Women Engineers are GREAT

When I was a young girl, I wanted to be a biomedical engineer. I realized that this was my vocation when I saw Dr. DeBakey’s first artificial heart on the front of LIFE Magazine. I was told in no uncertain terms that engineering “was a man’s field” and I should not pursue this profession. TOO BAD! I knew that engineering was my destiny, so I set out a plan to accomplish my goal = make good grades, acheive recongnized success in high school, go on to a great engineering college, and work for supportive companies in the field.

Easy to do, right? Not exactly. My biggest supporters were a few aunts and a couple of teachers. My biggest challenges were my family, my school counselor and almost all adults.Through lots of hard work, I made good grades and was a recongnized scholar and leader in high school. I went to a wonderful engineering college, Clarkson University in Potsdam, NY, (www.clarkson.edu) and received my BS in Chemical Engineering. I went on to work for several supportive companies in medical manufactruing including Procter & Gamble, Abbott Labs, and Bristol-Myers Squibb. In 1998, I started my own consulting business, DLD Quality Engineering, which specializes in helping small companies be in compliance with FDA and ISO 9000 quality standards.

Finding your vocation in life is never easy. I was a born leader, being the oldest of 7 children in my family. I was good in math and science, and talented mechanically = I use to build model rockets that actually flew when I was in grammer school. Combining engineering with medicine to help improve the quality of people’s lives was a great way for me to use my talents and make the world better in the process. I have accomplished that during my career and continue to do so as an independent consultant.

Now I’m at a point in my career where I can give back. I am involved with the Society of Women Engineers (www.swe.org) and mentor young engineers in my family and at local schools and universities. I am a member of Pilot International (www.pilotinternational.org), a civic group dedicated to helping people with brain related disorders. I belong to the League of Women Voters (www.lwv.org), a nonpartician citizenship group. I do facilities and techincal work for my church (www.stpaulevanston.org). And I’m a wonderfully supportive aunt – just ask my 19 nieces and nephews!

Most of all, I try to be a good example of being what you’re supposed to be. I had a dream, made a plan to acheive it, worked long and hard, and have had many professional successes. Helping others is now my prime objective.

Respectfully Submitted,
Diane DiFrancesco
CEO/Founder
DLD Quality Engineering