North Dakota Professional Engineer

North Dakota Society of Professional Engineers
A State Society of the
National Society of Professional Engineers

North Dakota Professional Engineer

In this Issue: [President's Report] [Membership Opportunity] [MathCounts] [Annual Meeting]
[Nominations Report] [Chapter 1 News] [Chapter 3 News] [Chapter 4 News] [B+ 30] [Board of Registration]

Spring 2008

President's Message
by Michael Gunsch, P.E., NDSPE President

I started this report by asking myself how to summarize a year of extensive information, change and transition. There is no practical way to disseminate all the information provided by our National Society with respect to issues of concern, membership, services and the continuing desire to protect, improve and enhance our profession. Therefore, I encourage you to read and follow the numerous issues via the PE Magazine, the national website www.nspe.org, our state website www.ndspe.org, and by participating in State, Chapter and community activities.

I believe that our State and National Society are at a crossroads and point of transition where we need to reconnect with our membership in order to understand their needs, desires and to better define our focus on providing services to them as a professional organization. In the near future NDSPE will send out a membership survey focused on obtaining data upon which we as a state society can build and act to better understand who we are, why we are members, and what can be done to encourage membership and active participation. One success we have already had in our effort to grow is the creation of the NDDOT Enterprise Agreement. This topic is discussed in a related article and focuses on providing educational opportunities and member services to engineers working for NDDOT. Another approach is the expansion of our invitation list for the annual meeting to include associated engineering organizations and nonmembers.

An important topic for the annual meeting will be what is known as B+30. This initiative would require additional education beyond the ABET required Bachelors of Science Degree prior to an engineer obtaining professional registration. This topic is discussed in an article reprinted in this newsletter with permission of the ND Board of Registration. While supported by NSPE, Resolution P-168, and other professional and technical organizations, there are others that are animatedly opposed to this approach. You are encouraged to review this article and be prepared to discuss as we are hoping to have a position statement for NDSPE to forward to NSPE.

On a local level a number of transitions are occurring within our State Society. These include web site updates, conversion to an electronic newsletter, consolidating of Chapter and State email databases within our State Office. These transitions and other have come through our hiring PMSI, a Bismarck company, to provide administrative services. A special thank you to Mary Nelson for her many years of service in this position, and her assistance with the transition and to Kevin Nelson for both creating and maintaining our website since its inception.

Also in 2008-2009 North Dakota MATHCOUNTS will be converted to a separate 501(c) (3) non-profit foundation. This will strengthen their ability to act independently for continued success and growth. The resulting organization is expected to be very similar to our NDSPE Education Foundation with members of NDSPE comprising the majority of the Board.

Speaking of the NDSPE Education Foundation their success is dependent upon donations from our membership and others. Since most of their revenues occur from collection at our annual meeting I am issuing a challenge grant to the membership. As NDSPE President it is my desire to set an example and encourage others to follow. Therefore, I will donate $10 to the foundation for each individual member who donates $50 or more at the annual meeting, up to a total of $300. The challenge goal is to achieve a minimum donation of $300 plus $50*30 = $1,500 for a total of $1,800, though I would like to see collections exceed this amount.

Dale Carnegie in his book entitled “How to Stop Worrying and Start Living” states “Our trouble is not in ignorance, but inaction.” OTINIBI is a short acronym or new word. I believe we know, though have yet to fully recognize the issues before us and what needs or can be done to effectively invoke change, growth and enhancements in our profession. This cannot be accomplished by a force of one, but as an organization with the support of many we can achieve our objectives and begin a movement toward our future. Our Society is comprised of many professionals and leaders capable of being champions in supporting our profession, mentoring young engineers, and giving back to our communities.

Recently at the State MATHCOUNTS competition I made an analogy regarding Force equals Mass times Acceleration (F=ma). As individuals our Mass is a function of our knowledge through education, training and experience, while our Acceleration is a function of our ability to apply that knowledge. So I encourage everyone to use what they have learned to become an active force in our society. Thank you to all the officers and members of our society and their support during this past year. I look forward to seeing many of you at the annual meeting.

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NEW NDSPE MEMBERSHIP
OPPORTUNITY MAY REVERSE TREND
by James D. Landenberger, P.E., Secretary/Treasurer of NDSPE

Even though the North Dakota State Society of NSPE continues to be one of the strongest state societies in the country based on the overall membership percentage of registered professional engineers in the state, NDSPE has witnessed a membership decline over the last eight years. In 2001 there were 261 non-student members, our highest total ever, while by 2003 this number had decreased to 246 members. By 2005 we slipped to 231 members, and at the end of 2007 there were 230 members. Albeit this is only a 12% decrease, this is not a desirable trend that the current leadership of NDSPE wants to see continue and as a group, we need to discover ways to reverse this trend.

Well thanks to a number of dedicated NDSPE members and associates with the North Dakota Department of Transportation (NDDOT), specifically Michael Gunsch, Dale Heglund and Kevin Nelson of NDSPE, and Francis Ziegler, Tim Horner, and Bob Evans of NDDOT, there is a way to improve upon our declining membership numbers. To assist in the process NSPE President Robert Miller came to North Dakota to discuss with this group an innovative program that subsequently resulted in the creation of a unique partnership.

Introducing the NDDOT Enterprise Agreement

This newly signed agreement allows NDDOT to enroll a minimum of ten (10) professional engineers into the NSPE Enterprise Program for a discounted rate of $166.50 per year per participant, compared to the usual $185. This fee is the same membership fee that any Enterprise member pays, and under this agreement will cover the cost of Professional Development Hours (PDH’s) earned throughout a membership year. NDSPE has agreed to provide opportunities for NDDOT Enterprise Participants to secure no less than six (6) PDH’s and potentially more during the course of a membership year. As a registered professional engineer (PE) in the State of North Dakota, one must attain thirty (30) PDH’s over a two-year span to fulfill our state’s continuing education requirements. Being a member of NDSPE definitely provides ample opportunities to attain the required PDH’s. These credits will be obtained through a culmination of monthly chapter meetings, State annual meetings, on-line courses, and other special courses. As with any membership, the fees may vary due to State or National increases in future years. The agreement is for one year after which NDSPE and the NDDOT will evaluate its continuation.

Above and beyond PDH’s, NDDOT is encouraged to submit specific topics that they wish to see included in NDSPE educational offerings. NDSPE will also provide single group annual billing to NDDOT to streamline methods for updating participants and minimizing accounting efforts necessary to maintain the NDDOT membership enrollment. Another added benefit for NDDOT employees is the opportunity for employees to establish mentoring and professional relationships will other professional engineers. These relationships will help to promote the path to licensure for their young engineers.

If the NDDOT Enterprise Program is as successful and beneficial as anticipated, NDSPE will consider expanding the program to other agencies at the state, county, or municipal level. The only requirement being that the agency must enroll a minimum of ten (10) paying members. We look forward to working with NDDOT on implementing this new program, and will report back next year on the results. If you have questions regarding the NDDOT Enterprise Program, or the NSPE Enterprise Program in general, please contract myself or the NDSPE President, Michael Gunsch.

Nominations Committee Chair Annual Report
by C. Gregg Thielman, PE, NDSPE Past President

The Nomination Committee consists of 5 members:

Gregg Thielman, P.E., Chair
Debbie Jacklitch-Kuicken, P.E., Chapter 1, Grand Forks
Tom Atkinson, P.E., Chapter 2, Minot
John Spilman, P.E., Chapter 3, Bismarck
Kent Ritterman, P.E., Chapter 4, Fargo

This committee of five members is responsible for the nomination of members for the following offices:

President-Elect – One position
Vice-President – One position
Secretary Treasurer – One position

State Board of Registration – Three names are forwarded to the Governor for his appointment to the board

National Representative – One position

The committee met via email this year and is pleased to forward the following names for consideration for their respective offices for the elections to be held at the Annual Meeting in 2008.

President-Elect – Brad Schmidt P.E. – Fargo, Current Vice-President

Vice-President – Dale Heglund P.E. – Bismarck

Secretary Treasurer – James Landenburger P.E. – Bismarck

State Board of Registration –
Wayne Larson P.E. – Fargo
Jeff LeDoux P.E. – Fargo
Mike Murie P.E. – Grand Forks/Fargo

National Officer – Tom Neigum P.E. – Bismarck

The President for 2008-2009 will be Jay Kleven P.E. – Grand Forks, who was elected to the President-Elect position in 2007.

MATHCOUNTS
by Brad Kurle, State Coordinator

We are currently in the middle of the 2007-2008 MATHCOUNTS season. The state of North Dakota registered 167 schools with about 900 students participating at the local level this year. This year marks the 25^th anniversary of the MATHCOUNTS program, and we are very excited to have such a high level of participation.

The large number of people involved in the state program necessitated some updates on our website in order to streamline the registration process. We changed the design and added a lot of new information on our site in order to meet the demands of quick registration deadlines and making information more readily available. The new website has also helped lighten the work load on co-coordinators Michael Gunsch and Linda Oster, and also for myself. Please visit us at www.ndmathcounts.org to see the updated site and learn more about our program.

The North Dakota state competition was held at the Ramkota Inn in Bismarck on March 10. The competition hosted 160 students from around the state. North Dakota First Lady Mikey Hoeven and NDSPE President Michael Gunsch spoke at the luncheon encouraging this year’s mathletes in their pursuit of math and science excellence.

Again this year, a t-shirt design competition was sponsored. James Cavo from Washburn High School submitted the winning design. James was presented a CD/MP3 player and t-shirt of his design at the luncheon during the luncheon. Seeing a room full of these t-shirts gave James a chance to see his artwork in use.

The top finishers this year at the state competition are:

Individuals: Phil Brockman, PRB Homeschool, Thompson; Chris Liepold, Valley Middle Scholl, Grand Forks; Nolan Meidinger, Linton Public School, Linton; and Loren Anderson, Horizon Middle School, Bismarck.

School Teams: Horizon Middle School, Bismarck (Loren Anderson, Alexander Butland, Andrea Casson, and Drew Volk, Coached by Stephanie Hochhalter); Valley Middle School, Grand Forks (Ryan King, Chris Liepold, Kevin Zeng, and Yuqi Zhang, Coached by Amy Christianson)

Countdown Round: Phil Brockman, PBR Homeschool, Thompson; Loren Anderson, Horizon Middle School, Bismarck

This year the 2008 national competition will be held in Denver, Colorado on May 8-11 and hosted by Lockheed Martin. The North Dakota state team will consist of Phil Brockman, Chris Liepold, Nolan Meidinger, and Loren Anderson and will be coached by Stephanie Hochhalter. We wish the team well and know that they will represent the state proudly. Watch for more information on our website as the national competition approaches.

Chapter 1 News – Grand Forks
by Brian Weiss, P. E., Chapter 1 President

Chapter 1 membership currently meets on the third Tuesday of each month with a social starting at 6:30 p.m. followed by the 7:00 p.m. business meeting. This year the meeting location has moved to AALTOS Garden Cafe Restaurant at the new Canad Inn Hotel Complex. Members are encouraged to attend and bring others that have interest in NSPE. Members should also be reminded that nominations for 2008/2009 positions of President- Elect, Vice President, Treasurer, and Secretary will be needed at the upcoming April 22^nd meeting. Voting will take place at the annual Chapter 1 picnic on May 20^th.

At our March 2008 meeting, Dr. George Bibel, P.E., mechanical engineering professor at the University of North Dakota, presented on his new book “Beyond the Black Box: The Forensics of Airplane Crashes”. He explained how and why airplanes can crash through telling stories of the accidents along with explanations on what went wrong in these incidents. In December, Mary Anderson, E.I.T., project engineer with AE2S presented on her travel experience to Bolivia with a group of students who applied civil/environmental engineering solutions in a third world environment through the Michigan Tech Engineering Study Abroad Program in Bolivia. These students made a difference in the lives of kids by improving the sanitary conditions at an elementary school by providing their expertise in designing a new septic system that was compatible with the local environment.

In the support of providing continuing education opportunities to our membership, the Chapter sponsored NSPE web seminars at several of the monthly meetings. At the October and November meetings, a web seminar presented “Increasing your Management & Leadership Excellence: How to Get From Good to Great!!”. The seminar covered a few critical skills to help an engineer succeed in managerial/leadership roles. The one hour PDH opportunity was divided into two ½-hour periods at each meeting with attendance documented and PDH certificates issued. Another web seminar was presented on “Ethics Forum: Engineering Ethics and the Law: The PE as an Expert Witness” at our January and February meetings. This seminar provided several interesting case studies that would help an engineer navigate their way through the legal process and the civil justice system in an ethical manner.

As a means to attract student members and an opportunity to inform them of the benefits of membership, the Chapter continues to provide refreshments and lunch to students during the Fundamentals of Engineering exam at UND. The Chapter also actively participates in the Engineering Week Banquet held on February 20^th and presents the Outstanding Engineering Student Awards to senior, junior, and sophomores at UND. Several members of the Chapter played an integral role in the Grand Forks Mathcounts competition help in February 2008. This year, fifty middle school students participated in the competition and a video presentation “Ask an Engineer” was viewed by the students at the end of the testing while waiting for the final results of the competition. Several Chapter members have been invited throughout the year to present in local classrooms on their engineer profession to middle and high school students which is an awesome opportunity to encourage the future generation to consider a career in engineering.

NDSPE Chapter 3 – 2007/2008 Annual Report
by Cory Chorne, P.E., Chapter 3 President

NDSPE Chapter 3 in Bismarck and Mandan has had a very busy and successful 2007/2008. Chapter 3 had a full schedule of monthly meetings beginning in September and going through May. The meetings consist of our regular business meeting and a special topic presentation. The special topic presentations given to Chapter 3 this year are highlighted as follows:

September: Doug Fercho with the NDDOT led a tour of the new Liberty Memorial Bridge being constructed across the Missouri river between Bismarck and Mandan.

October: James Landenberger with Bartlett & West Engineers gave a presentation on angle wells constructed along the Missouri River north of Bismarck for South Central Regional Water District’ new water treatment facility.

November: Steve Windish with Ulteig Engineer’s gave an update and tour of the remediation facilities constructed in Mandan to cleanup the diesel fuel spill.

December: Dave Sethre with North Dakota Ready Mix and Concrete Products Association gave a presentation on white topping.

January: Kevin Nelson gave a presentation on North Dakota Licensure and other professional issues.

March: Brad Benson and Dennis Reep will be giving a presentation on the Harmon Lake Recreation Area Project.

April: David Johnson with the Garrison Diversion Conservancy District will give a presentation on the Red River Valley Water Supply Project that is intended to deliver Missouri River water from Lake Sakakawea to the Red River Valley through the Sheyenne River.

May: Chapter 3 Annual Picnic at Sertoma Park.

The Chapter 3 E-Week Banquet was held at the Elks Club in Bismarck on February 23. Tim Fay was the Toastmaster and David Pearce was the keynote speaker. Twelve new Professional Engineers living in the Chapter 3 region were introduced at the banquet after having successfully passed the PE exam in 2007. Other highlights of the banquet included a $1500 donation by Chapter 3 to the BSC Foundation made possible by generous donations from local companies and David Pearce, who donated his speaking fee to the BSC Foundation. Finally, Bartlett and West Engineers were recognized for the Chapter 3 Project of the Year Nominee for their work on the Fort Berthold Emergency Intake Water Supply Project.

Each year, Chapter 3 also sponsors or co-sponsors other various programs in the Bismarck/Mandan Area. Chapter 3 co-sponsored the Visiting Scientist Series along with BSC, Gateway to Science, IEEE, and Bismarck Public Schools. This years visiting scientist was Dr. Kent Martin who gave a presentation titled Influenza: Past Present and Future. Chapter 3 made a donation of $400 to the Gateway to Science to sponsor prizes for the Widget Contest. Several Chapter 3 members also volunteered to judge this contest. This is a contest whereby students build a complex machine out of common household items to complete an ordinarily simple task in as many steps as possible. This year’s assignment was to set off a mousetrap. The winning team was CHS #1 which included Megan Mahowald, Mady Olson, and Katie Del Vecchio. Finally, Chapter 3 sponsored the BSC Engineering Department’s Bridge Building contest through a $250 donation.

Chapter 4 Spring 2008 News
by Tracy Eslinger, P.E., Chapter 4 President

NDSPE Chapter 4 started off it’s year in September with a meeting attended by 35 members. The guest speaker for the evening was Mike Dunn with Construction Engineers speaking on the advantages of tilt-up concrete buildings. He brought pictures of the flexibility of the design as well as the building process for a project in Grand Forks, North Dakota.

In October, several Chapter 4 members provided nourishment and information to all who took the Fundamentals of Engineering exam here in Fargo. At our meeting in October, our membership grew to 90 members, and Dr. Berlin Nelson shared his experiences in climbing Mt. McKinley in Alaska.

Dave Loer, President and CEO of Minnkota Power presented information about Global Warming and carbon dioxide emission the Chapter at the November meeting. Membership had risen to 94 members at this point. Members of the chapter were busy planning E-week events and the NDSPE state convention that will be held in Fargo on April 2nd, 3rd, and 4th.

A new meeting concept started this year. Because December typically does not have a meeting because of the holiday season, Chapter 4 held its first lunch meeting. Instead of a formal speaker, it was a chance for committees to have a time and place to continue planning for the year. This concept worked very well and a repeat meeting was held in February.

In January, Dr. Wei Lin, of NDSU shared with a trip to China with us, where he and several students toured the Olympic facilities during construction.

For February, the Chapter was busy with the celebration for E-week and the events for the toothpick bridge construction, mathcounts and its annual banquet. The toothpick bridge event saw more than 70 bridge designs with over 11 different schools participating in the event. Several Chapter members were on hand to provide the loading of the bridges, scoring and judging for the event. The Chapter also had several members assist with the Mathcounts event, which attracted 8 schools with a total of 60 students in 7th and 8th grades. The annual banquet was attended by over 60 individuals. An award was presented for Outstanding Design Award to Moore Engineering for design of the Maple River Dam project. Also, three scholarships were given to students at NDSU.

Our March meeting promises to be very interesting with touring the Union Expansion and the Wellness Center Expansion at NDSU.

Additional Engineering Education as a Prerequisite to Licensure
(Reprinted with permission of the North Dakota State Board of Registration for Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors)
by Kevin G. Nelson, PE, LSI

There is a swelling movement in several camps of the engineering profession in the United States to require additional education prior to licensure. Two trends in the profession have precipitated the movement and fueled the swell. The first of these trends is the steady erosion of credit-hours required for a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering. The second trend is the accelerating rise in complexity of engineering practice.

Before explaining each of these trends, and their cumulative effect on the profession, a few rumors need to be dispelled and some misinformation needs to be corrected. This movement is not about “keeping up with the Joneses;” just because one profession or another requires more than four years of college does not suggest that engineers should be required to complete more schooling. Neither is this movement about “degrees.” It is the education and the derived knowledge from that education that are the key. Also, this movement does not imply that today’s licensed engineers are incompetent, under-qualified or undereducated; the movement is forward-looking, to develop a plan for the future of our profession. This is not a near-term plan. It will take 15 to 20 years to fully implement. Lastly, this concept of additional education is not a statement of doom and gloom for our profession if it is not implemented; it is a plan to help better prepare tomorrow’s engineers to solve tomorrow’s problems.

In 1900, engineering was the only profession that required a Bachelor of Science degree. It still is. Whereas other professions required less than a four-year baccalaureate in 1900, most have gone beyond the four-year degree, requiring as much as eight years of post-secondary education. Once a leader in professional education, engineering is now a trailer; even to the extent that engineering education is below the threshold established by the U.S. Department of Labor to be recognized as a “profession.”

Since 1900, other professions have surpassed engineering in education requirements. While some of these other professions have increased education requirements out of necessity, others have apparently done it to keep pace with the rest. During the period of 1990-2005, accounting moved to a total credit hour requirement of 150. Only 60 to 90 of those have to be in accounting or business (credit-hour requirements vary by state). The remainder can be in a variety of topics, professional or non-professional. Contrast this with the jam-packed curriculum of engineering, where there is little room for adding courses without eliminating some or increasing the time needed to acquire the necessary education.

Engineering is trending in the opposite direction of many other professions in respect to education. Many of the senior members of our esteemed profession remember needing 150 credit hours, or more, for graduating. Presently, the average credit-hour requirement for U.S. engineering schools is 128 and is trending downward. The apparent “floor” is 120 credit hours. Some of the decrease is attributable to changes in technology, whereas some is due to a push to lessen the load on students.

According to a 2002 survey by the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE), where 208 engineering schools responded, 11% require 120 credit hours. Approximately one-third require less than 128 credit hours and a minority of schools require more than 128 credit hours.

In a study by ASEE, better than one-third of engineering schools decreased their credit-hour requirements for graduation between the years of 1998 to 2003, averaging 3.9 credit decrease. None significantly increased their requirements over this same timeframe. Of the schools that decreased their requirements, many reported the reductions came as follows:

Decrease in core engineering courses (e.g., statics and dynamics as a single course)

Decrease in technical breadth (e.g., not requiring electrical engineers to take “fluids” or civil engineers to take “electrical machine design”)

Decrease in technical depth (i.e., reducing number of “technical electives”)

Increase in general education (i.e., arts and humanities)

Russell and Stouffer from the University of Wisconsin compared course content a couple of years ago with a 1930’s report (the Wickenden Report) of 1920’s engineering curricula course content. The comparison showed that in the 80 years that transpired, math and science were down slightly, general education was up a little, and technical content was down a lot. Technical content has changed significantly. Classes like “railroad survey camp” and “drafting” have been eliminated or replaced with classes like “computer modeling” and “CADD.” Some have been eliminated or replaced through attrition as information became outdated or as technology advanced.

Some might argue that this decrease in engineering education is acceptable, and that it is not detrimental to the practice of engineering. If there is any truth to this argument, it might exist in industry, where rigorous and established testing procedures are in place for products designed by engineers in industry before those products are placed in the hands of public consumers. However, this level of safety is not provided to custom products and services designed by engineers in private practice. These engineers are expected to possess adequate knowledge, skills and attitudes to solve the most challenging and unique problems for each client.

To compound the problem of the trend to decrease technical education, technical complexity in the practice of engineering is on the rise. The last three decades have, arguably, seen the highest rate of acceleration in the rise in technical complexity than at any other time in our profession’s history. With no apparent relief in this rate of change, an engineer is more likely to have the expectation to be more specialized and better equipped to solve the highly complex problems that are to come.

In today’s world of nanotechnology, intelligent transportation systems, smart buildings, and decreased research and development budgets, one thing is certain, engineers got us here. These technologies were developed by, or in concert with, engineers; competent, qualified engineers, who are capable of handling these challenges. As we look forward to possible future challenges like deep space research or travel, alternative fuels, personal air vehicles, and advances in bio-engineering, this same truth holds: engineers will be integral in developing the necessary technologies to overcome future hurdles. The rate of technological change has been increasing at an exponential rate. All indications suggest the rate of change will continue to increase.

Many knowledgeable experts believe we are at the crossroads of these antithetical trends; decreasing education and increasing difficulty. As we move away from this crossroads, these two trends will diverge. If we are to continue providing the best engineering in the world to the American people, we must fill this expanding gap. The proposed “filler” is additional education requirements. With protection of the health, safety and welfare of the public as our number one priority, we must ensure that tomorrow’s engineer has adequate tools to overcome the challenges that tomorrow will bring. The additional education requirements are part of the “Body of Knowledge” necessary for us to be engineers. In the next newsletter, this Body of Knowledge will be explained in detail, including the proposals for additional education.

The fact that nearly all U.S. engineering schools have reduced credit requirements for graduation is incontrovertible. Not only have the number of overall credits decreased, the biggest decline is in the technical engineering classes, further exacerbating the widening gap between education and practice. The fact that engineering practice is becoming increasingly complex is undeniable. More than ever before, engineers are expected to do more with less; a daunting task without adequate education, training and experience. These two irrefutable facts leave us at a crossroads where we cannot sit back and watch our profession erode. Tomorrow’s engineers will need more education to be prepared for tomorrow’s challenges. This is the core of the “Body of Knowledge” being proposed for our profession. And it strikes right at the heart of the movement to better prepare engineers for the future.

This article will focus on the “how,” which lies in the concept of a “Body of Knowledge.” This body of knowledge includes knowledge obtained from education, skills from experience, and a professional attitude. It is not about advanced degrees. It is about making up for credit hours deleted from engineering education, and preparing for technological and business advances that have come, and that are yet to come.

This body of knowledge has more similarities than differences to what is presently in place in North Dakota. It requires a bachelor’s degree, as a minimum. It requires experience and the two exams, the fundamentals of engineering (FE) and the professional engineering (PE) exams. It also includes a lifelong learning and experience component. All this is currently required in North Dakota. The one factor that the body of knowledge adds is additional education post baccalaureate and pre licensure.

Additional education could be an advanced degree (master’s or doctorate), but does not need to be. It could be additional education obtained during the fours years of required experience. Or, it could be a combination of formal, post-baccalaureate education and less formal education during the experience. This body of knowledge concept is intended to be as flexible as any individual would desire it to be. It is not meant to be unrealistically burdensome, nor is it designed to require advanced degrees.

The body of knowledge, then, would look like the following equation:

BOK = Bachelor’s + Additional Education + Experience

Proponents of this model suggest the “Additional Education” factor should essentially replace the 20 to 30 credit hours that have been lost since the beginning of the last century. Since the apparent “floor” of the downward trend in credit hours is 120, this suggests an equivalent additional 30 hours of engineering education.

This body of knowledge model is not intended to be elitist. You do not need a 3.0 GPA to get into graduate school and continue on with the education. It is not intended to “weed out” anybody. It is meant for all engineers. That is to say it is meant for all engineers seeking licensure. Keep in mind that implementation will be in the future. It is anticipated to take as long as 10 to 15 years. Also keep in mind that the body of knowledge is not intended to affect engineers, who are already licensed. It is future planning.

Although these 30 hours could be in the form of an advanced degree, it does not have to be. In fact, although they could be campus learning, they do not have to be. They could be distance learning (i.e., correspondence courses, internet courses, video conferencing courses), or from alternative education providers.

Alternative education courses are meant to be as rigorous as upper-level undergraduate or graduate level courses. They are not continuing education courses, where some might attend only for the acknowledgement of attendance, not for the valuable learning. Alternative education providers might include any from the following list:

· Universities with ABET/EAC programs

· Universities without ABET/EAC programs

· Agencies (e.g., Federal government, state government, etc.)

· Professional and Technical Societies

o NSPE

o ASHRAE

o IEEE

o ASCE

There might be other sources of alternative education, too. Flexibility is the key. The proposed body of knowledge model is intended to make accessibility to the recommended additional education as easy and available as it can be to eliminate barriers to licensure.

However, in order to control and warrant the capabilities of alternative education providers, a national system of review and approval will be needed. This is not something that can be relegated to states since it potentially affects mobility and comity.

From an implementation standpoint, for a board of registration, application review would require one more verification. A board of registration would need to verify that, in addition to the ABET/EAC engineering degree, the applicant also has 30 credit hours of qualifying education from approved providers. This can be accomplished through annual publication of a list of approved alternative course providers.

Some of the concerns that implementation needs to accommodate include the following:

· Mobility – Great strides have been made in licensure mobility among the states. Whatever the ultimate look of the model, we do not want to undo these efforts.

· Transitioning into new model – New requirements could become effective in 5 to 8 years at the earliest. The first potential impacts would happen on kids, who are currently in high school. There would be no impact on current PE’s – they would be “grandfathered” in. Decisions would need to be made on how to handle PE’s with BS’s seeking licensure in states that have implemented the new body of knowledge model. These decisions include whether or not these PE’s would need to acquire the additional 30 credit hours.

This initiative is not about the past . . . it is about the future of engineering education. It is intended to better prepare future engineers to handle the increasingly difficult engineering issues that the future will undisputedly bring. A quote by the retired dean of engineering at the University of Arizona, Ernie Smerdon “Shall we walk backwards into the future admiring the past, or shall we turn around and face the challenges the future brings…”

North Dakota State Board of Registration for
Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors

New Engineers Registered in 2007

During 2007,one hundred fifty-one (151) professional engineers were registered by the State Board of Registration. In addition, eleven new land surveyor registrations were registered in 2007. Of the 151 new engineers in 2007, forty-five were registered by examination with the remaining 106 being registered by endorsement from other states and jurisdictions. The present professional engineer count, active and retired is 2,773 which is an increase from the previous period.

Talking About Examinations

The pass rate for the April, 2007 Principles & Practice of Engineering (PE) examination administration was 61.8% which is about average for the PE examination. Thirty-four individuals took the PE examination in April, 2007. The pass rate for the November, 2007 PE examination was 76.5% which is the highest PE pass rate over the past five years. A similar number of individuals took the examination in November. The increase in the pass rate difference between the two examination administrations in 2007 is probably due to the increase in the pass rate increase for the civil engineering examinations in November over April. The Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) examination pass rates for the University of North Dakota and North Dakota State University continue to exceed the national pass rate average. The overall pass rate percentage for the FE examination for North Dakota examinees for the April, 2007 FE examination was 74.8% while the corresponding figure for the November, 2007 FE examination administration was 80.3%

State Board Webpage Has New Look

If you haven’t had an opportunity to do so – take a few minutes and check out the Board’s new webpage at www.ndpelsboard.org. The new page has a new look and is more user friendly as it is easier to navigate between pages and subject matter. A new roster is being developed that will be added to the webpage to allow you to search for engineering and surveying registrants. Watch for this feature. The various applications can now be completed on line but still have to be printed and sent to the Board office via regular mail. There is also a place on the webpage to enter address changes and other changes in status such as employer change. New to the webpage is the ability to ask questions and have it automatically sent to the State Board office for a response.

State Board to Host NCEES Meeting

The State Board will be hosting a joint NCEES Central & Western Zone Meeting on May 15 – 17, 2008. The meeting will bring together board representatives and their guests from approximately twenty-five state boards from across the nation. Any group or association that would be interested in making available some advertizing trinkets or items etc. for the meeting guest bags is urged to call the State Board office at 701-258-0786 for further information.

Newsletter Articles Sought

What is happening out there in engineeringland or in surveyingland? The State Board is interested in knowing. If you have some news or information about new and exciting things happening, contact the State Board office and we can share the information with your fellow professionals. Some possible ideals might be special projects being undertaken by your chapters such as E-Week Student projects, using surveying to locate lost objects. If you have some information to share, contact Candie Robinson at the State Board Office at 701-258-0786.

Have You Moved Lately

The next issue of the State Board Newsletter will be printed and sent out in early to mid May. If you did not receive a copy of the newsletter, it is probably due to your failure to maintain this office with a address. It is very important to keep your mailing address current at the State Board office since the next mailing, after the upcoming newsletter issue, will be your registration renewal for 2009 – 2010. If your address is not current for the upcoming newsletter it will certainly not be current for the renewal information which is usually sent out in early to mid November. A change is easy to accomplish – you can do it at the Board’s webpage or call the office or email us. Remember your address with the State Board is where you would like all correspondence from this office to be sent to you.

Where Are You With Your 2007 – 2008 CPC?

When you renew your registration for 2009 – 2010 in November or December later this year, you will be reporting the Professional Development Hours (PDH’s) you have earned since January 1, 2007. Considering that we are now in the fifth quarter of the biennial period, you should have earned a little more than fifteen PDH’s by now if you are on track to earn the necessary number of PDH’s by December 31^st, 2008. If you haven’t started with your CPC (Continuing Professional Competency) requirements as yet, we would strongly urge you to do so so you can meet the biennial requirement of thirty PDH’s by the end of the year when you renew your registration. When you do report your PDH’s, you will be using some type of log to list your CPC activities. There are several versions of a log that may be used that is available at the Board’s webpage that can be used for reporting your PDH’s or you can use a form of your own design as long as it includes the same information. Remember we do not want you to send in certificates, course outlines, descriptions, schedules when you renew. You need to hang on to these types of documents and information in the event you are selected to be audited and then use these documents to prove completion of your CPC activities. Registrants with questions about CPC are asked to contact the State Board.

CPC Audit Process

The State Board staff is in the process of conducting CPC audits. Some of you may have already received a notice of an audit of your CPC records. Individuals selected for an audit have thirty days, generally, to supply the required documentation. Required documentation includes certificates, meeting agendas and other proofs of attendance. If meeting agendas are submitted you must indicate the sessions or classes attended which in turn should match the pdh’s being claimed on the CPC log for the activity. Individuals who do not meet the CPC requirements on a timely basis may will be turned over to the State Board’s Legal and Investigations Committee for disciplinary action. If you have been selected for a CPC audit, be sure to submit your documentation by the deadline.

Common Application Mistakes

Two of the most commonly found errors in applications submitted to this office relate to experience. The first item is “gaps in the experience record”. Once you open your experience record, you are required to continue it in its entirety without any gaps. Generally, the experience record is starts with the date of baccalaureate degree graduation and goes forward from there. If you graduated in May and started your first engagement in September, you may want to describe your activities during the interim period. It is acceptable to indicate that you took a vacation or you were seeking employment. The other common mistake has to do with the letters of reference. First off, the letters of reference are to come directly from the person completing the letter to the State Board office. Page two of the letter of reference should contain a detailed listing of your engineering engagements described in such a manner that it allows the person who completes the letter of reference to initial those engineering engagements with which he is familiar. If the person completing the letter of reference does not initial the engineering engagements on page two of the letter of reference, it will be returned for completion. The final error deals with missing application deadlines. Application deadlines for taking the FE and PE examinations are January 2^nd and July 1^st and applications for engineer and surveyor endorsements are accepted year around.

Future State Board Meeting Schedule

· April 2, 2008, 9:30 a.m., The Loft Room, Radisson Hotel, Fargo

· May 28, 2008, Engineering Disciplinary Hearing, May 28, 2008, 10:00 a.m., Van Gogh/Remington Room, Radisson Hotel, Bismarck.

· June 10, 2009, State Board Meeting, State Board Office, 723 West Memorial Highway, Bismarck

All meetings and hearings of the State Board of Registration are open meetings and the public is welcome to attend. Additional information about the meetings and hearings can be obtained by contacting the State Board at 701-258-0786. Telephone conference meetings may be attended at the State Board Office or at the locations of the individual State Board members. Call the State Board office for information on alternate locations for telephone meetings