{"id":4825,"date":"2017-11-16T14:34:19","date_gmt":"2017-11-16T14:34:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/?p=4825"},"modified":"2020-05-04T14:44:17","modified_gmt":"2020-05-04T14:44:17","slug":"breath-of-fresh-air","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/?p=4825","title":{"rendered":"Breath of fresh air"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/files\/2017\/11\/Beverly-Banister-Photos-1-of-4.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-4899\" src=\"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/files\/2017\/11\/Beverly-Banister-Photos-1-of-4-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"590\" height=\"394\" srcset=\"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/files\/2017\/11\/Beverly-Banister-Photos-1-of-4-1024x683.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/files\/2017\/11\/Beverly-Banister-Photos-1-of-4-300x200.jpg 300w, http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/files\/2017\/11\/Beverly-Banister-Photos-1-of-4-768x512.jpg 768w, http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/files\/2017\/11\/Beverly-Banister-Photos-1-of-4.jpg 1500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 590px) 100vw, 590px\" \/><\/a>It was a beautiful spring day in 1980 when a chance visit to the Auburn University campus forever changed the course of Beverly Houston Banister\u2019s life.<\/p>\n<p>As a student majoring in hospital administration at Southern Union State Community College, Banister was encouraged by a professor to attend an Auburn Engineering event since she was excelling in science and math.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs long as I can remember, I have had a love for math and science. I\u2019ve always loved solving problems. I\u2019ve always loved being challenged. In math and science, there are lots of opportunities for innovation and creativity,\u201d Banister said. \u201cAnd, I was just blessed to be good at it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>From the moment she stepped on campus, she knew she was home.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat day absolutely changed my life. My world just opened up. I knew two things when I left Auburn that day: one, I wanted to go to Auburn and two, I knew I wanted to be an engineer, more importantly I knew I wanted to be a chemical engineer,\u201d Banister said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOn that day in spring 1980, my life changed and it has never been the same since,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n<div class=\"video-container\" style=\"margin-bottom: 15px;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/znLbPH1pJtk\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/files\/2017\/11\/Beverly-Banister-Photos-3-of-4.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-4897\" src=\"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/files\/2017\/11\/Beverly-Banister-Photos-3-of-4-300x293.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"293\" srcset=\"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/files\/2017\/11\/Beverly-Banister-Photos-3-of-4-300x293.jpg 300w, http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/files\/2017\/11\/Beverly-Banister-Photos-3-of-4-768x749.jpg 768w, http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/files\/2017\/11\/Beverly-Banister-Photos-3-of-4-1024x999.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/files\/2017\/11\/Beverly-Banister-Photos-3-of-4.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a>ROAD TO SUCCESS<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Banister grew up in the small town of Woodland, Alabama \u2013 population 183 \u2013 in rural Randolph County in a single-parent home with four siblings. An engineer was not something many people there aspired to be, especially for an African-American woman, but she was also taught to do more and reach higher.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cStatistically, I should not have made it. In my high school, we didn\u2019t talk about engineering, for men or women. But I had a chemistry teacher, Diana Jones, who inspired me to stretch. She really piqued my interest in science, physics and chemistry.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>And while Jones sparked that love for science in Banister, it was her mother who instilled in her a drive and determination to succeed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy role model was, and continues to be, my mom. She knew very little about engineering, but she inspires me even today that, with God, I can do anything. When I told her about the things I had learned about engineering at Auburn, she said, \u2018Go for it. You can do it.\u2019 That was all I needed to hear,\u201d Banister said.<\/p>\n<p>Once at Auburn, Banister quickly discovered the educational expectations were far greater than what she was accustomed to in high school.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGetting in was easy, staying in was a challenge,\u201d she said with a laugh. \u201cThe chemical engineering curriculum is a very demanding curriculum. It really doesn\u2019t matter whether you are black or white, male or female, the expectations are the same. We have very high standards for engineers at Auburn.\u201d<br \/>\nWhile the large size of some of the pre-engineering classes came as a shock to her, so, too, did the amount of information coming from her introductory engineering classes. For many, this was refresher information, but to her, it was all new.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSeveral times I asked myself, \u2018What am I doing here? Have I bitten off more than I can chew? Is this for me? Should I go with another major?\u2019 I was scared. There were many sleepless nights and I prayed a lot, but I knew one thing \u2013 I wanted to be an engineer,\u201d she said. \u201cI just told myself, \u2018I\u2019ve got to figure it out,\u2019 and that\u2019s what I did.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Instead of just being a number in her large classes, Banister started making sure each professor knew her name and face. She joined study groups both large and small.<\/p>\n<p>As one of only three African-Americans in her class, and the only female in the group, Banister and the others found friendship and formed a lasting bond.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe were very tight. But I also found that you had to branch out. I found the entire chemical engineering community to be a close-knit group. I found a lot of comfort in reaching out and networking and building those relationships outside of that very small circle,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>As she gained confidence and familiarity with the campus, curriculum and culture, she began to spread her wings. She became involved with the chapter for Society of Women Engineers, played intramural basketball and began volunteering in the community.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was wonderful. I found that if you\u2019re willing to study hard, you\u2019re willing to network outside of your own comfort zone, you could build the confidence to build success,\u201d she said. \u201cI transitioned from surviving to thriving.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>A SERVANT\u2019S HEART<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Banister graduated with a bachelor\u2019s degree in chemical engineering in 1983, and the winds of change quickly lifted her from one challenging environment to another.<\/p>\n<p>For the past 33 years, Banister has spent her professional career ensuring the environment we live in is one we can proudly pass down to future generations.<\/p>\n<p>As director of the Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management Division for the Environmental Protection Agency in the Southeast since 2003, Banister is responsible for working with local and state governments to maintain and improve air quality through regulatory and voluntary programs.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe goal is to deliver clean air,\u201d Banister said.<\/p>\n<p>She also directs a staff dedicated to reducing potential risks of pesticides and toxic chemicals.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI absolutely love my job. I get to utilize the engineering skills I learned from Auburn each and every day because it\u2019s all about problem-solving. I knew when I left Auburn that I could succeed at anything because I knew how to problem-solve,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to her professional work, Banister also dedicates much of her time giving back, supporting young women aspiring to be engineers and those who are following in her career footsteps.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI feel it\u2019s important for Auburn women engineers to support future Auburn women in engineering because unique challenges still exist and this is still a predominantly male field,\u201d Banister said. \u201cWe all have challenges, but I would encourage women pursuing a degree in engineering to pursue it with passion and hard work and success will follow. If I could make it in the early \u201980s, they too can make it today. Who is better than us to come forth and support the women that are pursuing these careers? At this point in our lives, we have information, resources and time that we can share with future engineers.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>As a member of the college\u2019s 100+ Women Strong program, Banister is excited for the opportunities of women in engineering at Auburn and beyond.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe platform 100+ Women Strong provides us is a phenomenal opportunity for all of us to contribute to recruiting, retaining and rewarding those women that are pursuing engineering careers. It\u2019s an opportunity to give back. It\u2019s an opportunity to build camaraderie and show in a powerful way that we can, together, continue to help strengthen engineering programs not only at Auburn, but also across the country. I get excited just talking about it,\u201d she said with a smile.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It was a beautiful spring day in 1980 when a chance visit to the Auburn University campus forever changed the course of Beverly Houston Banister\u2019s life. As a student majoring in hospital administration at Southern Union State Community College, Banister was encouraged by a professor to attend an Auburn Engineering [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":31,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4],"tags":[986,177],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v20.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Breath of fresh air &raquo; Auburn Engineer<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/?p=4825\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Breath of fresh air &raquo; Auburn Engineer\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"It was a beautiful spring day in 1980 when a chance visit to the Auburn University campus forever changed the course of Beverly Houston Banister\u2019s life. As a student majoring in hospital administration at Southern Union State Community College, Banister was encouraged by a professor to attend an Auburn Engineering [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/?p=4825\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Auburn Engineer\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-11-16T14:34:19+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2020-05-04T14:44:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/files\/2017\/11\/Beverly-Banister-Photos-1-of-4-1024x683.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Austin Phillips\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Austin Phillips\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/?p=4825\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/?p=4825\",\"name\":\"Breath of fresh air &raquo; Auburn Engineer\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2017-11-16T14:34:19+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2020-05-04T14:44:17+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/#\/schema\/person\/8e27011a11032ba3d765cb28334453c7\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/?p=4825#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/?p=4825\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/?p=4825#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Breath of fresh air\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/\",\"name\":\"Auburn Engineer\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/#\/schema\/person\/8e27011a11032ba3d765cb28334453c7\",\"name\":\"Austin Phillips\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/2.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b4b6221ef3a411534d349a9452d8e62f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"http:\/\/2.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b4b6221ef3a411534d349a9452d8e62f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Austin Phillips\"},\"url\":\"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/?author=31\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Breath of fresh air &raquo; Auburn Engineer","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/?p=4825","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Breath of fresh air &raquo; Auburn Engineer","og_description":"It was a beautiful spring day in 1980 when a chance visit to the Auburn University campus forever changed the course of Beverly Houston Banister\u2019s life. As a student majoring in hospital administration at Southern Union State Community College, Banister was encouraged by a professor to attend an Auburn Engineering [&hellip;]","og_url":"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/?p=4825","og_site_name":"Auburn Engineer","article_published_time":"2017-11-16T14:34:19+00:00","article_modified_time":"2020-05-04T14:44:17+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/files\/2017\/11\/Beverly-Banister-Photos-1-of-4-1024x683.jpg"}],"author":"Austin Phillips","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Austin Phillips","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/?p=4825","url":"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/?p=4825","name":"Breath of fresh air &raquo; Auburn Engineer","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/#website"},"datePublished":"2017-11-16T14:34:19+00:00","dateModified":"2020-05-04T14:44:17+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/#\/schema\/person\/8e27011a11032ba3d765cb28334453c7"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/?p=4825#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/?p=4825"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/?p=4825#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Breath of fresh air"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/#website","url":"https:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/","name":"Auburn Engineer","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/#\/schema\/person\/8e27011a11032ba3d765cb28334453c7","name":"Austin Phillips","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"http:\/\/2.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b4b6221ef3a411534d349a9452d8e62f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"http:\/\/2.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b4b6221ef3a411534d349a9452d8e62f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Austin Phillips"},"url":"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/?author=31"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4825"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/31"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4825"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4825\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6991,"href":"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4825\/revisions\/6991"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4825"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4825"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/ecm.eng.auburn.edu\/wp\/emag\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4825"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}