Alejandro De La Mora: From Blue Knight to civil engineer
A native of Los Angeles, Calif., Alejandro De La Mora grew up in Cancún, Mexico, the famous resort city on the Yucatán Peninsula. Alejandro was all business in the classroom and on the soccer field. He not only excelled academically, he was also playing pro soccer by the age of 15.
Encouraged by his mother to pursue higher education in the United States, Alejandro found his way to DCTC in 2005. He met Cam Stoltz, the head coach of women and men’s soccer at the college. Cam recruited him to play midfielder for the Blue Knights.
Alejandro De La Mora (in Minnesota Thunder uniform) and Blue Knights Soccer Head Coach Cam StoltzAlejandro played the 2005–2006 season with the Knights, starting all 22 games and making the NJCAA Region XI All-Region First Team. He remembers his time at DCTC, including his valuable experience in the English Language Learners program, as pivotal to his development as a college-level student.Fueled by a love for math, calculus, chemistry and physics, Alejandro enrolled in the College of Science & Engineering at the University of Minnesota. At the same time, he signed with the Minnesota Thunder, a former pro soccer team in the USL First Division. In 2010, he graduated from the U of M with a Bachelor of Science in civil engineering. Two months later, he was working as a civil engineer for Schlumberger, the world’s largest oilfield services company, at the company’s new facility in Horseheads, N.Y. His work gave him the chance to visit Schlumberger sites around the world.
Alejandro with Innovative Engineers in La HermitaWhile at the U of M, Alejandro co-founded a student club called Innovative Engineers, which has since opened chapters on three more campuses, including one in Mexico City and one at DCTC. Innovative Engineers is known for performing charitable work using technological know-how. When Alejandro was president of the club, he joined an IE team that installed a wind turbine at a tiny village in Nicaragua with no access to electricity. Alejandro also received the 2011 President’s Student Leadership and Service Award, one of the university’s most prestigious honors.In fall 2012, Alejandro returned to Minnesota to take a position at Brown and Caldwell, a St. Paul engineering firm that helps solve environmental challenges for a wide range of clients. Today, he considers Minneapolis his second home to Cancún. He is making plans to earn his MBA and begin coaching soccer (possibly for the Blue Knights!)
DCTC is proud to recognize Alejandro De La Mora as a Rising Star who continues to make his mark as an accomplished professional in his field.
Alejandro’s Acceptance Speech
For more information about the Rising Star Award, contact:
- Tharan Leopold
Executive Director of DCTC Foundation and Alumni
651-423-8293
