About #GivingTuesday
#GivingTuesday was November 28, 2017. Thanks to a generous anonymous matching donation, SWE’s Board of Directors and Leadership, and SWE’s members and donors, we raised $13,190 yesterday! This exceeded our goal of $10,000 and is, by far, our most successful #GivingTuesday to date!
About the SWE Scholarship Program
In 2017, SWE distributed 233 new and renewed scholarship valued at over $715,000 to women pursuing engineering and technology degrees. In his show, Last Week Tonight, John Oliver highlighted SWE as one of the largest providers of scholarships to only women in the United States. You can learn more about endowing a scholarship here or discover the different scholarships SWE is able to provide each year here.
About Nicole Woon
Nicole Woon is a SWE Life Member and Program Manager at Microsoft. At SWE, Woon currently serves on the Editorial Board, the WE Local Advisory Board, and the Leadership Summit Taskforce. Highlights from her past SWE leadership roles include SWEFL Coordinator, Collegiate Director on the Society Board of Directors, and University of Pennsylvania Section President.
To discuss the importance of the Scholarship Program and giving back to SWE, we asked Woon to share why she donates to SWE and the impact she sees the organization having. A special thanks to Woon for not only donating to SWE, but also to taking the time to share her thoughts with us!
SWE: Why do you donate to SWE?
Woon: “I donate to SWE to give back to the community that I’ve personally gained so much from, ameliorate the financial burdens of higher education, and inspire future generations of engineers to discover their own value from this organization. Moreover, I know firsthand the impact that a scholarship can have. I received two SWE scholarships thanks to the Philadelphia SWE section: the 2013 Dow Chemical Company Scholarship and the 2014 Merck & Co. Scholarship. These helped offset my college expenses and gave me an opportunity to network with both collegiate and professional members, many of whom I’m still in touch with today.
I am fortunate to work at a company that actively encourages us through its philanthropic efforts to live and breathe our mission to “empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.” Thanks to our generous giving program, I have double the impact on SWE through monetary company matching for every hour that I volunteer with the organization. Because of this, I’m on track to endow a scholarship and pay it forward!”
SWE: How does SWE make an impact?
Woon: “When I was a college freshman, one of my mentors shared a perspective that still resonates with me today: “You get out what you put into it.” This was a driving principle when I chose how I wanted to be involved in SWE. One thing that I love about SWE is that my connection didn’t end when my college years did; there is active professional involvement across industries and from all career levels. Over the years, my scope has shifted depending on my interests at the time and where I wanted to expand my toolbox, be it between tactical and strategic; professional development, outreach, and membership as a focus area; or local, region, and society involvement.
As a result, I’ve met incredible SWEsters along the way. Some of my favorite memories came from times that were as simple as road-tripping to a board retreat (shout-out to Emily!) or as distinguished as presenting at a region conference lunch keynote with SWE founding member Alma Forman and then President-Elect Colleen Layman to over 450 attendees during my term as Collegiate Director.
SWE’s pillars of professional development, outreach, membership, and more means there’s a place where anyone can find their niche. Maybe you want to strengthen your skills in a particular area. Maybe you want to teach students how to integrate STEAM principles (science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics). Maybe you just want to meet new people and make friends–that’s perfectly fine and highly encouraged.
There are so many ways to give. You can donate money, spend time volunteering at an outreach booth, mentor a high school student, contribute event ideas to your local section, the sky’s the limit!”
Thank you to our FY17 (7/1/2016 – 6/30/2017) Scholarship Donors:
Abbie Garcia
Alicia Courtney
Andrew Schaaf
Audrey Leigh Rowe
Beatrice R. Langmade
Carol Jean Weber
Cecilia Ann Elmore
Chelsea Michelle Powell
Cheri Leigh
Cheryl A. Manning
Chris Williamson
Christina Drouet
Cynthia J. Matthews
Daniel Paul
Debra L. Nelson
Derek Richards
Diane C. LaFortune
Elaine J. Kuehn
Elizabeth Buzzard
Eric Zimny
Erin E. Sun
Frances A. Ferris
Frances A. McNamee
Gabrielle Abeghe Obiang
Greg Raspanti
Jacqueline Vivian Adelfio
James Cooney
Jane L. Driscoll
Jane Mead
Jennifer McFerran Brock
Jennifer Therese Sterling
Jessica L. Asay
Jim Lesko
Jimmy Ho
JoAnn Silverstein
Jodilyn A. Peck
Joel T Patterson
Joyce M. Kraley
Judith E. Nelson
Karen M. Conmy
Kathy M. Bracic
Kenneth Davis, Sr.
Kevin Ford
Laura D Vincent
Laurie R. Ramsay
Lilith A. Terry
Linda Freeman
Linda K. Lanham
Linda O’Maley
Lois C. Stevens
Lydia Watt
Margaret J. Ludowese
Maria Ann Legato
Maria L. Magana
Martha Jaworski
Mary Fan
Mary Virginia Stubbs
Nancy Cook Long
Nicole Wilson
Nicole Woon
Pamela A. Williamson
Pamela M. Morison
Patricia M. Knight
Rena M. Zurn
Rob Wilson
Robert Bowdidge
Robin M. Orans
Ronald Grove
Ruth M. Hupprich
Shirley C. McCarty
Spencer Oldemeyer
Stacey M. DelVecchio
Stephanie A. Balik
Susan Lui
Tom Puiia
Valeta Carol Chancey
Yvonne L. Simms
