UTEP Civil Engineering Student Named Young Engineer of the Year
Last Updated on February 19, 2021 at 12:00 AM
Originally published February 19, 2021
By Christina Rodriguez
UTEP Communications
Daniel Carrera, a civil engineering graduate student at The University of Texas at El Paso, was named Young Engineer of the Year by the Texas Society of Professional Engineers (TSPE) El Paso Chapter in recognition of his technical ability, professional achievements and civic and humanitarian efforts.
By virtue of his recognition, Carrera also will be nominated for the organization’s State Young Engineer of the Year Award. TSPE established the award in 1970 and receives nominations from chapters throughout the state.
Carrera is pursuing a master’s degree in civil engineering and is an associate engineer at Walter P Moore, an international company focused on structural, water resources and transportation engineering based in Houston. He is a licensed professional engineer with seven years of experience in traffic, intelligent transportation systems and roadway design projects.
Carrera has contributed to several significant engineering projects in El Paso and throughout the state. He is a director for the TSPE El Paso Chapter and president of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Younger Member Group, El Paso branch. He has served as the practitioner adviser for the UTEP ASCE student chapter the past four years and serves as a Miner Ambassador.
Carrera is passionate about promoting STEM and presents at area schools to get young El Pasoans excited about pursuing engineering professions. He also serves on the Career and Technical Education (CTE) advisory boards of various school districts and works closely with teachers and administrators to provide mentorship opportunities to students. He also actively serves at his church and volunteers within outreach groups in the community.
“Being named the TSPE Young Engineer of the Year is such an amazing honor for me,” Carrera said. “I’m humbled and honored to be recognized for my efforts throughout the community. I am a huge believer in mentorship, passing on knowledge to others and helping people. Winning this award will not slow those efforts down. This will definitely help me in my career as I grow within my field, organizations and the community.”