February 20, 2010

The Origin of the Texas Engineering Practice Act

    As Chairman of the Board of Professional Engineers on the 70th anniversary of its creation, I wanted to find out more of the circumstances surrounding the Board's formation. I heard that a reunion and memorial service were to be held in New London, Texas, this year, honoring the survivors and remembering the loss of more than 300 students and teachers who died in the school explosion on March 18, 1937.

   This tragedy was the event that led to the Engineering Practice Act in Texas. I asked Executive Director Dale Beebe Farrow to join me in this commemoration. It was indeed an honor and an education for us to attend the memorial service and meet several of the survivors and others affected by the explosion. Each had a story to tell of the catastrophic event.  Read more:
Texas Board of Professional Engineers Newsletter, Summer, 2007, Pg. 2