May 2020 - WTS NC Triangle News

WTS NC Triangle Express

May 2020

WTS International is rolling out a long-awaited re-brand that positions our organization for the future while honoring our past. See WTS International's press release here. You can see the new logo above, with the o rganization's new tagline:

Advancing Women

Advancing Transportation

Over the next few weeks, you'll see changes in our website and this newsletter. Our membership, communications, and registration will be integrated into a new platform that will streamline our operations and save our Chapter money. Please let us know what you think of the re-brand. Email us at [email protected] .

Visit our Website

WTS Trivia Night

The NC Triangle chapter will hold a virtual trivia game on June 4 starting at 5 p.m. Test your knowledge with questions from transportation to pop culture and everything in between! Will you be NC Triangle's Trivia Champion? Join us and find out. Register to participate here .

Southeast Rail Forum

After careful consideration of the situation surrounding the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and all precautionary measures recommended by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the World Health Organization (WHO), and Governor Cooper's latest recommendations and his declaration of a state of emergency, the Southeast Rail Forum Steering Committee decided to reschedule the conference for Spring 2021. D ates are not finalized at this time. As preparations are made for the event, the steering committee continues to keep the health and safety of all attendees, speakers, and volunteers in the highest regard. Please continue to visit www.southeastrailforum.com for future updates.

In Case You Missed It - Work/Life Balance Breakfast

On May 12, the WTS NC Triangle Chapter hosted a breakfast webinar titled "Make Feedback Work for You" with Deb Kennedy, Senior Human Resources Business Partner with Moffatt & Nichol. Deb provided great examples of how to giving good feedback and what to do when receiving feedback. She was able to weave timing and relative time frames into the different stages of providing and receiving feedback. Her presentation clarified appropriate responses on both sides of the feedback fence. The chapter raised $110.00 for the Food Bank of NC, donated by attendees. Thanks to everyone who participated.

Scholarship Award Winners

Congratulations to this year's WTS-NC Triangle Chapter scholarship recipients. Awards will be presented to the recipients at the Aug. 20 GO Gala event. Two of the recipients were:

Samantha Bates is a third-year Civil Engineering major at NC State University. Through her experience as a transportation traffic intern, she has assisted professional engineers in modeling and assessing traffic conditions and learned the importance of critical and creative thinking. After graduation, she is interested in collaborating on projects that improve infrastructure within her community.
Soumya Sharma is a second-year Ph.D. candidate at North Carolina State University, originally from Jabalpur, India. She is a research assistant at the Institute of Transportation Research and Education (ITRE) . She is currently working for an NCDOT funded project focused on studying the impacts of commercial autonomous vehicles on transportation planning, highway operations, and safety. She has previously worked as a Highway Safety Analyst for the FHWA's Highway Safety Information System (HSIS) where she analyzed large crash data for federal projects. At NCSU, she serves as an officer on the boards of the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) student chapter and the American Railway Engineering and Maintenance-of-Way Association (AREMA) student chapter. She is also involved with the Women's Transportation Seminar (WTS) student chapter at NCSU. Her goal is to use her research and leadership skills to enhance the safety and operations of the current transportation system.

Membership Drive

The WTS NC Triangle Chapter held a membership drive in April. The promotion resulted in 19 new members for WTS. There was also a competition for existing members to recruit new members. The winners, who received gift cards ranging from $50 to $200 were:

1st Place - Tara Hofferth, City of Raleigh

2nd Place - Mary Whitby, SM&E

3rd Place - Jill Gurak, Atkins

NCDOT MOBI Awards Luncheon

T his event is hosted by NCDOT and co-hosted by the WTS NC Triangle Chapter and NC State's ITRE. Originally scheduled for April 1, this event is postponed to Aug. 5. Current registrations will be honored on the new date, and registrations are transferrable if you can no longer make it. Registration is still open through July 24.

Sponsorships are still open for this event. For more information on how your company can become a sponsor, click here .

Go Gala - Save the Date

The chapter's annu al silent auction and social hour fundraiser for the WTS Foundation was originally scheduled for May 14 and has been rescheduled for Aug. 20. At this event, the chapter announces the winners of its annual Transportation awards and auctions off many items with all proceeds going to the Foundation, which funds mentoring and scholarship programs for young women who are interested in the transportation field. Click here to see an updated Save the Date flyer.