News

Survey of Current Civil Engineering Undergraduate Students

10/21/2020

The SEAONC SE3 Committee has developed a survey for current civil engineering undergraduate students with the hope of gaining an understanding of their experiences and what we as professionals can do to better support their career growth and development. We are interested in learning how these students first learned about engineering, if they have ever considered switching majors, whether they are considering pursuing a graduate degree, and if they plan to continue pursuing a career in engineering after graduation. The committee is also collecting demographic information (gender, race, Federal Pell Grant eligibility, and first generation status) to determine if there are any trends surrounding the engagement and retention of students of color that we can share with the professional community at large.

With this survey, we hope to answer the following questions:

Are students who identify as Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) more likely to learn about engineering from outreach programs versus learning about engineering from parents or other family members?
Are students who identify as BIPOC more likely to consider switching majors? Why?
Are students that identify as BIPOC less likely to consider pursuing a graduate degree? Why?
Are students who identify as BIPOC less likely to consider pursuing a career in engineering after graduation? Why?
Are there similar trends for students who identify as low-income (Pell Grant eligible) and/or first generation?
Are students that identify as BIPOC more likely to also identify as low-income and/or first generation?

Link to survey: bit.ly/3dKmaSe

Please share this link with your student connections and encourage them to participate in the survey. Thank you in advance for your assistance! We look forward to sharing the findings from this survey with the A/E/C Community!!

SE3's Commitment to Racial Justice

6/13/2020

On June 12th, SEAONC SE3 sent an email to its distribution list to confirm its continued commitment to stand and fight in solidarity with the Black community and the Black Lives Matter Movement. In this message, the committee shared its pledge to take specific actions in the 2020-2021 SEAONC year related to research, organized programming for local universities, roundtable discussion with firm leaders and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) consultants, and a commitment to give Black members of our profession a platform at SE3 events.

This pledge followed with a "Call-to-Action" to all firms and individuals to contribute to creating a more equitable structural engineering industry.

Each one of us has power—some more than others (firm leaders, committee leaders, community leaders). Each one of us has a voice—some louder or more listened to than others. In this time, reflect on spaces where you have power or privilege. Educate yourselves, speak up, donate, self-reflect, recommit, and repeat. This is a marathon, not a sprint, and SE3 will be here for you to help along the way.

The committee has recommended specific action items for firms and individuals, and made them available to the community on this website. To read the full statement and to download some resources on this topic, please visit this page of our website.

2020 SEAONC SE3 Mentorship Program!!

5/23/2020

SEAONC SE3 is currently launching its second year of the SE3 long-term mentorship program. We invite all SF Bay Area structural engineers to participate in this program.

The 2020 SE3 LT Mentorship Program
This year, the committee will be forming "mentoring groups" consisting of four to six people, varying in years of professional experience (entry-level, mid-level, and seasoned professionals).

For our program, groups will meet roughly once every other month. Meetings will of course be done virtually (until the Bay Area Counties remove or reduce restrictions due to COVID and it's deemed safe to meet in small groups).

What's great about this set-up is that everyone can benefit, no matter how many years they've been working in the profession:

Entry-level engineers have an obvious benefit of making new professional connections, gaining insights from the more experienced engineers in the group.
Mid-level engineers can both give and receive career advice, share stories and gain perspectives, rewarding them with valuable leadership and management tools.
Seasoned professionals can give back to the community and gain insights on what younger engineers are struggling with during this time.

The matching process virtually, so mentoring groups can form over the next month.

If you're interested in joining, please go to this link and complete an application.
Please forward this along to any colleagues at your firm who you think would be interested and can benefit from this program!!

Thank you to committee members Alan Puah, Steve Earl, Sara Rahme, and current co-chairs Rachel Cohen, and Brenna Marcoux for all their hard work setting up this new program for our local community.

2020 NCSEA SE3 Survey is LIVE!!

5/18/2020

The NCSEA SE3 Committee is currently administering its third nationwide survey of structural engineers across the profession.

We invite all structural engineers in the United States to join the conversation!
Please take 10-15 minutes to submit a response to this year's survey. Every opinion is important to us.

Link to the 2020 Survey

The core mission of the SE3 Committee is to attract and retain the best and brightest into our profession; and to ensure all structural engineers have a clear pathway to success. The SE3 survey is an ongoing effort to identify trends, understand the underlying factors, and initiate industry-wide conversations.

EVERY structural engineer is invited to participate regardless of race, gender, age or job title. The SE3 mission applies to every structural engineer.

For more info, please visit the NCSEA SE3 Committee Site.

SAVE THE DATE: A/E/C ROUNDTABLE: Inclusive Practices in Recruiting and Management | February 25, 2020

1/28/2020

The SEAONC SE3 Diversity and Inclusion Subcommittee is excited announce our upcoming roundtable discussion at AIA in San Francisco on February 25, 2020.

Date | Time: February 25, 2020 | 5:45 pm - 8:30 pm
Location: AIA San Francisco, 130 Sutter St #600, San Francisco, CA 94104
Description: This roundtable discussion will focus on recruitment and management strategies that help attract and support a diverse staff. The panel will consist of firm leaders, HR/recruiting managers, and professionals from structural engineering, architecture, and general contracting firms, who will share their experiences implementing strategies or programs to diversify their staff and improve their workplace culture and retention metrics.

Panelists:

Lori Burbridge, Associate Principal, Business Manager | Buehler & Buehler
Denny Kwan, Principal, Residential Studio Lead | Holmes Structures
Kelli Quinn, Project Executive | Rudolph & Sletten
Gabrielle Bullock, Director of Global Diversity | Perkins & Will

Moderator:

Saskia Dennis-Van Dijl, Principal Consultant | Cameron MacAllister Group

For more information on the registration & panelists: Visit our event page.
Register for the event on the SEAONC Event Page.
Event Coordination Team:
Brenna, Rachel, Maito, Hayley and Tiffany

NCSEA SE3 YEAR IN REVIEW

1/2/2020

The National (NCSEA) SE3 committee has achieved quite a bit over the past year. The committee has increased collaboration across multiple SEA member organizations and other AEC organizations, completed over 15 presentations around the US and abroad, and hosted two very successful symposia, with over $40K in corporate sponsorships between the two. Analysis of the 2018 survey data continued, with special efforts in reporting geographic trends, flexibility and childcare, and wage gap at Principal level. In a huge collaborative effort, the 2018 Survey report was published, and can be viewed here.

Moving forward into 2020, in addition to the 2020 NCSEA SE3 survey (development, beta testing, and distribution), we are excited to be transitioning to what we are calling a “CALL TO ACTION”, to encourage all individuals in this profession to move beyond the data by starting conversations and effecting change in their respective organizations. What is your “reimagined workplace” and what do you plan to do to enhance your career, and influence positive changes in your immediate work environment?
See the newly published national SE3 committee website for more information on the committee, events, and publications.

SEAONC SE3 YEAR IN REVIEW

1/1/2020

The SEAONC SE3 Committee had a very productive year in 2019. Committee members worked to expand the SE3 network by connecting with professionals and advocates throughout the state, hosted several successful events in the SF Bay area, published a new blog and pay report, and continued to develop new resources that contribute to our mission to advance the profession.

SE3’s Long-Term Mentorship Program launched in March 2019, connecting over 50 mentees to 27 seasoned professionals living and working in the San Francisco Bay Area.
In May 2019, former SEAONC & NCSEA SE3 co-chair Nick Sherrow-Groves was invited to present at a SEAOSC Leadership Symposium “SEIZE YOUR OPPORTUNITY” for the Women in Structural Engineering Committee.
SEAONC SE3 hosted the #ChangeXSE3 Symposium in May 2019 in San Francisco titled “A Changing Workplace | How to Engage, Retain and Secure the Future of our Profession.” Check out our video documentary to hear reflections from practicing structural engineers on the day of the event.
In August 2019, SE3 hosted a Building Industry Speed Mentoring Event where structural engineers, geotechnical engineers, architects and general contractors were invited to participate as mentors.
At the end of August, SEAONC SE3 published its first “Leadership in Action” blog post which features discussions on engagement and best practices for improving talent retention, with insights and metrics from researchers and our own building design industry leaders. We invite all practicing professionals to share their experiences and successes related to engagement and equity with us. Contact us at SE3project@gmail.com to contribute to the blog!
The 2018-2019 SEAONC SE3 Committee co-chairs Hayley Dickson and Zahraa Saiyed presented at the 88th Annual SEAOC Convention in Squaw Creek, California.
Career coach Dr. Amina Aitsi-Selmi, M.D. Ph.D., held a Webinar entitled “Engineer Your Dream Career” for SEAONC members in October 2019.
In October 2019, the SEAONC SE3 Diversity & Inclusion Task Group, the SEAONC Young Members Forum, and AIA East Bay hosted a workshop on “Building an Inclusive Workplace for All in the 21st Century”. The event served as the launch of SE3’s D&I initiative focusing on expanding the conversation around equity and engagement in structural engineering.
In mid November, SE3 held a picnic in the Presidio to show appreciation to committee members, mentors, advocates, and champions.

SEAONC SE3 Leadership Transition!

10/20/2019

SE3 is pleased to announce that the committee co-chairs for 2019-2020 will be Brenna Marcoux of FTF Engineering and Rachel Cohen of Forell/Elsesser. Brenna has co-led the SE3 mentorship subcommittee and Rachel has co-led the SE3 Outreach and Communications subcommittee for the past year.

Thank you to outgoing co-chairs, Zahraa Saiyed of Scyma Design and Consulting and Hayley Dickson of Forell Elsesser for their exceptional leadership, inspiration and dedicated efforts over the last two years. SE3 has coordinated several very successful events and made a significant impact on the structural engineering and building design community. We are proud to continue to build our network of advocates and ambassadors who are dedicated to the advancement of our profession. We are grateful for the many individuals who have volunteered their time to provide meaningful events and programs for our local area.

We are also pleased to announce new leaders of our various subcommittees. Sara Rahme of Hilti and Steve Earl of Forell Elsesser Engineers will be co-leading the mentorship committee. Hayley Proctor of Wiss Janey Elstner will be joining Maito Okamoto as co-lead of the Diversity & Inclusion Subcommittee. Yoshita Manne of Tipping Structural Engineers will be co-leading communications and outreach with Stephanie Borchers of Forell Elsesser Engineers.

SEAONC SE3 May Symposium Video Documentary

10/13/2019

The SEAONC SE3 Committee is thrilled to announce that the new video documentary, featuring reflections from collaborators, advocates and thought leaders during the May 2019 SEAONC SE3 Symposium in San Francisco, California has now been published!

The goal of this event was to broaden the discussion of engagement and equity by inviting structural engineers from all over California and outside of the state to participate on aspects of changing our profession for the better. The sold out symposium featured inspirational speakers and thought leaders who left the audience invigorated and committed to advancement of our structural engineering industry.

The 2018-2019 SE3 Committee co-chairs, Zahraa Saiyed and Hayley Dickson, and co-founder Natalie Tse, would like to thank this year's sponsors for their generous donations, support and advocacy of the SE3 Project Mission, and to the dedicated SE3 committee leads and core members and volunteers for their continuous commitment to the advancement of the structural engineering profession.

This video was created by filmmaker, Conor Hagen, based in Northern California, and director at Red Lady Films.

If you have any comments or questions about this event and future collaboration efforts with the SE3 Committee, please email us at se3@seaonc.org.

Watch the video!

Save the date for our workshop promoting diversity and inclusion!

9/12/2019

SEAONC SE3 Committee is excited to be collaborating with SEAONC YMF and AIA East Bay to host a fun and engaging event mid-October to celebrate diversity and to work together to improve awareness on equity issues and inclusivity in the building design profession.

SEAONC SE3 OCTOBER WORKSHOP
Building an Inclusive Workplace for ALL in the 21st Century
Thursday, October 17 | 5:30pm-8:00pm
AIA East Bay

This program features a presentation from an expert on change management, employee engagement and “tactical implementation” of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) initiatives. Participants will identify and discuss relevant issues through facilitated discussions, and will collaborate on finding solutions. The event concludes with continued conversations and networking. Appetizers and refreshments will be provided.
Attendees will leave this workshop energized, empowered with the tools to augment relationships, influence change in recruiting practices at their firm, to help improve engagement and talent retention in our profession.