Guest Blog: Grace Northcutt, Kentucky-Epsilon Alumna

Hi Ladies! Here is another great guest blog from Grace Northcutt, a Kentucky-Epsilon alumna and chair of the Epsilon Alumnae Association!

My Phi Rho History


I am a proud member of the Epsilon Chapter’s Eta class. I pledged in Fall of 2003 with 3 other girls back when our University of Kentucky chapter was quite small. I loved the friendship and support of Phi Rho. The love and support of the ladies I went through school with was unparalleled by that from any other organization I participated in. While Active, I served as Social Chair, Risk Management, Engineering Student Council (ESC) and Society of Women Engineers representatives, and most importantly for me, Vice President. As VP, I worked on revamping the Epsilon Chapter By-Laws. Our chapter founders did a wonderful job of laying the ground work but some of the bylaws didn’t work with the way the chapter actually functioned. For me, having accurate by-laws that worked to support the growth and leadership of the chapter while still protecting members was of the upmost importance. Yes, I know that sounds like a drag but it needed to be done.

What does Phi Rho Mean to Me

In college, Phi Rho was fun and the foundation for my closest college friendships. Since that time, I have come to appreciate more of the fundamentals I learned in Phi Rho.

• Friendship – College would have been impossible with out my Phi Rho Sisters! I learned the importance of amazing friends and work everyday to build solid friendships and support my friends since I know the true value of a friendship. I love getting to see my sisters whenever possible and support the Active chapter.
• Scholarship – Never stop learning!! I am working on my LEED Associate right now and will start prepping for the PE next year. Learning never stops. Know more than the person and how to use that information is a key element to being your best and excelling at everything you do.
• Encouragement – People need hugs. Whether it’s a bad day, week, or month, there is something about a hug that makes the day just a little easier. I work in construction with a bunch of tough guys. No place for hugs in my line of work – get real. Because of the rarity of a kind word or hug, my daring to step out there is an even bigger gesture.
• Committees –I’m on committees everywhere! At church, NAWIC, ASCE, and at work, it seems like everything is decided by committee. Through Phi Rho, I learned a lot about balancing people’s feelings and wants while still getting a final decision that the committee can support.
• Robert’s Rule of Order – Knowing how to navigate RRoO has been fantastic for board meetings and other official meetings. I always look like I know what I’m doing and people think I’m smarter than I am just because I can throw out a “Point of Information” and correctly make a motion. It also helps me move my agenda to the forefront while other people are trying to figure out how to ask the question.

My Career

I am a project engineer with a regional construction firm. I have been with this company for 2.5 years. My first 9 months were spent doing on-site document control which included submittals, proposal requests, change orders, requests for information, architect special instructions, as-builts, and operation & maintenance manuals. The next 4 months were on a different project where I worked on quality assurance through interior construction punch lists. I then spent the next year in the company’s estimating department working on several projects across the company. For the last 6 months, I have been back in the field as the lead project engineer on a project. I work daily with subcontractors and suppliers to facilitate the construction of a zero-energy school.

Where does this road lead me?

“I have a plan”. If this is your response to any question about the future and someone laughs, it’s because they too once had a plan and it blew up in to a million pieces. I had a plan when I graduated college. I was going to be a project manager in 3 years and senior project manager in another 3. I was going to run straight up that ladder with a force no one had ever seen. Turns out my career path would look nothing like that and I have treasured all the experiences I’ve had even though none of them have led straight to anywhere. My next career step? I don’t have a clue. I am more focused on learning what I like to do and what I don’t like to do and how do whatever I’m doing well. That ladder thing – eh, whatever.

I also thought I would be Miss Independent and that no man would ever fall in love with a stubborn, self-sufficient engineer. I was going to work in my hometown forever and grow old here. That went out the window as well and I am now engaged to a fellow engineer and thrilled to start a new life in a new town.

Final Thoughts

• Take responsibility for everything you are involved in. Even if you are not the lead person, own what you do and what you are involved in. Your work is your credibility.
• Be on time. On time is 10 minutes earlier than your boss.
• Never be afraid to go for something because you might screw up. You will screw up but you can learn to fix it and the next time, you will do even better.
• Everyone you meet has something going on in her life you don’t know about. Take a deep breath when dealing with difficult people and try to remember the other person is only human as well.
• Love yourself.