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Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers returns victorious from annual convention

A group of 50 University of North Florida students recently attended the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE) conference. This was the most participation that UNF has ever seen at the largest annual gathering of Hispanics in STEM, the SHPE 2022 National Convention in Charlotte, NC.

The SHPE UNF chapter celebrated their first win for the Student Chapter of the Region, defeating other prestigious schools in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. For the third year in a row, SHPE UNF received the award for Best Spirit in Region and at least one UNF student placed first in a nationwide competition.

UNF student Blayne Curtis won first place in the Nissan Design Challenge, which includes a $9,000 check for his team and a job offer from Nissan. Miguel Bolante won third place in the Nissan Design Challenge, which includes a $2,000 check for his team. Rebecca O'Neal and Arielle O'Neal won first place in the Extreme Engineering Challenge, which includes a $10,000 check for their team.

Four out of 15 leadership awards were also rewarded to SHPE UNF students who were recognized for going above and beyond for their chapter. These students include:

  • Deeyana Patel - “Lift as You Climb” Award
  • Jose Burgos - “Your Dedication Never Goes Unnoticed” Award
  • Arielle O’Neal - “Your Dedication Never Goes Unnoticed” Award
  • David Leite - “Para la Familia” Award

Among those who attended the convention, 42 students received at least one job interview offer for a total of 130 job interview offers, and 31 students received at least one job offer for a total of 50 job offers.

Students were supported in attending by generous scholarship donations from young UNF School of Engineering alumni Diego Sabmio and Brian Foster.