Sonya Lopez, Ph.D.

Dr. Lopez is an Associate Professor at the Department of Civil Engineering at Cal State LA. Her research specializations are Hydrology and Water Resources Engineering; Physically-based and Conceptually-based hydrologic modeling; Remote Sensing of the Environment

Arezoo Khodayari, Ph.D.

Dr. Khodayari is the founding director of Environmental Sustainability and Pollution Control (ESPC) research lab, and her research is focused on developing sustainable engineering solutions for air and water pollution prevention and control, quantifying air quality and climate effects of various natural and human-made emissions, integrated environmental impact assessment, environmental sustainability, and energy-water-climate nexus.

Claudia Carrillo

Claudia is the first child of five, with three sisters and one brother, raised in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. Claudia and her family migrated to the United States in hopes of a better life at the age of 12. Her family arrived at the City of Los Angeles and was she and siblings were immediately enrolled in school. She was enrolled in El Serrano Middle School as a 7th grader. Even though Claudia struggled to adjust to the new lifestyle and new language, she managed to place at the top of her middle school class. Claudia then moved on to attend Woodrow Wilson High School where she joined many extracurricular programs, her favorite program being the Environmental Science Academy which taught her and brought awareness about the environment. Being involved in the Environmental Science Academy brought her close to her community by participating in many community service programs, such as; tree planting, beach clean-ups, caring for community gardens, and street cleaning.

Through these activities she discovered that besides academics, she had a passion to help others and her community. Having discovered her passion, Claudia graduated Wilson high school and attended Cal State LA with a declared major in Civil Engineering.

Her time in Cal State LA was spent in her academics and volunteer work in student organizations, such as the American Society of Civil Engineer, and the Society of Women Engineers. She was heavily involved in the organizations, having held multiple executive board positions during her time at Cal State LA. In addition, Claudia was the student coordinator for the MESA Schools Program, which allowed her to continue her contribution to the community. Having been part of MESA and student organizations made her college experience memorable and rewarding knowing she was helping her community.
After receiving her Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering, Claudia worked as a civil engineering associate for J.L. Patterson and Associate; a civil engineering firm specialized in railroad design and construction management. She had the opportunity to work on various projects that improved the public transportation system in a local, state, and national level. Looking to grow professionally, two and a half years ago, Claudia made the decision to use her engineering degree and joined the City of Los Angeles - Department of Public Works. Being by far the most rewarding experience, because her work directly impacts the community and the city she cares the most for. Claudia’s work involves design and construction management of sidewalk and curb ramps in local streets, as well as modification of streets and unused land to accommodate for bike lanes. Working for the Department of Public Works has allowed her to continue her involvement with the community, which has always been one of her passions.

Luz Rabelo

Luz Rabelo has a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science in Civil Engineering from California State University, Los Angeles. She is also a registered professional engineer in the State of California. Upon graduating from college she worked in the private sector completing design work for various improvements in the Los Angeles County Metro Bus Facilities. Following that she worked as a Water Resource Control Engineer for the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board, where she oversaw the assessment and clean up of multiple contaminated sites within Los Angeles County. Currently, she is working as a Civil Engineering Associate with the City of Los Angeles, Bureau of Engineering where she does construction management for various projects including the Mayors “A Bridge Home” program, constructing shelters to house the homeless in Los Angeles. Luz is currently married and is a mother of two.

Judith Ibarra Bianchetta, P.E.

Judith is currently Vice President, US Growth and Strategy for Tetra Tech based out of the firms’ Pasadena office. She is responsible for accelerating company growth across the United States through leading strategic initiatives focused on infrastructure solutions. She brings over 20 years of diverse experience in the areas of business development, operations, program/project management, government affairs, and community relations. She has served in a variety of leadership roles in Texas and California for both Water and Transportation Business Lines. including Operations Lead, Client Account Manager, Client Service Manager, and Area Manager. Judith is a proud graduate of the University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Civil Engineering. She is a licensed Professional Engineer, Certified Floodplain Manager, and Certified Envision Sustainability Professional. Judith is passionate about sustainable infrastructure through multi-disciplined approaches, bringing solutions to complex infrastructure challenges, communicating technical information to non-technical communities, and STEM advocacy with the Latino/Hispanic community.

Heidy Arriola

Heidy works as a sales engineer for SUEZ Water Technologies & Solutions with primary responsibilities in water treatment services for refineries and power plants in Southern, CA. As a seasoned business development professional, Heidy works on fostering strong partnerships with customers as well as building strategy and tactics to maximize Suez technology solutions. Heidy started her career at USFilter/Siemens Water Technologies (now Evoqua) and moved onto work with Aggreko where she provided temporary utilities to petrochemical clients. Before joining Suez, Heidy worked for Envirogen Water Technologies where she focused on waste water treatment for Food & Beverage customers as well as Chromium remediation for municipal drinking water agencies. Heidy’s technical background stems from her bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from UCLA. She firmly believes engineering is a solid foundation that opens many doors to various careers in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics). In addition to her full-time job, Heidy is highly involved with the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE) where she has served the organization on many levels for many years. Most recently she was elected as the Vice-President of External Affairs for the SHPE Los Angeles chapter and served on SHPE’s National Board of Directors as Regional Vice President from 2013 – 2016. SHPE’s mission is to change lives by empowering the Hispanic community to realize its fullest potential and to impact the world through STEM awareness, access, support and development. Heidy is passionate about their mission and making an impact in her community. Heidy lives in Pasadena, CA and is most happy when she is with family or giving back to her community.