The University of Hartford’s Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) student chapter was recognized and celebrated at the spring professional meeting of the Connecticut Chapter and New England Chapter of ITE on Monday, May 4. The organizations would have held their meeting, jointly hosted with UHart’s ITE student chapter, back in April in the 1877 Club. This would have also been the first time that the University hosted the organization on campus. Due to COVID-19, the meeting was held virtually via Zoom.
Gina DePasquale ’20, president UHart’s ITE student chapter and civil engineering major, spoke about founding the chapter. The idea was born when Gina interned with Fuss & O’Neil, a local civil engineering firm in the summer of 2017. Since then, she and a group of students advanced the idea, wrote the constitution (which later became the chapter bylaws), worked with a faculty advisor, and went through the process of being recognized by both the University and the regional ITE Chapter. The student chapter, officially established in 2019, is enthusiastically supported by Matt Skelly, CT ITE chapter president, and welcomed by the ITE regional chapter with open arms.
Clara Fang, professor of civil engineering and faculty advisor of UHart’s ITE student chapterGina has been an inspiring and wonderful leader of the chapter. She and her leadership team organized various activities including guest speaker seminars, networking events, and student night out. It has greatly benefited the students in various ways."
At the meeting, two civil engineering senior groups of students also proudly presented their capstone design projects. Liam Bernier ’20, Abdulrahman Alajmi ’20, Emma Mann ’20, and Mohammad Almotawaa ’20 discussed their project, “Research Parkway at Pomeroy Avenue Intersection Improvements in Meriden.” Kyle Mecchella ’20, Stephen Nahorney ’20, Debbie Vergara ’20, and Hassan Jali ’20 discussed their project, “Dual Roundabout Design of Rte. 189 (Bloomfield Ave.) at Rte. 178 (Mountain Ave.) and Wintonbury Ave. in Bloomfield, Conn.”
“I am glad that the students are participating in this kind of professional meeting,” says Fang. “It gave the students a great opportunity for networking and helped to promote our engineering programs in the region.”