career exploration & workforce development ... FOR GIRLS!
Stephanie had no idea of what she wanted to do after high school. Three of her grandparents didn’t graduate high school and worked in the fields as children. Her parents did not go past a high school diploma and education wasn’t something that was emphasized in her household. At home, she was also told that women get married instead of pursuing higher education. She says that she always enjoyed learning new things and a great job opportunity from a construction company came her way right after high school. She’s now been in the construction industry for over 20 years.
After high school, she enrolled part-time at Houston Community College while working full-time for a construction company. She was 26 when she finally received her associates degree and then transferred to St. Mary’s University in San Antonio. While at St. Mary’s she discovered that she was most passionate about Psychology, Sociology, and Women’s Studies. For the two years that she was at St. Mary’s Stephanie says that she pushed herself as a McNair Scholar and graduated Cum Laude while working full-time. She also joined Psi Chi (International Honor Society in Psychology) and went on to become the Social Chair and then Vice-President which started her community outreach journey.
When asked if she has ever felt out-of-place in the industry because she is a woman Stephanie said that she once gave her two weeks’ notice to a construction company and her supervisor told her that ambition can be a bad thing. She feels that if she was a male, she would not have been lectured on wanting to grow professionally in her career in construction. Stephanie says that she knew that she wanted to be a “builder” and not a “maintainer” and that she needed to find a place where she had the freedom to explore her potential.
Along her way there have been many people who have influenced her career path but most notably is her first mentor, Dr. Zwahr-Castro at St. Mary’s University. Being a non-traditional, first-generation student wasn’t easy but with Dr. Zwahr-Castro's guidance she learned how she could merge education with her construction background; something she never thought she would be able to do.
In her position with SpawGlass, Stephanie handles supplier diversity and community outreach for both Commercial and Civil in the San Antonio area. She’s also the DE&I San Antonio Chapter Chair, DE&I South Central Regional Co-Chair and Membership San Antonio Chapter Chair for NAWIC (The National Association for Women in Construction) which “offers its members education, support and networking to help advance their careers in construction, build their technical skills and become leaders.” Through their foundation’s NAWIC Founders Scholarship Foundation they provide scholarships for female and male students interested in attending a trade school, community college or university in a construction related field. NAWIC also has a program called Block Kids which is a national building competition that reaches children in grades K-6 to give them an introduction to the construction industry, creates awareness about and promotes careers in the world of construction.
Stephanie says that if she could go back and give her 18-year-old self some advice, it would be to find mentors that can provide a successful roadmap for a career in construction and education. She would also tell her to always be her most authentic self because that is when you are really going to shine!
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