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Matt Phelps Fay Lim
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Student Designed Culvert and Road Improvement Project, Mentored by Snohomish County Public Works Staff, Wins National Award
National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying Honors Educational Collaboration for Second Consecutive Year
EVERETT, Wash., Wednesday, June 26, 2019 – The mentoring collaboration between Snohomish County Public Works and Seattle University is important for the development of aspiring engineering students. That collaboration, through county sponsorship of the students' senior design project, has been recognized by the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES) for the second year in a row. The award winning project, Infrastructure Improvement of a County Road, is also a real-world design in Snohomish County.
“The students designed the widening of an existing roadway and replacement of three existing culverts,” said Snohomish County Public Works Engineering Services Director Janice Fahning. “They did a really great job and we are excited to help these engineering students prepare for their careers.”
Because the requirement for the culvert design includes fish passage, the students held meetings with the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe, Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the US Army Corps of Engineers. The students prepared an engineering report, provided a preliminary cost estimate, a list of applicable permits, and preliminary engineering plans for the future project in the 13700 block of Meadow Rd near Everett.
Seattle University students Sam Birginal-Garcia, Jackie Hempstead, Pavel Moskivitin, Elizabeth Simon, and Caroline Umukobwa worked on the project with Snohomish County engineer Mike Randall and Senior Environmental Coordinator Ted Parker, along with other county engineers. Seattle University instructor and advisor Mark Siegenthaler also guided the students. Nirmala Gnanapragasam worked as the project coordinator for the school. The honor will also help the engineering school, as each winning entry is awarded $10,000.
The organization presented two of eight overall 2019 NCEES Engineering Education Awards to the Seattle University Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. The awards, which honor the integration of engineering practice and education, were chosen from a total of 51 blind entries nationwide during the juried competition. Award winning submittals can be viewed at https://ncees.org/education/engineering-award/areas-of-collaboration/get-inspired/past-award-winners/2019-ncees-engineering-education-award-winners/
A separate set of Seattle University students and Snohomish County Public Works won the same award from NCEES in 2018 for the design of a culvert project in Stanwood.
About Snohomish County Public Works
The Snohomish County Public Works Department constructs and maintains county roads; controls and manages surface water quantity, quality, and fish habitats; and oversees the recycling and disposal of solid waste. The department’s main office is located at 3000 Rockefeller Ave., Everett, WA 98201. For more information about Snohomish County Public Works, visit www.snohomishcountywa.gov/PublicWorks.