Department of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering

The Iowa State Chi Epsilon chapter has been active in the civil engineering and Ames communities. Chi Epsilon members continued their community service participation in the Adopt-a-Highway and Stuff the Bus programs. They also organized CCEE student events, including a golf outing and spring banquet, and assisted students with their studies in the Chi Epsilon Help Room.

In addition, Tyler Wiles, president of the club and senior in civil engineering, won the prestigious Chi Epsilon Scholarship for the North Central district. He competed against some of the best engineering students in the region for the scholarship.

—Ryan Groenenboom, Chi Epsilon editor

TSA has wrapped up another successful year. The group’s primary activities involve hosting biweekly seminars. These meetings help broaden students’ understanding of transportation and serve as career networking opportunities. Speakers range from city traffic engineers and university professors, to consulting engineers and transit managers. TSA also organized and participated in golf tournaments, social events, and the Engineering Career Day at North Grand Mall in Ames.

In January, 14 TSA students traveled to Washington, D.C., for the 86th annual meeting of the Transportation Research Board, an annual conference that attracts 10,000 transportation professionals from around the world. Students attended presentations about the most recent transportation research as well as enjoyed sightseeing. For the fifth consecutive year, TSA won the “Student Chapter of the Year” award for the Missouri Valley Region of the Institute of Transportation Engineers. Multiple students from the group were also recognized for their research and papers.

—Greg Karssen, TSA president

This year, the ASCE student chapter started out with a membership drive to recruit students and encourage active participation, especially among incoming freshmen. ASCE brings in practicing professionals monthly to give presentations to the student members, expanding their knowledge of the profession and giving them the chance to network. Social events such as tailgating before football games, participating on intramural teams, going to Friday After Class at the Pizza Pit, and even going camping have been very popular.

ASCE sponsors the Steel Bridge and Concrete Canoe teams, too. Steel bridge placed fifth in this year’s regional competition in Mankato, Minnesota. The team’s design and fabrication of the steel bridge was considered extremely successful. Iowa State hosted this year’s national Concrete Canoe competition. The team placed second.

Cabinet elections also were held at the end of the semester. The new officers are expected to continue ASCE’s strong tradition of leadership.

—Morgan Saforek, ASCE public relations co-chair

Two Iowa State construction engineering student teams competed at the Associated Schools of Construction/Associated General Contractors (AGC) of America National Student Competition March 19-22 in San Antonio, Texas. The design/build team placed third. The commercial team performed well, but didn’t place in the top three. Design/build team members included team captain Cory McDermott, Andrew Rotta, Kevin Heisdorffer, David Frischmeyer, Rachel Potthoff, and Curtis Ehler (architecture). Commercial team members included team captain Eric Lindquist, Daniel Frohardt, Josh Gaube, Nicole Bell, Tom Kinsinger, and Clark Bowden. Read more at www.ccee.iastate.edu/news/recent-news.html.

For the second year in a row, the AGC student chapter sent several members down to Mississippi during spring break to help with rebuilding efforts from Hurricane Katrina. This year, 36 students helped families in southern Mississippi hang Sheetrock, roof homes, frame houses, and remove debris. View a blog from the trip online.http://www.ccee.iastate.edu

—Larry Cormicle, AGC faculty advisor