Giving Back to All Aspiring Women

Like most high school students, Dayna Johnson ’03, ’12, P.E. was unsure what career path she wanted to pursue. Born into a blue-collar family, her mother — a nurse — hoped that she would enter the medical field as a doctor.

“Unfortunately, I really can’t stand the sight of blood,” Dayna says. “I didn’t know what I wanted to do until my senior year of high school when we were going on a chemistry field trip to a chemical plant. We got to the part where they did wastewater treatment and I thought it was really cool.”

Between that initial moment of piqued interest and today, Dayna has held a variety of leadership roles in several aspects of engineering, and in July of 2022 was elected president of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE), a global networking, support, and advocacy group for women in engineering. The organization works to empower women to achieve their full potential in careers as engineers and leaders, expand the image of the engineering and technology professions as a positive force in improving the quality of life, and demonstrate the value of diversity and inclusion.

“We’re always trying to figure out how to get young women and girls into engineering, keep them interested throughout college, and make sure that when they get into the real world that they have the tools they need to continue to be successful,” Dayna says. “And then, as they’re hitting huge milestones in their careers, we recognize those and encourage them to give back.”

Coming to Valparaiso University in 2000 as a civil engineering major, Dayna quickly joined the campus SWEchapter, a commitment that led her to not only making lifelong friends, but gaining valuable leadership experience that she believes is one of the greatest benefits of a Valpo education.

“I got leadership opportunities as a student here that I don’t know I would have gotten at a bigger school,” Dayna says. “Those prepared me for leadership roles after graduating, both professionally and with SWE.”

After graduating from Valpo. Dayna took a short break from SWE to focus on the changes she was facing, including marriage, a new career, and the moves that came with them. She began what would be a decade of working for smaller engineering firms.

Dayna’s departure from SWE was short-lived, as she missed the camaraderie and support it provided. So, after a two-year absence, she rejoined the SWE organization and quickly began taking on new leadership roles within it.

“I was the only woman engineer in my office, and felt like I needed the SWE connection back in my life,” Dayna says. “I’m also really bad at saying no, so I just kept taking on different positions and doing different things for SWE.”

After ten years of working in small business, Dayna would accept a job with General Electric (GE) as a proposal manager for substations.

“I got this itch to do something bigger, to work on something bigger,” Dayna says. “About that time, I started the master of engineering management program and went to GE. If you’re not an engineer, you may think that’s still generally in engineering, but if you are an engineer, you know that’s quite a big career turn.”

Dayna’s career would see her in a variety of leadership positions where she took an active role in the business, marketing, and sales aspects of the organization on top of the engineering side. Today, she is the emerging technology programs and operations leader for GE Gas Power.

Taking on a bigger leadership role in SWE, Dayna joined the board of directors in 2017, and, five years later, found herself taking the role of president.

“I mostly feel excitement,” she says. “I’ve got a lot of women who came before me in this role that support me, that mentoring philosophy, and they’ve always said that if anything comes up, I can call them.”

One of Dayna’s main goals in office is to expand the global influence of SWE and bring support to women in engineering around the world. To make progress, the organization has held conferences in India and Europe, with this year’s conferences located in India and Barcelona. SWE is also taking a hard look at their scholarship programs and how they can be expanded to benefit a more global audience.

“I always look at it as, while we have so much we can do in the U.S. to help women in engineering, it’s not just a U.S. problem. It’s a global problem we need to address.”

Dayna also recognizes the importance of fostering advocacy within the engineering industry, encouraging managers and those in other leadership roles to use their voices to create more diverse and inclusive workplaces.

“The lack of diversity is an old mindset that we’re sort of stuck with. So how do you overcome that? How do you get people to understand the value of diversity?” Dayna asks. “I try to make sure these leaders understand why these are important viewpoints.”

As an example, she points out that most crash test dummies are designed with average male proportions in mind — a factor that increases risk for women and one that Dayna believes would have been resolved with more female input.

That push for change in the industry can start right here at Valpo, and Dayna believes there are ways the University and its students can help lift up the students who need it.

“Continue to push for the value of diversity,” Dayna says. “I think Valpo can continue to push for diverse incoming classes, and continue to push for integrating diversity into engineering ethics courses.”

She also believes that students at Valpo, regardless of their identity, are poised to excel.

“Don’t feel like, just because you’re from a small school that you’re not destined to do big things,” Dayna says. “The foundations that Valpo sets you up with, the well-rounded education, the leadership opportunities, the involvement opportunities, all set you up for success. Just don’t forget to give back when you get the opportunity.”