Engineering Students Attend Leadership Conference

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The group of students selected to attend the conference. From left to right, Kimberly Cribbs, Brett Wiese, Alex Enderlin, Brian Henderson, John Andrew Dominick, Alfonso Puente and Gary Bass, a recruiter for Eastman.

In August, five engineering students visited the headquarters of Eastman Chemical in Kingsport, Tenn. Kimberly Cribbs, Andrew Dominick, Alex Enderlin, Alfonso Puente and Brett Wiese were selected to take part in a conference that focused on leadership. They attended workshops and presentations, took a StrengthsQuest Assessment and attended networking events. The group, which included engineering students from eight different universities, also visited a local middle school to facilitate an engineering project for students.

Alfonoso Puente, a junior majoring in chemical engineering, explained that he learned a lot about himself at the conference. "I like how the conference focused on you as an individual leader. It showed us how to focus on our qualities and strengths and use those on campus," he said.

Cribbs, also a junior chemical engineering major and an Honors College student, appreciated learning about the qualities of leadership. "We learned about the many different types of effective leaders. What makes them effective is knowing their strengths and using them to lead people," she said.

Puente and Cribbs are exploring many opportunities to apply their leadership skills, both on and off campus. Over the summer, Puente participated in a Research Experience for Undergraduates, participating in a project to produce biofuel from swine waste.

Cribbs spent the summer in a cooperative education position with Dow Chemical in the area of process engineering. She plans to do another coop with this company next summer.

"It was an amazing opportunity and honor for these five students to be chosen for Eastman's first ever leadership conference," said Brian Henderson, director of employer relations for the College of Engineering. "Each one of these students demonstrate the characteristics of an effective leader, both on and off campus, and they have each participated in some sort of research, co-op, or internship experience where they have had the opportunity to  practice their leadership skills. We appreciate Eastman's relationship and support they provide to the U of A College of Engineering and look forward to sending more students their way."