Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1433652
52 SMT007 MAGAZINE I DECEMBER 2021 have some big names, like Purdue University and University of California. Aaron Birney is doing an excellent job leading the chapter pro- gram and keeping the momentum alive. Stu- dents can take on leadership positions with- in their chapters as well and get recognized by receiving a chapter leadership scholarship at $1,000. We have been giving out five chapter leader- ship scholarships, with plans to increase that to six this year. It might be something students can put on their resumes, so when industry leaders know about the chapters and what the students are studying, it's an easy way to iden- tify talent. Wendy Gaston, who previously worked in sales for IPC, moved over to the foundation to help us with relationship building. Our vi- sion is to have hubs, for example, in the Sili- con Valley (San Francisco Bay area), because that is where most of our IPC industry mem- bers are based. If we can have most of the uni- versities, community/technical colleges, and high schools involved there, it provides greater support for our local IPC member network. en we will take that model and create hubs in different regions of the United States. Nolan Johnson: Circling back to international expansion, where did those efforts begin? Gunter du Plessis: at's a very interesting ques- tion because we don't necessarily know. In Europe, for example, all the regions are dif- ferent; they have different academic con- texts. We need to change the current chapter model. Each program needs to have a different look and feel to meet the needs of the students in those countries. Mexico has great potential because IPC is there, and they are translating a lot of the ed- ucation programs and products into Spanish. Canada is a natural fit, and we have been re- ceiving some interest from African countries