Girma Daka

Current job: Civil Engineer, City of St. Paul

The Difference: The program's combination of engineering and management offers the right mix for engineers to tackle infrastructure issues. "This is really a great program for me."

In his computer applications class, Daka discovered new design tools, as well as efficient ways to increase access to data that others need for their jobs.

Girma's Story: Like many cities, counties, and public agencies, St. Paul faces a possible shortage in engineering talent, as many of its most experienced engineers retire within the next decade.

What Girma Said: "In this program, I can learn management tools and ways to apply new technology."

"The program brings together students who work in different communities and agencies, both public and private. Their experience adds so much."

Gerald Auge

Previous job: Assistant City Engineer, city of Farmington

Current job: Assistant City Engineer, city of Shoreview

The Difference: Auge continues to use what he gained from the program, whether in shaping the city’s geographic information systems (GIS) “ his capstone “ or in helping implement new requirements for financial reporting of city assets.

Gerald's Story: Entering the ISE program was an opportunity not only to gain technical experience, but also a better understanding of effective infrastructure management and ways to do more with less.

What Gerald Said: Most of what I've learned I have just taken and put into my daily work life. It is well worth the effort. It makes you more marketable and gives you an edge over others without the experience.

Fellow students offer a wealth of learning opportunities. Auge still gets together with students from his class. “They had a good knowledge base. They brought much to the table and were willing to share their ideas and expertise.

Bob Cockriel

Current job: Utilities Superintendent, City of Bloomington

The Difference: Gaining an understanding of all parts of the infrastructure only improves Cockriel's ability to do his job. "It's an eye-opening experience. It's given me a much broader base to appreciate the issues of how one part of the system impacts the other parts of the system."

Bob's Story: Cockriel and two other students collaborated on a project to recommend an infrastructure data management process, which would allow cities to take better advantage of new technologies, such as geographical information systems, for improving service.

What Bob Said: "What I've learned from this program really prepared me, not only for my current role, but also for contributing to the bigger picture."