In recent years, students belonging to three Salt Lake Community College engineering clubs have visited the Hoover Dam, taken a trip to the Flaming Gorge power plant, toured the TRIGA Nuclear Reactor at the University of Utah and have even had opportunities to teach younger students at Cottonwood Elementary; stimulating interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
ASCE Club President: George Wilson gwilso67@bruinmail.slcc.edu
SWE Club President: Clare Nerdin clare_nerdin@yahoo.com
further information on the national organizations visit: asce.org, asee.org, or swe.org.
“Professors told me, ‘Well you’ve got to go to Princeton, don’t settle for less. You’ve got to go to Harvard, you’ve got to go to Oxford,’ so I [tell students] the same,” says Dr. Nick Safai faculty advisor to these clubs.
Safai makes sure that students interested in joining any of the three clubs have multiple opportunities to experience the industry firsthand.
Students receive a great deal of support from faculty advisor Safai.
These clubs are also part of a national organization of the same name: The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) and the Society for Woman Engineers (SWE).
“The reason these clubs have the same name as the national societies, nationally… they awarded us chapters, which is very important. We’re in the national registry,” says Safai.
Very recently, the club participated in the FIRST Lego League (FLL) competition; a robotics program for 9-16 year olds.
Future endeavors include a trip to the Panama Canal, giving students a real-life perspective on engineering projects that affect our everyday lives. These excursions are not only funded by student dues, but supported by the school as well.
“There are dues, as a club member, and then the college matches those,” says Safai.
Among other positions, Safai is the Division Chair for the International Division, Annual Program Chair for ASEE and the Treasurer for the Graduate Studies Division.
Students looking for information on joining the ASEE club are encouraged to go to room SI-054 (Science & Industry Building), from 3-5 p.m. on Fridays, or for the ASCE and SWE.
