Unprecedented challenges face the structural engineering profession in the years to come. Threats from foreign competition, opposition to structural licensure, dwindling profits, decline in ethics, and increased risk and expectations are at our doorstep now. It has become obvious that trying to maintain the status quo will only result in a decline in the relevance of the profession. An idiom states that there are three types of people: Those that are in the loop, those that are out of the loop, and those that don’t know there is a loop. …

Many superb opportunities are available to assist structural engineers in improving their skills, expanding their understanding, and increasing their efficiency and level of success. One problem our profession faces today is that too few engineers take advantage of these opportunities, and instead choose to languish in mediocrity. …