History of SWE-KC

We are excited to present the

History of SWE-KC

SWE-KC was chartered in 1982. WEKC (Women Engineers of Kansas City) was the predecessor.

View our Charter

Several SWE-KC members have served as Society-level Leaders.

These officers are held in the highest esteem and help SWE achieve its long-term goals.

National President

  • Barbara Wollmershauser (1983-1984)
  • B.K. Krenzer (1986-1987)
  • Shelley Wolff (2001-2002) shown left

National Vice President

  • Libby Allman (2003-2004)

National Director

  • Libby Allman (2004-2005) [Public Policy and Advocacy]
  • Libby Allman (2001-2006) [Membership Initiatives]

National Secretary

  • Shelley Wolff (1997-1999)

Board of Directors

  • Kerrie Greenfelder (2021-2022), (2022-2023)

Nominating Committee Chair

  • Kerrie Greenfelder (2017-2018)

Leadership Coaching Committee Chair

  • Adriana Porter (2018-2019)

Society and Regional events hosted by SWE-KC

  • SWE National Conference and Student Conference, 1987
  • Region i Conference, October 1993
  • SWE National Conference, October 2006
  • Region i Conference, February 2015

SWE-KC Past Presidents

  1. Cheri Leigh (WEKC President): 1981-1982
  2. Diane Hershberger: 1982-1983
  3. Jan (McKinney) Lewis: 1983-1984
  4. Margie Andregg-Davis: 1984-1985
  5. Grace Barben: 1985-1986
  6. Heidi (Facklam) Novotny: 1986-1987
  7. Shelley Wolff: 1987-1988
  8. Jane Knoche: 1988-1989
  9. Kathy Lust: 1989-1990
  10. Deb (Mossman) O’Bannon: 1990-1991
  11. Renee Lawrence: 1991-1992
  12. Donna Coatsworth & Deb Linneman: 1992-1993
  13. Shelley Wolff:  1993-1994
  14. Rhonda Newstrom: 1994-1995
  15. Libby Allman:  1995-1996
  16. Hope Piuck:  1996-1997
  17. Cindy Ruff:  1997-1998
  18. Tracy Engnes:  1998-1999
  19. Karen Gilbertson: 1999-2000
  20. Karen Gilbertson: 2000-2001
  21. Sharon Lappin: 2001-2002
  22. Sue Gehrt: 2002-2003
  23. Natalie Stennis: 2003-2004
  24. Natalie Stennis: 2004-2005
  25. Samar El-Khoury 2005-2006
  26. Michelle Wirth 2006-2007
  27. (Vacant) 2007-2008
  28. Deb O’Bannon 2008-2009
  29. Holly Lamar 2009-2010
  30. Holly Lamar 2010-2011
  31. Susan Enneking 2011-2012
  32. Stephanie DeCaro, 2012-2013
  33. Kristin (Ehlers) Murray, 2013-2014
  34. Sunita Lavin, 2014-2015
  35. Katie Lin, 2015-2016
  36. Adriana Porter, 2016-2017
  37. Becca Brader, 2017-2018
  38. Ragan Gum, 2018-2019
  39. Jenny Lu/Stacy Friling, 2019-2020
  40. Suzie Carpenter, 2020-2021
  41. Stacy Friling, 2021-2022
  42. Kaitlyn Mores, 2022-2023
  43. Nishi Kelkar, 2023-2024

Society Awards – Individual Recipients

Entrepreneur Award

  • Cheri Leigh, P.E., 2003

Fellows

  • B.K. Krenzer, Class of 1983
  • Lynn Bertuglia, Class of 1993
  • Cheri Leigh, Class of 1995
  • Shelley Wolff, Class of 2002
  • Deb O’Bannon, Class of 2002
  • Jane Knoche, Class of 2010
  • Libby Allman, Class of 2013

Distinguished New Engineers

  • Diane Hershberger, 1988
  • Jane Knoche, 1989
  • Sunita Lavin, 2016
  • Jenna Harpole, 2017
  • Adriana Porter, 2018

Distinguished Engineering Educator

  • Deb O’Bannon, 2017

Suzanne Jenniches Upward Mobility Award

  • Cindy Wallis-Lage, 2018

Advocating Women in Engineering Award

  • Shelley Wolff, 2016
  • Martha McCabe, 2021

Spark Award

  • Kerrie Greenfelder, 2018

Emerging Leader

  • Kerrie Greenfelder, 2015
  • Sunita Lavin, 2023
  • Kristin Murray, 2023

Society Awards – Section Awards

Mission Award

  • Silver, 2017
  • Silver, 2018
  • Silver, 2019
  • Silver, 2020
  • Silver, 2022
  • Bronze, 2023

Best Practices Award

  • Outreach, 2018
  • Partnerships with Collegiates, Professionals, Industry & Academia, 2019
  • Professional Development, 2019
  • Outstanding Professional Development Event, WE KC, 2022

Outreach Award

  • For IGED, 2015

WE Local Awards – Individual Recipients

WE Local Legacy

  • Kerry Greenfelder, 2018

WE Local New ELiTE

  • Sneha Narayanan, 2020

WE Local ELiTE

  • Ragan Gum, 2019
  • Sunita Lavin, 2019

Our Section Platinum Sponsors

Interested in sponsoring our section?

See our sponsorship page for more information on our sponsorship levels and sponsoring the SWE-KC section. Our section has frequent communication and events that can be used to promote your business. Our outreach events help build the pipeline for women in STEM and continue to be award winning programs.

Sponsorship Information

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