Sharing Perspectives

An engineering department in California took strong measures to increase staff diversity. It soon paid off in fresh ideas with practical applications.

Alarmed by a lack of ethnic diversity and concerned that it would inhibit new ideas and fresh perspectives, Uchenna Udemezue and colleagues decided to change the face of the Depart-ment of Engineering and Trans-portation in San Leandro, Calif.

Today, the department is anything but homogeneous. Thanks to aggressive outreach that includes targeted recruiting and partnerships with area junior high schools, high schools, colleges and universities, about 45 percent of its engineers are white, about 20 percent are black, 20 percent are Asian and 5 percent are Hispanic.

Seven years ago, the engineers were 85 percent white, 10 percent Asian and 5 percent Hispanic, notes Udemezue, the department director. Behind the numbers, the department gained something even more valuable — new ideas generated by people with diverse backgrounds, experiences and perspectives.

Wisdom from travels

The seeds were planted when Udemezue and two colleagues observed the unique perspectives they gained when they met with colleagues from abroad. Such perspectives weren’t as evident in their department.

Udemezue also was concerned about the lack of good engineering candidates. Local universities were reporting fewer engineering student registrations. Udemezue says the department was lucky if it received half a dozen qualified applicants for engineering openings. A decade ago, openings usually drew 50 or more applicants. Such trends do not bode well for a public sector facing a wave of retirements.

When a local college professor told Udemezue that a top civil engineering student had turned down a full scholarship to earn a master’s degree in that field in favor of paying her own way through law school, he knew something had to be done.

To achieve more diversity, the department knew it had to change how it attracted candidates. So when engineering openings occurred, the department supplemented its recruiting by running ads in publications such as the National Society of Black Engineers magazine and the Northwest Asian Weekly, Udemezue says.

Back to the schools

“We looked for magazines that cater to different groups, so we were sure to reach everybody,” he says. Department leaders also collaborated with junior high schools and high schools. They sent out letters to area public and private schools, along with a PowerPoint presentation, and asked to speak to students, whether at a large general assembly or just a classroom at a time.

It was slow going at first. Many school officials suggested that Udemezue and colleagues make their pitches on school-sponsored career days. But at that point, students are ready to graduate, and it’s too late for the kind of intervention Udemezue had in mind. But persistence paid off.

“We’re very aggressive,” he points out. “Every year, we speak to every high school and as many junior high schools as possible. Sometimes we’ll just drive down to a school in person and ask to speak to a math teacher or a counselor. At one school, it took us two years to get our foot in the door. Now they want us to do three different sessions.”

Udemezue quickly found that most students didn’t know what civil engineers do. “So we let them know what it takes to be an engineering student and dispel any myths — tell them the truth about what it entails,” he says.

“For instance, most students think they need to be math whizzes to be an engineer. You need to be good at math, but not necessarily a whiz. They also think engineers are nerds, but we tell them today’s engineers need human interaction skills, too.

“We emphasize that no knowledge is unimportant when it comes to being an engineer, whether it’s geography, history or sociology. We tell them to read as much as they can and always broaden their horizons, because it all comes into play later.”

Creating internships

Along with the school presentations, the department offers four paid internships that run from high school through college graduation. High schoolers can earn up to $14 an hour and college students make $22 an hour.

“We try to expose them to all possible aspects of engineering, from sewage treatment to golf courses,” Udemezue says. “Some interns are actually doing design engineering work comparable to that being performed by a college graduate with one or two years of experience in the field.”

So far, the department has hired two out of the nearly 40 interns who have passed through the program. But even if interns take civil engineering jobs elsewhere — or even work for the department and then leave for another job — Udemezue still considers the program a success.

“If they go on to bigger and better things, that’s a good thing,” he says. “We’d rather have two years of excellence than hire someone and get 20 years of mediocrity. This isn’t a selfish move to take care of just ourselves; it’s also aimed at helping the engineering field overall. We measure the success of the program by how many of the interns graduate and become civil engineers.”

The department takes proactive steps to make sure engineers stay for a long time and remain happy about their jobs. “We sit down and determine some long-term goals and figure out how to help them achieve those goals — help them get better than they are,” Udemezue says. “We expose them to everything possible to make them better.”

Fresh solutions

Now, when department engineers meet to discuss how to solve problems, a different dynamic exists. Udemezue recalls a discussion about ways to slow down traffic and better protect pedestrians on a particular intersection. An Asian engineer said that while speaking with someone in China, he learned about a special kind of turnabout intersection used there for bicyclists.

“We asked him to get more information, and now it’s something we’ve added to our toolbox,” he says. “Different cultures bring different perspectives to the table.”

Udemezue takes great pride in what the program has accomplished thus far. “Our department is now very well represented, with whites, blacks, Asians and Hispanics,” he notes. “It’s fascinating when we have a staff meeting and you see the ideas start flying around. It’s a beautiful and incredible thing to see.” F?larmed by a lack of ethnic diversity and concerned that it would inhibit new ideas and fresh perspectives, Uchenna Udemezue and colleagues decided to change the face of the Depart-ment of Engineering and Trans-portation in San Leandro, Calif.

Today, the department is anything but homogeneous. Thanks to aggressive outreach that includes targeted recruiting and partnerships with area junior high schools, high schools, colleges and universities, about 45 percent of its engineers are white, about 20 percent are black, 20 percent are Asian and 5 percent are Hispanic.

Seven years ago, the engineers were 85 percent white, 10 percent Asian and 5 percent Hispanic, notes Udemezue, the department director. Behind the numbers, the department gained something even more valuable — new ideas generated by people with diverse backgrounds, experiences and perspectives.

Wisdom from travels

The seeds were planted when Udemezue and two colleagues observed the unique perspectives they gained when they met with colleagues from abroad. Such perspectives weren’t as evident in their department.

Udemezue also was concerned about the lack of good engineering candidates. Local universities were reporting fewer engineering student registrations. Udemezue says the department was lucky if it received half a dozen qualified applicants for engineering openings. A decade ago, openings usually drew 50 or more applicants. Such trends do not bode well for a public sector facing a wave of retirements.

When a local college professor told Udemezue that a top civil engineering student had turned down a full scholarship to earn a master’s degree in that field in favor of paying her own way through law school, he knew something had to be done.

To achieve more diversity, the department knew it had to change how it attracted candidates. So when engineering openings occurred, the department supplemented its recruiting by running ads in publications such as the National Society of Black Engineers magazine and the Northwest Asian Weekly, Udemezue says.

Back to the schools

“We looked for magazines that cater to different groups, so we were sure to reach everybody,” he says. Department leaders also collaborated with junior high schools and high schools. They sent out letters to area public and private schools, along with a PowerPoint presentation, and asked to speak to students, whether at a large general assembly or just a classroom at a time.

It was slow going at first. Many school officials suggested that Udemezue and colleagues make their pitches on school-sponsored career days. But at that point, students are ready to graduate, and it’s too late for the kind of intervention Udemezue had in mind. But persistence paid off.

“We’re very aggressive,” he points out. “Every year, we speak to every high school and as many junior high schools as possible. Sometimes we’ll just drive down to a school in person and ask to speak to a math teacher or a counselor. At one school, it took us two years to get our foot in the door. Now they want us to do three different sessions.”

Udemezue quickly found that most students didn’t know what civil engineers do. “So we let them know what it takes to be an engineering student and dispel any myths — tell them the truth about what it entails,” he says.

“For instance, most students think they need to be math whizzes to be an engineer. You need to be good at math, but not necessarily a whiz. They also think engineers are nerds, but we tell them today’s engineers need human interaction skills, too.

“We emphasize that no knowledge is unimportant when it comes to being an engineer, whether it’s geography, history or sociology. We tell them to read as much as they can and always broaden their horizons, because it all comes into play later.”

Creating internships

Along with the school presentations, the department offers four paid internships that run from high school through college graduation. High schoolers can earn up to $14 an hour and college students make $22 an hour.

“We try to expose them to all possible aspects of engineering, from sewage treatment to golf courses,” Udemezue says. “Some interns are actually doing design engineering work comparable to that being performed by a college graduate with one or two years of experience in the field.”

So far, the department has hired two out of the nearly 40 interns who have passed through the program. But even if interns take civil engineering jobs elsewhere — or even work for the department and then leave for another job — Udemezue still considers the program a success.

“If they go on to bigger and better things, that’s a good thing,” he says. “We’d rather have two years of excellence than hire someone and get 20 years of mediocrity. This isn’t a selfish move to take care of just ourselves; it’s also aimed at helping the engineering field overall. We measure the success of the program by how many of the interns graduate and become civil engineers.”

The department takes proactive steps to make sure engineers stay for a long time and remain happy about their jobs. “We sit down and determine some long-term goals and figure out how to help them achieve those goals — help them get better than they are,” Udemezue says. “We expose them to everything possible to make them better.”

Fresh solutions

Now, when department engineers meet to discuss how to solve problems, a different dynamic exists. Udemezue recalls a discussion about ways to slow down traffic and better protect pedestrians on a particular intersection. An Asian engineer said that while speaking with someone in China, he learned about a special kind of turnabout intersection used there for bicyclists.

“We asked him to get more information, and now it’s something we’ve added to our toolbox,” he says. “Different cultures bring different perspectives to the table.”

Udemezue takes great pride in what the program has accomplished thus far. “Our department is now very well represented, with whites, blacks, Asians and Hispanics,” he notes. “It’s fascinating when we have a staff meeting and you see the ideas start flying around. It’s a beautiful and incredible thing to see.”



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