ASM CHAPTER NEXUS
Volume 7 Issue 2
October 2006

ASM Launches New Online Career Center!!!

On October 10, 2006, ASM International (ASM) launched its interactive job board, the ASM Career Center. Focusing on materials engineers and scientists, the ASM Career Center offers its members—and the materials industry at large—an easy-to-use and highly targeted resource for online employment connections. 
  
Both members and non-members can use the ASM Career Center to reach qualified candidates. Employers can post jobs online, search for qualified candidates based on specific job criteria, and create an online resume agent to e-mail qualified candidates daily. They also benefit from online reporting that provides job activity statistics.

For job seekers, ASM Career Center is a free service that provides access to employers and jobs in metals and materials. In addition to posting their resumes, job seekers can browse and view available jobs based on their criteria and save those jobs for later review if they choose. Job seekers can also create a search agent to provide e-mail notifications of jobs that match their criteria. For more information please contact Candace Cunningham at Chapters@asminternational.org.

LEADERSHIP DAYS 2006—UPDATE

The Leadership Days 2006 Wrap-up page is up and running on the ASM website! Click here to check out photos, session presentations and the winning Chapter of Excellence essays for the 2005–2006 chapter year.

MEET THE LEADERS OF ASM AT THE SOCIETY’S ANNUAL MEETING

A unique opportunity to network with leading members of ASM International will take place during MS&T 2006 in Cincinnati. The ASM Annual Meeting will be held Monday, October 15, from 4:00–5:00 p.m. at the Duke Energy Center.  Refreshments will be served during a reception following the meeting.

"This is the best place for members to meet the leaders of our professional society and to understand the progress we're making," said ASM President Prof. Reza Abbaschian, University of California, Riverside. "We're not what ASM 'used to be'—we're so much more than that. Our strategic focus on Lifelong Learning and Education, Emerging Technologies and the Global Materials Community is leading to new products and services that are creating an exciting new ASM."

An introduction to ASM's newest online products—ASM's Online Membership Community, Alloy Phase Diagrams Online, the MEMS Packaging Database and the Materials for Medical Devices Database—will be featured.

Prof. Abbaschian encourages all Material Advantage members and faculty advisors to attend. Don't miss this opportunity to meet the ASM officers who will serve during the 2006-07 term and to learn more about how ASM is serving the materials science and engineering community. 

MATERIAL ADVANTAGE STUDENT EVENTS AT MS&T ‘06

The Material Advantage student program staff has scheduled a number of exciting events for the Material Advantage student members, including the Student Chapter Development Conference (SCDC) on October 14, 2006. Goals of the SCDC include:

• Introducing student leaders to the updated Material Advantage program
• Sharing ideas with student chapter leaders
• Identifying specific needs of the student chapters and chapter leaders
• Gaining student input in building an ever adapting Material Advantage student program

The SCDC will be held at the Hyatt Regency in Cincinnati, Ohio as a lead-in event to MS&T. The event is free to all registrants including meals and the evening social event, but excludes housing costs. Interested students can register for the conference by visiting the Material Advantage website at www.materialadvantage.org.

Along with the SCDC, this year’s event will feature numerous activities devoted to serving the needs of our student members. Highlights include:

• Student Orientation
• Career Tips Session
• Networking Mixer
• Contests/Competitions
• Career Connection
• Mock Interviews
• Student Union/Lounge

Material Advantage Student Career Connection Human resource departments from companies representing various industries have been invited to participate in this student recruiting event. The companies will be speaking with students about potential employment opportunities. 

Ceramic Putting Contest Teams of four students compete using putters and balls they fabricate! Each team member must have his or her own putter and ball, which are judged prior to the competition. Prizes are awarded for aesthetics, closest putt and best putting team (the team achieving the shortest combined distance from the hole). Members are encouraged to attend to support students in this fun event!

Ceramic Mug Drop It’s a competition of brawn and beauty…Mugs fabricated from ceramic raw materials by students are judged on both aesthetics and breaking thresholds. Mugs are dropped from successively higher levels until the breaking threshold is reached. The mug with the highest successful drop distance wins! Come watch this smashing event!

Student Speaking Contest
The annual student speaking contest has been one of the highlights of the ACerS Annual Meeting and we hope to maintain that reputation as we continue the competition at the MS&T 2006 meeting.

Mock Interviews
On Sunday, October 15, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. students will have the opportunity to participate in a "mock interview" with a professional from the field of materials science and engineering. The interview questions will be based on one of several generic materials science position descriptions, along with questions about resumes and experience in the field. At the conclusion of the interview, there will be time for questions and feedback.

Student Chapter School Displays
This year, chapters will have an opportunity to showcase their unique chapter programs at the SCDC and MS&T. Each chapter in attendance has the opportunity to bring ONE display, no larger than standard poster board size, highlighting chapter events to share with other participants.
For more information about the Material Advantage student program, please contact Candace Cunningham at students@asminternational.org.

MEMBERSHIP MATTERS

This Month’s Topic: New Brochure to Help You Demonstrate Membership Value—Why are you a member of ASM?  Do you find special value in participating in your local Chapter? Can you hardly wait to receive Advanced Materials and Processes? Or, is having access to the information you need to solve problems what makes ASM membership valuable to you? 

Considering the diversity of ASM member interests and needs, ASM recently completed the development of a new membership brochure highlighting the latest programs, services and resources available through membership in ASM International. It is designed to help prospective members identify the member benefits they will find of greatest value, while also helping current members broaden their understanding of the valuable programs and services ASM International offers. Consider this piece your ASM “Owners’ Manual.”

Opening with the heading, “ASM International—Your Gateway to the Materials Information World” the brochure has content grouped around five main subject areas:

• Member Online Tools, Resources and Information
• Publications, Magazines, Books, Journals
• Communities, Affiliates, Chapters
• Career Enhancement and Education
• Conferences and Society Events 

The plans call for the brochure to be unveiled at MS&T 2006 in mid-October. It will be forwarded to all ASM members as part of the membership renewal process over the next several months and will also be used in membership recruitment efforts, including the new Membership Challenge. Contact Scott Giesler at Materials Park for details. 

Following MS&T all Chapters will receive copies of the new membership brochure for use in membership recruitment and retention activities.  Please contact Chapter Relations (Chapters@ASMInternational.org) for additional copies or membership development information.

ASM Education Foundation to Sponsor Best Practices Web Forum Sessions

If your Chapter is thinking about organizing its first Materials Camp for high school students or their teachers, if you need some new ideas to improve a Camp for 2007, or if you would simply like to learn more about Materials Camps, then you’ll want to join in the first Materials Camp Best Practices Web Forums being planned by the ASM Education Foundation for November 14 and 16.

These Web Forums will be presented as online workshops and will offer a combination of presentations featuring Camp organizers who will share their knowledge and experiences, along with plenty of opportunity for online participants to ask questions or provide input.  Supporting data/visuals will be provided.  

Be sure to watch for complete details. If you’re in need of Materials Camp information today, contact Scott Giesler, Society Programs Coordinator at 440-338-5151, ext. 5655, or e-mail:  scott.giesler@asminternational.org.  Also, be sure to check out the ASM Education Foundation Materials Camp web page at www.asminternational.org for a variety of background information, including the 2006 Eisenman Camp student group presentations.

NOMINATIONS FOR 2007 FELLOWS, NOMINATING COMMITTEE AND BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Deadlines and processes are announced

If you know a worthy candidate for the honor of ASM Fellow, or know someone who should be on the ASM Nominating Committee or ASM Board of Trustees, get your nominations in now!

1) Propose a candidate for the ASM Nominating Committee.

The Nominating Committee will select a nominee for 2007–2008 vice president and four nominees for trustee. While a candidate for membership on the Nominating Committee cannot be proposed by individual members, a candidate can be proposed by any chapter through its executive committee, any ASM committee, or any affiliate society board. Deadline is December 1.

2) Submit a candidate for the ASM Board of Trustees.

Every year, it is the privilege and responsibility of individual members, chapters, ASM committees, and affiliate society boards to submit candidates for the ASM Board of Trustees. Deadline is March 15, 2007. For nomination information, contact Leslie.Taylor@ASMInternational.org or check the ASM Website.

3) The honor of Fellow of ASM (FASM) recognizes members for distinguished contributions in the field of material science and engineering.

Criteria for the Fellow Award are: Outstanding accomplishments in materials science or engineering; Broad and productive achievement in production, manufacturing, management, design, development, research or education; and five years of current continuous membership. Deadline is Nov. 30. Please view the updated rules and use the NEW Fellows Nomination form located on the ASM Website. Total nomination is to be no more than 15 pages. For nomination information, contact Lori.Sobota@ASMInternational.org or check the ASM Website.

CHAPTER CALENDAR
Important Dates for the Chapter Year

October—Lists sent to chapter secretary for 2007 Member Recognition awards.           November 30—Submission deadline for Fellows nominations.
December 1—Submission deadline for Nominating Committee nominations.
February—Member Recognition awards sent to chapter secretary.
February 1—Submission deadline for most ASM Awards.
February 15—Year end financial reports due.March 15—Submission deadline for Board of Trustee and Vice President Nominations.
May 31—Deadline for all chapter annual business meetings to be completed.
May 31—2006–2007 chapter year officially ends.
June 1—2007–2008 chapter year begins.
June 30—Year-end chapter reports due.

NEXUS ARCHIVES
Back Issues of Chapter Nexus Available Online

By popular demand, all back issues of the Chapter Nexus are now available online for your convenient access! Simply follow the link in the top left navigation bar, and review the issue of your choice or ALL issues.
Be sure to share this link with all your executive committee members who can benefit from the information contained, or if they want to sign up to receive their own copy, they can do so at the same link!

NEXUS INSTRUCTIONS
Get the most out of the Nexus, your Officers Tools and Resources!

The Nexus is designed to be a quick point of reference for local chapter officers, providing you with valuable information as well as quick links to commonly used tools and resources. If you are receiving the HTML version of the Nexus, you will see a list of “Quick Links” on the top left hand side of the page. These links are explained here: (Please note that many of these items require site login before you are able to gain access.)

Update My Record—As you know, accurate information is vital to the success of a chapter and a society. Please take a moment to review your member information online and update any dated information.

Download My Roster—You have access to your chapter’s roster and can also retrieve your members’ information to run mailing labels.

Chapter Network List—This is a list of the active chapters in the ASM Network with links to their individual websites if they have them.

My Monthly Reports—Monthly reports?!? If you weren’t even aware of the monthly reports, now you have an easy way to locate them after your chapter
meetings or your executive committee meetings!

My Operations Manual—Revised annually, this document is the road map for your chapter’s success. Take a few minutes to review at least the table of contents. Many of the questions you have right now are probably answered in this resource.

Speaker’s Directory—Looking for just the right speaker for your technical program? Use our online tool to find who you’re looking for.

E-mail My Members—This tool, housed at the ASM Website, allows you to send simple text messages to your entire organization (except those without e-mails), maintain their security and privacy and get your message out in one burst.

Leadership Days—This link takes you directly to the web pages for Chapter Council’s annual training/informational event for the Chapter Network.

Contact My Chapter Council Rep—Chapter Council is a volunteer organization comprises of 15 experienced chapter leaders representing the 15 districts of the United States chapters. The Council guides the chapter system and serves as the voice of chapters to the Board of Trustees. This link will take you to the council pages AND the representative list so you can have immediate access to YOUR volunteer representation.

Nexus Archives—Every past issue of the Nexus is housed here for your convenience. Review past issues, past topics or learn more about the ASM Chapter system.

Ask Candace! —Have a question? Have a concern? Need some guidance? Candace Cunningham is the Chapter Relations Coordinator at ASM Headquarters. If she doesn’t know the answer, she’ll work tirelessly until she finds it for you.

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