Southern Illinois University Carbondale will host the Mid-America Student Symposium for the American Society of Civil Engineers from April 9-11, welcoming approximately 450 engineering students from 14 to 16 universities across the region.

The event marks a significant return for SIU, which has not hosted the regional competition since 2016. The symposium brings together civil engineering students to compete in hands-on, real-world challenges such as the steel bridge and concrete canoe competitions, with winners advancing to national-level contests.

Cordelia Lemons, president of SIU’s ASCE chapter and the symposium’s student host lead, said organizing the large-scale event has been both challenging and rewarding.

“I think it kind of shows the resilience of our school and our chapter,” Lemons said. “We are one of the smaller schools in our region, but we have the strength and the support and resources to put on an event like this.”

As host lead, Lemons oversaw logistics including venues, scheduling, volunteers and coordination with faculty and regional teams. She said the process required extensive planning and teamwork across the department.

“It takes a team,” she said. “It feels like a miracle that we made it, but that would kind of undermine all of the hard work that everyone has put in.”

The symposium spans three days, each focused on different competitions and activities. Thursday will feature smaller, locally organized events such as concrete bowling, concrete cornhole and a new GeoWall competition. Friday highlights include the concrete canoe races and surveying competitions, while Saturday is dedicated entirely to the steel bridge event.

For Wayne Tinsman, captain of SIU’s concrete canoe team, the competition represents a yearlong effort in design, construction and teamwork.

“We spent this whole year designing and building a concrete canoe for the race,” Tinsman said. “It’s basically a mockup of a real-world scenario where a client gives us requirements, and we have to design something to meet those specs.”

Despite its name, the concrete canoe is engineered to float using lightweight and recycled materials.

“We use lighter aggregates. A lot of it is actually sustainable stuff,” Tinsman said. “By the time the canoe is done, it’s about 300 pounds, but the materials help it stay buoyant.”

Tinsman noted that one of the biggest challenges for SIU’s team is its small size compared to larger programs.

“Other schools have upwards of 20 to 40 people,” he said. “Right now, we’re a very small group, so the design part is definitely the hardest because it’s a big demand on all of us.”

In addition to technical skills like structural design and material engineering, the symposium emphasizes professional development. Students gain experience in public speaking, leadership and networking with industry professionals who serve as judges.

The steel bridge competition, another major highlight, requires students to design and assemble a scale model bridge under time and safety constraints. Dayton Gaughan, SIU’s steel bridge captain, emphasized the importance of teamwork and precision in the event, where even small mistakes can impact performance.

“I’m excited, first of all. We put a whole lot of blood and sweat into this, and getting to see it tested on competition day will be really exciting,” Gaughan said.

When asked to describe the ASCE event, Andy Ochiabutor, SIU’s surveying captain and vice president of the National Society of Black Engineers, said the experience it provides is foundational.

“This is a step forward. This is the framework and grounds that most people in this competition will be basing their careers off of,” he said.

As SIU prepares to host teams from across the Mid-America region, the symposium stands as both a competition and a showcase of student innovation.

“It is a showcase of the hard work and dedication and skills that students, particularly engineering students, possess,” Lemons said.

Staff Reporter Yahri Edmond can be reached at [email protected]

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