IEEE-HKN: The new international ECE honor society

An agreement has been signed which moves Eta Kappa Nu (HKN), the North American honor society for Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) students, into the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE.) The primary motivation has been stated to be enhanced financial stability, but the challenge that has been immediately recognized is the opportunity to expand the Society's membership beyond its current geographical base in the United States to the IEEE's international range. The paper and presentation briefly review HKN's history and mission, and its traditional role in US ECE departments. This is followed by a summary of its current status, and reasons for the proposed administrative changes at this time. Details of the proposal are covered, with a brief mention of some of the issues that were raised as it was debated, and their resolution. Finally, the main purpose of this ISSE presentation is to highlight the opportunity for European IEEE student branches to work with the rapidly growing local chapters of the IEEE Education Society and national accreditation bodies to establish HKN chapters.