Meet Grace Cronen, a civil engineering major from Tampa, Florida, who has left a lasting impact at Statler and across WVU. A dedicated student-athlete and proven leader, Grace has spent her years balancing the physical rigors of the rowing team with the technical precision of the American Society of Civil Engineers. With a specialized focus on structural engineering, she has built a foundation of excellence that extends far beyond the classroom. For this Mountaineer, graduation is just the first bridge to a bright future.
Story by Emily Handrahan
Photos by WVU Athletics
What first sparked your interest in STEM, engineering? Was there a person, class or experience that ultimately pushed you toward the Statler College?
In high school, I took a few engineering classes. We did a little bit of CAD work, some small fun projects, and then, as upperclassmen, we started with bigger projects like designing, building, and installing a bat house, and entering a state-wide engineering competition for hurricane relief. Our project, which took us all year, got us on the local news. Having these opportunities really got me interested in engineering.
What inspired you to pursue your major within the Statler College over other programs or universities?
I chose Statler because it truly gave me the opportunity to pursue what I want to do, giving me so many options between majors and within my own major. Also, the community. I could be a thousand miles away and wearing something WVU and someone will always say “Go Mountaineers!” No matter where you are, there are always Mountaineers. Seeing all of our teams do so well, especially our survey team moving on to nationals, was amazing to see and truly made me proud to be a WVU student.
Can you share a project, capstone or research experience that had a lasting impact on you or helped shape your career path?
My building design project spring of 2025. It was incredibly hard but it taught me so much about how to actually approach structural projects and design. By far the most interesting project and the project I am most proud of. This project had each student assigned their own unique location, floors, footprint, and height. Because of this, we all had different earthquake factors and wind factors we had to account for. The software we used for the project, we had no experience with, so there was a very steep learning curve. However, spending half of that semester grinding for that project, learning so many new things, and putting in so many hours, my final product was something I was so proud of. I learned how to attack problems head-on, ask for help, and learn from my mistakes. This project made me realize I am capable of actually doing these kinds of projects in the real world. I realized I loved this work, and I could finally see myself truly loving my future job and being able to dive headfirst into all kinds of projects.
How did your time in labs, student organizations, competition teams or other extracurriculars help you grow — academically, professionally or personally?
I am a part of ASCE and the ASCE concrete canoe team. I have loved being a part of ASCE and concrete canoe, I’ve met so many wonderful people and been able to experience so many amazing things that would not have been possible without ASCE. My most memorable moment on concrete canoe was finally getting to go to conference this year. Because of rowing, I had not been able to actually attend ASCE regionals. This year, I got to actually be there, see our presentations, our display, meet other schools, see their canoes, and actually race our canoe. It was such an amazing time, a wonderful experience, and the best way I could finish off my final year here. With being a student athlete, so many things made it challenging, a longer list than I could write up. The most challenging part, I would say, would be the late nights followed by the early mornings. Whether it was late nights doing homework, group projects, or having late evening exams, waking up the next morning at 5 am to get to practice was always a struggle. I sacrificed a lot to balance them. I worked just enough to pass my classes, I lost out on a lot of moments with friends and family, and I missed many opportunities for clubs and events. However, despite all of that, every struggle was worth it; it taught me to be stronger and more resilient, both in the classroom and on the water.
If you had to pick one favorite memory from your time at Statler that sums up your overall experience, what would it be and why?
My best experience was in my building design class; we were tasked to design a building rated for our own unique locations. It was one of the hardest projects I’ve ever had to do but I have never felt more accomplished than with this project. It really pushed me onto the path of structural engineering. Also, our ASCE conference this year. We entered several competitions for the first time, and some we had been competing in for years. While we didn't win in concrete canoe, we received the "Spirit of the Competition" award. I was very proud at the moment because our team displayed so much to be proud of, providing supplies to other teams, cheering on the other teams during races, and doing all that we could to help everyone else. We also placed first in 3 of the competitions we had never been in before, such as geo-wall, civil engineering problem solving, and survey. Seeing all of our teams do so well, especially our survey team for moving on to nationals, was amazing to see and truly made me proud to be a WVU student.
What are your plans after graduation?
I want to pursue my FE and eventually PE in structural engineering. I want to work with bridges, and buildings, and all structural tasks. After graduation, I will be a Civil Associate with Michael Baker in Pittsburgh, PA.
What advice would you give to incoming Statler students?
Don’t freak out if you have to retake a class; you will still graduate. Don’t compare yourself to your classmates; you are smart and capable and remember, you will graduate.
Athlete to Engineer
Learn more about the civil engineering program and the many opportunities that WVU and the Statler College provide to help student thrive.