NOGLSTP - Chesapeake Region

Udvar-Hazy Center (Air & Space Museum)

chesapeake — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 18:01:24 +0000

Back in 2008, the National Organization of Gay and Lesbian Scientists and Technical Professionals - Chesapeake Region organized a trip to the National Air & Space Museum on the National Mall. But we’ve neglected the excellent collection housed at the museum’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Northern Virginia (nasm.si.edu/udvarhazy). Of particular note, they currently hold the Space Shuttle Enterprise, NASA’s original flight-test model for the Space Shuttle program; Enterprise is expected to be swapped out for Discovery in the near future. Please join us on Sunday, October 2, as we take in the Udvar-Hazy Center’s impressive assortment of aviation and spaceflight treasures.

Where: Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, 14390 Air & Space Museum Parkway, Chantilly, VA (see website, above, for directions)
When: Sunday, October 2, 1pm
Cost: Free*
RSVP: NOGLSTP-CR-owner@yahoogroups.com, by Friday, September 30, please

*Admission is free. However, there is a $15 parking fee. (There is also a bus that goes there, the Dulles 2 Dulles Connector.)

Normally, we like to include a lunch gathering as part of our events. However, the Udvar-Hazy center is not really near anything else (and the only dining on-site is a single fast-food location). So we will simply meet at 1 pm, inside the main entrance. In planning your day, you may also want to make some time to check out the Solar Decathlon on the National Mall (www.solardecathlon.gov). The Solar Decathlon is an exhibition of solar-powered model homes, and it will be open to the public September 23 through October 2.

Due to the parking fee, we recommend carpooling. If you would be interested in carpooling, please include your location and transportation situation with your RSVP, and we will try to help you find one or more people with whom to carpool. We hope to see you there!

Social Event: DC Dinner

chesapeake — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 18:57:15 +0000

If you weren’t able to join us in Baltimore for dinner last week (or even if you were), your second chance is coming up in DC. As promised, the National Organization of Gay and Lesbian Scientists and Technical Professionals - Chesapeake Region is organizing a second social dinner on Monday, August 22, to better serve our DC-based associates. This dinner is an opportunity for all of our current and prospective members, especially the most recent additions to our mailing list, to network in a relaxing environment. The dinner will be held at Maddy’s Bar & Grille, which is easily walked from Dupont Circle.

We will be sharing a $100 gift certificate among all dinner attendees (contingent on a total dinner bill of at least $200).

What: NOGLSTP-CR DC social dinner
Where: Maddy’s Bar (1726 Connecticut Ave NW, Washington, DC, http://maddysbar.com/, (202) 483-2266)
When: Monday, August 22, 6 pm
RSVP: NOGLSTP-CR-owner@yahoogroups.com, by Friday, August 19

The restaurant’s website is currently down, but I called them to make a reservation, so we know for sure that they are open for business as usual; for any inquiries about the restaurant, please contact them directly by phone. The officers will arrive by 6 pm; we’ll start with cocktails at the bar and we’ll be seated at 6:30 pm. The officers will be wearing name tags for those who haven’t met us yet, and we’ll also make sure the host or hostess knows where to find us. We hope you’ll be able to join us. We look forward to answering your questions about NOGLSTP-CR, learning more about you and your interests, and hearing your thoughts on possible future activities for the group.

Social Event: Baltimore Dinner

chesapeake — Sat, 23 Jul 2011 13:52:11 +0000

Each summer, the National Organization of Gay and Lesbian Scientists and Technical Professionals - Chesapeake Region organizes social dinners in Baltimore and DC as an opportunity for all of our current and prospective members, especially the most recent additions to our mailing list, to network in a relaxing environment. This year, the scheduling worked out such that the Baltimore dinner will be several weeks before the one in DC, so please consider this a save-the-date for the DC dinner on Monday, August 22. See below for specific details on the Baltimore dinner.

What: NOGLSTP-CR Baltimore social dinner
Where: Marie Louise Bistro (904 North Charles St., Baltimore, http://marielouise-bistro.com/)
When: Tuesday, August 2, 6 pm
RSVP: NOGLSTP-CR-owner@yahoogroups.com, by Friday, July 29

The officers will arrive at each restaurant by 6 pm; we’ll start with cocktails at the bar (which is upstairs) and we’ll be seated at 6:30 pm. Marie Louise is a casual restaurant serving eclectic European cuisine. The officers will be wearing name tags for those who haven’t met us yet, and we’ll also make sure the host or hostess knows where to find us. We hope you’ll be able to join us. We look forward to answering your questions about NOGLSTP-CR, learning more about you and your interests, and hearing your thoughts on possible future activities for the group.

Chesapeake Pride Festival

chesapeake — Fri, 08 Jul 2011 20:41:21 +0000

For the last five years, NOGLSTP-CR has regularly participated in the Capital Pride and Baltimore Pride festivals. This year, we are looking at the possibility of also participating in the Chesapeake Pride Festival (http://chesapeakepridefestival.org/), a growing pride festival held near Annapolis later in the summer. This year, the festival is on Saturday, August 20th, from noon to 6 pm. It will be held at Mayo Beach Park in Edgewater, MD. If you are able to help us staff a table at this event, please write directly back to me and let me know. We anticipate that getting to and from this location may be a challenge for some potential volunteers, so please also let me know if you would be willing to provide a ride to another volunteer traveling from near your point of origin.

Barbecue and Movie Night

chesapeake — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 22:06:29 +0000

The National Organization of Gay and Lesbian Scientists and Technical Professionals - Chesapeake Region invites you to join us for some summer fun on Saturday, July 9, at the Annapolis home of NOGLSTP-CR member Lawrie Hollingsworth. This is a family-friendly event, so please bring your partners, children, and other family.

What: Barbecue and Movie Night
Where: Home of Lawrie Hollingsworth in Annapolis (see text, below, for address and parking information)
When: Saturday, July 9, 3 pm - LATE (rain or shine)
RSVP: NOGLSTP-CR-owner@yahoogroups.com, by Wednesday, July 6

This will be a fun, informal gathering. NOGLSTP-CR will provide basic grilling items (hot dogs, burgers, and veggie burgers–along with buns) and condiments (ketchup, mustard, and relish). BYOB (including alcoholic beverages if desired, but always drink responsibly), along with anything else you’d like to grill and your favorite fixings. Please also bring a side dish or a dessert to share. Lawrie has graciously offered to host us into the night and to grant us the use of her entertainment center to watch some movies. So please also bring your favorite family-friendly films.

Lawrie lives at 1706 Trinity Place, Annapolis, MD 21401. Per Lawrie, “We are at the end of a cul de sac, so parking is no problem. We just ask that people not park in our driveway; the kids play ball there and will probably be riding scooters or something up and down it.” For directions, Lawrie suggests that you use Mapquest. Once you’re in range, here is some guidance from Lawrie: “We are in a private community on the water called The Downs. When you turn off Route 178 onto Old Generals Highway and go down Sherwood Forest Dr., you’ll turn right through Coachway and see 2 brick markers that say ‘The Downs.’ When you go a few more blocks on Coachway, you’ll come to the main entrance and see bigger brick gates that have ‘The Downs’ written on them. First street on the right after that is Trinity Place.”

Lawrie’s home features a deck, a fire pit, and (she guarantees) “the biggest grill you have ever seen at anyone’s house.” Feel free to bring any activities that can be safely enjoyed in the out-of-doors. This is a rain or shine event, as Lawrie will make her spacious interior available if necessary, and the grill is in a covered area. So if the weather looks bad, feel free to bring board games and other indoor activities, instead.

Pride Festival Volunteer Shifts

chesapeake — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 19:31:40 +0000

The National Organization of Gay and Lesbian Scientists and Technical Professionals - Chesapeake Region will have a presence at both the Capital Pride Festival on Sunday, June 12, and the Baltimore Pride Festival on Sunday, June 19. The Capital Pride Festival is held on Pennsylvania Avenue, between 4th and 7th Streets, NW, while the Baltimore Pride Festival is in Druid Hill Park. Each festival lasts from 11am until 6pm, and we’d like to have two people on duty at all times. That means we need to fill 14 person-hours at each festival, and we need your help. The Pride Festivals comprise our best chance to build our membership each year. We are preparing a range of materials, including membership forms, brochures, and copies of the national newsletter, so you’ll have all of the information about the organization right in front of you. We’ll also brief you on the main talking points. And if you haven’t been able to be as involved with NOGLSTP-CR as you would like to be, we’ll make sure to pair you with someone who has more familiarity with our activities.

I am coordinating our volunteer schedule, so please e-mail me directly with your availability. You can let me know a specific period of time you’d like to sign up for, or a maximum amount of time and a range during which you’re available. We currently have staffing needs throughout the day at both festivals, but we are in particular need of assistance after 4 pm in Baltimore to assist with teardown. This is also a great opportunity to get a friend, co-worker, or partner involved in NOGLSTP; if you bring in a second person to work a shift with you, it satisfies twice as much of our needs and gives you reliable companionship during your shift. Please include your full name and the full name of any other person who would be staffing with you, along with a contact phone number at which we can reach you during the day of the festival.
I look forward to hearing from you soon, and I’ll get back to you as quickly as possible with a confirmation of when you will be volunteering.

Social Event

chesapeake — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 23:59:57 +0000

Over the last few years, the National Organization of Gay and Lesbian Scientists and Technical Professionals - Chesapeake Region has successfully held social dinners in Baltimore and Washington, DC, after the summer’s Pride festivals. People seem to enjoy themselves at these events, so we’ve decided to branch out and try to hold similar activities in nearby areas at other times of year. The first such gathering will be dinner at the Hickory Ridge Grill in Columbia on Tuesday, May 3. This is a great opportunity for you to get to know us and each other. We welcome you whether you are a member or someone who hasn’t attended one of our events yet.

We will be sharing a $25 gift certificate among all dinner attendees.

What: NOGLSTP-CR social dinner
Where: Hickory Ridge Grill (6420 Freetown Rd. #120, Columbia, MD 21044, http://hickoryridgegrill.com)
When: Tuesday, May 3, 6:30 pm
RSVP: NOGLSTP-CR-owner@yahoogroups.com, by Friday, April 29

We’ll be seated at 6:30 pm, but some of the officers will meet at the bar by 6 pm. The host or hostess will be able to direct you to our group if you give them my name or the name of the organization. We hope you’ll be able to join us. We look forward to answering your questions about NOGLSTP-CR, learning more about you and your interests, and hearing your thoughts on possible future activities for the group.

Join Us at NOGLSTP’s Annual Awards Ceremony!

chesapeake — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 00:33:37 +0000

Every year, NOGLSTP holds a reception and awards ceremony to provide recognition for outstanding GLBT science and technical professionals for the contributions they have made in their respective fields.

This reception is held during the annual convention of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. This year’s ceremony will be held at the Wilson Room of the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Washington DC (http://www.grandwashington.hyatt.com/hyatt/hotels/index.jsp), at 3 PM on Sunday, February 20. Awards will be presented to the GLBT Scientist of the Year, GLBT Engineer of the Year, and GLBT Educator of the Year. More information about these awards is available at the NOGLSTP website, http://www.noglstp.org.

This ceremony and reception is open to all. Chesapeake Region members are especially encouraged to attend and to meet these inspiring honorees and other fellow NOGLSTP members.

What: NOGLSTP Awards
Where: Wilson Room of the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Washington, DC
When: Sunday, February 20, 3 pm
RSVP: None

We hope to see you there!

Anne Arundel County Regional Science and Engineering Fair

chesapeake — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 21:21:55 +0000

Last year, NOGLSTP-CR presented an award at the Anne Arundel County Regional Science and Engineering Fair, our first time participating in such an activity. We are eager to repeat our participation, and we want to increase our number of judges this year so we can more thoroughly consider all entrants. Because judges will be representing NOGLSTP-CR and will be acting on the organization’s behalf, judges for this award must be NOGLSTP members; membership forms are available on the Yahoo! group. The judges will divide up the exhibits to determine which ones might qualify for the award’s criteria, which involve responsibility in science, and then we will consider the exhibits together to pick a winner. We need to register online by February 18, so please let us know by the day before that. The registration form requests your name, address, phone number, and email. We’ll be in touch closer to the day of the fair to coordinate details.

What: Anne Arundel County Science and Engineering Fair
Who: NOGLSTP members
Where: North County High School (http://www.northcountyhs.org/)
When: Saturday, March 5, 8 am to 12:30 pm
RSVP: NOGLSTP-CR-owner@yahoogroups.com, by Thursday, February 17

This is a great opportunity to get involved with the local community, and we hope to see you there!

Panel at Baltimore Polytechnic Institute

chesapeake — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 15:54:52 +0000

Last year, NOGLSTP-CR held a successful panel discussion with students at the Baltimore Polytechnic Institute. It was co-sponsored with BPI’s Gay-Straight Alliance; open to all BPI students, it focused on higher education and careers in technical fields, giving the students some idea of what they can expect if they continue to pursue STEM fields. We have been invited to present another panel, and I’m writing this email to gauge the level of interest and availability you have, so we can determine if we’d be able to hold another panel.

This year, the students at BPI have asked that we try to align the panel with the purpose of their elite Research Practicum program, where students conduct research projects in laboratory environments. Accordingly, we have a keen interest in including panelists who work in labs or who come from research backgrounds. Also, their students work with mentors, and we are hoping that if you work in a lab, you might be interested in being a mentor, or could help the students to find mentors. More information about the Research Practicum is available at http://www.ingenuityproject.org (click on Ingenuity Schools –> Poly), where you can find out what commitment is expected of mentors. The students will be trying to reach out to potential mentors in mid-February, so we’re looking at potentially doing this in two weeks, on February 14, 15, or 16. The panel would be at the end of the BPI school day, in the 3-5 pm timeframe.

The panel does not need to consist exclusively of laboratory scientists, so please let me know if you’d be willing and able to participate in the panel if you’re a STEM professional or student, no matter what your field. Let me know which of the possible days would work for you. If you work in a lab but aren’t interested in being a mentor, or if you don’t work in a lab but have coworkers or associates who do, let me know if you’d be willing to help get BPI students in touch with potential mentors at your office or school.

So please let me know if you’re interested in participating in such a panel on February 14, 15, or 16, and/or if you’re in a position to act as a mentor or to help students find mentors.