ASCE's Civil Engineering Club™ initiative is an after school program that offers students an opportunity to learn
more about the civil engineering field. In 2012, in an effort to bring this exciting opportunity to Philadelphia,
the Philadelphia ASCE YMF started the first Civil Engineering Club in Pennsylvania at the Chester
A. Arthur School. At the time, it was one of only 10 programs recognized nationally, and the only program catering
to middle school (6th-8th grade) students.
The major goals of the club are to show local students the diversity within civil engineering, and to have all of
the students understand that anyone can be an engineer if they want to be and are willing to work for it.
Meetings typically feature a speaker giving a short presentation and answering any questions from the students,
before leading a group activity that corresponds to the presentation material. The current year's schedule is as
follows:
To learn more about how this club was started, or to get involved, please contact:
Also, more information is available by visiting ASCE's
Civil Engineering Club website, including details on how you can start your own club at a local school and
useful resources for anyone doing student outreach!
Highlights of 2017-18 School Year
On Monday, March 26th, students and volunteers from the Chester A. Arthur Middle School Civil Engineering Club visited
Lincoln Financial Field, the home of the Super Bowl LII Champion Philadelphia Eagles. The tour of the Linc included visits
throughout the whole stadium, including the press and spectator suites, the press room, the Eagles locker room, and the
field itself. Parts of the tour focused on the sustainable infrastructure and practices employed by the Linc during gamedays
and other events, giving the students a better understanding of what makes the building LEED Certified and why it is important
for our environment. Thank you to the staff at Lincoln Financial Field for providing such a memorable experience to our club
members!
The ASCE Philadelphia YMF Civil Engineering Club at the Chester A. Arthur School concluded its 6th consecutive year with
the Balsa Wood Bridge Building and Awards Ceremony on June 4th. This year proved to be another success thanks to the school,
staff, volunteers, sponsors, and most importantly, the students, who helped to make the club run smoothly throughout the
year. The end of year ceremony yielded a riveting display of competition amongst club members. The days preceding the event
were full of last minute change orders, but in the end a diverse collection of 7 balsa wood truss bridges stood to be tested
with beach sand loading. It was a warm, tense June afternoon in the Chester A. Arthur School auditorium, and all 7 bridges
ultimately stood up (to some degree) to the rigorous loading applied to them. The tension in the room grew to be hotter than
the early June weather, and in the end it was one bridge that took home the gold for both efficiency and most mass bearing
(both judging categories!). The ASCE Philadelphia YMF would like to extend a special congratulations to Kiana Habersham, engineer
of record for this winning bridge, and to all of the participants for their dedication and contribution to the club this year.
Check out a few photos from the year below:
For an additional perspective on the creation and running of our Civil Engineering Club, Jesse Gormley,
one of the founders of the Club, wrote an article about his experiences in 2013, which can be viewed through
our Articles page here.
Thank you for viewing this page and please enjoy the galleries below from various working sessions and videos
about the Club.
