Esmeralda Briseno

Status:

Awarded

Awarded:

Nominated Categories

Outstanding YMF Officer

Other Categories

Awards:

Obligation of an Engineer, Certificate/Pledge, Order of the Engineer 2018
Member Spotlight, September 2020, ASCE OC YMF
Women in Construction Superstar, March 2021, Jacobs West PMCM
Outstanding Younger Member Group Project, Pathways Academy Program, WRYMC 2021
Appreciation Star Honoree, ASCE OC YMF 2020-2021 Fiscal Year

Additional Files

Additional Information

Candidate Information

Name:

Esmeralda Briseno

ASCE Member?:

Yes

Company:

Jacobs Engineering Group
2600 Michelson Dr. #500, Irvine, CA 92612

Supervisor:

Education:

Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering, California State University, Long Beach, 2015

Experience:

K-12 Outreach, Committee Member/Volunteer, ASCE OC 2019
Popsicle Stick Bridge Competition, Judge/Volunteer, ASCE OC 2019
Pathways Academy Program, Committee Member, ASCE OC YMF 2019
Pathways Academy Program, Co-Chair, ASCE OC YMF 2019-2020
Pathways Academy Program, Committee Member, ASCE OC YMF 2020-2021
Secretary, ASCE OC YMF Executive Board, 2020-2021
Communications Committee, Social Media Committee Member, ASCE OC 2020-2021
Women In Construction Week, Committee Member, ASCE OC CI 2021
WRYMC 2021, Banquet Co-Chair, ASCE OC 2021
History & Heritage/Student Scholarship Night, Committee Member/Volunteer, ASCE OC 2021
Social Committee, Committee Member, ASCE OC 2021-2022

Comments:

Esmeralda is a shining star within OC YMF and a true leader. Her energy draws others to engage in ASCE activities and her contributions have improved YMF as seen here in her nomination. Please draw your attention to the attachments for a recommendation letter and pdf full of photos from Esmeralda’s volunteer activities.

Contribution to the Profession:

Society of Women Engineers (SWE), Historian, CSULB Student Chapter 2014-2015
- As Historian, Esmeralda was responsible for attending and taking photos of all events held by the CSULB SWE Student Chapter. Photos were posted regularly to SWE’s university page and social media accounts to highlight our member’s involvement and encourage students to join the chapter. Esmeralda, along with the other Executive Board members, would also meet occasionally to create scrapbooks, posters, and other marketing materials to commemorate everything that happened throughout the school year.

History & Heritage/Student Scholarship Night, Jacobs Career Fair, ASCE OC 2019, 2020, 2021
- Esmeralda has represented her company, Jacobs, at three Career Fairs for the History & Heritage/Student Scholarship Night events. She is very enthusiastic to share the many opportunities of professional and personal development available at Jacobs, specifically within her division, Program & Construction Management. Esmeralda has shared with countless university students the duties she performs as a Project Engineer, the skills Jacobs seeks in a potential candidate, and how her past experiences have led her to where she is now, in hopes of encouraging the next generation of civil engineers.

University Outreach Mock Interview Workshop, Professional/Interviewer, ASCE OC 2021
- Esmeralda volunteered for the 2021 University Outreach Mock Interview Workshop by interviewing various students from universities around Southern California. She enjoyed practicing with students, giving them valuable feedback, and helping them gain confidence for a future real interview. She provided an opportunity for interviewees to make mistakes and work on correcting them in a safe and encouraging atmosphere. Esmeralda appreciates all of the resources made accessible to students by the University Outreach team, and is grateful for having the opportunity to mentor students as a professional now.

University Outreach Mentorship Program, Mentor, ASCE OC 2020-2021
- Esmeralda participated as a Mentor for the 2020-2021 University Outreach Mentorship Program, a program that pairs local university students with younger members based on specialization, interests, goals, and hobbies. For the 2020-2021 program, Esmeralda mentored CSULB senior student, Claudia Saddik. Claudia and Esmeralda really enjoyed their time together and learning from one another, as they both are now CSULB alumni! Esmeralda provided guidance and meaningful direction to Claudia and shared her knowledge, experience, and helped identify career opportunities in Claudia’s path. As a mentor, Esmeralda benefitted as well as she was able to lead Claudia in an area she was passionate about. To date, Esmeralda and Claudia still remain friends and very much in contact.

University Outreach Mentorship Program, Mentor, ASCE OC 2021-2022
- For the 2021-2022 University Outreach Mentorship Program, Esmeralda is mentoring UCI student, Maria Medina. Although the program only started two months ago, in November 2021, Esmeralda has already learned so much about Maria’s interests and goals. Esmeralda is excited to continue mentoring Maria and is thrilled to pass along what she has learned and how she has overcome certain obstacles along the way. Additionally, Esmeralda hopes Maria will gain knowledge and useful tools from someone who has navigated a similar experience and who can help accelerate her growth.

West PMCM Employee Network, Committee Member, Jacobs, 2021-2022
- The West PMCM Employee Network is one of the employee-led and employee-organized groups within Jacobs. This network offers employees an opportunity to collaborate with others who share similar interests and explore opportunities that relate to their specific goals within Program & Construction Management. Esmeralda is a committee member and one of the key participants who assists in organizing monthly events and seminars for employees. Events include professional panels, mentorships programs, training and credential seminars, project showcases, and networking events.

Civic:

The Compton Initiative, Community Renovations/Painting, CSULB Hermanas Unidas 2014
- The Compton Initiative is a non-profit organization that restores the City of Compton by painting homes, schools, and churches in partnership with volunteers and other organizations. As part of the CSULB Hermanas Unidas (HaU) student chapter, Esmeralda volunteered to paint various homes for the elderly community in 2014. Volunteering gave Esmeralda a sense of gratitude and humility, especially for such a struggling city and community. Knowing and witnessing that the City of Compton has the opportunity to prosper when the community joins together to make a difference is extremely rewarding. 

American Concrete Institute (ACI) National Convention, Participant/Volunteer, ACI Fall 2017
- Esmeralda volunteered at the American Concrete Institute’s (ACI) National Convention in 2017 as one of the organizers of the event. She assisted the committee with organizing technical sessions and presentations, meetings, and networking events for ACI members.

CSULB Dream Big Event, Speaker/Volunteer, ASCE OC YMF 2019
- Being a CSULB alumni, Esmeralda is super passionate with giving back to her university and the CSULB ASCE Student chapter. She volunteered at the 2019 Dream Big Event as one of the leaders of the “Penny Boat” activity. Herself, along with other volunteers, instructed various groups of middle school and high school students about the activity and its purpose. The student’s task was to design a boat made out of aluminum foil paper, place it above water, and see how many pennies the boat can hold before it sinks. The students had the opportunity to learn about simple physics while testing out their engineering skills. Esmeralda was also chosen to be a part of the professional panel that took place towards the end of the event. She shared many things with the students, including why she chose Civil Engineering as a career and the importance of continuing an education after high school. Motivating the students to pursue a career in STEAM was definitely a highlight!

Lord Baden-Powell Elementary School, Volunteer, ASCE OC April 2019
- Esmeralda along with four other K-12 Outreach Committee members volunteered at Lord Baden-Powell Elementary School in 2019. They presented to the students about Civil Engineering and showcased a few key projects. In addition, they also had the kids perform the “Water Filtration” activity, where they learned how to filter muddy water through three different stages of filtration using a large plastic soda bottle, cotton balls, sand, gravel, and dirty water. It was amazing to see the student’s faces as they noticed the water getting cleaner and cleaner. Esmeralda and the K-12 team also made time to answer questions from students that showed enthusiasm and curiosity in engineering.

OC Rescue Mission, Laurel House Demolition, Volunteer, ASCE OC YMF 2019
- The OC Rescue Mission is a non-profit organization committed to helping men, women, and children who have experienced addiction, abandonment, and abuse. Esmeralda, along with members of the ASCE OC YMF Community Service team, volunteered to help demolished and renovate the future home of struggling teen boys. This home, now completely renovated, offers boys the opportunity to live in a safe home to heal and grow.

Younger Member Leadership Symposium, Participant, ASCE Society 2019
- Esmeralda participated in the 2019 Younger Member Leadership Symposium (YMLS) hosted in the state of Virginia. This event covers three days of leadership training focused on early-career professional skills development to help ASCE Younger Members succeed in the workplace. Esmeralda had the opportunity to learn various leadership traits and communication skills, be mentored by ASCE leadership, and network with other ASCE Younger Members from around the nation.

Engineers Week – Girls Day, Volunteer, ASCE LA YMF 2020
- Approximately 120 girls from grades 6th through 12th participated in the 2020 Engineers Week-Girl Day event at the Caltrans 7 headquarters. Esmeralda helped guide students to three different rooms where hands-on engineering activities took place for two hours. Activities included using chemistry to make magnetic slime, a marshmallow structure competition, and wind car racing. Esmeralda enjoyed teaching the students how to prepare for the activities and spoke to many of them about her experience as a woman Civil Engineer. She was delighted to talk to these young girls about the STEAM opportunities available for girls, and the importance of female representation in a male dominated field!

Hoag Hospital Irvine Campus Expansion Program, Jacobs Engineering Group 2019-2022
- Esmeralda is part of the West PMCM Group at Jacobs working for the Hoag Hospital Irvine Campus Expansion Program. She is one of the key players that helps manage the contractors and consultants hired for this campus expansion project. The amount of work performed by Esmeralda and her team is extremely important and demanding, but it has allowed Esmeralda to learn so much about the construction industry, healthcare, and leadership and teamwork. She is excited to see this project come to fruition in early 2025 and cannot wait to see the positive impact it has on the Irvine community and beyond.

Suggested Award Summary:

Esmeralda Briseno is a Project Engineer in the Program & Construction Management Division at Jacobs Engineering Group and received her bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from California State University, Long Beach. As a Project Engineer, Esmeralda provides technical support to her Project Managers, helps develop and maintain project costs and project schedules, assists in reviewing design and construction documents, and oversees that all work completed by contractors and consultants is in accordance with contract documents and client standards. She is currently working for the Hoag Hospital Irvine Campus Expansion Program, a multi-million-dollar program aimed to expanding to more than 1 million square feet, adding an intensive care unit, pharmacy, four critical care buildings, including a women’s hospital and a digestive health hospital, auditorium, conference center, and two parking structures. Her favorite part of her job is being able to work in every stage of a project’s life cycle. From planning, design, procurement and construction, to staff and patient occupancy. Knowing that her work is making a difference to her community and improving the well-being and quality of life of so many individuals is a true blessing for Esmeralda. Since joining ASCE OC in early 2019, Esmeralda has volunteered at various K-12 Outreach school events, including the 2019 Popsicle Stick Bridge Competition, the 2019 CSULB Dream Big Event, the 2019 Engineers Week-Girls Day Event hosted by ASCE LA YMF, and organized STEAM activities for students from Lord Baden-Powell Elementary School in Anaheim, CA. She has been a committee member for the Pathways Academy Program since its successful initiation in 2019, taking the role as Co-Chair in 2020. Esmeralda was elected as the 2020-2021 Secretary for ASCE OC YMF, with committees such as the Mentorship Program, Website, and Communications under her leadership. In addition, Esmeralda has been a committee member and volunteer for WRYMC 2021, Construction Institute’s Women in Construction Week 2021, and the Social Committee. As part of the University Outreach Mentorship Program, she has mentored students from UCI and CSULB since 2020 and represented her company, Jacobs, at the University Outreach Mock Interview Workshop events and at three Career Fair Booths for the History & Heritage Student Scholarship Night events. Outside of ASCE, Esmeralda has partnered with other non-profit organizations such as The Compton Initiative and the Orange County Rescue Mission. Being involved with ASCE and other non-profit organizations has allowed Esmeralda to give back to her community and work with some of the most hard-working and passionate individuals she knows. She is grateful and fortunate to be surrounded by amazing groups of professionals who are positive and passionate about their career, their future, and their community.