Orange County Branch Newsletter

October 2018

President's Message

New Fiscal Year!

By Elizabeth Ruedas, PE, QSD, QISP, ENV SP

After graduating from the University of California, Irvine in 2014 and still trying to figure out this whole adulting thing, Jennica Smith and I were looking for ways to reconnect with our fellow classmates who had now all gone on to do their own thing. We noticed several of them were planning to attend an upcoming American Society of Civil Engineers, Orange County Younger Member Forum (ASCE OC YMF) event at a local restaurant, so we thought we would check it out as well. 

It was great getting a chance to catch up with everyone, but I specifically remember Remi Candaele and Nestor Godinez making us feel welcomed and even inviting us to attend an upcoming ASCE OC YMF Board Meeting. "Board Meeting" had a special ring to it, and it initially discouraged us from wanting to attend because it sounded a little too official, as we knew close to nothing about the organization. Huge shoutout to Nestor too for writing an article about that evening four years ago! Check it out here and/or see below for a couple of photos from that day! 

 

      
The first General Meeting of the 2014/2015 ASCE OC YMF fiscal year was held on October 14, 2014 at the Lazy Dog Café in Orange.

 

Fast forward four years, and and here we are now! I have the honor and privilege of introducing our new ASCE OC Officers.

 

Please help me welcome our new ASCE OC Branch Board of Directors!

Elizabeth Ruedas President

Ravi Shah President-Elect

Remi Candaele Treasurer

Clint Isa Secretary

Jeff Braun Past President

 

Only a few days into our new roles, and already we have tons to share!!

 

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ASCE Presidents and Governors Forum (PGF)

On September 23-24, 2018, over 100 Section and Branch Presidents, Region Governors and Society Directors from across the globe attended the annual Presidents and Governors Forum (PGF) at ASCE Headquarters in Reston, Virginia. This event was organized and moderated by the Leader Training Committee (LTC) and provided opportunities for attendees to learn about ASCE resources, network with one another, and gain useful training that will benefit our local Sections and Branches. 

ASCE OC finds so much value in the event, if fact, that every year we send both our incoming OC Branch President and President-Elect. This year, Ravi and I not only had the honor of attending and representing the OC Branch, but we also gave a presentation highlighting our social media presence and our award winning website. If interested in learning more about our presentation, click here. 

 

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ASCE California Surface Transportation Report Card Release

The 2018 Report Card for California’s Surface Transportation Infrastructure, released on Wednesday, October 3rd, graded the state’s roads at a “D” and bridges and transit each at a “C-.”  The grades were released at simultaneous events in Los Angeles and the Bay Area, the second and third most congested urban areas in the nation, respectively. The Report Card finds that 44% of California’s major roads in the state are in poor condition and that California’s bridges account for 13 of the top 25 most traveled structurally deficient bridges in the United States. The grades for these three categories were released early, in an effort to provide voters with a nonpartisan, fact-based assessment of the state’s transportation systems, before heading to the polls on November 6. ASCE Region 9 is urging Californians to vote “No” on Proposition 6 to preserve $5.4 billion annually for the state’s roads, bridges, and transit systems. You can look for the full Report Card for California’s Infrastructure to be released in early 2019. Read More>>