RICE CHBE ALUMNI

ChBE Alumni Committee

ChBE Alumni Committee

Committee Chair: Prachi Chapman

A group of department alumni and faculty, serving in an advisory and service role to the Rice Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering department, have been meeting since January 2009 to discuss ways to assist the department faculty, students, and provide networking opportunities for them and alumni.

The charter of the Rice Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering (ChBE) Alumni Committee is to advise the department on short-term and long-term goals, provide student mentoring, and coordinate alumni networking opportunities with the ultimate goal to prepare ChBE students for life beyond Rice and maintain engagement with the ChBE alumni community.

The ChBE Alumni Committee is divided into five subcommittees and the main functions include fostering alumni, faculty, and student networking opportunities, helping with the department newsletter, and mentoring students for career and professional success.

The committee works closely with the Rice AIChE Student Chapter, the ChBE Graduate Student Association (GSA), and the Rice SPE Student Chapter throughout the school year to coordinate mentoring and networking events and receive feedback from student leadership. Our focus is to help foster relationships between the Rice ChBE Alumni community and students and to help the next generation of students navigate life as chemical engineers.

Contact the current ChBE Alumni Committee Chair if you are interested in getting involved!

Subcommittees

 

Networking and Events

Chair: Will Kasper

The Networking subcommittee is dedicated to creating opportunities for alumni, faculty and students to interact with one another and build relationships. A major avenue by which this is accomplished is through the planning of formal networking events throughout the year, such as the Fall Networking Lecture and Dinner as well as the Chevron Energy Lecture in the spring. Together with the support of the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, the undergraduate chapter of AIChE and the CHBE Graduate Student Association, the subcommittee promotes opportunities for student, alumni, and faculty engagement. Some of the activities we support include:

  • Lead, plan and execute networking events with the ChBE Graduate Student Association (GSA) and the AIChE student chapter
  • Collaborate with the university organizations (e.g., centennial organizations) for event planning
  • Work with the Office of Alumni Affairs and other university organizations to plan and publicize events
  • Develop ideas for new events to foster alumni, student and faculty networking

Newsletter

Chair: Chuck Hewell

  • Prepare the content plan and schedule for the department newsletter, 
  • Coordinate the content assignments, tracking assignment progress, and managing the content reviews
  • Deliver completed newsletter content to the Department 
  • Serve as the Alumni Committee’ central contact with the Department for newsletter compilation, publishing, and distribution

Mentoring

Chair: Jeffrey Joyce

The Mentoring subcommittee’s goal is to foster a connection between students and alumni in hopes of preparing students for life after Rice. We do this through events meant to prepare students for job recruitment and give them insight into a variety of industries. Some of the activities we support include:

  • Assist the AIChE student chapter, ChBE GSA, and SPE student chapter in organizing the following recruitment mentoring activities, especially in organizing alumni volunteers:
  • Host an Alumni Career Panel to field questions regarding different industries our alumni have entered
  • Hold a fishbowl-style interview as an example for students to learn from
  • Arrange for Resume Reviews and Mock Interviews with ChBE alumni to prepare them to interact with potential employers
  • Facilitate a Mentorship Program with AIChE students, ChBE GSA, and SPE that connects students with alumni in order to provide guidance as they transition into the professional world

Faculty Award

Chair: John Cliver

  • Define eligible faculty to be considered for the Professional Excellence Award to be voted on by current students and alumni
  • Facilitate the nomination and voting process for the award
  • Present the award to the outstanding faculty member selected during the voting process on a periodic basis – approximately every two years at the Fall Networking Event

Communications

Chair: Charlie Meyer

  • Coordinate updates to Alumni section of ChBE website
  • Maintain archive of committee records and material