Trine civil engineering students, faculty learn and network at annual event

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Fourteen Trine University civil engineering students and three faculty recently participated in the annual Civil Engineering Professional Development Seminar (CEPDS).

The event was held Nov. 20 on the Purdue University campus and included civil engineering students and professionals from across Indiana and surrounding states.

‘Phenomenal’

Levi Webb, a student from Auburn, Indiana, said the event began with a “phenomenal” presentation about the near failure of the Glen Canyon Dam in Arizona and how engineers solved the problem before it became catastrophic.

“This was by far my favorite presentation of the day,” he said.

Gary Greene, Ph.D., chair of the Reiners Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, agreed, noting that he had visited the dam last summer on a family trip.

After the opening, participants could choose sessions on transportation, bridges, construction, geotechnical, water resources, multi-discipline, professionalism, vertical structures and management. There also were sessions designed specifically for students.

Lunch featured an address from Carol Ellinger Haddock, PF, F.ASCE, 2026 president-elect of ASCE, about her vision for the future of the society and the condition of infrastructure in the United States.

Curbless design, night construction

Justin Beck, a student from Charlotte, Michigan, attended a session co-presented by Alex Duran, a 2020 Trine University civil engineering graduate now working as a transportation engineer at DGL Consulting Engineers, based in Indianapolis.

The session covered a revitalization project DGL completed in downtown Sylvania, Ohio.

“The curbless downtown renovation was very interesting to me,” Beck said. “I had seen versions of this in the world before but the opportunity to be walked through the design process and how it was constructed was a very cool experience.”

Shyanne Gibboney, a student from Greenville, Ohio, said she particularly enjoyed a session titled Headlights and Headaches.

“They talked about all the work that goes into having a construction team work through the night: what could go wrong that is less of a risk during the day,” she said. “I found this very interesting.”

Webb attended sessions that covered topics including 3D water flow software, downtown road expansion and road quality surveying.

“I enjoyed all of the sessions despite lacking the knowledge to apply what I learned yet,” he said.

The last student session was a Jeopardy-style game featuring ASCE trivia. Winners received their choice of ASCE-branded items, with Trine students taking home items like coffee mugs, frisbees and engineering graph paper.

“CEPDS is a great event,” said Beck. “It provides the opportunity to get out of the classroom for a day and learn about the real world of civil engineering. It’s also a great networking opportunity and a great chance to hang out with fellow civil engineering students.”

 

Photo: Fourteen Trine University civil engineering students and three faculty recently participated in the annual Civil Engineering Professional Development Seminar (CEPDS). Front, from left, Hemin Mohammed, Ph.D., William Barry, Ph.D., Blake Dulle, Angel Cabrera, Gary Greene, Ph.D.; second row, Levi Webb; third row, Easton Qualls, Brady Parker, Shyanne Gibboney, Jillian Taylor, Ian Sullivan; fourth row, Elliott Carr; back row, Evan Seacatt, Justin Beck, Jacob Ferguson, Dillan Cooper and Luke Weintz.