Why New York City Works: A Lesson in Civil Engineering

March 20, 2018

Have you ever wondered where your water comes from? Or how you can light a room with the flick of a switch? Or maybe how mass transit systems were set up and function to transport over 8 million people in New York City every day? Civil Engineering links to every part of our world. It is among the oldest branches of engineering, dating back to when humans first came together to create permanent settlements. Civil Engineering provides a roadmap to understanding the built environment and specifically buildings, bridges, roads, subway systems, sewer systems, water tunnels, utilities and more.

On March 20th 2018, over 60 high school students from across the five boroughs gathered at the Rockefeller University Carson Family Auditorium to participate in RockEdu. A presentation and networking event that has as its goal to humanize science topics and make them relatable to students.

Madeline Skoblik, a Resident Civil Engineer joined the Department of Design and Construction in early 2016. She studied Civil Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and received her engineering degree in 2015.  Ms. Skoblik described the day to day of working on large scale infrastructure projects throughout the 5 boroughs. She noted that Civil Engineering was a discipline that deals with the design, construction, & maintenance of the physically and naturally built environment.  She also answered questions from students and parents about some of the struggles of being an engineering student, and about the many different types of engineering opportunities present throughout the many city agencies like DDC’s Public buildings and Infrastructure divisions. Students and parents were very appreciative of Maddy’s thoughtful and informative presentation.