Evelyn Thomas

Region IV Professionals College Initiative Chair

Evelyn is a native of Beaumont, Texas. In September 2010, she joined NSBE as an eighth grader representing the Lamar NSBE Jr. Chapter. In March 2011, Evelyn won 1st place in the NSBE MATHCOUNTS competition hosted at NSBE’s 37th National Convention. This encouraged Evelyn to become an engineer and to remain active in NSBE.

She attended The University of Texas at Austin from 2015-2019. During this time, she served as: Chapter Freshman Action Team Vice President, Chapter Public Relations/Publicity Chair, Chapter Vice President, Chapter Alumni Relations Chair, and Region V Texas Zone Chair Blue. Evelyn also participated in the DE&I activities of the Cockrell School of Engineering and Equal Opportunities in Engineering Program at UT Austin. Evelyn was one of six recipients of the 2019 Student Leadership Award in Engineering. This honor stretches over 30 years of UT Austin Engineering history. Evelyn was also a member of the history honors society – Phi Alpha Theta. Evelyn earned her Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering and Bachelor of Art in History in May 2019.

After graduating, Evelyn moved to Indiana and became a Quality Engineer at Ecolab. In 2019 and 2020, Evelyn supported her plant’s Ecolab Community Giving program, Global Loss Challenge, and United Way efforts, when needed. Evelyn also serves as the Progressive Quality Total Productive Maintenance pillar lead. Evelyn received her Engineering Intern license from the State of Indiana in September 2020. Evelyn currently serves as the 2020-2021 Region IV Professionals College Initiative Chair and the region’s Young Technical Professionals Representative. In August 2021, Evelyn will move to Region II to pursue a Master of Science in Engineering Design at The Pennsylvania State University.

Outside of work and NSBE, Evelyn manages to stay busy. Prior to COVID-19, Evelyn volunteered with the Literacy Alliance of Fort Wayne. Education is a central tenet of her upbringing and she envisions a world where education is available to all who seek it. History is a lifelong interest of Evelyn’s; she began her genealogical research when she was nine years old. She is also a fan of creating beautiful and functional items. Evelyn crochets, knits, 3D-prints, and writes. Regardless of her activities, she always tries to lend a helping hand or a listening ear to anyone who needs it. Evelyn hopes to continue to serve her community when COVID restrictions are lifted, and to increase her commitment to NSBE by becoming a Lifetime member.