LOCAL NEWS | Students Gain Work Experience, Learn about Engineering in Our San Francisco Office

WJE has always enjoyed a robust intern program; in fact, more than sixty college and post-graduate students are working in our offices this summer. But over the past two years, our San Francisco office has partnered with a high school whose students work at WJE year-round, and the results have been gratifying for both the students and the office.

Working with more than three dozen college preparatory private schools across twenty-four states, the nonprofit Cristo Rey Network offers a rigorous education for those with limited economic means. Students offset the cost of tuition through a work-study program; four years of professional work is required for students to graduate from the high school. Many are the first in their families to attend college, so exposure to a corporate environment is often a new experience.

Since 2022, our San Francisco office has welcomed eight students-the first four from the Cristo Rey San Francisco chapter and four more from the Oakland chapter. All have served as receptionists for one day a week during the school year and for a greater spell during summers. They answer phone calls, greet guests, and prepare FedEx boxes for materials samples that are shipped to our Janney Technical Center, among other project-related duties.

"Hiring Cristo Rey students has been an incredible win-win," said Una Gilmartin, a principal in the San Francisco office. "They do meaningful work for us and graduate high school with the confidence of having achieved the first of what we hope to be many successful professional milestones. The school believes in the power of their corporate work-study program to transform lives."

"They have been outstanding," added Kerry Barlogio, branch administrative coordinator of the San Francisco office, who noted that our involvement with the Cristo Rey work-study program provides a great introduction to the A/E/C industry for students from historically underrepresented backgrounds. "Having them has been a wonderful experience. We continue to learn from them as they learn from us."

The program can open students' eyes to potential careers. Last summer, the four San Francisco students branched out from the office, gaining valuable experience and the opportunity to collaborate with our engineers and architects. Two students decided to pursue engineering as their college major; before joining WJE, neither of these students had considered engineering as a career.

Sophomore Christopher Gonzalez has appreciated exposure to our project work.

"We're analyzing photos to see what's wrong with buildings, and we figure out how to fix the problems," said Gonzalez, who-as a child-liked accompanying his father to construction sites.

Since he was little, Cristo Rey senior Marcelo Lopez-Lizardo was interested in engineering-he enjoyed taking things apart and putting them back together-and WJE has lifted his attraction to the discipline to a new level.

"I went to a lecture on metal roofing. I never knew a metal roof could be so complicated. I was intrigued," said Lopez-Lizardo, who joined WJE in August 2023 and is in the process of changing his major from criminology to civil engineering at Fresno State, where he's enrolled as a freshman this fall.

Lopez-Lizardo would like to continue working at WJE during breaks from Fresno State and would welcome a full-time job at WJE after graduation. Gonzalez will continue at WJE this fall as he continues his high school studies at Cristo Rey. Freshman Maoli Lopez, junior Anya Evans, and junior Estrella Amador are also Cristo Rey students working in the office this summer.

A recent survey highlighted the Cristo Rey students' enthusiasm about the WJE program. They said they felt supported by their supervisors and colleagues, incredibly welcomed and included by WJE, were continuously learning, and had enough work to keep them busy and challenged. Two students wrote the same comment: "I love my job."

Lopez-Lizardo said WJE stands apart from other places he's worked.

"There's always something interesting going on here," he said. "It's great to be able to talk with everybody and hear about how they got to where they are now. I'm going to take all this knowledge with me to Fresno State."