Introducing our latest Brand Ambassador from Florida, USA it’s Tanya Hopper:
If you are not a surveyor, what do you do? Associate Director of Talent Acquisition at Atwell. I am a dedicated resource for our Survey and Mapping group. I am also chair of our survey scholarship program, and I’m launching a Young Surveyor program internally this year. I also plan to become a CST proctor in the next few months.
How long have you been in the industry? 2+ years in survey, 5.5 in civil engineering
Why do you want to be a GKiS Brand Ambassador? I believe in the mission! I think survey is a wonderful profession, and I take pride in helping it grow by introducing newbies to the industry.
Why is it important for kids to know about surveying and the wider geospatial industry? Only 14% of licensed surveyors are under 34, and the average age of a PLS is between 58-60. If we don’t put in the work NOW, we will have an even smaller pool of candidates down the road – with major infrastructure project underway. We are already in a major surveyor shortage. It’s a great profession and it basically sells itself – we just have to give it a little introduction so youngsters can enroll in geomatics programs.
What are you going to do as an ambassador for GKiS? Visit middle and high schools, teacher conferences, be an advocate at survey conferences, persuade other surveyors to get on board, and attempt to work with boy/girl scouts and 4H clubs.
What are your hobbies? Camping, hiking, fishing, crabbing, gardening, mountain biking, cooking
If you/your company had a GKiS character, what would it be? Human
What resource would you like to see next from GKiS? Do you remember quizzes in magazines when you were a kid? Each answer had an arrow that pointed you to a different new question. I think it would be cool to have one with survey related professions and have questions such as “do you like being outside,” “are you good with math,” “do you like working with computers,” etc. and have some of the responses lead to Crew Chief, Drafter, GIS, etc.
Anything else you want to add that you think our audience (surveyors, teachers, parents) would be interested in? Seek and find- “find the monument”