May 2023 – Your Chapter, Your Voice

May Meeting

This month, the chapter leadership wants to work on engaging with you, the members. We’ve been running the chapter for the last few years without a lot of mandate from the members. We’re looking to change that. We want to hear from you; what have we done well? What could we work on? What gets you excited? What would bring you to a meeting if you don’t already go?

It’s about more than just current members though. It’s also about how to attract new members and how to encourage people who attend meetings but aren’t members to join. How can we as a chapter grow and expand and how can leadership change and grow as well?

Membership

As the members of the chapter, you define our purpose. We would like to talk about ways to engage existing members and to draw new members and attendees to the events. For the chapter, membership isn’t defined by dues so much as participation. The chapter, and we the members, are stronger when we have a variety of people at the meetings asking questions. Of course there will also be the obligatory discussion on volunteering and helping run the chapter. The chapter is also stronger when the leadership varies both over time and in background.

Interests

Part of building chapter engagement and membership is ensuring that we have meetings and activities that interest our members. We’re looking for feedback and insights in how to better select our meeting topics/speakers. We also want to discuss the timing and locations for the meetings. This is an opportunity to help the chapter speak more to you and your interests. Do you prefer breakfast meetings? Do you think we need to be talking more about the newest research in fluid dynamics? Let us know!

Management

It might not be the most glamorous part of chapter operations, but management and administration are the backbone that keeps the chapter running. As a chapter, we have gotten lax when it comes to components of the bylaws, such as in the instance of elections. Some of the topics discussed above are also referenced in the bylaws (like the number of regularly scheduled meetings). The current leadership wants to take this opportunity to clarify how the membership would like to see the chapter operate, and then align the bylaws with those expectations.