The Beta Mu chapter of Eta Kappa Nu at Georgia Tech has been chosen for a 2018-2019 Outstanding Chapter Award by the IEEE-Eta Kappa Nu (HKN) national office. HKN is the honor society for electrical engineering and computer engineering students. 

The award will be presented at the annual meeting of the Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) Department Heads Association on March 21 during the organization’s annual meeting. It is awarded to IEEE‐HKN chapters in recognition of excellence in their chapter administration and programs. Chapters are selected based on their activities, community service and outreach, and the impact that they have had on their department/school, the university, and the community. 

Among their numerous activities, the Georgia Tech HKN students provide a huge service to the School of ECE through their “Lab Kits Sales” program. These kits provide the necessary components for the School’s required undergraduate laboratories and non-major laboratories. Costing less than the corresponding commercial components, the kits have saved ECE students tens of thousands of dollars over the last decade. 

Nevertheless, since they assemble the kits themselves, the HKN students have still made a net profit from their sales and have used those funds to establish two endowed scholarships for ECE students. With their current income, each year they award a $1,000 scholarship to a deserving junior student and a $1,000 scholarship to a student for demonstrated entrepreneurship. Even with these awards, the HKN students continue to grow their Georgia Tech Foundation endowment. 

The Georgia Tech HKN chapter was among 26 chapters recognized for their efforts to improve professional development, raise instructional and institutional standards, encourage scholarship and creativity, provide public service, and generally further the established goals of IEEE-HKN.

“This is a tremendous achievement for our HKN chapter,” said Magnus Egerstedt, the Steve W. Chaddick School Chair for ECE. “On behalf of the School, I’d like to thank them for their hard work and dedication to making ECE and Georgia Tech better places to be.”