These Four Women Engineers Are Critical to Success of Many City Projects

THESE FOUR WOMEN ENGINEERS ARE CRITICAL TO SUCCESS OF MANY CITY PROJECTS

City profiles work of four women during Women in Engineering Day

RAPID CITY, SD—Monday (June 23) is International Women in Engineering Day, recognizing the contributions of women engineers worldwide. The day is established to raise the profile of women in engineering, promote their achievements in the field and recognize their contributions to the quality of life in our communities and nation.

            The City of Rapid City’s Engineering Division includes four women engineers in critical positions within the department; with a combined total of 78 years of professional engineering experience, including 53 years of total service with the City of Rapid City.

            Included in the City’s Engineering Division are Senior Engineers Morgan Falcone, Nicole Lecy and Sara Odden; and Project Engineering Design Manager Michelle Lashley.

            “I am proud of the work of our women engineers and the dedication and commitment they all bring to work each day,” said Community Development Director Vicki Fisher. “They play a key role in the commercial and residential development of our community, as well as in the development of quality of life experiences and opportunities for our citizens.

            “These women, through their dedicated work and contributions, serve as great role models and mentors for the growing number of young women who are considering or pursuing careers in the engineering, science, math and technology fields.”

            Below is a brief profile and a conversation with the City’s group of women engineers.

MORGAN FALCONE

Title: Senior Engineer

Morgan Falcone has worked for the City of Rapid City since 2012. She has worked 19 years in the field of engineering, including 16 years as a professional engineer.  She holds bachelors and masters degrees from South Dakota State University.  Since she began her career, Morgan has seen an increase in women in engineering fields.How does your training and experiences benefit the City and residents?  I went to college for music and ended up switching my degree path to civil engineering. My previous experience in the private sector designing treatment plant facilities and working as a treatment plant operator provides a toolset that supports my role. I grew up in a family that worked in the construction trades. I understand the importance of complete design plans, the bidding process, and in the skilled construction of a project. I have the utmost respect for the part each team member has in completing a successful project.

**How does your training and experiences benefit the City and residents?  I went to college for music and ended up switching my degree path to civil engineering. My previous experience in the private sector designing treatment plant facilities and working as a treatment plant operator provides a toolset that supports my role. I grew up in a family that worked in the construction trades. I understand the importance of complete design plans, the bidding process, and in the skilled construction of a project. I have the utmost respect for the part each team member has in completing a successful project.

**Why would you recommend a career in engineering to young women? It is a fulfilling career that allows for critical thinking, innovation, and creativity.

**What is your biggest rewards or satisfaction you get as an engineer? Solving complex problems in collaboration with a great team who shares the goal of building infrastructure in service to our community.

**What is your message or advice to young women who may be thinking about a career as an engineer, or in the math/science fields? You can do it!

**Anything else you’d like to offer? Always be willing to ask the questions and be willing to learn.

***

NICOLE LECY

Title: Senior Engineer

Nicole Lecy has worked for the City of Rapid City since 2011. She has worked 16 years in the field of engineering. She holds bachelors degree in civil and environmental engineering and a master’s degree in environmental engineering from South Dakota State University.  Nicole says engineering is a career that is challenging, and different every day, noting that no two projects are the same. As an engineer, she is constantly working on new projects.

**Are you seeing more women in the engineering field? Yes I think so, especially in the civil engineering field, of which I mainly work with other civil engineers.

**How does your training and experiences benefit the City and residents? I am prepared to find creative solutions through critical thinking skills obtained during training and experience to bring forward solutions for the needs of the City.

**Why would you recommend a career in engineering to young women? Engineering is a career that is challenging, and different every day. No two projects are the same so as an engineer, you are constantly working on new projects.

**What is your biggest rewards or satisfaction you get as an engineer? Engineering is very challenging but yet rewarding, especially when seeing a project go from concept, to design, to construction and in the end have the final product to serve the purpose it was intended/designed to do.

**What is your message or advice to young women who may be thinking about a career as an engineer, or in the math/science fields? If you are thinking of a career as an engineer, just try it out! Talk to others already in the Engineering/Math/Science workforce about what they do, what is rewarding about their job and what their job includes. Attend events offered throughout the community that give insight into various topics related to the Engineering/Science/Math fields. Try out an extracurricular activity or elective course offered at school related to the Engineering/Science/Math fields. There are so many different career paths that can be taken as an engineer. If you have any interest in science and/or math, I would encourage girls to look into different career paths available as an engineer, as many of them you most likely aren’t aware of.

**Anything else you’d like to offer? Having children in elementary school today, I am impressed at the STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math) opportunities presented to kids within the public school system, so much more then I remember being available to me. I hope through these opportunities today, more girls will find a passion for and interest in something within STEAM areas and ultimately pursue that passion through a career.

***

SARA ODDEN

Title: Senior Engineer

Sara Odden has worked for the City of Rapid City since 2014 and has worked 16 years in the field of engineering. She holds bachelors degrees in civil and environmental engineering from South Dakota State University.  Sara says her training and expertise help the City of Rapid City and residents by playing a critical role in ensuring that infrastructure meets the needs of residents and businesses. The City’s engineers assist other departments, Council and the Mayor to make sound, financially responsible decisions when planning for new developments, industrial parks, or replacing aging infrastructure.

**Are you seeing more women in the engineering field? Yes, I am seeing more women in the engineering field, especially in certain disciplines such as civil engineering. I actually have a sister who is a mechanical engineer.

**How does your training and experiences benefit the City and residents? Our training and expertise play a critical role in ensuring that infrastructure meets the needs of residents and businesses. We assist other departments, Council and the Mayor to make sound, financially-responsible decisions when planning for new developments, industrial parks, or replacing aging infrastructure. Having engineers familiar with the City’s infrastructure and future master plans is essential to smart growth and sustainability.

**Why would you recommend a career in engineering to young women? I would recommend exploring the many engineering fields to anyone who likes to solve problems, piece puzzles together, or help others – because engineers do a little bit of everything.

**Who influenced you the most to take the career path you pursued?  My aunt, who is also a civil engineer – it was much easier to enter a male-dominated field when I knew someone else who had already paved the way for me.

**What is your biggest rewards or satisfaction you get as an engineer? As engineers, we have the opportunity to clearly see that we get to make a difference in people’s lives – be it through streets, bridges and/or utilities.

**What are the biggest challenges you faced or continue to face? We tend to see things from a technical standpoint that others might miss, an make decisions that align with both the strategic plan and common sense. Many times our point of view may differ from others, so it can be hard to not let public comments sway our thoughts to keep the focus on the broader/ultimate goals of the City.

**What is your message or advice to young women who may be thinking about a career as an engineer, or in the math/science fields? Play to your strengths – realizing that what you are good at is often invisible to you because it comes so easily.

***

MICHELLE LASHLEY

Title: Project Engineering Manager, Design

Michelle Lashley has worked for the City of Rapid City since 2010 and has logged 27 years in the field of engineering, including 16 as a professional engineer. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Old Dominion University.  She encourages young women to pursue engineering as a career, especially those with a competency to excel in math/science, and with an interest in helping the community with basic needs, such as safe drinking water, property sanitation, and safe streets; noting civil engineering can be a rewarding career. 

**Are you seeing more women in the engineering field? In the beginning of my career, there were fewer women engineers.  There are still many local engineering firms that do not have women engineers on staff.  Larger firms and government agencies seem to have more women engineers on staff.   

**How does your training and experiences benefit the City and residents?  As a female in engineering, I believe I offer a different style of leadership than some of my male counterparts.  I believe I offer more of a compassionate style of mentoring and leadership.  I think that both myself and the women that are a part of my team tend to empathize with residents and have a different perspective from some of the more traditional, rigid engineering perspectives.  In general, we are able to navigate the gray areas, and sometimes find more creative solutions to engineering problems. 

**Why would you recommend a career in engineering to young women?  Engineering is a stable, practical career path.  In general, it is a career that is insulated from economic instability.

**Who influenced you the most to take the career path you pursued?  I did not have any advocates or influencers that encouraged me to become an engineer.

**What is your biggest rewards or satisfaction you get as an engineer?  I find it rewarding to be able to take calls from citizens that have been complaining about their streets for many years, and to finally get to tell them that their street will be reconstructed. 

**What are the biggest challenges you faced or continue to face? Many people want to deny that there is, or has been gender-based discrimination, but it is still on-going.  Women have an uphill battle to prove that they are competent in this field.  There are still citizens that refuse to talk to women engineers and want to talk to a man.

**What is your message or advice to young women who may be thinking about a career as an engineer, or in the math/science fields?  If you have the competency to excel in math/science, and you have an interest in helping the community with basic needs, such as safe drinking water, property sanitation, and safe streets, civil engineering can be a rewarding career.  My advice would be to not take any criticism personal, unless it is constructive.