City of College Station's Jennifer Cain shares story of attaining leadership role

Jennifer Cain serves as the city of College Station Director of Capital Projects and Facility Management.
Meredith Seaver

Jennifer Cain, College Station’s director of capital projects and facility management, found her passion in city government after struggling while working in a male-dominated field. She hopes to inspire other women to not be discouraged from pursuing similar positions.

A graduate of Texas A&M University with a major in construction science, Cain worked for a general contract firm before moving to New Braunfels and discovering a passion for city government, especially when she was able to physically see her projects such as a new sidewalk.

“I found a niche that I love,” she said. “I loved being part of the community, being part of things that better the community and that my family could take part in.”

Ever since moving back to College Station about a year and a half ago, Cain has been managing a variety of projects such as parks, roads, fire stations and more, all of which are essential services that don’t always get noticed.

“At any given time, we have anywhere between 80 to 90 capital projects that are ongoing in various stages of either design or construction,” she said. “The fire station is something I’m really excited about.”

As a woman in a leadership role, Cain said she finds inspiration from other women who work for the city who continue to accomplish great things.

“There are a lot of females in the city management team,” she said. “They are leading the charge and doing great things in the city personally and professionally. I really look up to them.”

Although A&M now has one of the highest percentages of women in construction sciences, Cain said, during her time as a student, though in the minority, she found support through professors.

“Going through school at A&M, at the time when I was here, there weren’t many women in construction sciences,” she said. “I certainly had some professors that poured into me and really encouraged me in my journey.”

Being a woman in the male-dominated field of construction science, Cain said she did encounter judgments from others such as when she first started working for a construction company in Houston.

“One time, I was even told, ‘Hey, you don’t look the part, people aren’t going to take you as seriously’ because I was young or female,” she said.

Despite the criticism, Cain said she found strength in women role models in her life, including her family who continued to support her.

“I was always encouraged by my mom, so that was a big factor in my life growing up, and going into a field no one in my family had gone into, and it seemed more male-dominated at the time,” she said.

Now Cain said she feels confident in what she does because she knows she is more than capable in her position.

“Sometimes it’s easy to get discouraged, but I have been able to push past those things and say ‘That’s not who I am’ and ‘I know I’m good at what I do,’” she said. “I know I’m doing something that is important to me and that’s the best thing I can do.”

As a word of advice to other women who are concerned with being in a male-dominated position, Cain said it’s essential to never let adversity stop people from finding their passions.

“It’s important to be confident in who you are,” she said. “If it’s important to you, you should keep after it and keep trying. It may not go the way you want it to go, it may go differently, but don’t give up.”