News from Trinity University

Trinity University Engineering Science Faculty, Students Inducted Into Society that Honors Ethical Practice

Seniors Colby Frerich and Luis Araiza show their rings after the Order of the Engineer induction ceremony.

SAN ANTONIO – About two dozen engineering science professors and students at Trinity University have been inducted into the Order of the Engineer, an organization with no dues and no meetings but with a commitment to ethical business practices.

The Order of the Engineer was initiated in the United States to foster a spirit of pride and responsibility in the engineering profession, to bridge the gap between training and experience, and to present to the public a visible symbol identifying the engineer. The first ceremony was held in 1970 at Cleveland State University, but the one held locally in mid-April was the first for the Trinity campus. A chapter, known as a “link,” also exists at the University of Texas at San Antonio.

Matt Saunders, president of a student group known as the Trinity Engineers, said, “It’s the Hippocratic oath for engineers.” Mr. Saunders, a candidate for graduation in May who will continue his engineering studies at the University of Texas at Austin, said about two-thirds of the eligible senior engineering science majors embraced the concept of the Order. “It is important in our profession to have a code of ethics.”

Much of Trinity’s engineering science curriculum includes case studies involving ethics questions, said Jack Leifer, assistant professor of engineering science and an inductee into the Order. “We touch upon ethics every semester. It’s not something you learn one semester and forget.” Some cases are ambiguous and spark points of discussion, he said. “The Order of the Engineer is a culmination of that ethical trajectory.”

Darsh Singh puts his hand through a large ring to receive his Order of the Engineer ring.

Inductees into the Order receive a stainless steel ring to wear as a tangible sign of an obligation to practice professional ethics. The simple stainless steel circle will be worn on the pinkie finger of the working hand – the writing hand – of engineering science faculty, graduates, and members of the Engineering Science Board of Advisors who choose to be inducted into the Order of the Engineer. “It is a reminder to perform to ethical standards,” Professor Leifer said. “As they sign documents, they will look down and see the ring and hear it scratching the paper they are signing.”

Credit for bringing the Order to Trinity lies with Kevin Nickels, associate professor of engineering science, who received his ring as an undergraduate at Purdue University. J. Paul Giolma, associate professor and chair of engineering science, is the third faculty member at Trinity to be inducted into the Order, along with four members of the Board of Advisors who are Trinity alumni.

Once inducted, the engineers have no dues and no meetings. The ring itself only costs $10, although part of the ceremony requires inductees to thrust their working hand through a larger 60-pound stainless steel ring valued at about $1,200. The ring used at the Trinity induction ceremony was loaned by John A. Brogan, an engineer at CPS Energy, who acquired it about five years ago on behalf of the San Antonio chapter of the Texas Society of Professional Engineers.

During the first-ever Order of the Engineer ceremony, students and professionals formed a circle in the Fiesta Room and recited a pledge, which says, in part: “I am an Engineer. In my profession I take deep pride……As an Engineer, I pledge to practice integrity and fair dealing, tolerance, and respect, and to uphold devotion to the standards and the dignity of my profession…..I shall participate in none but honest enterprises.”

The Obligation of the Order of the Engineer is similar to the Canadian "Ritual of the Calling of an Engineer" initiated in 1926. It uses a wrought iron ring, conducts a secret ceremony, and administers an oath authorized by Rudyard Kipling.

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