South Central Light Rail Transit internship program: Inspiring future generations in 凤凰城
Investing in young people is an investment in the future and one that we at lovesport爱博体育 feel is very important to the community in 凤凰城 that we are serving. Providing new transit options not only provides people with low-cost access to employment, 教育和娱乐, but also offers new opportunities for communities that they serve. This is especially true in 凤凰城, 亚利桑那州, where the South Central Light Rail Extension (LRT)/Downtown Hub – currently under construction and slated for a 2023 completion – is already connecting these communities with economic and educational opportunities through the South Central LRT high school internship program.
lovesport爱博体育 partnered with a local transit agency, Valley Metro Rail, Inc. (VMR), to develop the internship program that dates from a startup endeavor in May 2017 and ran through the two years where lovesport爱博体育 led the South Central LRT project’s design phase. Approximately 25 students participated in the program which took place in June and July and consisted of eight daylong sessions.
During the program’s weekly sessions, the students – mainly high school sophomores and juniors – had hands on experiences in planning and design. 一周后, students were divided into teams and used Autocad software to design and build model bridges. They then competed to see which bridge could hold the most weight. 在另一个会议上, the students had the opportunity to speak in-depth with lovesport爱博体育 工程 interns who are from similar backgrounds and are now seniors in civil 工程 colleges.
在这个项目之前, the students had no exposure to 工程 or planning and little concept of what these professions were about. The weekly sessions provided insight and made the possibility of careers in these fields seem within reach, a major achievement for students who came from schools in the South 凤凰城 area a greatly underserved area that has limited resources. 亲身体验, exposure to the lovesport爱博体育 interns and 工程 and planning professionals working on the South Central project opened students’ eyes to new possibilities of careers in the planning and 工程 professions. One student, a senior in 2018, is now attending 工程 school at 亚利桑那州 State University.
The students were also introduced to leaders from the City of 凤凰城, VMR and several community partners who discussed careers in design, 工程, 规划及公共服务. College application assistance, 经济援助咨询, 持续的指导和1美元,000 stipend were also provided to the program participants. The internship culminated at a graduation celebration at South Mountain Community College.
Investing in the communities in which we work is an important part of the work that we do and I’m proud we were able to introduce these students to our professions. This was a team effort and I want to give a shout out to my teammate Janet Yeow, 我们的首席设计经理, 谁组织了这些活动.
The program had been approved to run for a third year, but unfortunately was cancelled in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. I look forward to participating in the South Central LRT program once it resumes and always welcome the opportunity to give back to the 凤凰城 community and future designers, 工程师和规划师.