CHICAGO, Oct. 11, 2004 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- The Society of Women Engineers (SWE) today announced Kristine McCaffrey, project manager for the Calleguas Municipal Water District, as recipient of the 2004 SWE Distinguished New Engineer Award for her contributions to water resources management, for mentoring future engineers and for exceptional support of the Society of Women Engineers.
As project manager for the Calleguas Municipal Water District, McCaffrey is responsible for managing a variety of water infrastructure design and construction projects. McCaffrey has served as staff engineer, project engineer and project manager on a variety of water and wastewater infrastructure planning and design projects. Her areas of focus include the security and vulnerability of water systems, grant and loan funding for water and wastewater projects and water resources.
"Kristine McCaffrey leads by example," says Vi Brown, president of the Society of Women Engineers. "As a student and as a professional engineer, she has proven that through hard work and dedication to our profession and community, we can achieve great things."
McCaffrey also has experience in preparing water resources studies, including groundwater management plans, groundwater master plans and water supply alternative studies. She has executed water resource studies for several districts and cities in California.
McCaffrey joined SWE as a student at MIT. After graduating she moved to Orange County, where she became an active member in the Orange County Section, during a transitional time for the section. She served as secretary, SpaceCampership Chair and president. During her presidency, the section experienced a significant increase in membership. In 2000 McCaffrey moved to Ventura County. In 2001 after learning that there was not a SWE section within feasible distance, McCaffrey began reactivating the San Buenaventura Section. McCaffrey recruited potential members at monthly lunch and dinner organizational meetings; she prepared the newsletter and developed an informational webpage, ultimately reactivating the section in 2002. Since its second inception, the section has grown to almost 30 members and is very active in career guidance activities.
"Her most notable abilities include a high level of intelligence, sound common sense, excellent communication skills and strength of character," says Susan Mulligan, manager of engineering at Calleguas Municipal Water District. "Her common sense allows her to go beyond textbook engineering and make sound day-to-day decisions with a solid understanding of the implications of those decisions."
McCaffrey has participated in the online mentoring program MentorNet as well as through Big Sisters of Orange County. She is a registered civil engineer in California and possesses a Grade 3 water treatment plant operator's license. McCaffrey earned two B.S. degrees in planning and environmental engineering sciences from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1996.
The Distinguished New Engineer Award was to be formally presented Oct. 15 at the Society of Women Engineers' National Conference Awards Banquet in Milwaukee. The National Conference, "Engineers Leading Change," is being held at Milwaukee's Midwest Airlines Center on Oct. 14-16. The more than 3,000 attendees include professionals from every discipline of the engineering profession and a large number of engineering students and educators. The 2005 Conference is scheduled for Nov. 3-5, in Anaheim, Calif.
About SWE
The Society of Women Engineers (www.swe.org), founded in 1950, is a non-profit educational and service organization. SWE is the driving force that establishes engineering as a highly desirable career aspiration for women. SWE empowers women to succeed and advance in those aspirations and receive the recognition and credit for their life-changing contributions and achievements as engineers and leaders.
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