By Annie Sigoloff, Foundation Relations Manager and Internship Coordinator
(Rosemead, California) – In celebration of National Construction Appreciation Week, The Griffith Company, one of Bosco Tech’s top internship partners and one of Southern California’s earliest general contractors, conducted an informative presentation on construction industry career paths and personal branding for college and career success.
The Griffith Company has spearheaded recent projects such as LAX modernization, Universal City Pedestrian Bridge, and LA Live Street improvements. ACE and IDEA upperclassmen not only learned about jobs in construction management but benefited first-hand from the advice of Tech alumni: Luis Cervantes (BT’ 97), Nathan Felix (ACE’ 22), and Santiago Vargas (ACE’ 23). Nathan and Santiago were Griffith summer interns through the Tech’s internship program, and they were invited to stay on through college.
Luis, a member of the Griffith Company’s management team for more than a decade, opened the door to the company, which has offered our graduates valuable hands-on summer internships the last three summers. He discussed the critical role of construction management in making customers’ design dreams a reality.
Nathan and Santiago shared their insights on selecting college majors and the value of participating in an internship and encouraged students to make the most of all the opportunities that Bosco Tech offers. They agreed that good communication, professionalism, work ethic, and the ability to challenge oneself to learn new concepts were key takeaways from several summers interning at The Griffith Company.
Santiago, a Cal State Fullerton sophomore majoring in Civil Engineering, shared that the last two summers at The Griffith Company “helped him to build independence and grow up.” He advised the students to explore and take opportunities in life.
Nathan, who begins his junior year at UC San Diego next week, is majoring in Urban Planning and minoring in Structural Engineering. He urged students to “take risks, do internships, and put yourself out there.” As life can be challenging, he also encouraged students to build a strong foundation of friends while at the Tech, attend Kairos, and work on continually growing as individuals.
He also noted that the formulas he studied in Mr. Tom’s Physics class (which he never thought he would need) have given him a tremendous leg up in his Quantum Physics courses at UCSD!