All signs point to success for Delta High grad. And her signs point to Yakima - literally

Only a few high school students get to leave their mark on the landscape.

Katherine Valovinos will get the chance to point at where her marks are — literally.

During her internship at JUB Engineers in Kennewick, the Delta High graduate got to design street signs that now direct people as they travel to Yakima.

And that is likely only the beginning of her career in drafting. She plans to return to the engineering firm to work in the summer and while she goes to school at Columbia Basin College for engineering technology.

It’s a pretty good outcome for a teen that was skeptical when her mom suggested attending the high school that focuses on a STEM eduction of science, technology, engineering and math rather than go to Chiawana.

Her mom made a deal with her: Just spend a year at the school, and if you don’t like it then you can leave.

“When I was here, I really just fell in love with the curriculum at Delta, the teachers and just learning environment,” she said. “I decided to stay.”

A combination of the innovative curriculum, caring teachers and small class sizes helped guide Valdovinos into what she hopes is the beginning of a career in drafting for a civil engineering firm.

Finding her place

Even before Valdovinos came to Delta, she had a 4.0 grade point average and was prepared to enter high school. Her mom noticed that she liked STEM-related subjects, so she suggested the west Pasco school.

While Pasco provides the administration for school, each of the Tri-Cities can send a limited number of students to the school. Students apply each year, and there are waiting lists for students not picked as part of a lottery selection process. Normally, there are about 400 students at the school.

While Valdovinos found that she enjoyed the students, teachers and curriculum, it wasn’t until her sophomore year that she discovered what she wanted to do for her career. She took a computer-assisted drafting course and loved it.

“I’ve always loved creating things,” she said. “I think it’s amazing to see what you did out on the streets.”

That love of translating instructions into design work stayed with her as she approached her senior year. She started working at JUB Engineers, which offers engineering support to dozens of projects throughout the area.

That included the work Valdovinos did to design the street signs. While engineers told her the dimensions and what needed to be on the sign, she needed to learn the program necessary to make the signs.

Her work ethic and positive attitude helped her land a job with the engineering firm after she leaves Delta, said Ben Volk, JUB Engineers’ area manager in Kennewick. Working through the computer-assisted drafting program takes a skillful hand to navigate the computer software and translate an idea into a design.

“(Designers) are a key part of our process. We need young people that consider that as a career,” Volk said. “She was very personable, and her work ethic is just amazing. ... She went above and beyond to meet the deadline.”

This is the second student the firm recruited through Delta’s internship program. A student looking at a civil engineering career is going to WSU Tri-Cities.

Continuing her education

Valdovinos is excited to head to Columbia Basin College in the fall. She will leave Delta High School with a 3.9 gpa. While she doesn’t feel like Delta places too much pressure on students, she does push herself to succeed.

“It just makes me feel good to see that I’m doing well,” she said. “Also, seeing my teachers be proud of me. I always try to do the best in whatever I do.”

Along with her internship, Valdovinos is involved with her church.

Her advice for students following her into Delta is to try their best.

“As long as you try, you will do well here, because the teachers will see you putting in that effort.”

This story was originally published June 6, 2019 at 5:53 PM.