August 31, 2009 marked my last official day at NACME, nine years after I had the honor of becoming its president and CEO.

It has been an enjoyable and productive period during which we have focused our attention and energy on our vision of an engineering workforce that looks like America.  I am proud of the members of our organization who have worked so hard to ensure that we remain true to the hopes of our founders that one day underrepresented minorities will no longer be underrepresented in engineering and that they will be accorded the same opportunities for achievement and advancement as all other persons.

I am thankful for the support and guidance we have received from so many others.  Our board and their liaisons have made a profound difference through their commitment and counsel.  We could not have accomplished as much as we have without the strong backing of our donors and partner organizations. We are particularly appreciative of the efforts our 50 university partners have made in strengthening their abilities to recruit, enroll, educate, retain and graduate underrepresented minority engineers.  And I send special thanks to our NACME scholars for their outstanding performance in the classroom from high school to graduate school.

NACME, like every other institution, has been buffeted by the economic downturn but NACME is resilient and has not deviated from its mission.  I am confident that it will continue to remain dedicated to its purposes and that it will enjoy a bright future under my successor, Dr. Irving Pressley McPhail.

I wish you all the very best.

John