By: Adorie Williams, 2024 + 2025 EXP + Lindblom Math and Science Academy mentee, 2025 EXP intern, UIUC student
During my junior and senior years at Lindblom Math and Science Academy, I participated in the EXP + Lindblom Mentorship Program. During this time, I learned the principles of engineering and architecture and how to apply them to a real-world project. This unique experience gave me the confidence to apply for an engineering internship, and over the summer, I had the opportunity to work on the Chicago Transit Authority’s Red Line Extension (RLE) Project – the biggest and most anticipated transit project in Chicago’s history.
As I begin my freshman year at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, I realize just how significant it was to be a part of a talented team that is shaping the future of Chicago transit. Below is a look back on my internship.
Week 1
On Tuesday, June 17, 2025, I began working at EXP as an intern. Although my previous year and a half as a part of the EXP community offered me a plethora of office skills, I understood that there was so much more for me to learn. On my first day, I participated in an intern luncheon with EXP’s President and Chief Operations Officer, Mark Dvorak, who shared information about EXP’s history and operational style with other interns who were on the same path as I was. My first day ended with a meeting with EXP’s Corporate Communications team, who discussed the role communications plays at a firm, and how to establish an influential online presence that communicates my skills as a worker, which I found extremely helpful.
The rest of my first week proved to be quite busy, as I found myself thrown into meetings where I learned about one of EXP’s most significant undertaking – supporting the Chicago Transit Authority’s Red Line Extension Project. As the biggest project in Chicago history, most of my time will be assisting my co-workers with this milestone project for the city.
Week 2
During my second week at EXP, I became much more familiar with the flow of my days and found myself better understanding how interns fit within an organization. I began to feel like part of the team, and I was creating more connections on LinkedIn. I learned from EXP’s Communications team to establish a network early on in my career. After learning the intricacies of LinkedIn and setting up my page, I participated in a video project in which I shared about my experience transitioning from a Lindblom student mentee to an intern. This filming experience allowed me to think about how departments other than engineering can benefit an organization.
At a firm of over 4,500 people, there are engineers, architects, human resources professionals, marketing professionals, lighting specialists, scientists and too many others to list, but each plays a part to make EXP operate like a well-oiled machine.
During a meeting to give an overview of the RLE, I heard talk of a 3D printed recreation of the RLE 103rd stop. 3D modeling is something that I have experience in, so being presented with an opportunity to showcase these skills on a larger scale, I took it without hesitation. Although there were a few kinks to sort out as I worked with different modeling and printing software, progress remained steady, and I found myself proud and excited with my work, along with being excited to continue working on RLE.
Week 3
Prepared with a greater understanding of EXP’s environment and workflow, I entered the office ready for the week ahead of me. I participated in a meeting concerning RLE’s next steps and received news that we would need more 3D printers. I gained a few more details on the task, such as which parts of each train stop need to be printed for clarity purposes, and what settings to use to receive a consistent print. By carefully organizing the created model one piece at a time and carefully following the printing settings, I finally began to taste the fruits of my labor. I was also supporting data entry for EXP and the CTA.
I saw this role as a bridge between EXP and the Chicago Transit Authority’s internal services, helping development run smoothly, and improving relations between the two groups. Although data entry often is not perceived as glamorous, it’s an integral part of operations, and I was glad to be a part of this major transit initiative.
Week 4
Big lesson learned: Data entry is a good teacher. Though the task may not have been as complex as the others I’ve worked on, it was taxing. Data entry demands a higher level of attention than my previous RLE assignments.
I learned to pace myself with data entry to increase the effectiveness of the task. When not learning better ways to increase my workflow, I assembled parts of 3D models, carefully welding different prints together with super glue. Though my fingers were covered in glue, the level of precision I exhibited while eliminating tiny gaps in the realized model was worth the stickiness. Although this week left me dazed at times from data entry (those who say they feel otherwise from data entry, I believe are being untruthful), the insight I gained about how to improve my workflow rewarded my short-lived struggle.
Week 5
I completed the data entry ahead of schedule and wrapped up the 3D modeling work as well. I was then assigned a task involving construction. This task involved identifying trees that will be in the way of construction and confirming that their demolition tag was listed. Before being assigned to this task, I did not know that engineers and architects were the ones who let construction partners know what trees to remove. I believed that this was done on the spot during construction with no prior planning, but being behind the scenes put this matter into perspective.
The established partnership between EXP and Walsh, the construction partner on RLE, is reflected in many of EXP’s plans, and the task I worked on this week only illuminated the strong relationship between the two companies. Effective communication between large firms on complex, large-scale projects like the RLE is immensely important, and the job of confirming tree removal shows me that in projects, nothing is left up to guess work during construction. Every detail is worked out ahead of time, and it’s our job to do that planning.
Week 6
This week, I continued to assist with tree removal. Working on an assignment that involved a high level of collaboration with civil engineers at EXP and demolitionists at Walsh led me to discover some brand-new technology used for sharing documents. I learned about ProjectWise, a secure software for sharing engineering and architecture project files.
Another piece of software I learned about was OpenRoads, which in collaboration with MicroStation, allowed me to view the station plans for RLE layered on top of Google Maps. I was able to see the exact area the tracks would cover in real life. These plans could still be edited and viewed, but they could also be seen as they would appear in real life and analyzed relative to their surroundings. Since my second tree analysis task involved checking if each tree was assigned to the correct section, OpenRoads’ Google Maps overlay made it easy to confirm their actual locations for zoning. Additionally, knowing how to navigate around the map and visualize different roads helped with understanding the nature of tree zoning.
Familiarizing myself with software such as ProjectWise, Revit, Bluebeam and OpenRoads was a learning curve, but ultimately, I’m very grateful to have a basic level of knowledge of these applications that are widely used in the engineering industry.
Week 7
I am extremely grateful to have spent my summer working at EXP. From over 30 new LinkedIn connections to gaining experience working with technical software, the knowledge I’ve gained with EXP has molded me into a better-rounded worker in almost every way.
Whether it was learning lessons about pacing myself with my data entry task or better understanding model sectioning and assembly through RLE 3D printing, I found myself learning something substantial each week I spent in the office. I’m grateful to have had mentors who consistently treated me with respect and equality, and gave me space to grow, while also gently pushing me towards greatness through their words and actions.
I was told to never say ‘goodbye’ to people you care about— that makes things so much more final. Instead, I said, “see you later” to EXP, and “nice to meet you’ to the University of Illinois.
Thank you to everyone at EXP for supporting me these past two years, and I’m glad I was able to repay this gratitude through effort during the time we spent together.
Learn about internships at EXP.