December 9, 2024 – Engineering Ethics From a State Agency Perspective [Atlanta Metro Chapter]

You are invited to attend the November meeting of the Atlanta Metro Chapter, Georgia Society of Professional Engineers, on December 9th!

TOPIC:   Engineering Ethics From a State Agency Perspective

Date/Time:6:00pm, Monday, December 9, 2024

Location: Piccadilly Cafeteria
2000 Crescent Centre Blvd
Tucker, GA 30084

◆◆ RSVP at rsvp@gspe.org to give the restaurant a count is appreciated

The local, state and national highways, along with other modes of transportation contribute to American prosperity. The developments and maintenance have required significant investment. Where there is extensive development and extensive investment there will be a need for ethical and legal delineation of what is acceptable and what is not. Add to that the complexity of engineering and the impact on public welfare, health and safety and it is clear that engineers must work to a very high standard. For this reason, all 50 states have laws regulating engineering.

Patrick Alle, P.E. Construction Division Director, Georgia Department of Transportation will lead a presentation  on Engineering Ethics From a State Agency Perspective.  He will discuss the ethical requirements in being part of and dealing with Georgia state and local agencies, various external stakeholders and possible changes in view of developing technologies such as AI.

About the Presenter

Patrick Allen, P.E. GDOT

Patrick Allen, PE, Construction Division Director, Georgia Department of Transportation Patrick began his Georgia DOT career as a Traffic Operations Engineer in 2005 after graduating from Auburn University with a Bachelor of Civil Engineering. Over 19 years he has held various roles at both the District and Statewide level. Prior to becoming Director of Construction, Patrick served as State Materials Engineer. His prior roles have included District Access Management Supervisor, Traffic Design Supervisor, District Utilities Engineer, District Traffic Engineer, Assistant District Engineer and State Utilities Engineer. He is an avid sports fan that enjoys playing basketball, coaching his sons and watching just about any sport on TV.

MEETING LOGISTICS:

The face-to-face gathering will start at 6:00.
Please note our return to the pre-pandemic location of Piccadilly Cafeteria in Tucker
The meeting presentation will be recorded and available for later viewing at no cost.
This presentation, like the previous presentations, will qualify for a required engineering professional development hour (PDH).
Currently registered professional engineers, those engineers aspiring to become PEs, and others engaged in engineering would benefit from the presentation. Anyone in the field of engineering and members of the general public is welcome to pose discussion topics and to learn about engineering and public welfare.

About GSPE Atlanta Metro Chapter:  The 200-member GSPE Atlanta Metro Chapter serves registered professional engineers and developing engineers by providing networking and continuing education opportunities. The local chapter also serves the wider metro Atlanta community as an information resource and contact for the engineering profession. Members, locally and across the state, actively support MATHCOUNTS®, a nationwide competitive program that has promoted excellence in middle school studies of mathematics for over thirty years. The GSPE also awards college engineering scholarships each year. GSPE members are often asked to address school classes to talk about applications of science and technology. GSPE is setting up a clearing house to connect employers and engineering students seeking internships, apprenticeships and Co‑Op opportunities.

The Georgia Society of Professional Engineers is a state affiliate of the National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE). The National Society of Professional Engineers is the recognized voice and advocate of licensed Professional Engineers. Founded in 1934, NSPE strengthens the engineering profession by promoting engineering licensure and ethics to assure the public’s safety, enhancing the engineer image, advocating and protecting PE’s legal rights at the national and state levels, publishing news about the profession, providing continuing education opportunities, and much more. NSPE serves some 50,000 members and the public through 53 state and territorial societies and more than 500 local chapters.

About Professional Engineer Registration

To assure public health, safety, and wellbeing, all 50 states have passed laws establishing boards to oversee the practice of engineering. These boards license engineers, enforce professional ethics, and address issues concerning unlicensed practice. The Georgia State Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors is an independent state agency attached to the Secretary of State’s office for administrative purposes. Georgia has 27,000 Professional Engineers and 3,190 engineering firms.

To become a registered professional engineer, the candidate must have the required education from an accredited engineering curriculum, be of good character, pass an eight-hour exam of the engineering fundamentals (usually about the time of college graduation), have four years of quality experience, make an application to the state board, and pass another eight-hour exam of their engineering knowledge. Upon being granted registration, the applicant can use the designation “PE” after their name.

“The Professional Engineers are aware of the many needs for technical solutions for issues such as protecting the environment, addressing water and other resource shortages, facilitating transportation, promoting employment and quality of life,” said Luther Cox, past State President of GSPE. “An ultimate goal is that, in this fast-emerging technological world of ours it is required that all planning, design, build and maintenance work be supervised by Professional Engineers, so there are no more oil well disasters, falling bridges, collapsing walkways, or exploding factories.”

Please see these websites for additional information:
Georgia Society of Professional Engineers: www.gspe.org,
Atlanta Metro Chapter: http://gspe.org/atlmetrochapter/
www.meetup.com/Georgia-Society-of-Professional-Engineers-Atlanta-Metro/
National Society of Professional Engineers: www.nspe.org
MATHCOUNTS: www.mathcounts.org   &   https://gspe.org/mathcounts/

The Georgia State Board of Professional Engineers & Land Surveyors:  https://sos.ga.gov/page/about-georgia-professional-engineers-and-land-surveyors-board
Georgia Department of Transportation: https://www.dot.ga.gov

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