Date: Wednesday, June 7th
Time: 12pm-1pm
Location: E5- 2004
The Round Table with WiE leaders is back! Join us at the Round Table with Ada Hurst and Kelly Scherr.
The Round Table with WiE Leaders is a series of monthly roundtable discussions which provide networking and mentorship forum for graduate and undergraduate students. At the Round Table, we hope to connect you to WiE leaders in academia, industry, and government. Listen to their stories and be inspired to overcome and succeed.
On June 7th, we are honored to have Ada Hurst, a continuing lecturer in the department of Management Sciences at the University of Waterloo, and Kelly Scherr, the Deputy City Manager of Environment & Infrastructure at the City of London.
Between art and science – my journey to (engineering) design teaching and research- Ada Hurst, PhD
Ada Hurst is a continuing lecturer in the Department of Management Sciences at the University of Waterloo, where she has been teaching capstone design in the Management Engineering program for over a decade. Her research falls broadly in the area of engineering design. She has studied design thinking and learning in both curricular and extra-curricular settings, including in the design studio, at hackathons, on co-op, and design practice. She believes design is a core and distinguishing feature of engineering, and research in engineering design practice and pedagogy go hand in hand. Ada received a bachelor’s in electrical engineering, followed by master’s and doctorate degrees in management sciences, all from the University of Waterloo.
Things I Wish I Knew as a New Engineering Graduate- Kelly Scherr, P.Eng.
Kelly is a proven executive leader in municipal infrastructure who is committed to building resilient, inclusive and effective teams to deliver and manage great assets for cities. As the Deputy City Manager of Environment & Infrastructure with the City of London, she currently leads a team of over 800 who deliver a full suite of water, wastewater, drainage, solid waste, environmental, transportation, construction administration, infrastructure operations, rapid transit, major projects, forestry and fleet services to a city of over 430,000 people. As the Chief Administrative Officer for the Elgin and Lake Huron Area Primary Water Supply Systems, Kelly also leads the provision of safe, reliable and affordable drinking water to over a half-million Ontarians in fifteen member municipalities. Kelly has over 20 years experience delivering plans, projects, programs and policies in water, wastewater, stormwater, and transportation. Prior to joining the City of London in 2016, Kelly spent 14 years in a variety of roles at the City of Regina, where she led the on-time and on-budget construction of a new P3 wastewater treatment plant and CFL stadium, the planning of 37.5 acres of inner city revitalization, and the creation of a new corporate centre of excellence in project management. She also held leadership roles in urban planning, development management, construction administration, and municipal enforcement, including zoning, building standards, bylaw enforcement and parking. Kelly attended the University of Regina, where she received her degree in Regional Environmental Systems Engineering. Kelly also has a Master of Business Administration, a Graduate Certificate in Leadership and is a Fellow of Engineers Canada. Kelly is a die-hard Saskatchewan Roughriders fan. In addition to spending weekends at their “affordable cottage alternative” near Lake Huron, Kelly and her husband enjoy hiking, cooking, gardening, live theatre and sports, and exploring the great local craft beer and food scene in London and Southwest Ontario.