Date: July 28, 2003

Water district honored for service to Hispanic community

SAN JOSE — The Santa Clara Valley Water District has received two awards from the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, a national organization committed to introducing and promoting mathematics and sciences to Hispanic children and teens.

The Silicon Valley chapter named the water district “company of the year;” water district employee Marisa Reyes was named “officer of the year.”

Newly elected SHPE President Jennifer Arguello said the water district was chosen for its outstanding support to the Silicon Valley chapter of SHPE. The district contributed to the organization’s progress, she said, through corporate sponsorship and by hosting the group’s first meeting on the district’s campus.

“The first meeting was a huge success, resulting in more membership recruitment for the SHPE-Silicon Valley organization,” Arguello said.

Reyes, who served as the local chapter’s treasurer last year, echoed Arguello’s comments.

“The district made an effort to reach out to the organization,” Reyes said. “It sponsored the very first meeting of the year and did an awesome job by having the entire recruiting team there. You see that (outreach by the district to community groups) a lot.”

Reyes was recently elected regional vice president of the organization.

“I am excited about this opportunity,” Reyes said of her newly elected status. “I see a lot of potential in (SHPE’s) ability to grow.”

Reyes said her goal is to overcome SPHE’s largest hurdle in its western region – increasing enrollment in the Oregon area, which would bridge a membership gap between large chapters in Northern California and in Seattle.

The Santa Clara Valley Water District manages Santa Clara County's wholesale drinking water resources, coordinates flood protection for its 1.7 million residents and provides stewardship for the county's 10 reservoirs and more than 700 miles of streams.