G3 Quality is proud to have been part of the 21st Annual California Transportation Foundation (CTF) Education Symposium as a sponsor and participant. CTF is the leading transportation foundation in California with a mission to recognize, remember and educate.
The education symposium brings together industry professionals and students for one of the most rewarding experience in our industry. Each professional is matched with a student mentee to share professional experience, prepare them for the workplace and to provide guidance in entering the workforce. Each year, the professionals emerge from the symposium invigorated and refreshed by these students enthusiasm and talent.The 21st CTF Education Symposium brought students from; Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, CSU Long Beach, Cal Poly Pomona, Fresno State, CSU Fullerton, CSU Northridge, Sacramento State, San Diego State, San Francisco State, Humboldt State, Loyola Marymount, Santa Clara University, USC. UC Berkeley, UC Davis, UC Irvine, UC San Diego, UCLA, and more. Students were paired up with industry professionals to participate in a mock RFP process including a Stakeholders Meeting, RFP Development, and then RFP Presentation. G3 Quality uses the time at the symposium as an opportunity to mentor and provide opportunities for students in the form of internships or employment.
CTF Board Member and G3 Quality President Chris Gerber along with Monica Born, VP with WSP Parsons Brinkerhoff were happy to be part of Team Green, with students from USC, UCLA, CalPoly Pomona and other schools. The students; Thomas Check (“The Man”-agement), Emily Foley (Environmental), Krista Purser (Transportation Engineer), Joyce Lin (Constructability), Edward Loera (Community Outreach), Zach McFann (Cost Estimation), and Danielle Thomas (Financing Representing MBE/WBE Sub consultant) worked together in a creative and collaborative way. The team put together their presentation based on the RFP response and presented it to the panel. The evening before the presentations the team got an opportunity to meet with stakeholders where they ask questions to help with addressing and covering all stakeholder interests in the presentation. The team spent hours organizing and developing a presentation late into the night based on the RFP criteria. The next morning, all the teams present to a panel for 12 minutes and are then were subject to Q & A for 10 minutes giving them an opportunity to express why their team (and firm) is best qualified for the project. Team Green’s due diligence and excellent guidance deemed them best qualified and the RFP winner. All teams did an excellent job.
CTF was working during the symposium to not only educate, but also remember. On October 9, 2015 during a bridge lowering operation at East Grand Avenue on the 91 Project, 9 workers from Atkinson Walsh Construction Joint Venture were injured including 3 critical injuries. CTF had already established Workers Assistance Funds for each injured worker matching donations received.
Beyond the RFP exercise the Symposium featured a Welcome Presentation and Q&A with Will Kempton, Executive Director of the California Transportation Commission, educational seminars including Transportation 101, and lots of networking between professionals and students.
This is G3 Quality’s 2nd time participating in the CTF Education Symposium and we look forward to next year. And a HUGE congratulation again to TEAM GREEN for their win at the event.
For more information and to get involved with CTF: http://transportationfoundation.org/
