Categories: Profiles
      Date: Aug 31, 2007
     Title: Role Models: CEE Alumnae Eager to Serve in Academic Careers

This fall, civil engineering students at Rice and Texas A&M may get some Yellow Jacket TLC from their professors. Jamie Padgett and Monique Hite earned Ph.D.s from the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering this year, and have begun tenure-track faculty positions at Rice University and Texas A&M, respectively.

This fall, civil engineering students at Rice and Texas A&M may get some Yellow Jacket TLC from their professors. Jamie Padgett and Monique Hite earned Ph.D.s from the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering this year, and have begun tenure-track faculty positions at Rice University and Texas A&M, respectively.

With the engineering workforce still notably lagging in diversity, both Hite and Padgett are hoping to become role models and positive influences for students.

“Diversity in engineering, particularly with regard to women, can be improved,” said Padgett. “But it’s important to encourage all young people to explore science and engineering careers. For me, that’s one of the most exciting aspects of becoming a professor – the responsibility to bring forth opportunities for students and alleviate any imbalances or biases simply by providing support.”

Hite also says it’s the service aspect of the profession that made choosing a career path in academia easy. “Academic careers offer rewarding opportunities to mentor students, work with exceptional people, and make an impact on both the engineering community and community at-large.”

But service was a common force throughout the academic journeys of both women. Choosing to pursue undergraduate degrees in civil and environmental engineering, Hite (University of Deleware) and Padgett (University of Florida) committed early on to the civic-minded discipline.

Both women dedicated their graduate research to natural hazard risk mitigation in the Structural Engineering graduate research program. Simply put, since most bridges weren’t designed to withstand the damaging effects of a powerful hurricane or earthquake, their research focused on different methods of reinforcement, or “retrofitting,” to mitigate the risk of natural hazards on transportation networks, specifically in the Central and Southeastern United States.

Hite, who came to Tech after earning a Master’s degree at the University of Deleware, says CEE’s service-oriented curriculum and research activities were a selling point. According to Hite, “I felt it was a place that I could blossom, enhance my current knowledge and be a part of a cutting-edge research community that was committed to contributing to society.”

Beyond that, both women are quick to attribute a successful journey at Georgia Tech to strong, student-focused mentorship they experienced.

Members of the same graduate research program, Hite and Padgett shared academic advisor Reggie DesRoches. The Associate Professor and Associate Chair of the School, DesRoches is heavily involved with outreach programs designed to further diversity in engineering which he balances with teaching classes, conducting research and advising graduate students.

Additionally, Hite earned a FACES Fellowship while pursuing her Ph.D. FACES, which stands for Facilitating Academic Careers in Engineering and the Sciences, is a multi-university, multi-discipline effort funded by the National Science Foundation to increase the number of minorities pursuing advance degrees in engineering and science. Through FACES, Hite gained access to workshops specially designed to help students excel in graduate school and prepare them for careers in research or academia.

Padgett notes a unique opportunity to collaborate with researchers and professionals across multiple disciplines that enriched her education. “It’s something I never really thought of – the importance of working with parties outside traditional civil engineering, from experts in social sciences to emergency management agencies, to tackle a multi-faceted problem like mitigating risk.”

After choosing academia as the next step, the women conducted comprehensive searches to identify possible faculty positions, each with a slightly different set of priorities in mind. Hite ultimately chose Texas A&M for its collegial spirit among faculty, research focus areas and exceptional facilities. Padgett also found research activities at Rice germane to her interests, but saw the modest number of faculty there as an even greater opportunity to take on an impactful role.

As the needs of a growing population become increasingly important, so will the job market for civil and environmental engineers at the local, state, and federal levels, both in government and the private sector. In fact, the U.S. Department of Labor estimates job market growth of 17 percent for civil engineers and 27 percent for environmental engineers through 2014, more than any other engineering discipline.

Ethical issues and civic duty are inherently present in civil and environmental engineering research and education. Experts on the construction market are hoping these values will attract more talent – and more diverse talent – to meet the growth projection. Hite and Padgett are part of an influential group of young professors contributing to this pressing need.

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