Elizabeth Ruedas, EIT, ENV SP

Status:

Awarded

Awarded:

President's Award

Nominated Categories

Excellence in Journalism

Other Categories

Awards:

2015 ASCE OC YMF Vice President’s Award
2015 ASCE Best Practices Guide – Women in Engineering Panel

Additional Files

Additional Information

Candidate Information

Name:

Elizabeth Ruedas, EIT, ENV SP

ASCE Member?:

Yes

Company:

CNC Engineering, Inc.
255 N. Hacienda Blvd, Suite 222
City of Industry, CA 91744

Supervisor:

Education:

University of California, Irvine - BS Civil Engineering (2014)

Experience:

CNC Engineering
As a Design Engineer at CNC Engineering, Elizabeth Ruedas has assisted in the design and review of improvement projects within and around the City of Industry (COI). For example, she has assisted in the development of many new design documents, including a Bicycle Master Plan, LID ordinance, and Green Streets Policy. She has also helped develop/review sewer area studies, cost estimates, hot-mix asphalt mix designs, storm water pollution prevention plans, grading plans, street plans and permits.
Recently, Elizabeth has focused most of her attention on the development and implementation of a new industrial stormwater program for COI. In order to minimize stormwater pollution, she has developed and maintained several databases that keep track of permits, best management practices, and facilities that could potentially contribute to stormwater pollution. Similarly, she has contacted individual facilities throughout COI to ensure that those who fall within the MS4 Permit and Industrial General Permit are well aware of the new requirements. Elizabeth has also coordinated and reviewed hundreds of inspections to ensure compliance.

ASCE OC
Elizabeth has made outstanding contributions to the communication channels of ASCE OC. A description of her respective roles is provided below:
• ASCE OC Branch Website - Elizabeth personally worked with ASCE OC officers, committees, institutes, and Jub Jub, ASCE OC’s website developer, to provide updated content to the newly redesigned website. She also increased productivity through the development of new website features that effectively streamlined efforts.

• ASCE OC Branch Email Blasts – Elizabeth helped redesign the template that was used to send automated emails to all ASCE OC members. Once complete, she helped teach other members how to use it via a guide that she created, which consequently increased efficiency.

• ASCE OC Event Photographer – Elizabeth supported by taking pictures and videos at events that she attended, including the 2015 ASCE OC Golf Tournament and the 2015 ASCE OC “End of Summer” Social Mixer. Subsequently, she shared the photos via social media, including the ASCE OC Instagram account that she created.

• ASCE OC YMF Website – Elizabeth led the website redesign, with an ultimate goal of making it mobile-friendly. In an effort to make best use of ASCE OC YMF’s limited budget, she ensured that it also took advantage of the features that had been previously developed for the Branch’s website.

• ASCE OC YMF Email Blasts – Elizabeth helped teach members how to send out single event email blasts using the new template. She also helped update the template for the bi-weekly email that is used to keep YMF members aware of all upcoming events.

• ASCE OC YMF Co-Photographer – Elizabeth supported by taking pictures and videos at events that she attended, including several General Meetings, Board Meeting, and joint Branch/YMF events.

Comments:

Elizabeth Ruedas, a recent graduate, has been instrumental in the renewal of all communication streams of ASCE OC Branch and OC YMF, providing effective outreach tools to both the membership-at-large and other entities, as well as streamlining the efforts of all active board officers.
Her contributions have in return helped her grow in both her professional and personal life. In a great deal of appreciation of ASCE OC, she quickly became passionate about making sure that others were well aware of the opportunities that ASCE has to offer as well. Her involvement as Webmaster for both the Branch and YMF allowed her to realize this goal. The two websites that she maintained, the articles that she wrote and the mass emails that she sent out aided in keeping members well aware of past and future opportunities.

ASCE OC Branch Website:
Elizabeth personally worked with ASCE OC officers, committees, institutes, and Jub Jub, ASCE OC’s website developer, to provide updated content to the newly redesigned website. Continuous updates to the website ensured that it remained a reliable source of information for 3,000+ ASCE OC members. Elizabeth’s top three goals as Webmaster included quickly familiarizing herself with the tools and resources that were available, teaching others how to manage/upload information to the website, and finding ways to streamline public relation efforts.
Elizabeth was able to quickly familiarize herself with the various platforms through which OC Branch shares information with its members. With help from Gary Gilbert, ASCE OC Branch President, she was able to train other members to do so as well. She trained others via guides that she created for each of the different platforms. In each guide, she described the process through a list of steps and images, outlined and explained key features, and answered many frequently asked questions.
This ultimately resulted in a much more efficient group, as many more individuals could contribute to the content displayed on the website. She also increased productivity through the development of new website features that effectively streamlined efforts, such as a new form for job postings and another for sponsorships. Elizabeth has also helped restructure the award nomination process, which has also been replicated at the LA Section and Region 9 level.

ASCE OC Branch Email Blasts
Aside from keeping ASCE OC members informed through the newly redesigned website, Elizabeth helped do so through email blasts as well. She helped redesign the template that was used to send out automated emails to all ASCE OC members. The new template streamlined the process by pulling information directly from EventBrite, the platform that ASCE OC uses to keep track of events, payments and attendees. Once complete, Elizabeth helped teach other members how to use it via a guide that she created, which consequently increased efficiency.

ASCE OC YMF Website
Elizabeth took much of what she learned through her involvement with the Branch and applied it as Webmaster for ASCE OC YMF as well. She led the website redesign, with an ultimate goal of making it mobile-friendly. In an effort to make best use of ASCE OC YMF’s limited budget, she ensured that it also took advantage of the features that had been previously developed for the Branch’s website.
Aside from the aesthetic benefits associated with the website redesign, a reduction of workload for YMF members was also achieved. New features were developed to automate efforts, allowing members to make better use of their time. Elizabeth also helped train others who were interested in learning about the website.

ASCE OC YMF Email Blasts
Similar to her involvement with the Branch, Elizabeth helped teach members how to send out single event email blasts using the new template. She also helped update the template for the bi-weekly email that is used to keep YMF members aware of all upcoming events.

Other
Aside from helping committees display updated information on the two websites, she constantly volunteered to help in other public relation efforts as well. For example, Elizabeth helped committees set up their EventBrite pages, sent out mass emails, prepared banners, took photos at events, helped with the monthly newsletters, and spread awareness about upcoming events through social media. Elizabeth expanded ASCE OC’s presence on social media by creating an Instagram account for the group to post event flyers and events.
Elizabeth takes pride in her prompt and detailed responses to ensure that deadlines are met and members are well informed.

Contribution to the Profession:

ASCE State Advocacy Captain (2015 – Present)

ASCE OC Webmaster (2014 – Present)
ASCE OC Social Committee Chair (2014 – Present)
ASCE OC Government Relations Committee Member (2014 – Present)

ASCE OC YMF Secretary (2015 – Present)
ASCE OC YMF Webmaster (2014 – 2015)
ASCE OC YMF Women in Engineering Panel, Committee Chair (2015)

Soroptimist Leadership Advisor (2014 – Present)
Soroptimist Desert Coast Region Summit Committee (2015)

Phi Sigma Rho Vice-President of Public Relations (2013 – 2014)

Civic:

Through ASCE, Elizabeth has been able to volunteer in many different ways, as well as at a local and national level. For example, as an ASCE State Advocacy Captain and ASCE OC Government Relations Committee member, she has received training to improve her advocacy efforts in Orange County, Sacramento and Washington DC. In the process, Elizabeth has learned a lot about the political system, while also learning about how it affects the civil engineering profession. More importantly, however, she has focused on how she can better serve as a resource to elected officials, should they have any questions or want to learn more about the profession.
Elizabeth has also given back to the community through her involvement in K-12 and university outreach events. Her favorite K-12 event this past year was the 2015 Popsicle Stick Bridge Competition, where she served as one of the judges during the presentations portion of the event. She also enjoyed volunteering at the 2015 ASCE OC Resume / Mock Interview Workshop, where she helped student from California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), California State University, Fullerton (CSUF), and University of California, Irvine (UCI) improve their resumes and interviewing skills.
In an effort to reach a larger audience, Elizabeth has also started making YouTube videos for civil engineering experiments that can easily be replicated in the comfort of one’s home or in a classroom. Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZNyhY9dR2VE
Elizabeth is also an active member of Soroptimist, an organization that focuses on empowering women all over the world, where she has served on various panels at local high schools. At these events, she has encouraged young girls to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).

Suggested Award Summary:

Elizabeth Ruedas, a recent graduate, has been instrumental in the renewal of all communication streams of ASCE OC Branch and OC YMF, providing effective outreach tools to both the membership-at-large and other entities, as well as streamlining the efforts of all active board officers.

Her contributions have in return helped her grow in both her professional and personal life. In a great deal of appreciation of ASCE OC, she quickly became passionate about making sure that others were well aware of the opportunities that ASCE has to offer as well. Her involvement as Webmaster for both the Branch and YMF allowed her to realize this goal. The two websites that she maintained, the articles that she wrote and the mass emails that she sent out aided in keeping members well aware of past and future opportunities.

Elizabeth personally worked with ASCE OC officers, committees, institutes, and Jub Jub, ASCE OC’s website developer, to provide updated content to the newly redesigned website. Continuous updates to the website ensured that it remained a reliable source of information for 3,000+ ASCE OC members. Elizabeth’s top three goals as Webmaster included quickly familiarizing herself with the tools and resources that were available, teaching others how to manage/upload information to the website, and finding ways to streamline public relation efforts.

Elizabeth took much of what she learned through her involvement with the Branch and applied it as Webmaster for ASCE OC YMF as well. She led the website redesign, with an ultimate goal of making it mobile-friendly. In an effort to make best use of ASCE OC YMF’s limited budget, she ensured that it also took advantage of the features that had been previously developed for the Branch’s website.