Tuesday, July 14, 2020

What Makes a City Run?

Who designed the world around you? Engineers! During this event, students will learn about how engineers in different disciplines work together to plan and run entire cities with Cal State LA faculty and industry professionals.

9:00 AM - 10:20 PM

FACULTY SPEAKERS

Mehran Mazari, Ph.D.

Dr. Mazari is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil Engineering at California State University, specializing in Transportation Infrastructures and Materials. His research interests include sustainable and resilient transportation infrastructure, transportation geotechnics and pavement materials, and non-destructive evaluation of transportation infrastructures. He has been actively involved in a number of national and state research projects. He is a member of three technical committees at the Transportation Research Board of National Academies of Science and Engineering and the young member of the Highway Pavement Committee of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). He is the founding director of the Sustainable Infrastructure Materials research lab at California State University Los Angeles.

Masood Shahverdi, Ph.D.

Dr. Shahverdi is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Cal State LA. His research areas are Power Management Systems for Power and Energy systems including Electrified Vehicles and Connected Renewable Energy Systems; Gate Drive for SiC Power Electronics Semiconductors; Protection Systems for Substations and Utilities.

Jeff Santner, Ph.D.

Dr. Santner is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Cal State LA. His research is in combustion, with a focus on combustion chemistry and flame initiation/propagation. He is currently working on NOx formation, kinetic model reduction, design of optimal experiments, and extraction of reaction rates from literature experiments.

10:30 AM - 12:00 PM

INDUSTRY SPEAKERS

	Jenny Cea Jenny Cea graduated from Cal State LA with her Bachelors of Science in Civil engineering in 2014 and received her master’s in Civil Engineering in 2018. She has been working as a Civil Engineering Associate since 2018 for the City of Los Angeles. Her expertise is in structural and transportation engineering. She enjoys spending time with her husband and daughter.
	Cynthia Santana-Ramirez Cynthia is a mechanical engineer who works for SoCalGas. In her role, she works on compiling data involving gas leaks to report to government agencies. She attended Rio Hondo Community College and was active in the MESA program (Math Engineering Science Achievement). Cynthia transferred to Cal State LA and worked on projects in Dr. Samuel Landsberger's Rehabilitation Engineering Lab. She earned a bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering in May 2019.
	Lorena Nava My name is Lorena Nava. I graduated from Cal State LA in 2019 with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering. I was a first-generation college graduate and the first female engineer in the family. During my time at Cal State LA, I worked/volunteered for the MESA program and LAunchPad program. Being involved with these programs allowed me to become the person I am today. The MESA program gave me the technical skills to be able to run and lead the team to complete a project. The LAunchPad, however, allowed me to work with many amazing girls and help inspire them to pursue STEM careers by telling them my experiences being in a STEM career. Currently, I am an Associate Engineer for the Construction department at the SoCalGas Company. I work with the Pipeline Safety Enhancement Plan (PSEP) Valves project development team. The valves team is responsible for automating valves with remote control valve (RCV) and automatic shut-off valve capabilities. This helps prevent any potential gas leaks on our pipelines. My responsibilities are to work alongside the project manager in the initial stages of the project to ensure the construction process starts and runs smoothly. My future goals are to continue growing within the company and to continue inspiring the younger generation to pursue a career in STEM.
	Alondra Lira Alondra Lira is a Project Engineer at SoCalGas currently working on the Pipeline Safety Enhancement Program (PSEP) where she does project development on various Transmission Pipeline projects in Riverside County. She is also currently transitioning to a new role as a Project Manager for Major Projects within SoCalGas. Alondra was previously a project engineer/field engineer for the PSEP Valve Construction Team as a contractor with Jacobs Engineering. Before her PSEP roles, Alondra was an engineering intern at Upper San Gabriel Municipal Water District supporting the District’s Engineer Project Manager on water conservation projects. Alondra holds a double Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering and Environmental Engineering from California State University, Los Angeles. She is an active member of ASCE LAYMF and SHEP LA. She enjoys traveling within and outside the country and is currently into kayaking.
	Blakeley Ficenec Blakeley is a Mechanical Engineer at the Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LAMTA) in the Rail Vehicle Engineering department, where she has now worked for almost 6 years. She currently oversees 30 projects varying from engineering investigations, obsolescence, reverse engineering, etc. Most recently she has been assigned as the mechanical lead for COVID-19 projects as they relate to the rail vehicles. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, swimming, going on hikes, refurbishing dressers, and at home projects. She is currently taking classes towards a Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering and an Associate's degree in Computer Database Management Systems. Blakeley graduated from California State University Los Angeles in May 2017 with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering.