The Region 5 Technical and Leadership Conference was held in New Orleans April 11 – 13 and provided a great opportunity to network with the Section Leadership from most of the other 23 Sections in the Region, as well as the full Region 5 leadership team. These conferences have always proven beneficial in providing ideas for new programs as well as different and innovative ways of administering current programs. Two common themes of these meetings has been 1) attracting and keeping good volunteers (more about this late), and 2) creating programs that provide more benefit to our members. We picked up some ideas in New Orleans but would welcome suggestions from any of you.

Houston Section won the 2002 Section Sustained Membership Growth Award given by the Regional Activities Board “for Outstanding Leadership and Results in IEEE Membership Development Activities for REGION 5”. This was in recognition of our overall membership growth in 2002 of almost 10%, which placed us tops in the world, when many Sections are suffering membership declines.

Regional Director, Jean Eason, acknowledged that this year celebrates Houston’s 75th anniversary as an IEEE Section. Our Section is one of the oldest Sections in the world and has always been leader in many areas. We pay tribute to all of our members over the years and, particularly, for all of those volunteers who have dedicated a good portion of their time and talents to bringing more value to these members. We are planning an anniversary party for sometime later this year so watch the website and the PocketScope for more details.

History was made in the Section on April 23 when the first meeting of the Houston Section GOLD Affinity Group met for dinner and networking at Pappasitos near the Astrodome. Over 20 new GOLD members attended along with several Section Executive Committee members. Many of the attendees were Student members from the award winning University of Houston Student Branch who are graduating soon and are looking to continue their IEEE membership as they transition from student life into the world of commerce. The historic event was organized by co-chairs Kristin Morrow and Rumana Chowdhury. If you are a “Graduate Of the Last Decade” you are eligible to participate in this new and exciting Affinity group. You can find Kristin’s and Rumana’s contact information here on the website.

Our second annual Golf Tournament, which raises money for college scholarships for deserving members’ students, has been moved from the Spring to the early Fall. We will have more details on this over the summer.

We spoke of volunteers in our opening comments, above. The primary success of any “volunteer” organization is getting the volunteers. As my 14-year old daughter would respond to that comment, “Well, duhhh, dad!” OK, so what holds people back from volunteering? Many things, I’m sure, but in my many years of serving in volunteer organizations and talking to dozens, if not hundreds, of potential new volunteers, one of the main things was the fear of not knowing what their responsibilities were and/or where they can get the information to help them. New volunteers can find the IEEE's complexity overwhelming. I learned this from firsthand experience. But now there are web sites that can help in understanding almost every position in IEEE, from being a Section Chair to being a committee member. And, if you're not yet sure about volunteering, there are sites that can help you get better acquainted with the organization. Find them at
http://www.theinstitute.ieee.org/inst_art.jsp?isno=03031&arnumber=03031_3w.
featurevolsites&section=4

 We have lots of opportunities to get involved, so give one of the ExCom members a call. We’ll invite you to attend one of our ExCom meetings to see where you would like to use your talents.

Following are some items of interest to our members gleaned from IEEE Corporate emails.

IEEE FOUNDATION'S LATEST GRANTS TO IMPACT PRE-COLLEGE EDUCATION
At its March 2003 Board of Directors Meeting, the IEEE Foundation authorized just over US$60,000 in new grants to support projects that encourage collaborations between engineers and local school districts; cultivate the next generation of engineers; and increase the understanding of the complex interactions between science, technology, and society. To view a full list of the grants awarded to date in 2003 please visit us on the web at http://www.ieee.org/organizations/foundation/html/2003grants.html. For additional information contact Glenys Gotthardt, IEEE Foundation, telephone
+1 732 981 3435; email foundation-office@ieee.org. Maybe your school district is on the list.

SOFTWARE CERTIFICATION TESTS BEGIN 1 APRIL
For mid-level software professionals, passing the IEEE Computer Society Certified Software Development Professional (CSDP) exam could give them the edge on the competition. The test is being given from 1 April to 30 June at Prometric Testing Centers in various cities in the United States and Canada. Candidates also can take the test at centers in Brazil, China, Hungary, India, Ireland, Japan and Russia. Members can even take a pencil-and-paper version on 2 May at the Software Technology Conference in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. To apply for the exam, visit
http://www.theinstitute.ieee.org/inst_art.jsp?isno=03031&arnumber=03031_3w.deadlinescs&section=2

PRESCRIPTION CARD OFFERS HALF OFF ON GENERICS
If the cost of your medication is soaring, try the free prescription discount card from RxAmerica being offered to U.S. members. You can save up to 50 percent on generic drugs and 20 percent off the retail price of brand-name medications. Find out how to get the card at http://www.theinstitute.ieee.org/inst_art.jsp?isno=03031&arnumber=03031_3w.fap&section=7