Meet Hector Garavito, Outstanding Senior in Architectural Engineering

This year’s departmental convocation ceremonies, switched to a virtual format at the 11th hour due to COVID-19 restrictions, were truly one of a kind. They also celebrated a class that was one of a kind.

Members of the Class of 2020 conducted research on aircraft design, water quality and the science of soundwaves. They built canoes out of concrete. They worked to make mines safer, biomedical devices more efficient, and our campus – and our world – more sustainable. They mentored classmates and competed in national competitions. At the ceremonies, the college honored an outstanding graduating senior from each of its 15 majors.

Hector Garavito served as secretary for the UA chapter of the Design-Build Institute of America and worked as a member of the student Green Team in the university’s Office of Sustainability. He is this year’s outstanding senior in architectural engineering  – and a member of the program’s first graduating class.

His mother attended college in Mexico, but, as the oldest of four siblings, he was the first to attend college in the United States.

“My grandpa was a civil engineer in Mexico, and my mom has an architecture degree, so I wanted to follow in their footsteps,” he said. “I’ll be starting my full-time job on June 1. I’m moving to Phoenix to work as a field engineer on a $4 billion job for Hensel Phelps.”