Metro Roundup: Women break through as engineers at water utility
Engineering remains a male-dominated field, according to federal data.
U.S. Census Bureau data show that more than 85% of civil engineering jobs are filled by men.
However, the Birmingham Water Works Board now has three female engineers on staff who hold doctorates in civil engineering, according to a news release from the utility.
April Nabors and Jaquice Boyd — along with Ashlyn Manzella, who started work in June — all work in water filtration for the BWWB.
“We have talented and experienced engineers across the board, and these ladies are breaking barriers by achieving excellence in their field,” said Derrick Murphy, assistant general manager in the BWWB Engineering and Maintenance Division.
Nabors, Boyd and Manzella work in the Engineering Purification Group, also known as the Research Group.
Established 15 years ago, the five-member team evaluates, tests and recommends new instrumentation and analyzers for plant operations.
The group works in collaboration with other teams in several other areas, such as treatment, raw water, engineering and distribution.
Upon their graduation at UAB on May 1, Boyd and Manzella were among three women earning their doctoral diplomas.
This was the largest number of women earning doctorates in a single graduating class in the history of the School of Engineering, according to UAB Media Relations.
Nabors obtained her doctorate degree from UAB in December 2019.
When she graduated, Boyd, a native of Brighton, said she wants to be a voice for women and minorities seeking engineering careers.
“I currently speak at various schools and programs throughout the city,” Boyd told UAB News in April. “The biggest impact I would like to make is to continue motivating young girls to pursue a STEM field, as there is still a lack of female minority representation in the STEM industries. Currently, only 13% of engineers are women, with 3% being women of color.”
Manzella, who is from Hoover, wants to continue to teach courses at UAB and other institutions.
“I hope to continue mentoring other individuals interested in engineering,” she said.
Nabors and Boyd pursued their degrees through the utility’s Education Assistance Program, according to the BWWB news release.
Eligible full-time employees enrolled in accredited degree programs or credit-hour courses can receive financial assistance with tuition, fees and books.
The BWWB operates four filtration plants and a testing laboratory, maintains more than 4,000 miles of pipe and is ranked among the top five water systems in the United States.