The Society of Women Engineers originated when small groups of women engineers and women engineering students began meeting independently in Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Washington D.C. Nearly 50 women from these groups came together on May 27, 1950 to form the Society. The organization's four objectives are as relevant today as they were 50 years ago: to inform young women, their parents, counselors, and the public of the qualifications and achievements of women engineers and the opportunities available to them; to assist women engineers in readying themselves for a return to active work after temporary retirement; to serve as a center of information on women in the field; and to encourage women engineers to attain high levels of educational and professional achievement.