Etsehiwot Beshah: A Passion for Buildings
When Etsehiwot Beshah was a little girl in Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa, she and her sister would spend many hours in the city's main municipal building where her father worked as a high-level government official. The building had a powerful and lasting effect on them.
Like her older sister, Beshah studied architecture, earning her bachelor's degree from Addis Ababa University. But as her sister continued in that field, Beshah realized that her own interest in buildings leaned more towards the engineering side. So when she came to the United States ten years ago, she began working as a CAD designer, fleshing out architectural plans so they could be analyzed to see if they would work structurally. She decided to go back to school part-time, for engineering this time. The civil engineering program at Hopkins EP fit her plans perfectly.
"They had a lot of good classes in structural engineering," she says, "and they were very cooperative." That cooperation included putting her on a fast track for her master's degree, allowing her to take a full course load and complete the program in just two years. Now, degree in hand, she's completing the necessary field experience to qualify for registration as a structural engineer.
While earning her Hopkins master's, Beshah worked part-time at Tadjer-Cohen-Edelson Associates, Inc., a consulting structural engineering firm in the Washington area. There, as a full-time structural engineer now, she pursues her passion for buildings. Working with designers and contractors, she translates architectural plans into detailed structural engineering designs to determine whether or not a building will work. "Before you build it," she says, "a structural engineer uses software to analyze the design to see if it will withstand the loads applied to it." Typically, architect and engineer go back and forth, altering materials and dimensions to maximize space while meeting stringent safety standards.
Now a U.S. citizen, Beshah plans to stay in this country, but she knows she will some day return to Ethiopia to help build something. "I have to do something. I don't know when or how."
When she's not working, Beshah likes to be on the move - running, and traveling. In keeping with the Ethiopian tradition of running, she exercises by running several miles a week and the occasional marathon or other distance race. She travels whenever she can because it gives her a chance to indulge her true passion. "I take pictures of buildings, mostly of small details that are smart."
It's good to know that someone this dedicated is working to make sure our built environment is structurally safe and sound. She's quick to share the credit, saying "I thank my God for all His help and support during my study at Hopkins."