NEWARK, NJ—“It represents a glass ceiling shattering moment for female and minority engineers in the engineering field. I am very happy and honored to serve as the new secretary for the board.”—Olga Garcia, PE, CME on her election to the Executive Board of the New Jersey Society of Municipal Engineers (NJSME). Olga is excited to work alongside the other 18 NJSME Board and Committee members to improve the practice of municipal engineering in the State of New Jersey. NJSME provides continuing education for municipal engineers, advises public officials and agencies on the impact on the profession of proposed rules and legislation, and promotes the highest professional standards to advance the social status and welfare of our members.
Olga serves as a Senior Engineer in Pennoni’s Newark, NJ Site/Design division. She joined Pennoni after serving for nearly four years as the Municipal Engineer for the City of Passaic, where she managed the City’s engineering department and provided engineering services to the various departments, boards and agencies which included, approval or right-of-way construction permits; review of construction permits in the designated flood hazard area; revisions of City maps, and traffic calming requests. She has 15 years of experience as a transportation engineer in the areas of roadway reconstruction design including grading and drainage and construction administration for NJDOT & FHWA projects.
She earned her associate degree in engineering science from Passaic County Community College (PCCC) in 2001 and went on to earn her bachelor’s and master’s degrees at New Jersey Institute of Technology. This past April, she received the Distinguished Alumni Award from PCCC.
Kimberli R. Craft, PE, Hoboken City Engineer and the first female member of the NJSME Executive Board is excited to have Olga join the Board, saying, “I want to congratulate Olga on her election to the Executive Board of the NJ Society of Municipal Engineers. I am pleased to see her being recognized for her contributions to NJSME. It is also great to see the diversity of our membership better reflected in its leadership as Olga becomes the first Latino and second woman to serve. Way to go Olga!”
Todd Hay, Pennoni’s Regional Vice President says, “We are proud to support Olga in her new position with the New Jersey Society of Municipal Engineers. She is the second woman and first Latino woman to be nominated to the position – we know she will make a positive impact to her peers and in particular be a role model to women in engineering.” 
Pennoni is proud to have Olga on the NJSME Board. New Jersey is home to hundreds of Pennoni projects and clients. We are excited to hear how NJSME and Olga will continue to work to improve the municipal engineering practice throughout the state by empowering engineers and advising state-wide decision-making with engineering in mind.
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