On Saturday, November 3rd, Dallas SWE along with the Dallas – Fort Worth Professional Chapter of Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE) and National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) DFW Professionals organized the first College 2 Careers Leadership Conference aimed at high school juniors and seniors. Approximately 30 high school students attended the day-long event held at Blackstone Launchpad at UTD and sponsored by BNSF Railway, BlueAlly, UTD, and Verizon. Both students and professionals had opportunities to network throughout the day.
Attendees heard presentations from three inspiring and informative speakers: The Value of a Mentor by Gina Otts, Verizon; Change Your Mind, Change Your Life by Jonathan Jones; and The Art of the Interview, Connie Smith, BNSF. At lunch former and current interns ranging from high school student to college student to professional participated in the Panel discussion “The Value of a Summer Internship.” Several panelists became interns through the National Academy Foundation (NAF) program. Following the panel, professionals provided 1-on-1 mentoring, resume review, and mock interview practice to the students. Connie Smith of BNSF awarded scholarships to one male student and one female student. Scholarship judges from SWE, NSBE, and SHPE all helped evaluate the applications and pick the winners. The conference was capped off with a UTD campus tour for the students. Thanks to all the students, educators, and professional volunteers who turned out for this event.
