Description

The national engineering honor society, Tau Beta Pi, was founded at Lehigh University in 1885 by Dr. Edward Higginson Williams Jr. to honor exemplary character as undergraduates in engineering and high achievement in the field of engineering. The Iowa Alpha Chapter of Tau Beta Pi was founded on December 20, 1907 and has since initiated more than 8,500 members.

Affiliations

• National Tau Beta Pi Association

Constitution / Tier

File	1365993981.pdf
Tier	Student Organization - Affiliated

Membership Information

Student Members	14
ISU Members	1
Non-ISU Members	0
Allowed Members	By Invitation
Allowed Officers	Members
Membership Qualifications	Top 12.5% of the Junior Engineering Class, the top 20% of the Senior Engineering class and the top 20% of Engineering Graduate Students are eligible to join Tau Beta Pi.
Membership Restrictions	None
Elections/Selection	Once per semester
Meetings	Iowa Alpha Advisory Board meets once each semester, General Meetings are held biweekly, Cabinet meetings are held as needed. Learn more on our website https://iowaalpha.tbp.org/

Description of Regular Meetings/Activities

Committee and General meetings alternate on Thursday nights from 5:30-6:30 PM in Pearson 1105. At these meetings members of the club hear from faculty researchers and about upcoming events in the club.

Description of Special Events

Roller Coaster Event for Middle and High School Students The Tau Beta Pi Rollercoaster competition is an outreach event where middle school and high school students design a rollercoaster in the style of a Rube Goldberg machine to carry a small metal ball over a track of the students’ design. The objective of the event is to allow students to express their creativity while introducing them to basic physics and engineering concepts.

Engineering Futures Engineering Futures helps prepare students with skills that they don’t receive in the classroom. These people skills help prepare participants for situations they will face as professional engineers and are taught by facilitators provided by the National Association.

Adopt-A-Highway The Adopt a Highway project is done during Fall and Spring Semesters ad involves collecting trash on both sides of a two mile stretch of Lincoln Highway on the west side of Ames. Iowa Alpha initiates and members form four groups with each group cleaning one side of the highway for 1 mile. The Iowa DOT supplies bags and reflective vests for the participants and disposes of the bags of trash.

Pi Mile Run The Pi Mile Run allows Tau Beta Pi members and Engineers’ Week representatives to get involved with the community, showcases the two student organizations, College of Engineering and Iowa State University in the Ames community, and supports worthy charitable causes.

Free Coffee Friday The Free Coffee Friday service project provides free coffee, tea and hot chocolate to engineering students, faculty and others between classes on three Friday mornings during fall and spring semesters. The first Free Coffee Friday event is from 8:00 am to 10:30 am in the atrium of Student Innovation Center, an area with a high volume of students going to and from class.