Program Description
This year's Symposium is celebrating 10 years of SE3! Join us on Thursday, May 15th, 2025 at the David Brower Center in Berkeley. We are looking forward to welcoming a range of attendees in the A/E/C profession, from students and young professionals to firm leaders.
SEAONC SE3's 10-year milestone will be showcased in a plenary session with many former SEAONC SE3 committee chairs, reflecting on what we’ve achieved and looking forward to what’s ahead. Attendees will have an opportunity to collaborate and share during the planned breakout sessions on focused topics including: work-life balance, licensure, and Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) in firms. Given that May is Mental Health Awareness Month, we are excited to wrap up the symposium with a workshop addressing mental health in our industry.
SEAONC SE3's 10-year milestone will be showcased in a plenary session with many former SEAONC SE3 committee chairs, reflecting on what we’ve achieved and looking forward to what’s ahead. Attendees will have an opportunity to collaborate and share during the planned breakout sessions on focused topics including: work-life balance, licensure, and Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) in firms. Given that May is Mental Health Awareness Month, we are excited to wrap up the symposium with a workshop addressing mental health in our industry.
Schedule Overview
12:00 pm Arrival | Sign-in at the Atrium Lobby
12:15 pm Plenary | Theater
1:45 pm Coffee Break | The Terrace
2:00 pm Breakout Sessions - Choose one!
Room A: Work-Life Balance - Beyond the Buzzword
Room B: Industry Inclusion - Connecting Leaders in 2025
Room C: Technical Obstacles - Supporting Employees for Success
3:00 pm Break | The Terrace
3:15 pm Mental Health & Beyond | Theater
5:30 pm Closing Remarks
5:40 pm Happy Hour | Atrium Lobby, The Terrace
6:30 pm End
This program is brought to you by the SEAONC SE3 Symposium Planning Team.
12:00 pm Arrival | Sign-in at the Atrium Lobby
12:15 pm Plenary | Theater
1:45 pm Coffee Break | The Terrace
2:00 pm Breakout Sessions - Choose one!
Room A: Work-Life Balance - Beyond the Buzzword
Room B: Industry Inclusion - Connecting Leaders in 2025
Room C: Technical Obstacles - Supporting Employees for Success
3:00 pm Break | The Terrace
3:15 pm Mental Health & Beyond | Theater
5:30 pm Closing Remarks
5:40 pm Happy Hour | Atrium Lobby, The Terrace
6:30 pm End
This program is brought to you by the SEAONC SE3 Symposium Planning Team.
Detailed Program
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12:00 PM
12:15 PM
1:45 PM 2:00 PM
3:00 PM
3:15 PM
4:00 PM
5:30 PM
5:40 PM
6:30 PM
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Arrival
Sign-in and receive your name tag Plenary: Celebrating 10 Years of SE3
As we celebrate this important milestone in structural engineering and SEAONC history, this session aims to highlight key data, resources, and discussions that have been spurred by SE3 committee members. We will journey through each of the past 10 years with former committee chairs to reflect on what we've learned, share key takeaways from previous discussions, and dive into continued areas for improvement related to equity, engagement, & retention. Featuring: Natalie Tse (Co-Founder, 2015-2016), Hayley Dickson (2017-2019), Zahraa Saiyed (2018-2019), Brenna Marcoux (2019-2020), Tiffany Hwang (2020-2021), Hayley Proctor (2021-2022), Kaat Ceder (2022-2023), Priscilla Nguyen (2022-2023), Danny Preut (2023-2024), & Claire Leader (2024-2025). Coffee Break | Sponsored by Degenkolb Engineers
Coffee, tea, and snacks will be provided. BREAKOUT SESSIONS
Attendees will pick one of the following interactive, discussion sessions to attend. Room A: Work-Life Balance - Beyond the Buzzword
From day one of the job, we’ve all been asked, "So, how’s your work-life balance?" But how is it really? This interactive session goes beyond the buzzwords to explore practical ways to align our 9-to-5 and our 5-to-9 such that this balance actually feels achievable. Join us as we unpack the challenges, share strategies, and make space for our life outside of work without burning out or falling behind. Through open and engaging discussion, we’ll tackle the real obstacles that make a healthy work-life balance feel unattainable, especially in a fast-paced and mentally demanding profession like structural engineering. Room B: Industry Inclusion - Connecting Leaders in 2025
This discussion session will focus on a core part of SE3’s mission: building a more inclusive structural engineering industry. We’ll start with a look at previous SE3 surveys, specifically racial demographic data for context, then open the floor for attendees to share how their firms are approaching DEIB (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging) amidst the rapidly changing political climate and recent executive orders. We’ll touch briefly on the current legal landscape and share resources for navigating it. This will also be a chance to continue the conversation from SEAONC's January Association Meeting--identifying practical, “low-hanging fruit” strategies firms can implement to improve workplace culture and inclusivity. Room C: Technical Obstacles - Supporting Employees for Success
In this room, we will explore the technical and systemic obstacles that impact structural engineers' career path, particularly those from underrepresented backgrounds. We’ll discuss how barriers can compound over time—shaping who advances into leadership roles. A key focus will be on knowledge-sharing between attendees: what kinds of resources, benefits, and support structures are currently offered to those seeking licensure within their firm and how can we scale what’s working? Come ready to share ideas, experiences, and examples of mentorship programs, exam prep support, and other efforts that help create a more inclusive path to licensure without compromising technical standards. Fireside Chat
Why Mental Health is a Critical Business Conversation in Structural Engineering Melissa Doman and Jim Malley This engaging fireside interview will delve into why talking about mental health at work is a critical business conversation in structural engineering, the industry-specific challenges we face, and some actionable ways to start the conversation in our respective businesses. Workshop
Achievable Practical Stress Management Melissa Doman This interactive workshop will take a deep dive into understanding the neuroscience of chronic stress, its multifaceted impact, why we need to shift at how we engage in the stress management process, and a variety of actionable personalized stress management tools. Closing Remarks
Happy Hour
Refreshments and appetizers will be provided. Beer & wine for 21+. Book Signing with Melissa Doman Yes, You Can Talk About Mental Health at Work: Here’s Why… and How to Do it Really Well End
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*Registration for the symposium has now opened! Click here to register.
ANCHOR SPONSOR
PLENARY SPONSOR
COFFEE BREAK SPONSOR
ATTENDEE BOOK SPONSOR
REFRESHMENTS SPONSOR
Sponsors | "Leaders"
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Sponsors | "Partners"
Stanley Black and Decker - DeWalt
Element Structural Engineers
Forell | Elsesser Engineers
Maffei Structural Engineering
OLMM Consulting Engineers
Strandberg Engineering
Element Structural Engineers
Forell | Elsesser Engineers
Maffei Structural Engineering
OLMM Consulting Engineers
Strandberg Engineering
Sponsors | "Collaborators"
Sponsorship Opportunities
Please visit our Sponsorship Page for information on sponsorship opportunities.
Feel free to contact us at [email protected] if you have any questions.
Feel free to contact us at [email protected] if you have any questions.