Opportunities at Illinois play 'big hand' in Bejarano's journey

5/5/2020 Emily Jankauski

For Manuel Bejarano, becoming a civil engineer was fate. He went from making model bridges to designing U.S. airport runways.

Now serving as a senior engineer at Atkins, an engineering consultant agency, in Orlando, Florida, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign alumnus can’t help but look back at his beginnings.

UIUC alumnus Manuel Bejarno, who currently serves as Atkins’ senior engineer, works on runway intersection replacement at the Tulsa International Airport.

Before achieving his dreams, Bejarano started at the Universidad de Los Andes in Bogotá, Colombia, earning a bachelor’s in civil engineering.

But Bejarano’s dreams didn’t stop there, he had his sights set on a master’s degree, and that’s something his parents wished for him, too.

Bejarano applied to UIUC, where he enrolled in a master’s program studying soil mechanics.

But one year into the program, Bejarano recognized that he would need more funds to complete his degree. Friends encouraged him to apply for an appointment and that’s when fate struck again.

Bejarano applied to become a research assistant with Marshall Thompson, a former professor and current professor emeritus of UIUC’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering.

“I (helped) some of the doctoral students and later on, (I) got involved in the doctoral program,” he said. “I wasn’t expecting any of that.”

“I really enjoyed my time with him,” added Bejarano, who went on to earn his doctoral degree. “He gave me a big hand.”

Under Thompson, Bejarano focused on transportation materials, including asphalt-pavement design.

Manuel Bejarano, right, was all smiles posing for a photo with Marshall Thompson, a former UIUC professor, at the Federal Aviation Administration’s National Airport Pavement Test Facility during his time at UIUC. Thompson now serves as professor emeritus.

His favorite memories?

“(Working with) the aviation administration to analyze Boeing 777’s impact on asphalt pavements,” Bejarano said.

Well, that and interacting with the other doctoral students.

“I tried to learn how to play golf with my other doctoral colleagues there,” he said. “It was a challenge, which I never suspected,” Bejarano laughed. “But we had a good time.”

Those friendships became life-long bonds and to this day, Bejarano still returns to his roots whenever he needs advice.

“I reach (out) to professor Marshall Thompson about a lot of the cases that I have,” he said.

His latest effort?

Removing and replacing pavement at the Philadelphia International Airport.

“We focus on safety first and then after that we always focus on the cost associated with the project,” Bejarano said. “One of the ideas I got at Illinois in all the classes I took was the use of recycled materials and being able to use it on new pavement or a new structure ― it’s a key component of what we do,” he added. “It’s saved millions of dollars on runways and taxiways.”

Such efforts are not only fulfilling airports’ demands, but are also keeping public safety as No. 1 priority.

As for his UIUC education, Bejarano is extremely grateful.

“Illinois prepared me very well,” he added. “I am very grateful for all of the opportunities. I’m proud to have graduated from Illinois.”