Microsoft Corp. chairman and chief executive officer Bill Gates will deliver an address Oct. 13 in the Field House at the Athletic Complex during a visit to St. Louis in a program open only to St. Louis area college students, at the company's request. Washington University students must have a ticket to hear Gates' talk.
Other members of the University community may view the Gates address at remote closed-circuit TV locations, still to be announced.
In conjunction with Gates' address, there will be a separate Universitywide Career Fair sponsored by the Washington University Chapter of the National Society of Black Engineers (SOBE). The Career Fair will be held in the recreational gymnasium of the Athletic Complex from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Oct. 13 and will be open to any current student with a valid I.D.
"The Society of Black Engineers is proud and excited to present its largest Universitywide career fair in history," said Jonte Greer, president of SOBE. "The career fair will give both the excellent companies exhibiting at the fair and the students at Washington University a wonderful opportunity to showcase themselves."
Gates' address will be part of a speaking program called "Careers in the Next Millennium." The program is scheduled to begin at 4:30 p.m.
"The computing industry needs more talented people entering technology-related fields," explained Scott Suhy, General Manager of the Mid-America Region for Microsoft Corporation. "Bill Gates wants to share his enthusiasm for the computing profession and to encourage those with aptitude and talent to choose careers in this burgeoning field."
Tickets to Gates' talk will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis to students with valid Washington University I.D.s at two scheduled distribution periods Monday evening, Oct. 5, and Tuesday morning, Oct. 6, at the Information Desk in Mallinckrodt Center. In addition, a limited number of tickets will be raffled to area college students with valid I.D.s at the Career Fair at 11 a.m., noon, 1, 2, 3 and 3:50 p.m. Students are limited to one ticket apiece.
In addition to WU students, a select number of students chosen from all St. Louis area colleges and universities will be invited to attend the Gates address. Each institution will establish its own process for selecting students.
Gates will answer a limited number of questions following his talk. To submit a question, e-mail it to: billg@wustl.edu.
More than 60 companies will participate in the Career Fair. This is the seventh annual fair sponsored by SOBE. For more information, call 935-6900 or visit the SOBE Web site at http://userfs.cec.wustl.edu/~sobe/main.htm.
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