting prizes that will change each month. The more new members you sponsor, the more chances you have to win. Go to www.ASCEDrive.org for prize details.

This year’s Drive asks you to “Find Five for ASCE.” For the first five new members sponsored, you will receive a $100 American Express Gift Cheque. The overall Top Recruiter from November 1, 2002, through September 30, 2003, will receive their choice of $1000 or a complimentary trip to the 2003 Annual Conference & Exposition in Nashville, TN.

You can also help the Acadiana Branch become the top growing Branch from Zone II – winning organizations get $250 cash and a banner, and one overall winner will receive $1000 cash and a deluxe banner.

Each month, ASCE will announce new monthly prizes for the Membership Drive. For more information or to request membership applications, please call 800-548-2723, e-mail ascedrive@asce.org or go to www.ASCEDrive.org .

Acadiana Branch News:

Academic Prerequisites for Licensure and Professional Practice

The following is a summary of the comments received following Dr. Dennis Truax’s presentation on Policy 465 at the Acadiana Branch’s March Monthly Meeting:

For 8

Against 6

Undecided 1

“I believe a 5 yr program is warranted, with the 5^th year being an internship, and then 4 years of work experience. Something needs to be done to raise our professional status.” (PE, for)

“Better preparation is a must!! If advanced degree is no more than a make up of cut subjects, then it will fail in the long run. The advanced degree should specialize in the chosen field.” (PE, for)

“Certification is more important. Intern program accountability may be needed in place of masters.” (PE, for)

“If co. are not happy with there new engineers they should be more selective. I feel that 2 years of experience is worth much more than a M.S. degree and the public will gain more in the long run.” (EI, against)

“Stop reducing requirements for # of hours. Prefer going to 5 yr program rather than Masters.” (PE, against)

“I agree that the current model could use some “tweaking” but is a good one.” (PE, against)

“I feel some of the ideas are valid, but at the same time conflicts with some of the policies of ASCE. Such as perception in the public and addition of non engineers into technical societies.” (PE, for)

“The policy needs to be considered further - a degree beyond the bachelor’s degree to make up for lost undergrad time is not the way to go. Need to concentrate on board certification & continued education. Stop relying on universities - they don’t care.” (PE, against)

Thanks to those who participated. The Board will present our findings to the State

National ASCE News:

EMPLOYER RECOGNITION PROGRAM FOR EXEMPLARY SUPPORT OF YOUNGER MEMBER INVOLVEMENT IN ASCE ACTIVITIES

The Program

Younger Member enthusiasm, meaningful involvement and growth are the keys to ASCE's future. As a means of fostering individual younger member participation in Society activities, the ASCE Committee on Younger Members (CYM) has developed a program to help Sections and Branches recognize those employers who encourage their young engineers to get involved. Special recognition will go to those organizations that exhibit exemplary support evidenced by efforts such as:

Providing a model for involvement through company‑wide participation in local, regional and national ASCE activities

· Allowing young engineers time off to attend ASCE meetings and seminars

· Supporting and encouraging technical and professional growth

· Encouraging young engineers to prepare articles for publication in ASCE professional and technical journals

· Assisting in the payment of local and national dues

Younger Members who want their organization to be considered for recognition will fill out a questionnaire, which describes their organizations' level of compliance with these guidelines. Sections and Branches, with the help of local Younger Member Groups, will forward meritorious submittals to CYM. After its review, CYM will prepare a list of exemplary employers, by Section and Branch. This list will be submitted for publication in Civil Engineering magazine or ASCE News. Sections/Branches will be encouraged to provide local recognition (for example, a certificate of commendation) to selected organizations.

Program Operation

The program will operate as follows:

1. Award submittals will be received through Sections and Branches.

2. With the help of local Younger Member Groups, Sections/Branches will recommend exemplary organizations for recognition.

3. CYM will review nominees and their submittals at its fall meeting. This review will be for award consistency and to better define minimum standards (The entire nomination form must be completed.).

4. For those organizations that meet award criteria CYM will:

(a) submit a list of winning organizations for publication in Civil Engineering magazine or ASCE News; and

(b) encourage Sections/Branches to provide winning organizations with local recognition.

Your firm may be nominated for the award each year. If your firm is a previous winner of the award, the nominator must be a different younger member in the firm.

The deadline is August 1, 2003. The nomination form may be accessed at the ftp site ftp://gsd.asce.org/Younger_Members/Employer%20Recognition%20Form%20’03.doc

Links

www.asceacadiana.net

ASCE Acadiana Branch Website

www.asce.org

ASCE National Website

http://bridgecontest.usma.edu/

West Point Bridge Design Contest

http://www.discoverengineering.org/

Discover Engineering Online

If you know of any Civil Engineering related websites that may be of interest to your fellow professionals, please contact Jeff Duplantis at jduplantis@sellersandassociates.com so we can post them.