By Ines Aviles-Spadoni, M.S., M.A., UFTI Research & Communications Coordinator
After a period of dormancy, UF’s WTS Gator Student Chapter has revived its annual transportation symposium focusing this year on the topic of Complete Streets.
The event took place on March 8, 2025, at the Reitz Union on the UF campus and was made possible thanks to the dedication and leadership of Sara Garces, president; Kayla Eusebio, vice president; Ayame Soejima, treasurer; Nick Marrone, outreach coordinator; Stephanie Altemburger, historian; and Isabella Hutchins, social media coordinator — the chapter’s current executive board.
“I was so happy with how the event turned out,” Garces said. “It’s proof that hard work pays off, and that our chapter has integrated itself within the UF transportation and urban planning community. We had amazing students and speakers attending, creating a very positive environment to learn about complete streets.”
The Complete Streets Symposium reestablished the student chapter’s signature event, which had gone dormant since the pandemic. This all-day event included expert panelists and presentations that focused on the connection between transportation engineering and urban planning and how the two work together to improve communities.
The student chapter’s executive board’s ability to work as a team, coupled with their industry connections, allowed them to secure a remarkable panel of experts to share and transfer their knowledge about the various aspects of Complete Streets. Eusebio reflects on her team’s tireless efforts in bringing the symposium back to life.
“I had a great time working with our team to create a day all about Complete Streets, which has been a recent and popular practice in the transportation industry,” Eusebio said. “We hosted wonderful experts who shared so much knowledge with us and really connected with our students. The day was filled with lots of learning and networking.”
Complete Streets is a concept that helps planners and other transportation professionals plan, design, build, operate, and maintain streets that provide safe access for users of all ages and abilities such as pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists, and transit riders.
The speakers not only presented about designing streets that serve everyone but also on the importance of networking and professional development. The event opened with a panel discussion titled “Why WTS,” featuring three industry professionals from WTS professional chapters in Central Florida and Tampa Bay: Zhenlu Huang and Snehal Ambare, both of CDM Smith, and Brittany Bianco of AIM Engineering. The panelists shared their insights on the importance of supporting and advancing women in transportation-related fields.
“I joined this panel because I firmly believe in the significance of sharing insights about the benefits of professional organizations for students and young professionals,” Huang said. “I emphasized how WTS aims to foster professional growth, offer networking opportunities, and provide valuable resources to help students and young professionals advance in their careers.”
After the panel discussion, Angelo Belluccia of Burgess and Niple gave a lively presentation on the importance of networking and professional development, providing examples and strategies to help students and young professionals on how to initiate and cultivate industry connections.
The event then shifted to the topic of Complete Streets with guest speakers, including Alex Morgan of Kittelson & Associates, whose presentation offered an “Overview of Complete Streets”; Mag Hanna of HDR, who presented on “Integrated Planning and Design Approaches for Complete Streets”; and Brittany Bianco of AIM Engineering who presented on the “National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and Complete Streets.”
The symposium attracted graduate and undergraduate students from civil engineering and urban and regional planning. Shelby Malaise, a fourth-year undergraduate student in the sustainability and the built environment major, and who is minoring in urban and regional planning, was one such attendee. She found the symposium to be the perfect venue for networking with prospective employers.
“I thought the WTS symposium was such a great opportunity for me to meet other students interested in transportation and network with industry professionals,” Malaise said. “I made many connections, and most of them have been gracious enough to help me in my search for a full-time job post-graduation.”
Malaise said she learned a great deal from all the speakers and found the presentation about NEPA and Complete Streets to be very interesting. She would like to see more of these types of events hosted by the WTS Gator Student Chapter.
“I hope this event happens again next year so more students can have access to this wealth of knowledge,” she said.
The WTS Gator Student Chapter’s signature annual symposium is proof that when students with true leadership qualities come together and where collaboration reigns, great things can be accomplished for the good of the transportation profession.
Reflecting on the success of this year’s event, Ayame Soejima, the chapter’s treasurer, expressed satisfaction with the team’s efforts.
“It was a large event to plan with a lot of stress coming from not having that much to refer to from the past, but Sara and Kayla really worked hard and got everything to run smoothly,” Soejima said. “The rest of the e-board was also always on top of things, and I know it wouldn’t have worked the way it did without everyone. I can definitely say the event was a success.”