Audio

Jan Williams talks about the nontraditional route she took to become an engineer, after first receiving a degree in Spanish. She describes her experiences as a reentry engineering student while working and raising a family in the 1980s. Williams is an engineering manager at Sandia National Laboratories and a Fellow of the Society of Women Engineers.

This oral history interview was recorded October 14, 2009 at the Society of Women Engineers WE09 Annual Conference in Long Beach, California, as part of the SWE Grassroots Oral History Project. The interviewer is Troy Eller. This excerpt was selected and produced by the SWE Archivist. The excerpt may have been edited for length, however the intent of the interviewee's words remain the same. Audio excerpts may be used for research and educational purposes only.

Jan Williams explains that she became so involved in the Society of Women Engineers because she did not have many role models or mentors when she first started her career. She talks about the importance of outreach projects to young women and children to help them understand what engineers do. Williams is an engineering manager at Sandia National Laboratories and a Fellow of the Society of Women Engineers.

This oral history interview was recorded October 14, 2009 at the Society of Women Engineers WE09 Annual Conference in Long Beach, California, as part of the SWE Grassroots Oral History Project. The interviewer is Troy Eller. This excerpt was selected and produced by the SWE Archivist. The excerpt may have been edited for length, however the intent of the interviewee's words remain the same. Audio excerpts may be used for research and educational purposes only.

Jill Tietjen, a past president and Fellow of the Society of Women Engineers, discusses the road that led her to successfully nominate SWE Fellow and Achievement Award recipient Yvonne Brill for the National Medal of Technology and Innovation for her invention of the hydrazine resistojet propulsion system, which became the standard in the satellite industry. Tietjen explains that that women have to nominate other women for awards because female award recipients become role models for young women, and they generally won’t be nominated for those awards by men. She also explained that she’s nominated Brill for so many awards not only because of her technical achievements, but also because Brill herself has put tremendous effort into nominating other women for awards.

This oral history interview was recorded October 14, 2011 at the Society of Women Engineers WE11 National Conference in Chicago, Illinois, as part of the SWE Grassroots Oral History Project. The interviewer is Troy Eller. This excerpt was selected and produced by the SWE Archivist. The excerpt may have been edited for length, however the intent of the interviewee's words remain the same. Audio excerpts may be used for research and educational purposes only.

Jill Tietjen asks Sandra Scanlon how she has balanced her engineering career with her family. Scanlon explains that after realizing that she didn’t want to juggle it all, she started her own company in order to be in charge of her own destiny and have the ability to control how she spends her time. Kristy Schloss notes that the three of them are bound by their unique decisions to leave large corporations and start their own engineering firms. Tietjen and Scanlon explain that by owning their own companies they have more flexibility to volunteer for the causes that are important to them.

Tietjen is the president and CEO an electrical engineering consulting company. She is a Fellow and past president of the Society of Women Engineers and has received the Society’s Distinguished Service Award. Scanlon is the president of an engineering consulting firm. She is a Fellow of SWE and has received the Society’s Distinguished New Engineer and Entrepreneur awards. Kristy Schloss is the president and CEO of an environmental equipment design and manufacturing company. She is also SWE Fellow and a recipient of the Society’s Distinguished New Engineer and Entrepreneur awards.

This recording is Clip 1 of 4. Click on the "Tietjen / Scanlon / Schloss Interview" link above to find all clips from the interview. Click on the "2008 StoryCorps Interviews" link above to find all audio recordings from the 2008 SWE StoryCorps interviews.

This oral history interview was recorded November 7, 2008 at the Society of Women Engineers WE08 National Conference in Baltimore, Maryland as part of StoryCorps (www.storycorps.net), a nationwide initiative of Sound Portraits Productions to record and collect oral history interviews. This excerpt was selected and produced by the SWE Archivist. The excerpt may have been edited for length and clarity. Audio excerpts may be used for research and educational purposes only.

Sandra Scanlon explains why it’s important to host career guidance events for young girls and women to introduce them to opportunities that engineering offers. Jill Tietjen explains that more work needs to be done to help the public understand what engineering encompasses and describes a poll in the early 2000s that found that two-thirds of women and one half of men did not know what engineers did. Kristy Schloss discusses the varied industries that engineering touches.

Tietjen is the president and CEO an electrical engineering consulting company. She is a Fellow and past president of the Society of Women Engineers and has received the Society’s Distinguished Service Award. Scanlon is the president of an engineering consulting firm. She is a Fellow of SWE and has received the Society’s Distinguished New Engineer and Entrepreneur awards. Kristy Schloss is the president and CEO of an environmental equipment design and manufacturing company. She is also SWE Fellow and a recipient of the Society’s Distinguished New Engineer and Entrepreneur awards.

This recording is Clip 2 of 4. Click on the "Tietjen / Scanlon / Schloss Interview" link above to find all clips from the interview. Click on the "2008 StoryCorps Interviews" link above to find all audio recordings from the 2008 SWE StoryCorps interviews.

This oral history interview was recorded November 7, 2008 at the Society of Women Engineers WE08 National Conference in Baltimore, Maryland as part of StoryCorps (www.storycorps.net), a nationwide initiative of Sound Portraits Productions to record and collect oral history interviews. This excerpt was selected and produced by the SWE Archivist. The excerpt may have been edited for length and clarity. Audio excerpts may be used for research and educational purposes only.