News
raSmith’s Irvine office continues to grow its portfolio of clients and projects, creating an opportunity to add more staff to the team. In June of this year, Patrick Brahney and Jasmine Papias started their careers as interns at raSmith while in their senior years of college. They are both working towards obtaining their bachelor’s degrees in civil engineering, Patrick at Southern Methodist University in Dallas and Jasmine at UC Irvine. The Irvine staff is excited that Patrick and Jasmine have already accepted employment offers to join raSmith full time after their graduation in spring 2023. Hiring Patrick and Jasmine in advance of them earning their degrees has been a win-win for each of these two interns and raSmith.
Patrick Brahney
Patrick (Brahney) brings a love for engineering that began as a child, as he really enjoyed designing and building things with his dad (including a haunted house!). Patrick learned of raSmith from a friend he met in Boy Scouts. In fact, his friend’s dad was working with raSmith on the Wild Rivers Waterpark project that opened this summer in Irvine.
Patrick was thrilled to start his internship at the Irvine office. He is now enjoying working with raSmith remotely on Fridays from his home in Dallas and attending classes the remainder of the week. Patrick comments, “I really enjoy the atmosphere people create in the office. Everyone is extremely friendly. We get our work done, but we also know how to have fun along the way. As I was making plans to return to school in the fall, I was pleasantly surprised that raSmith was interested in having me work part time while attending school.” A few projects that Patrick has contributed to include Wild Rivers Waterpark in Irvine (his favorite project thus far); America’s Tire in Victorville, California; and Brea Mall in Brea, California.
raSmith senior project engineer Colby Nennig comments, “I’m excited about Patrick and his future at raSmith. He is a quick learner and takes initiative. Patrick is not afraid to ask questions. It’s very apparent that he wants to learn more about what we do, why we do it, and the end product that we deliver to the client.”
Jasmine Papias
Jasmine (Papias) had her first taste of engineering through a program she participated in during high school. While she was drawn to engineering, Jasmine didn’t know which type best suited her. After completing some online research, she chose civil engineering because she believes it has the greatest impact on society. Jasmine comments, “I really appreciate how helpful everyone at raSmith is and how much I have learned from my coworkers. I enjoy the variety of tasks and projects that I’m able to work on. My favorite projects are those that involve water lines and utilities, as I am able to apply what I learned in my hydrology classes in the real world. I had hoped that raSmith would offer me a full-time position, but I didn’t expect to receive an offer so far in advance of graduation.”
Jasmine has worked on a variety of projects, a few of which include industrial warehouses in Rialto and Riverside, California; Core Burger in Orange, California; Tustin Avenue (gas station and retail) in Santa Ana, California; Habit Burger in Garden Grove, California; and Lark Cake Shop in Pasadena, California. Jasmine has been working on the Lark Cake project since she started at raSmith. “It’s been a fun project and one that is teaching me the most about engineering since I will be involved with the project from start to finish,” said Jasmine.
raSmith project manager Eric Robles comments, “Jasmine’s flexibility in working on a variety of tasks has been very helpful. She works well independently and as a team member, reaching out to other staff with questions as needed. I really appreciate and enjoy Jasmine’s skillset and what she brings to the team. I’m excited for Jasmine to join us full time, and I’m looking forward to helping her grow in her career at raSmith.”
raSmith is always in search of new talent to fill positions at our Irvine office as well as other locations across the United States. The Irvine office opened in 2011 and is led by Chris Bratty, western regional manager. The office includes a mix of staff at all levels in their career from student employees in an internship program to technicians, civil engineers, surveyors, and project managers.