CALL for RAS Student Activities Committee (SAC) Chair AND Co‐Chairs

The IEEE Robotics and Automation Society (RAS) is seeking applications for the Member Activities Board’s Student Activities Committee (SAC). There are openings for one Chair and one or more co‐Chairs. These positions offer great opportunities to learn more about the Society, have an international impact, and expand one’s professional network. The chair will serve for two calendar years (2018–19), and the co‐chairs for a one‐year term in 2018 and renewable for a second year.

The IEEE‐RAS Student Activities Committee promotes student participation in the Society activities in co‐operation with all Society Boards, Committees and Working Groups, under the supervision of the Membership Activities Board. The mission of the committee includes working on issues of interest to student members and interacting with student members and student chapter branches. Current areas of focus include:

• Lunch with Leaders held at flagship conferences (ICRA, CASE, IROS)
• Informal social events at RAS sponsored conferences
• Educational webinars
• Membership development
• SAC Website content
• Coordination with student branch chapter chairs
• SAC column in IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine (quarterly publication)
• IEEE RAS Facebook group management

The chairs of the RAS SAC are appointed by the RAS President from a slate of candidates approved by the Membership Activities Board. Candidates may be undergraduate or graduate students, but must be student members of the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society in good standing. The ideal candidate has strong social, professional, and communication skills, is willing to take part in ongoing activities and propose new initiatives. Past participation in SAC is requested but not required. There is no geographical preference.

The Chair of the SAC shall be an ex‐officio Administrative Committee member with a vote. The chair is expected to attend the semiannual Administrative Committee meetings, adjoin to the ICRA and IROS conferences. * Partial travel support (depending on the distance) is provided by the Society (up to $2000, for the chair, and $500 for co‐chairs). The Student Activities Chair shall also be an active member of the RAS Member Activities Board.

Currently, the SAC has several initiatives to promote active networking, interdisciplinary dialogues, and robotics education. Some initiatives require weekly SAC involvement while other activities are conference specific (currently developed around the RAS flagship conferences: IROS, ICRA, and CASE). More information about current activities can be found at the RAS webpage <http://www.ieee-ras.org/students/about-sac>

Interested applicants should be:

• Self-motivated
• Organized
• Responsive to e-mail discussions
• Able to commit 5+ hours a week to SAC material, potentially more when required for specific activities (e.g. reviewing volunteer proposals, organizing conference activities, etc.)

If you wish to be considered, please complete an Application Form by 1 March 2018 and indicate whether you are applying for the Chair or Co-Chair position, and include the following information:
1. A letter indicating applicant’s interest in serving on the SAC and relevant experience (2 pages maximum)
2. A CV or résumé (2 pages maximum)
3. A letter of support from a faculty member at your college or university (preferably a current member of IEEE and RAS).

For more information on the SAC and current activities, refer to the IEEE RAS webpage.

* Upcoming IEEE RAS Flagship Conference dates and locations are as follows:
ICRA 2018: Brisbane, Australia, 21-25 May
IROS 2018: Madrid, Spain, 1-5 October
CASE 2018: Munich, Germany, 20-24 August
ICRA 2019: Montreal, Canada, 20-24 May
IROS 2019: Macau, China, 3-8 November
CASE 2019: Vancouver, Canada, 25-28 August