WOMEN IN ECE

ALUMNAE NEWSLETTER

Time flies. Another year of exciting and fun events of WECE

has passed. This is an excellent way of keeping in touch with

ECE alumnae who would love to reminisce and watch WECE

grow. I would like to make you aware of how this unique,

supportive organization for Women in ECE is one of the most

active organizations in the ECE department at Georgia Tech.

My vision as WECE president this year was very simple: “Make

it as much fun as possible by lining up non-stop events and

involve as many members as possible in all the fun events.”

This comprises of arranging weekly workshops to organizing

monthly social events for the entire ECE department. It has

definitely been a very busy year. WECE was founded 8 years ago as an excellent support

organization for the women in ECE as they pursue their

academic and professional goals. I am pleased to share the

most exciting news with you: WECE has been recognized as a

5-star organization by the Presidents Council Governing

Board at Georgia Tech’s Up with the White and Gold

Ceremony this year. This is a mark of how WECE has grown

so much over the past couple of years. WECE strives to maintain its established yearly traditions.

We continue to host weekly workshops ranging from

registration workshops to help students pick out classes to

corporate information sessions and interview workshops.

Moreover, we invited Nicole Rennalls(WECE President 08-09)

to address WECE members as a friend, recruiter and mentor.

Letter Letter Letter Letter ffffromromromrom the Presidentthe Presidentthe Presidentthe President Inside tInside tInside tInside this Issuehis Issuehis Issuehis Issue

Letter from the President & Halloween 1

Thanksgiving Feast & Winter Wonderland 2

Giving Back, Valentine’s & Lecture Series 3

Pool Party & Doughnut Fridays 4

Our collaborative events with organizations like HKN,

IEEE, SWE, Women@CoC, Women’s resource center, and

WIE have contributed to the size and number of our

social events this year like the Pool Party, Holiday Party,

Rock Climbing, Company information sessions,

Halloween Party. WECE recently hosted a T-shirt Design

contest and received some wonderful entries to choose a

student-made design for T-shirts next year. It has been a great experience working with future

leaders, prospective members, and alumnae of WECE.

Please consider being on our alumnae e-mail list to

receive semester updates of WECE and alumnae activities

by e-mailing wece@ece.gatech.eduwece@ece.gatech.eduwece@ece.gatech.eduwece@ece.gatech.edu. We would also love

to get feedback on what you would like to see in future

newsletters and events. Kudos to the women in ECE on

keeping the organization growing! Sincerely, Prabha Viswanathan President, WECE 2011-12

Spr ing 2012 Newslet ter , Volume 2, I s sue 1 June 04, 2012

Zombies, Mummies, and Jackets…Oh my!Zombies, Mummies, and Jackets…Oh my!Zombies, Mummies, and Jackets…Oh my!Zombies, Mummies, and Jackets…Oh my!

By Anya Skomorokhova

Vice President

This year’s Halloween party was a collaborative event with

the Society of Women Engineers. The event featured several

contests and mini games. The two main contests were the

pumpkin carving contest and the costume contest, from

which the winners received an Amazon Kindle and an iPod

Nano. The mini games featured different miniature contests

such as trivia, mummy wrapping, and food eating. The

winners of these games received additional raffle tickets to

increase their chances of winning some of the other prizes,

such as a new HP backpack.

Party guests await costume judgingParty guests await costume judgingParty guests await costume judgingParty guests await costume judging at the Halloween Party.at the Halloween Party.at the Halloween Party.at the Halloween Party.

Page 2 WECE Alumnae Newsletter

Winter WonderlandWinter WonderlandWinter WonderlandWinter Wonderland

By Sahithya Dinakar

Treasurer

The Thanksgiving in November of 2011 was celebrated by

WECE during their general meeting on the 17th of November,

the week before Thanksgiving break. The event consisted of

a traditional Thanksgiving feast - turkey, gravy and stuffing

- open to all WECE members. It was a very holiday-family

atmosphere with members enjoying each others company

along with the buffet. The event successfully created a

festive atmosphere for the students away from home. The

idea and theme was so widely appreciated that WECE

organized another similar event in their next general

meeting, the week after Thanksgiving break!

The girls take a break from skating to pose at CentennThe girls take a break from skating to pose at CentennThe girls take a break from skating to pose at CentennThe girls take a break from skating to pose at Centennial Park.ial Park.ial Park.ial Park.

EXECUTIVE OFFICERSEXECUTIVE OFFICERSEXECUTIVE OFFICERSEXECUTIVE OFFICERS

Prabha ViswanathanPrabha ViswanathanPrabha ViswanathanPrabha Viswanathan

President

Anya SkomorokhovaAnya SkomorokhovaAnya SkomorokhovaAnya Skomorokhova

Vice President

Erin HansonErin HansonErin HansonErin Hanson

Secretary

Kira YKira YKira YKira Yang(Fall)ang(Fall)ang(Fall)ang(Fall)

Kavya Kavya Kavya Kavya NimmagaddaNimmagaddaNimmagaddaNimmagadda(Spring)(Spring)(Spring)(Spring)

Publicity Chair

Sahithya DinakarSahithya DinakarSahithya DinakarSahithya Dinakar

Treasurer

Jessica BlockJessica BlockJessica BlockJessica Block

Webmistress

Christine KhoChristine KhoChristine KhoChristine Kho

Historian

Yuvika RajanYuvika RajanYuvika RajanYuvika Rajan

Graduate Vice President

Alyse TaylorAlyse TaylorAlyse TaylorAlyse Taylor

Graduate Liaison

JanuaryJanuaryJanuaryJanuary

ECE Career Fair

FLL Lego Tournament

Ice Skating

What Not to Wear

FebruaryFebruaryFebruaryFebruary

Valentines’ Day Craft

Dr. McClellan DSP Talk

Professor Marilyn Wolf

Engineer’s Week

MarchMarchMarchMarch

Harris Presentaion

Tina Payne from DoPP

Professor Muhannad Makir

Union Pacific Presentation

AprilAprilAprilApril

Eaton Presentation

Pool Party with SWE

Registration Workshop

Up with White and Gold

What we have been up to…What we have been up to…What we have been up to…What we have been up to…

Thanksgiving FeastThanksgiving FeastThanksgiving FeastThanksgiving Feast

By Christine Kho

Treasurer

Although the weather didn’t bring snow to Atlanta

this year, the members of WECE managed to find a way

to have winter fun. The girls headed over to Centennial

Olympic Park’s outdoor ice skating rink for a night of

friends and relaxation zooming around on skates.

Everyone was excited to get out on the ice. Those who

had never skated before found new friends who helped

pull them to their feet and taught them to use their

momentum for speed. We had a big turn-out and

everyone had a really great time.

Giving BackGiving BackGiving BackGiving Back

WECE has participated in several community service

events this school year. Our first major event was TEAM

Buzz on October 22, 2011 which stands for Tech

Enhancing the Atlanta Metropolitan area. It is an annual

campus wide community service event that sponsors

several volunteer projects to be done on the same day in

the Atlanta Metro area. This year WECE

participated by helping to clean up and plant around

Kirkwood Urban Forest Park.

We also participated in Tech Beautification day, another

campus wide community service event. It is an opportunity

to serve the campus through a combination of general

cleanup and landscaping the grounds of campus. This year

WECE worked to plant bushes and spread pine in the

garden in front of the Klaus Advanced Computing Building.

It was very rewarding to enhance the garden in which many

WECE members pass by every day.

Our last major service event was the WECE annual

Medshare volunteer day on April 6, 2012. MedShare is a

nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the

environment and healthcare through the efficient recovery

and redistribution of surplus medical supplies and

equipment to underserved healthcare facilities in

developing countries. For the past couple years, WECE has

dedicated a day to go and volunteer at the local Medshare

office. This year we were able to help by repairing medical

equipment.

Page 3WECE Alumnae Newsletter

By Alyse Taylor

Graduate Liason

The WECE girls are ready to break ground.The WECE girls are ready to break ground.The WECE girls are ready to break ground.The WECE girls are ready to break ground.

WECE LoveWECE LoveWECE LoveWECE Love

WECE celebrates Valentine’s Day every year by holding a

Craft Center workshop on a general meeting prior to

Valentine’s Day. This year, we had about 15 girls join the

officers at the Craft center and get creative with glitter,

glue, sharpies and colorful cards. Some officers made

special cards for all the advisers in the ECE department.

This is WECE’s special way of thanking the ECE department

for being so supportive to our organization’s cause since 8

years. We also had a Valentines’ day table at the Van Leer

lobby on Valentine’s Day for students to drop by. Students

could pick cards or make some cards on the spot. The

Craft Center supported this workshop by providing all the

decorations and supplies.

By Prabha Viswanathan

President

ECE ECE ECE ECE ProfessionProfessionProfessionProfession SeriesSeriesSeriesSeries

This semester WECE hosted a ECE Profession Series.

We’ve had several faculty present research, curriculum

changes, and overall thoughts on life to not only women

ECE students but all ECE students. The series was a

wonderful success. Not only has it brought students in

contact with professors, but the professors enjoy feedback

as well. This spring semester we were lucky to hear from

Professor James McClellan, Professor Marilyn Wolf, and

Professor Greg Durgin. Dr. McClellan gave a spectacular

talk about the direction of Digital Signal Processing and

ways for students to keep up with what is new and exciting

in engineering technology. Dr. Marilyn Wolf presented on

Embedded Computing Systems and VLSI Systems. Dr. Greg

During gave a deep and moving talk on the direction of E-

Mag, whether or not a PhD is right for you, and if it is,

what to do with it after you accomplish it. We will wrap up

the series with a talk about 3D IC Technology by Professor Muhannad Bakir.

By Jessica Block

Webmistress

WECE Alumnae Newsletter Page 4

Pool Party!Pool Party!Pool Party!Pool Party!

By Kavya Nimmagadda

Publicity Chair

The pool party was so much fun! It was at the Crawford

Leisure pool at the CRC and sponsored by WECE and SWE.

There was a ton of delicious BBQ, good music and fun

games. And who doesn't love a good swim? I don't think I

could ever get sick of the humongous slide. More

importantly, it was really nice to mingle with other

engineering girls and commiserate about the Tech

experience. The pool party was a really good way to relax

after a rough week as well as a great way to end the

semester. Hopefully, this will become an annual tradition!

Doughnut FridaysDoughnut FridaysDoughnut FridaysDoughnut Fridays

By Yuvika Rajan

Graduate Vice President

Every Friday, we have dozens of doughnuts stacked on a

table on the 3rd floor of Van Leer for ECE students who are

in the Thank-God-It's-Friday spirit. Trudging through

every academic week at Georgia Tech is a challenge in

more ways than one and this event is our way of

appreciating students for their hard work each week. What

better way to steer an around-the-table discussion

between faculty and students than hot Coffee and fresh

Doughnuts?! WECE collaborates with HKN and IEEE to promote interaction between multiple student groups.

Rock Climbing!Rock Climbing!Rock Climbing!Rock Climbing!

By Prabha Viswanathan

President

Rock Climbing was this year’s team building activity. It

is a strenuous task. All the sporty ECE girls tried their best

to reach the top of the Rock Climbing wall at the CRC. It

was a good work out and a good Friday evening break as

well. This event was collaborated with the Women’s

Resource Center. It was a free event and a very good

opportunity to test your health and physique. WECE played

a part in enforcing how health is the primary most

important thing to take care of in life!

Prabha ViswanathanPrabha ViswanathanPrabha ViswanathanPrabha Viswanathan Kavya Kavya Kavya Kavya NimmagaddaNimmagaddaNimmagaddaNimmagadda(Spring)(Spring)(Spring)(Spring) Christine KhoChristine KhoChristine KhoChristine Kho

President Publicity Chair Historian

Anya Anya Anya Anya SkomorokhovaSkomorokhovaSkomorokhovaSkomorokhova Sahithya DinakarSahithya DinakarSahithya DinakarSahithya Dinakar Yuvika RajanYuvika RajanYuvika RajanYuvika Rajan

Vice President Treasurer Graduate Vice President

Erin HansonErin HansonErin HansonErin Hanson Jessica BlockJessica BlockJessica BlockJessica Block Alyse TaylorAlyse TaylorAlyse TaylorAlyse Taylor

Secretary Webmaster Graduate Liaison

Kira Yang(Fall)Kira Yang(Fall)Kira Yang(Fall)Kira Yang(Fall)

Publicity Chair

WECE Faculty/Staff Advisers: Dr. Leyla Conrad, Ms. Nirvana EdwardsWECE Faculty/Staff Advisers: Dr. Leyla Conrad, Ms. Nirvana EdwardsWECE Faculty/Staff Advisers: Dr. Leyla Conrad, Ms. Nirvana EdwardsWECE Faculty/Staff Advisers: Dr. Leyla Conrad, Ms. Nirvana Edwards

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