Ronald Colas, PE
Vice President and Managing Executive
WSP USA Inc.
Miami, Florida

Ronald Colas, of Miami, Florida, vice president of WSP USA Inc. and managing executive for south Florida and the Caribbean, earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1987. He has managed and completed engineering projects in California, Florida, and the Caribbean working in both the public and private sector for more than 32 years. His list of projects runs the spectrum of transportation-related engineering, ranging from highways to waterway ports to airport projects. Colas is an active member of several technical societies, including Florida Engineering Society, American Council of Engineering Companies, American Society of Civil Engineers, International Society of Soils Mechanics and Foundation Engineers, International Bridge Tunnel and Turnpike Enterprise Association, and the National Society of Professional Engineers. He is also active in community service and philanthropic organizations such as the Transportation and Expressway Authority of Florida, Florida Airport Council and Engineers without Borders (EWB), and he has volunteered in Haiti to rebuild after an earthquake. He also coaches youth soccer. Colas, a registered professional engineer in seven states, has received accolades and awards for his contributions to the field of engineering including Florida Engineering Society’s Engineer of the Year award. He and his wife, Gaye, have three children — Isabelle, who works is in global public health, is married and lives in Los Angeles; Reginald, who works in the pharmaceutical industry lives in Boston; and Richard, who will be a freshman in college this fall, studying to become be an occupational therapist and an attorney. Colas is fluent in several languages, enjoys traveling with family, flies radio-controlled scale helicopter models and plays golf. 

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Jason S. Dohrmann, PE
Regional Director
H.R. Green
St. Louis, Missouri

Jason Dohrmann of St. Louis, vice president and regional director for H.R. Green’s transportation group, earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1999. He began his career at Parsons Brinckerhoff, then left in 2003 to help HR Green start up an office in St. Louis. His career has included the technical design, planning, project management and construction management of many significant transportation and infrastructure projects across the Midwest. Dohrmann has served as chapter vice president, secretary and treasurer for the St. Louis chapter of the Missouri Society of Professional Engineers (MSPE) and serves on the Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Advisory Council. He is also a director and past chairman of the engineering excellence, Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) and St. Louis County liaison committees for the American Council of Engineering Companies-Missouri. He has served on the national awards committee for the National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE) and chaired the American Public Works Association (APWA) National Awards Committee. He is also an active member of the Engineer’s Club of St. Louis. Dohrmann has been active in community organizations, including the United Way of St. Louis, St. Alban Roe Catholic Church and Archdiocese of St. Louis Annual Catholic Appeal Council. He is a member of Sigma Pi fraternity’s alumni board, which recently raised funds for the design and construction of a new fraternity house. Dohrmann has received numerous accolades, including St. Louis Business Journal’s 30 under 30, St. Louis Chapter’s MSPE Young Engineer of the Year, MSPE’s State Young Engineer of the Year, the Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Department’s Exemplary Young Alumni Award, MSPE’s Outstanding Service Award and the APWA Public Works Leader of the Year in Private Practice. Dohrmann and his wife of 14 years, Karen, have three amazing boys. In his spare time, he enjoys watching and coaching the boys in their various sports.

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Daniel Ellis, PE
Senior Vice President of Northwest Arkansas Infrastructure
Crafton-Tull
Bella Vista, Arkansas

Daniel Ellis of Bella Vista, Arkansas, senior vice president of Northwest Arkansas infrastructure for Crafton-Tull, earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1999. He began his career with Crafton-Tull as an entry-level civil engineer and rose through the company’s ranks to his current position, senior vice president for infrastructure and manager of the Rogers, Arkansas, office. He has helped Crafton-Tull become one of the largest engineering firms in Arkansas. He has managed projects ranging from retail developments and apartment complexes to schools, roads, football stadiums and hospitals. Ellis has been active in the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), serving in several leadership positions, culminating in the presidency of both the Northwest Arkansas Branch and Arkansas Section of ASCE. He has been an active mentor for S&T students, actively assisting them in their capstone design projects and providing career information and guidance. He was named the Civil Engineering Exemplary Young Alumnus in 2014. Ellis is active in his church, serving as sound production leader for Sunday services as well as many other events. He has put his civil engineering skills to work on a volunteer basis in Arkansas and on numerous mission trips to Africa. He has also been an active volunteer in various capacities for youth sports in both his and other communities. His son, Zechariah, is a freshman at Arkansas State University and a member of their football team. His daughter, Abigail, is a freshman at Bentonville High School and plays guitar and signs for their church. He is a man of long-term commitment and loyalty, as an example, wedding rings were not an adequate symbol commitment, so he and his wife, Chauna, have coordinating Mickey and Minnie mouse tattoos on their ring fingers. Also, he will never be able to leave Crafton-Tull since the corporate logo is tattooed on his body. Ask him to show you where! In the little free time he has, he enjoys fishing in north central Arkansas.

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Steve Ford, PE
Vice President
Garney Construction
Nashville, Tennessee

Steve Ford of Franklin, Tennessee, vice president of Garney Construction, graduated Summa Cum Laude from Missouri S&T in 1979 with a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering. He received the Outstanding Civil Engineering Senior Award from S&T by the Missouri Society of Professional Engineers (MSPE). Ford estimates, bids and manages operations for multiple projects and is responsible for the organization and management of Garney’s Mid-South and Mid-Atlantic operations. These projects include major water and wastewater pipeline and facilities construction and rehabilitation. Since 1979, Ford has managed major infrastructure projects throughout the United States. He is also an active member of the American Water Works Association and the National Utility Contractors Association. Ford has been active in the Franklin Rotary Club at Breakfast for more than 20 years. His drive to help his club and charities in the form of fundraising for annual events like the annual charity golf tournament is such that in his club of 97 members, he singlehandedly raised 17 percent of their funds for 2019. Because of his help, his Rotary was able to build Habitat for Humanity homes; build ramps and make home modifications for children with special needs; fund programs for local Boys and Girls club; provide clean water systems for children’s hospitals and stoves for feeding stations in Guatemala; furnish supplies for a local domestic violence shelter; and give support for many other local services for the less fortunate. In his hometown of Jackson, Missouri, Ford established the not-for-profit Legacy Preservation Enterprise to preserve precious historical and natural resources for future generations in Jackson, Byrd Township, Cape Girardeau County, Missouri. This effort includes the preservation and restoration of the Abraham Byrd house (ca. 1827), the Frizel-Welling house (ca. 1818/1838), and the Criddle House (ca. 1815). Ford’s passion for native plant restoration and re-establishment led him to design and install the Taylor Twins Memorial Garden in Jackson, planted with only native plants, and the work-in-progress to establish a native plant nature preserve, the Charles Shelby Ford Conservation Area, on the 50-acre farm where he was raised. Ford also supported establishing the Garney Undergraduate Scholarship in Construction Engineering and Management (CEM) through the Missouri Consortium for Construction Innovation (MO-CCI).

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John George, PE
Vice President and Managing Director
Black and Veatch
Overland Park, Kansas

John George of Overland Park, Kansas, vice president and managing director of Oil & Gas Americas-Europe for Black and Veatch, earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1981. He provides leadership to deal with innovative solutions to clients in matters of capital and strategic planning, operational effectiveness, project execution, change management and operational and business excellence. George ensures that Oil & Gas teams’ activities guarantee successful solutions implementation, quality that meets or exceeds clients’ expectations, predictable project execution and high customer satisfaction. George has worked for Black and Veatch for a total of 29 years. He also worked for Hovensa LLC, managing projects and serving as vice president of technology for oil and gas operations in the Virgin Islands, where he lived from 2005 to 2011 before returning to Black and Veatch. George has been a mentor and role model for Miners working at Black and Veatch. He has helped many engage professionally and has volunteered his time to come back to Rolla to speak with students about professional responsibilities and about being a supportive alumnus. He has shared his unique path in leaving consulting to run a major industrial facility in international locations and then returning to his consulting career.

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Brady Hays, PE
Vice President and Director of Strategy and Risk Management
Black and Veatch
Overland Park, Kansas

Brady Hays of Overland Park, Kansas, vice president and director of strategy and risk management for Black and Veatch, earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1998. He also holds a master of science degree in civil engineering and an MBA from the University of Kansas. Hays works in the oil and gas business line, where in addition to strategic planning and risk management, he is also involved with mergers and acquisitions; market intelligence; market and client segmentation; strategic sales and account development programs; marketing analysis; and client relationship management. In past roles in the water business line, he worked across multiple functions, continents and business units on projects and corporate assignments to promote global growth and value contribution. Hays served as the project director for seawater desalination projects with a focus on major mining accounts and the TKO Project in Hong Kong. He served as the P&L director for the water-mining and Latin America region, contributing more than $3 million EBT annually. He held business development roles in Water UK for the AMP5 capital program period for the water utilities; corporate development roles for strategy and mergers and acquisitions with identification, valuation and preliminary due diligence for Gleeson acquisition; and corporate strategic planning roles with the 2020 team. Hays, a licensed professional engineering in Missouri, served on the advisory board for Missouri S&T’s College of Engineering and Computing and frequently returns to speak to students in civil, architectural and environmental engineering.

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Michael Hermesmeyer, PE
Senior Vice-President, Retired
Boyle Engineering Corp.
Highlands, North Carolina

Michael Hermesmeyer of Highlands, North Carolina, retired senior vice-president for Boyle Engineering Corp., earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1971. He began his career with the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency in Chicago and then joined Chicago Fly Ash Co. He moved to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, when he joined Parkson Corp. in 1978 as a process engineer. Born and raised in Quincy, Illinois, he fell in love with the east coast of Florida and continued his water and wastewater career with three engineering consulting firms. He joined the third firm, LBFH, in 1989 and rose to president and CEO of the 300-plus employee, six-office firm before he negotiated its sale to Boyle Engineering Corp. There he served as senior vice president and a member of the board of directors until the firm was sold to AECOM. Hermesmeyer has received several honors including Engineer of the Year for the Treasure Coast Chapter of the Florida Engineering Society (FES) in 1990 and in 1992 he was named an FES fellow. In 1997-98 he was the Business Person of the Year for the Stuart/Martin County Chamber of Commerce. He was an active member of FES serving on its board for many years and as the founding president of the Treasure Coast Chapter. He was also active in the Water Pollution Control Association and the Florida Institute of Consulting Engineers (FICE or ACEC-Florida) both on the board of directors for many years and then served as its president. Hermesmeyer has served his community in many capacities, including serving on the boards of the Martin County Council for the Arts, Stuart/Martin County Chamber of Commerce and as a member of the board and president of the Martin County Economic Council. He was chairman of the Martin County Industrial Development Board and the Environmental Quality Control Board. As a student he served on the Student Union Board and was president from 1970 to 1971. Hermesmeyer enjoys boating, golf, fishing and spending time with family and friends. He and his wife, Susan, have retired to the mountains of North Carolina where they enjoy visits from their daughter, Robyn, and three grandchildren.

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David Kemper, PE
Senior Principal
Stantec
Tampa, Florida

David “Dave” Kemper of Tampa, Florida, senior principal for Stantec, earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering in 1979 and a master of science degree in engineering management in 1984, both from Missouri S&T. He began his career in the consulting engineering field and spent his entire career in the industry. He earned his master’s degree attending part time in the evenings through the St. Louis extension program. After working five years in St. Louis, he and his family relocated to Tampa, Florida, in 1985. Kemper leads Stantec’s Tampa office with approximately 150 staff members and is a discipline leader for its community development practice in Florida. He served as principal or project manager on many of the largest urban redevelopment and land development projects in the region. Kemper has been active in numerous professional organizations, including the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), Florida Engineering Society, the Society of American Military Engineers, Urban Land Institute and Real Estate Investment Council. He also serves on various committees and holds multiple officer positions. Kemper is active in various charity organizations and fundraisers, including many years of coaching children’s youth sports teams and being the top fundraiser for an autism cycling event for the past six years. Kemper enjoys following Tampa Bay Rays baseball and riding his mountain bike on the off-road trails located in the former phosphate strip mines east of Tampa. He and his wife, Barb, and adult children Christopher, Courtney and Douglas, live in Tampa.

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Mike Pappas, PE
Associate Director
Construction Industry Institute
Austin, Texas

Mike Pappas of Austin, Texas, associate director of the Construction Industry Institute, earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1989. He also holds master of science and Ph.D. degrees in civil engineering from the University of Texas at Austin, where he works as a lecturer in civil engineering. Pappas served eight years as a Navy Civil Engineer Corps officer, managing projects for the Navy and Marine Corps in the U.S., the Caribbean, and the Western Pacific. He also designed and managed infrastructure projects for the Farnsworth Group in central Illinois. He currently works with companies to implement CII research into their project management practices. Pappas is a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers, the Association for the Advancement of Cost Engineering, the Dispute Resolution Board Foundation, and the State Bar of Texas Construction Law Section and is a professional engineer in Missouri. As a self-employed project management consultant for more than 15 years, Pappas helps clients develop effective solutions in various areas of front-end development, execution, and dispute prevention and resolution. He has taught professional development courses for almost 4,000 project professionals in 16 countries. His experience includes heavy industrial, infrastructure and utility projects from need identification and scope definition through operation and maintenance. Pappas and his wife, Barbie, a 1990 electrical engineering graduate of Missouri S&T, have two sons – Jim, a firefighter in Corpus Christi, Texas, and John, a mechanical engineering sophomore at the University of Arkansas. Pappas serves on his church’s security team, is a shooting sports instructor with the Boy Scouts of America, and was the public address announcer at Regents School of Austin for football and lacrosse games. He is a member of the advisory board for Advanced Work Packaging conferences and for One Day Academy. He enjoys hunting and firearms competitions.

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Ty Sander, PE
Vice President
Crawford, Murphy and Tilly Inc.
St.Louis, Missouri

Ty Sander of St. Louis, vice president of Crawford, Murphy and Tilly Inc., earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1998. A dedicated aviation professional, he has worked for Crawford, Murphy and Tilly Inc. since 1999. He was recently named vice president and has served as civil engineer, group manager and regional group manager of Aviation Services. A member of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity, Sander is a member of the American Association of Airport Executives, the Missouri Airport Managers Association, MoSAC, MSPE and ASCE. He has served as the Missouri Airport Managers scholarship chairman for the past five years and has given numerous presentations at FAA, ACl and AAAE conferences throughout his career on aviation-related topics. In 2013, Sander co-authored an analysis and recommendation of a long-term rehabilitation program on Runway 12R- 30L at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport, “2013 Airfield and Highway Pavements Specialty Conference Publication, Transportation and Development Institute of the American Society of Civil Engineers,” which was a published technical paper. He truly has a love of pavement engineering work at airports. His dedication, relationships with regional and national aviation administration, airport directors, managers, airlines, and innovations in pavement design has saved operational downtime and critical funding for many airports across the country, including Lambert-St. Louis-International Airport. Sander was the project engineer on both the partial rehabilitation of the primary runway for Columbia Regional Airport in Missouri and Keel Section Replacement, Runway 30R, for Lambert St. Louis International Airport, which both won national paving awards from the American Concrete Paving Association. Sander has been a volunteer and supporter of the United Way for more than 15 years. He is the father of two wonderful young ladies, Brooklynn, 14, and Lillian, 10, and enjoys spending time with them. He regularly volunteers at their schools and in their competitive dance, serving as a “Prop Dad” building and moving scenes as needed for performances. Sander is also active with Lillian’s Girl Scout troop, serving as a volunteer, leader and instructor for events and activities. He attends, supports and volunteers at events for his fraternity and also enjoys golfing, hiking, biking and reading.

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Brian Swenty, PE
Professor of Mechanical and Civil Engineering
University of Evansville
Evansville, Indiana

Brian Swenty of Evansville, Indiana, professor of mechanical and civil engineering at the University of Evansville, earned bachelor of science and Ph.D. degrees in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1976 and 1989, respectively. He earned a master of science degree in civil engineering from the University of Florida in 1977. Swenty served on active duty as an officer in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, a senior civil engineer with a consulting firm in Cape Canaveral, Florida, and as director of Missouri’s Dam and Reservoir Safety Program. Since 1993, Swenty has been at the University of Evansville, where he served 21 years as chair of mechanical and civil engineering and 1.5 years as interim dean of the College of Engineering and Computer Science. He is a licensed professional engineer in California, Florida, Missouri, Illinois and Indiana and works as a consultant on projects involving the design and construction of new dams, modifications to existing dams, and the investigation of dam failures. Swenty has been active in several professional organizations, most notably ASCE, ASDSO and ABET. He was appointed to ABET’s Engineering Accreditation Commission in 2013 and recently completed a five-year term as commissioner. He has made numerous accreditation visits as both a program evaluator and a team chair during his 20-year involvement with ABET. He served as Missouri’s representative to the Association of State Dam Safety Officials (ASDSO) for 10 years and chaired the liability and legal issues committee. He is an active member of his church and has been involved in children’s ministry activities for almost 40 years. He and his wife, Connie, enjoy traveling, bicycling and spending time with their three adult children, Matthew, Melissa and Michelle, and their eight grandchildren.

 

Tom Abkemeier, PE
Vice President and Office Manager
Shannon and Wilson, Inc.
St. Louis, Missouri

Tom Abkemeier of St. Louis, vice president and St. Louis office manager for Shannon and Wilson, earned bachelor of science and master of science degrees in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1987 and 1992, respectively. A licensed professional engineer and past director of the Engineers Club of St. Louis, he is active in many organizations, including the American Railway Engineering and Maintenance Association, the American Society of Civil Engineers, the St. Louis Railway Club and the American Public Works Association. Abkemeier is also active in his community, serving as a youth coach for basketball, baseball and soccer. He and his wife, Melissa, have been married 22 years and have four sons ages 12-20. Their oldest son is studying to be a physical therapist, his twins recently graduated from high school – one is studying chemical engineering at S&T—and his youngest is in seventh grade. Abkemeier enjoys playing softball and volleyball and woodworking. His service to the CArE department includes participation in various student activities and hands-on support of the implementation of geotechnology lab updates.

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Michael Buechter, PE, D.WRE, R.EWRT
Program Manager
Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District
Webster Groves, Missouri

Michael Buechter of Webster Groves, Missouri, a program manager for the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District and a licensed professional engineer, earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from S&T in 1990. He also holds a master’s degree in civil engineering from Oklahoma State University. Buechter, who has served as a manger of both in-house labor and consultant companies, has served on many special and standing committees and has played a significant role in ensuring compliance with the regions MS4 permit. He provides leadership and manages the daily operations of several programs within the MSD engineering department and administers the Small Contractor Program. Buechter is active with ASCE, serving as president of the St. Louis Chapter from 2016-17 and as a member of the EWRI Institute. He taught courses at Saint Louis University and Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville. He is president of the St. Louis Chapter of MSPE, was on the Engineers’ Club board of directors, authored or co-authored many publications and has been a technical speaker. His engineering experience includes both water resources and transportation. Buechter participated in Boy Scouts for over 13 years and founded the Missouri Stream Team 3543, combining his interest in scouting and the environment. He served eight years on the Webster Groves Board of Zoning Adjustment and he has served the Civil Air Patrol as an administrative and finance officer. Buechter and his wife, Rita, who is also an environmental engineer, have four sons, two of whom are Eagle Scouts. Their oldest son, Stephen, is studying technical writing at S&T.

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Don DaSaro
Assistant Professor
Department of Business Management
Oregon Tech University
Klamath Falls, Oregon

Don DaSaro of Klamath Falls, Oregon, assistant professor of management at Oregon Tech University, earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from S&T in 1967. Before college, he served four years in the U.S. Marine Corps as a combat engineer and explosives expert. An assignment to design and build a running track for the Kaneohe Bay Marine Base in Hawaii, sparked his ambition to become a civil engineer. DaSaro joined Caterpillar after graduation, and spent 41 years with the company in various management roles in international marketing, sales, labor relations, management development, leadership and human resources. The majority of his career was spent in the Asia-Pacific region, but he also traveled extensively in Latin America and spent time in the Caterpillar World Trade Group. DaSaro spent significant time working with and training engineers from different disciplines and encouraging their management skills. He developed and implemented a management training program for Asian-born personnel focused on strategic and soft skills tied to each candidate’s long-term career path that would fit with Caterpillar’s succession plan. DaSaro spent five years Washington, D.C., working with the World Bank, U.S. EXIM, the United Nations and other multilateral lending institutions serving as liaison with the worldwide Caterpillar dealer organization and Caterpillar. The focus was on major hydroelectric dams, irrigation and major highway projects around the world. He testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, including former U.S. Sen. John McCain, on lifting our embargo and opening Vietnam for business in 1991. His work contributed to the lifting of the embargo in 1994. While in Washington, he completed an MBA from Marymount University. He was awarded a 4th degree black belt from the World Tae Kwon Do Federation of South Korea. After retirement, Don and his wife, Amy, moved to Oregon from Singapore to be closer to family. They have five children and six grandchildren. After relocating DaSaro began teaching general business, marketing, leadership, international business and engineering management courses at Oregon Tech.

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Thomas M. Feger, PE
Consultant
Professional Services, Inc.
Springfield, Illinois

Thomas M. Feger of Springfield, Illinois, part time special consultant for Hanson Professional Services Inc., earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1969 and has worked in both the public and private sectors. He has solved engineering issues from the perspective of a utility engineer working for Illinois Power Co.; a planning, construction and sewer system engineer for the city of Springfield; and as a senior civil engineer for Hanson Professional Services Inc. Feger is active in a wide variety of professional, civic, alumni and community organizations serving in various positions of leadership. They include the American Public Works Association, serving as director and president of the Prairie Branch and Illinois Chapter membership committee chairman; the National Society of Professional Engineers; the Illinois Society of Professional Engineers; the Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce Quantum Growth Partnership infrastructure committee; numerous roles at St. Aloysius Catholic Church and Grade School; and youth summer leagues, junior high and high school baseball coach. Feger is active in the Miner Alumni Association, serving as a founding member and member of the board of directors of the association’s Lincolnland Section. He is a former area director and an admissions ambassador, serving as point person at college fairs and prospective student receptions in central Illinois. In 2008, Feger was named Outstanding Engineer of the Year by the Capital Chapter of the Illinois Society of Professional Engineers and in 2016, he received the Frank J. Mackaman Volunteer Service Award from the Miner Alumni Association. Feger has three sons, Thomas M. Jr. and twins Bryan and Brett.

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Bernard D. Held, PE
Retired Senior Vice President
Crawford, Murphy & Tilly
Plainfield, Illinois

Bernard D. Held of Plainfield, Illinois, a retired senior vice president at Crawford, Murphy & Tilly (CMT), earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1975. He joined CMT in 1976 and served most recently as director of water resources. He retired in 2018, but has continued to serve as an adviser. Held has 42 years of progressive engineering experience in the water and wastewater industry. He has worked as a resident engineer, design engineer, project engineer, project manager, program manager, department manager and director for CMT. Over his career, Held has managed several multi-million-dollar construction programs for wastewater and drinking water improvement programs for a variety water reclamation and municipal clients. He is a member of the Water Environment Federation, the American Water Works Association, and the Illinois Water Environment Association, where he was inducted into the 5S honor society in 2017. A member of the National Board of the United States Minority Contractors Association, Held served on the Miner Alumni Association board of directors from 2012 to 2018, and he is an alumni admissions ambassador helping recruit students to S&T. Held and his wife, Jane, have four grown children (one a civil engineering alumna) and 13 grandchildren.

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Gary W. Hines, PE
Vice President of Operations
Pipeline Research Council International Inc.
Frisco, Texas

Gary W. Hines of Frisco, Texas, vice president of operations for Pipeline Research Council International Inc. (PRCI), earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1995. Prior to joining PRCI, he was vice president of learning and professional development at the Southern Gas Association (SGA). Before SGA, Gary worked for Southern Star Central Gas Pipeline Inc. in Owensboro, Ky. He has over 20 years of experience in the energy industry with over 10 years in various leadership and management roles. Prior to his tenure in management, he held positions in project engineering, project management and managing environmental remediation projects at both Southern Star and The Williams Companies in Tulsa, Okla. Hines discovered his passion for learning and helping others to learn while at Rolla. He has served as a program evaluator for ABET (Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology) and mentored peers and emerging leaders in preparing for the Certified Association Executive (CAE) accreditation exam. Hines earned an MBA from Colorado State University in 2005. He also holds a private pilot’s license. He is a registered professional engineer in Missouri and has earned his CAE credential. An active member of the Miner Alumni Association, Hines serves on the board of directors and is an area director representing Texas. He is married to his high-school sweetheart, Nicole, and they have three teenagers – Emily (a student at Ole Miss), Alex and Aaron.

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Tim Hudwalker, PE
Vice President
BSI Constructors
St. Louis, Missouri

Tim Hudwalker of St. Louis, vice president of BSI Constructors, earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1988 and a master of engineering degree from Clemson University in 1990. A two-sport athlete at S&T, he earned letters in both basketball and golf and was a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon, Chi Epsilon and Theta Tau Omega. Hudwalker started his career with H.B. Zachry Co. constructing oil and gas facilities in the gulf coast region and in 1995, joined BSI Constructors as project engineer. He moved his way through the ranks and became vice president in 2013, and currently serves as project executive for numerous notable clients in the St. Louis region. He serves on the building committees of Ursuline Academy and Mehlville School District, and was recently appointed to the executive committee of the AGC of Missouri. Hudwalker and his wife, Shari, have three children, Curtis, Megan and Jonathan, who earned a bachelor of science degree in engineering management from S&T in 2018.

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Richard Jaquay, PE
Retired Construction Manager
Black and Veatch
Goodyear, Arizona

Richard Jaquay of Goodyear, Arizona, a retired construction manager for Black and Veatch, earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1963. Jaquay spent 41 years with Black and Veatch on the construction side of water and wastewater systems, serving in leadership roles on many projects. He has been recognized at the highest levels, including being named Engineer of the Year in Construction for the state of Arizona in 1988. He was elected president of the Arizona Society of Professional Engineers in 1992. Jaquay has been active in both professional service and community service, and has served in many volunteer roles for K-12 education, including judging science projects through his local high school, and with international community sanitation and health. He was recognized for his statewide leadership with MATHCOUNTS. His brothers are also Miner alumni. Francis is a 1977 mechanical engineering graduate, and Steven, who passed away in 2005, was a 1976 chemical engineering graduate. Jaquay loves to read and owns an extensive private library. He has visited every continent and over 60 countries. His wife, Barbara, is a geography scholar who holds a master’s degree from Arizona State University and a Ph.D. from Texas A&M. She has taught in six states.

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LaWanda Jones, PE
Corporate Marketing Manager
ABNA Engineering Inc.
St. Louis, Missouri

LaWanda Jones of St. Louis, corporate marketing manager for ABNA Engineering Inc., earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1991. She earned an MBA from the University of Missouri-St. Louis in 2007 and a community development degree from Saint Louis University in 2008. Jones’ engineering career began with an internship at Consolidation Coal Co. (CONSOL) ensuing project experiences throughout Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Ohio, West Virginia and Pennsylvania. She also holds professional engineering licensure in most of these states. Her career continued at ABNA Engineering Inc., providing project management and civil designs in site design, complex utility projects, planning, environmental and historical compliance, water and wastewater resources, and community engagement. During Jones’ 30 years of experience, she developed a portfolio of engineering leadership on a number of exciting capital projects, some of which plunged her 700 feet below ground and dangled her over 225 feet in the air (of course with a bedazzled safety harness). Jones is an active S&T alumna. She has served as a keynote speaker for Honor, Hurdles and Heroes, she chaired the Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on African American Recruitment and Retention (CACAARR), endowed two S&T scholarships, and is a 2015 Miner Legend and a 2019 Women Hall of Fame inductee. She is also active in several civic, social and professional organizations such as the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE). Jones loves learning and uses her motivating spirit to attract the next generation of engineers into the science and technology field. She and her husband, LeRoye, have two children, Maya and Isaiah.

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Brent Massey, PE
Principal
CEI Engineering Associates Inc.
Bella Vista, Arkansas

Brent Massey of Bella Vista, Arkansas, principal in charge of CEI Engineering Associates Inc., earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1995. He joined CEI after graduation and has worked on engineering designs for development projects all over the country, rising to principal and vice president of operations for the 100-person firm. Massey is licensed in 23 states and has had the opportunity to work on projects in 49 of the 50 states. His projects include public streets, watermains, trails and commercial developments for corporate America such as McDonald’s, Auto Zone, Walmart and Kohl’s. He is the Engineer of Record for the Walton family’s Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville. Active in the American Council of Engineering Companies of Arkansas (ACEC/A), Massey has served as a director of the council, as well as the Arkansas president and PAC chair. He is currently serving an appointment to the advisory committee on Arkansas Public Schools Academic Facilities. Active in church and community, Massey has served as a youth coach in basketball and softball. For many years he has chaired the men’s ministry of the First Baptist Church in Bentonville, and has chaired “Bucks and Boats,” a Christian outreach program in Northwest Arkansas. He and his wife, Melissa, have two children.

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Dr. John J. Myers, PE, F.ACI, F.ASCE, F.IIFC, F.TMS
Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and Professor
College of Engineering and Computing
Department of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering
Missouri S&T
Rolla, Missouri

HONORARY MEMBER

Dr. John J. Myers of Rolla, Missouri, associate dean of academic affairs for the Missouri S&T College of Engineering and Computing, was inducted as an honorary member. Myers earned a bachelor of science degree in architectural engineering from The Pennsylvania State University in 1987. He also earned a master of science degree in civil engineering and a Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin. Myers joined the S&T faculty in 1999 and has served as an assistant professor, associate professor, professor, acting vice provost and dean, associate vice provost and dean for academic affairs, director of the Structural Engineering Research Laboratory, director of the National University Transportation Center, Architectural Engineering Program coordinator and the CArEE assistant chair. Myers is known for the high caliber of his work, but also for his ability to engage his students in the classroom and the laboratory. He supports campus recruitment programs and other student-related activities. Myers helped prepare the successful proposal for the architectural engineering program at S&T, and he led its implementation through the first two accreditation cycles. Myers is active in a variety of professional organizations, including the American Concrete Institute, the Prestressed-Precast Concrete Institute, The Masonry Society, IIFC, ASCE’s Architectural Engineering Institute and the American Society for Engineering Education. He also serves on the editorial board of the Swiss-based Journal of Sustainability. A recognized Fellow in many of these same organizations, he has received numerous awards for his efforts as an educator, including being recognized by the Academy of Civil Engineers in 2017 with the Inaugural Joseph H. Senne Faculty Scholarly Achievement Award. Myers and his wife, Angie, have three children, Tyler, Makenna and Cailyn.

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Scott Preston, PE
Colonel
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Alexandria, Virginia

Col. Scott Preston of Alexandria, Virginia, a student at the Marine Corps War College in Quantico, Va., earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering in 1997 and a master of science degree in engineering management in 2002, both from Missouri S&T. An ROTC student, he was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at graduation. While on active duty, Preston served in roles of increasing responsibility at Fort Leonard Wood, Mo., Korea, Heidelberg and Bamberg, Germany, and Fort Knox, Ky. He commanded the 169th Engineer Battalion, Fort Leonard Wood, Mo., where he trained the army’s vertical construction engineers, firefighters, mappers, divers and sapper leaders. He most recently served as an assignment officer with Colonel Management Office, Office of the Chief of Staff of the Army in the Pentagon, where he managed the careers of all colonels in the Corps of Engineers and Chemical Corps. He will complete a master of arts degree in strategic studies from the Marine Corps War College in June. This summer, he will take command of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Tulsa District. He is a graduate of the Engineer Officers Basic Course, Captains Career Course, Airborne and Ranger School, and Command and General Staff College. Preston’s combat deployments include Kosovo in 1999, Iraq in 2003 and 2008, and Afghanistan in 2010. His volunteer activities include serving as alumni advisor for the S&T chapter of Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity, Cub Scout den leader and a Scouts BSA assistant scoutmaster.  He received the Miner Alumni Association’s Distinguished Young Alumnus Award and the Academy of Civil Engineers’ Young Alumni Award. From the Army Engineer Association, he received the Bronze Order DeFleury Award and from the Army, the Meritorious Service Medal and Bronze Star Medal. Preston and his wife, Christy, have two children.

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Dr. Kevin Sutterer, PE
Chair and Professor
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
Terre Haute, Indiana

Dr. Kevin Sutterer of Terre Haute, Indiana, professor and head of civil and environmental engineering at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, earned bachelor of science and master of science degrees in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1982 and 1984, respectively. He also earned a master’s degree from Purdue University and a Ph.D. from Georgia Institute of Technology. At Rose-Hulman, Sutterer teaches courses in geology as well as geotechnical and transportation engineering. His research interests include waste utilization in structural fills, seismic stability of earth structures, geosynthetics, ground modification and geotechnical construction. His research interests include open-ended project-based learning, curriculum development and learning through case studies. A registered professional engineer, Sutterer has worked as a consultant in most areas of geotechnical engineering. Among his honors, Sutterer was named to the Council of Outstanding Young Engineering Alumni at Georgia Tech and Young Engineer of the Year by the National Society of Professional Engineers in 1996. He was awarded Outstanding Faculty Advisor by the American Society of Civil Engineers in 2008. In 2018, he was honored by the American Society for Engineering Education with the George K. Wadlin Distinguished Service Award. Sutterer and his wife, Kathy, have three grown children and are grandparents.

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Mike Woessner, PE
President
Investment Realty Inc.
Rolla, Missouri 

Mike Woessner of St. James, Missouri, president of Investment Realty Inc., earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1976. He received the university’s Award of Professional Distinction in 2008. Woessner worked for BCI, a local wood truss manufacturing company from 1976 to 1984. In 1978, he obtained his real estate salesperson license and then in 1980 he received his Broker’s license. He opened Investment Realty Inc. in Rolla in 1984 and has become a leader in the commercial and development market and leads a staff of over 35 people. Woessner has been involved with numerous commercial and residential developments in and around Rolla and is also responsible for the Miner Alumni Association purchase of the property for Hasselmann Alumni House. He is a member of several professional and civic organizations, including the National Association of Realtors, the Rolla Regional Economic Commission the South Central Board of Realtors, the Rolla Lions Club, the Rolla Area Chamber of Commerce and the Missouri 100 Club. He is also a member of the S&T Chancellor Search Committee. Woessner and his wife, Linda, have two grown children and five grandchildren.

 

 

 

Dr. Joel Burken, PE

Chair and Curators’ Distinguished Professor
Department of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering, Missouri S&T
Rolla, Missouri

HONORARY MEMBER

Dr. Joel Burken of Rolla, Missouri, Curators’ Distinguished Professor and chair of civil, architectural and environmental engineering at Missouri S&T. Burken earned bachelor of science, master of science and Ph.D. degrees in civil engineering from the University of Iowa. He joined S&T as an assistant professor in 1997. He has served as coordinator of the environmental engineering program, which became an undergraduate degree in the department, and was director of the Environmental Research Center. His numerous national awards include the American Academy of Environmental Engineers and Scientists (AAEES) Science Award 2017, being named Fellow in the Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors (AEESP), and twice receiving the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Rudolph Hering Medal for most valuable research contribution in environmental engineering. He is the recipient of seven Faculty Excellence Awards at S&T, the Miner Alumni Association’s Alumni Merit Award and the Academy’s Joe Senne Award for Outstanding Professor. He served as president of the AEESP board of directors and is currently on the U.S. EPA Science Advisory Board.

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Dr. Norm Dennis, PE
Senior Associate Dean
College of Engineering, The University of Arkansas
Fayetteville, Arkansas

Dr. Norm Dennis of Fayetteville, Arkansas, senior associate dean of the College of Engineering at the University of Arkansas, earned bachelor of science and master of science degrees from Missouri S&T in 1971 and 1973, respectively. He also holds a Ph.D. from the University of Texas. An ROTC student at S&T, Norm was commissioned as a 2nd lieutenant in the U.S. Army and retired 24 years later as academy professor and director of civil engineering design for the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York. He had assignments and built facilities in 23 foreign countries and on every continent except Antarctica. After retirement, he joined the University of Arkansas as a professor of civil engineering. In 2015, he moved to the College of Engineering dean’s office, where he serves as senior associate dean of engineering. A Fellow in the American Society of Civil Engineers and ASEE, he is a past president of the Society of Military Engineers and has served as a Chi Epsilon faculty advisor for 18 years. A member of the Arkansas Academy of Civil Engineering, Norm is the recipient of the Chi Epsilon James Robbins Award for Teaching, ASEE’s George Wadlin Award for Service ASCE’s Excellence in Education Award, and the Army Engineer Association’s DeFleury Medal.

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Dr. John E. Finke, PE
Manager – Structures Department
Jacobs Engineering Group
St. Louis, Missouri

Dr. John E. Finke of St. Louis, manager of the structures department for Jacobs Engineering Group, earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1989 and a doctor of engineering degree in 2016, both from Missouri S&T. He also holds a master of science degree from Washington University in St. Louis. Finke started his career with Missouri Department of Transportation in the St. Louis construction office, then moved to the bridge office in Jefferson City. He was involved with the construction of the Route 370 Discovery Bridge over the Missouri River. In 1995, he joined Booker Associates as a structural engineer, where he continued to be involved in the design of numerous bridges for MoDOT. Finke joined Jacobs Engineering Group in St. Louis in 2000 as a structural engineer in the bridge department. He has held his current position since 2006. Finke is a member or past chair of numerous technical and professional societies, including the ASCE Structures and Earthquake groups, the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute and the Structural Engineers Association of Kansas and Missouri. In 2008, he was named ASCE St. Louis Chapter Engineer of the Year. He has also taught evening engineering classes at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.

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Marsia Geldert-Murphey, PE
Chief Operating Officer
W. James Taylor Inc.
Belleville, Illinois

Marsia Geldert-Murphey of Belleville, Illinois, chief operating officer of W. James Taylor Inc., earned a bachelor of science degree from South Dakota State University in 1992 and a master of science degree from Missouri S&T in 1997, both in civil engineering. She started her career with the Illinois Department of Transportation in Collinsville, Illinois, focused on construction and geotechnical engineering. She served on the field team that supervised the construction of the Lewis and Clark Bridge in Alton. Geldert-Murphey then entered private practice and rose to the level vice president at SCI Engineering Inc., then co-founded the 100 percent women-owned Kaskaskia Engineering Group, which grew from two employees to 45 in five years. She is an advisory board member at the South Dakota State University civil engineering department and St. Louis University’s Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology. She is the current Region 7 director of the American Society of Civil Engineers and a member of ASCE’s board of directors. She holds NEPA and Transportation Decision making Process Certification and Context Sensitive Solutions Certification and has received the 2016 ASCE Edmund Friedman Professional Recognition Award, the 2010 St. Louis Most Influential Business Woman Award, the 2010 Smart Women, Smart Money — Women on the Rise Award and the 1997 ASCE St. Louis Section Young Engineer of the Year Award.

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Stephanie Hall
Program Director
N2W Program, The NGA Project
St. Louis, Missouri

Stephanie Hall of St. Louis, program director for the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency’s N2W Project, earned bachelor of science degrees in economics and civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1990 and 1997, respectively. During her 20-plus-year career with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, she has risen to program manager of the new $1 billion western regional headquarters proposed for construction in north St. Louis. The N2W Project is the responsibility of the Kansas City District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Hall is responsible for planning, design, procurement and construction oversight, and contract management. Prior to the NGA project, Hall held positions with several Corps districts, in Germany supporting U.S. European Commands, in Afghanistan as deputy chief of engineering and construction, and the Corps’ Hurricane Protection Office in New Orleans. She has received the Superior Civilian Service Award, the Bronze Order of the DeFleury Medal and the Commander’s Award for Civilian Service.

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Jeffrey Martin, PE
City Engineer
City of Kansas City, Missouri

Jeffrey Martin of Kansas City, the city engineer for Kansas City, earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1996. Martin began his career in the public works department for the city of Kansas City and has worked his way through various positions of increasing responsibility. He was named city engineer in 2015. A member and past president of the Kappa Alpha Order, Martin is a member of the American Public Works Association, Standards and Specifications Committee, the FHWA Infrastructure Committee of Missouri Coalition of Roadway Safety, the Missouri Department of Transportation Local Public Agency Committee and has been a presenter at the American Public Works Association National Congress. He is an Eagle Scout and is involved in the Boy Scouts of America Pack 214, is a Liberty Parks and Recreation assistant youth baseball coach, a member of the St. James Catholic School Dad’s Committee and the Northland Regional Chamber of Commerce Planning and Development Committee.

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Dale Merrell, PE
Senior Civil Engineer
CIDA Inc.
Portland, Oregon

Dale Merrell of Hillsboro, Oregon, senior civil engineer for CIDA Inc., earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1967. After graduation, he worked for the state of Washington Department of Transportation, then moved to Alaska for 21 years to work on the North Slope for British Petroleum, as manager and chief engineer for the city of Anchorage’s water and wastewater utility, and as a partner in a consulting engineering firm. Merrell moved back to Washington to serve as manager for an electric utility company, then served as senior civil engineer with a consulting engineering firm. He has taught an advanced placement engineering high school class in Beaverton, Oregon, for many years, serving as a teacher and mentor to 254 high school students, encouraging them to pursue a career in engineering.

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Dr. Chris Pantelides, PE
Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering
University of Utah
Salt Lake City, Utah

Dr. Chris Pantelides of Salt Lake City, Utah, professor of civil and environmental engineering at the University of Utah, earned master of science and Ph.D. degrees from Missouri S&T in 1983 and 1987, respectively. Pantelides started his academic career as assistant professor of civil engineering at Missouri S&T then became assistant professor at the University of Utah where he was promoted to professor in 2002. He has supervised 14 Ph.D. and 34 master’s students and has published 115 articles in professional journals, 69 technical reports and 170 conference proceedings publications. He holds four patents. Pantelides received over 10 honors or awards including Engineering Educator of the Year from the Consulting Engineers Council of Utah in 1988 and 1989. An ACI Fellow, he has been active in several professional and technical organizations such as a voting member of the ACI Committee on Performance Based Seismic Design of Concrete Buildings, the Joint ACI ASCE Committee on Joints and Connections in Monolithic Concrete Structures, and the Committee on Seismic Design and Performance of Bridges. He also serves as editor of the international journal Construction and Building Materials.

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Brian Satterthwaite, PE
President, Brinkmann Constructors
Chesterfield, Missouri

Brian Satterthwaite of St. Louis, president of Brinkmann Constructors, earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1989. He joined Brinkmann Constructors as a project engineer in 1994 and moved through the ranks to become president in 2010. He leads all day-to-day business operations and corporate strategic planning. With more than 28 years of experience in the construction industry, Satterthwaite has directed and managed construction projects across the country, ranging from large-scale retail and healthcare projects to luxury living and industrial projects. In addition to his work at Brinkmann, he actively participates in Young Presidents Organization, Junior Achievement, and Ronald McDonald House Charities. Professionally, he is active in the Associated General Contractors of Missouri as a member of its Education Foundation Board. In 2015, he was named Outstanding Professional Engineer in Construction by the Missouri Society of Professional Engineers.

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Dr. William Schonberg, PE
Professor
Department of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering, Missouri S&T
Rolla, Missouri

HONORARY MEMBER

Dr. William Schonberg of Rolla, honorary member, professor of civil, architectural and environmental engineering, holds a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Princeton University and master of science and Ph.D. degrees in civil engineering from Northwestern University in 1983 and 1986, respectively. Schonberg joined the S&T faculty as chair of civil, architectural and environmental engineering in 1999 and held that position until 2015. Today he is professor and assistant chair for distance education and remote programs. During his 16 years as chair, the department grew from 353 to 542 students, alumni phonathon support increased from about $33,000 to $120,000 per year, undergraduate scholarships from 39 to 77, full-time faculty grew from 16 to 25. He also spent a year as interim dean, overseeing S&T’s administrative change that eliminated the dean structure. Schonberg’s research focuses on micrometeoroid and orbital debris damage response and protection … in other words, knowing the position of space junk and protecting against it. He received the Distinguished Scientist Award from the Hypervelocity Impact Society and two Honor Awards from NASA’s Engineering and Safety Center. He is a Fellow in both ASCE and ASME. In 2007, he received the Manuel Pacheco Academic Leadership Award from the University of Missouri System, which honors an academic administrator who exemplifies outstanding academic leadership. He has authored numerous refereed journal publications, conference presentations and technical committee reports.

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Raymond Webb, PE
Mid-America Regional Council (MARC)
Kansas City, Missouri

Raymond Webb of Kansas City, Missouri, head of the Operation Green Light for Mid-America Regional. Council, earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering at Missouri S&T in 1989 and began his career with the Missouri Department of Transportation. Webb progressed through various engineering assignments with MoDOT to become the KC scout director, supervising 42 people with varying backgrounds. A highlight of his career was the successful implementation of the KC Scout Freeway Management System, the largest first-time freeway system deployment in the country. Webb worked on the design and construction of the project and went on to be the director to launch the operations. He is currently the head of the Operation Green Light for Mid America Regional Council. As the traffic operations manager for the Mid-America Regional Council, Webb led the Operation Green Light program into the operations phase of real-time operations of over 700 traffic signals in the Kansas City Metropolitan region.

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Dale Williams, PE
Vice President/Project Director
Oil & Gas Line of Business
Black & Veatch
Overland Park, Kansas

Dale Williams of Overland Park, Kansas, vice president and project director for Black & Veatch’s oil and gas business, earned bachelor of science and master of science degrees in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1972 and 1973, respectively. Williams retired from Black & Veatch as vice president and project director after a 42-year career that included successfully managing EPC international and domestic projects up to $500 million in the oil and gas industry, including the $6 billion LNG facility. He served as both active and reserve officer in the U.S. Army and attained the rank of first lieutenant. After a few years as a field cost and progress engineer for Brown and Root, he joined The Pritchard Corp. in Kansas City as an estimator and cost engineer. He then transitioned into project management for Pritchard/Black & Veatch where he managed domestic EPC projects in the range of $20 to $60 million. Then Williams was appointed vice president and manager of Black & Veatch Oil and Gas Project Controls for both domestic and international projects, then moved back to project management and into the role of vice president and project director.

Becky Baltz, PE
Southwest District Engineer, MoDOT
Springfield, Missouri

Becky Baltz earned her bachelor of science degrees in civil engineering and engineering management from Missouri S&T in 1984 and started a career with MoDOT the following month. She progressed through various engineering assignments in St. Louis and Springfield, Mo., before being named district engineer in Joplin, Mo., in 2006. In 2011, she was named southwest district engineer in Springfield, where she restructured the district as part of MoDOT’s reorganization. A highlight of her career is the 2012 conversion of U.S. Highway 71 to Interstate 49 between Joplin and Kansas City. Other projects directed by Becky in the southwest district include the region’s first design-build project, first six-lane freeway, MO 249/Range Line Bypass in Joplin, and several diverging diamond interchanges — one of which received the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) 2015 “Best Use of Innovation” Award in the small projects category. Becky is the only person to receive “Most Influential Woman” recognition in both Joplin and Springfield. She also received the 2016 Distinguished Service Award from the Ozarks Chapter of the Institute of Transportation Engineers (OCITE), as well as the 2016 Woman of the Year Award from the Kansas City Chapter of the Women’s Transportation Seminar (WTS). Becky also was honored with resolutions for distinguished service from both the Missouri Senate and House of Representatives. Becky is a member of many professional and technical organizations, several chambers of commerce, Leadership Missouri and Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Ozarks. She has given many presentations to civic groups and schools on topics of innovation, transportation, leadership and careers in engineering. Becky and her husband, Bryan, have two sons and one granddaughter. They live in Springfield, Mo.

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Claudia C. Hoeft, PE
National Hydraulic Engineer
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Natural Resources Conservation Service
Washington, D.C.

Claudia Hoeft earned her bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1990 and started her exemplary hydraulic engineering career with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in Columbia, Mo. Since then she served the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Indiana, again in Missouri, and in Arkansas, being promoted several times. Since 2005, Claudia has served as the NRCS National Hydraulic Engineer in Washington, D.C. In this position, Claudia provides critical direction for engineering practice with specific leadership for hydrologic and hydraulic analysis of watersheds, floodplains, wetlands, agricultural and urban lands, and streams for NRCS water resource projects. She oversees and coordinates with other NRCS engineering specialists on policy regarding earthen embankment dams constructed through the NRCS Watershed and Flood Prevention Program, as well as other hydraulic structures constructed with assistance provided to landowners through various NRCS-administered programs. She also oversees the formulation and development of key hydraulic and hydrologic engineering technology, engineering handbooks and computer programs. She authored, co-authored, or served as editor for portions of the NCRS National Engineering Handbook (NEH) on Hydrology and NEH on Snow Survey and Water Supply Forecasting. Claudia is a Fellow Member of ASCE, volunteers her time to MathCounts and the Discover Engineering Family Day at the National Building Museum. She enjoys speaking to and introducing K-12 students to engineering. Claudia is a registered professional engineer in Indiana and Missouri and lives in Manassas, Va.

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Paul Kronlage, PE
Vice President, Engineering
EFK Moen, LLC

Paul Kronlage received his bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1983 and began his career in transportation. For 14 years with MoDOT, he worked and managed some high profile highway corridors in the St. Louis area such as 11 miles of widening of Interstate 55 south of Interstate 270, 10 miles of widening of Highway 141 from Highway 30 to Interstate 64, and 10 miles of widening of Highway 21 in Jefferson County. In 1998, he and three friends founded EFK Moen, LLC. As partner and director of engineering, he has helped grow the company from its original four employees to a successful firm with offices in St. Louis, Chicago and Fairview Heights, Ill. EFK Moen supports large firms and has acquired its own large projects such as the 11 miles of widening of Highway 65 in Taney County, Highway 364 in St. Charles County from I-64 to I-270, and the first consultant designed diverging diamond interchange at James River Freeway and National Ave. in Springfield, Mo. He is a longtime member of the Engineers’ Club of St. Louis, MSPE, ACEC and ISPE. Paul has been very active with his children and St. Agnes Catholic Church and School in Ste. Genevieve County. He has been a frequent speaker advocating engineering at St. Louis area high schools, and has supported the St. Louis Wheelchair Athletic Association for many years. Paul and his wife, Micki, have six children, ranging in age from 11 to 23; one is a senior in physics at Truman State University and two attend Missouri S&T — one is a junior in civil engineering and the other is a freshman in mechanical engineering. They live in rural Jefferson County, just south of St. Louis.

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Mary Lamie, PE
Executive Director
St. Louis Regional Freightway
Bi-State Development Agency
St. Louis, Missouri

Mary Lamie earned her bachelor degree in civil engineering from Mizzou in 1989 and her master’s degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1998.  She worked for Illinois DOT for 22 years, her last assignment was deputy director of highways for region five. While at IDOT she was responsible for the region’s transportation program including engineering, management and budgeting. Her project management experience includes the high-speed rail corridor between St. Louis and Chicago and the Stan Musial Veterans Memorial Bridge (I-270) across the Mississippi River. Since 2015, she has served as executive director of St. Louis Regional Freightway, a business enterprise of Bi-State Development. She is responsible for public-private partnerships to optimize the region’s freight transportation network, creating a foundation for the bi-state region as a national freight hub. Mary has received several awards including the 2008 (Illinois) Southwest Leadership Council Salute to Leadership Award, the 2008 Winning Women Public Service Award, the 2004 Woman of the Year by the WTS Metropolitan St. Louis Chapter and the 1992 IDOT State Engineer of the Year Award. Mary is involved with the World Trade Center of St. Louis, the St. James Catholic Church and the Mothers Club at Gibault Catholic High School. Mary lives in Millstadt, Ill., with her husband, Joe, and their two sons.

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Dr. Shamsher Prakash, PE
Professor Emeritus
Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering
Missouri S&T
Rolla, Missouri

HONORARY MEMBER

Dr. Shamsher Prakash joined our department of civil engineering in 1978 as an associate professor in geotechnical engineering and has since influenced a generation of graduates and peers. Retiring in 2000, he is now a professor emeritus. Shamsher has made several seminal contributions to the field of geotechnical earthquake engineering, in which he is recognized for advancing soil dynamics and earthquake engineering. He is a pioneer in the liquefaction of silts and clays and soil-pile-structure interactions. His books, reports and publications serve as a mentor to students in his field. Among his many recognitions are Distinguished Member of ASCE; Gold Medal, Kazakistan Society for service to Geotechnical Engineering Worldwide (2013); Distinguished Alumnus, Indian Institute of Technology for contributions to earthquake engineering; and Distinguished Alumni, University of Illinois. He received Doctor Honoris Causa by the Technical University of Engineering, Bucharest, Romania (2003). He developed and chaired five international conferences on recent advances in geotechnical earthquake engineering and seven international conferences on case histories in geotechnical engineering. These conferences, sponsored by S&T, were held in various locations through the United States. In 1988, Shamsher and his wife, Sally, established the Shamsher Prakash Foundation with the purpose of “uplifting mankind through Yoga, Geotechnical Engineering, Education and Peace.” Their foundation now makes ten cash awards in a variety of areas including geotechnical engineering research, teaching, practice, and for creative design and for achievement in soil dynamics. Their foundation also funds a primary school for children of immigrant workers in India. Thus far the Shamsher Prakash Foundation has made 66 awards to worthy (and grateful) recipients in 20 different countries.  Shamsher is a yoga guru and for years has given talks about the benefits of yoga and also teaches yoga. He and his wife, Sally, live in Rolla, Mo.

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John Priest, PE
Semi-Retired
Littleton, Colorado

John Priest earned his bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1952. Over the past six decades, John has managed staffs and successfully implemented water resource, environmental, policy and institutional programs in the U.S. and for international lending agencies and government ministries. Between 1959 to 1986, he went from planning engineer, to vice president and group manager for the eastern hemisphere at Harza Engineering Company in Chicago. Subsequently, as senior vice president and then president, he directed global operations of Engineering Consultants, Inc. in Englewood, Colo. The following six years he managed and directed environmental and engineering projects in Argentina and Chile for Black & Veatch International. For the rebuilding of five countries that had been devastated by war and natural disaster, from 2004-2009, John oversaw the strengthening of Afghan contractors through the rebuilding of infrastructure, accompanied by the reintegration into society of combatants following 30 years of war. At the request of President Christiani of El Salvador, he formulated plans and policies for rebuilding the national electric power system. During the 1970s, he led preparation of a 5-year investment program for Pakistan. He formulated measures for recovery from the 1991 eruptions of Mount Pinatubo, Philippines, to alleviate conditions in some 7,500 sq. kms that had been blanketed with ash and lava. He led financing studies for the $20 billion Tunnel and Reservoir Program for Greater Chicago to capture storm water runoff that contaminated Lake Michigan, and for the preparation of a USBR Congressionally mandated report to secure the 1979 appropriation for construction of the Garrison Diversion Project. The object was to compensate tribes and farmers whose land had been inundated by construction of reservoirs on the Missouri River. During the last 20 years of reserve service in the Navy Civil Engineer Corps, he was promoted to Captain and was Action Officer on the staff of the Chief of Naval Operations for Strategy, Plans and Policy with a focus on the Global Maritime Strategy that was designed for peaceful defeat of the Soviet Union. John lives in Littleton, Colo.

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Dr. Thomas F. Wolff, PE
Senior Associate to the Dean of Engineering
Michigan State University
Lansing, Michigan

Tom Wolff received his bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1970, his master’s degree in civil engineering in 1974 from Oklahoma State University and his Ph.D. from Purdue University in 1985. Upon graduating from Rolla, Tom went to work for St. Louis District U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as a geotechnical engineer. After 15 years with the Corps, Tom attended Purdue, received his Ph.D., then joined the civil and environmental engineering department at Michigan State University.  At Michigan State University he has been associate dean of undergraduate studies, interim chair of the civil engineering department and now, in part-time retirement, senior associate to the dean of engineering. During his tenure at Michigan State, Tom has excelled at teaching, research and service. He has received three department teaching awards and one from Chi Epsilon. Tom has been the principal investigator on 12 funded research projects, graduating seven Ph.D.’s. He has written chapters in four different engineering textbooks. Tom has authored many articles in refereed journals and publications from conference proceedings. At Michigan State, Tom was the Chi Epsilon faculty advisor for many years and has served on many college and university committees related to undergraduate education. Tom has served on several ASCE committees related to geotechnical engineering, and served on advisory committees to the Michigan Professional Engineering Board. He was also involved in three post-Katrina task groups. Long involved with Chi Epsilon, Tom currently serves as the National President of Chi Epsilon Honor Society. From the Corps of Engineers, Tom received the Commander’s Award for Public Service, also MSU’s College of Engineering’s Withrow Distinguished Service Award and the MSU ASCE Student Chapter William A. Bradley Award for outstanding faculty members. Tom and his wife, Kathleen, live in Okemos, Mich.  They have two sons and one grandson.

Neil S. Brady, PE
President
Anderson Engineering Inc.
Springfield, Missouri

Neil S. Brady earned his bachelor of science degree in civil engineering in 1995 from Missouri S&T and joined Anderson Engineering Inc., in Springfield, Mo. He is now the president and CEO of that firm of 75 engineers, surveyors and staff. With four offices in southwestern Missouri and one in Destin, Fla., the firm offers consulting engineering across the country. Brady is a longtime member of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), the National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE) and the Missouri Society of Professional Engineers (MSPE). He is past president of MSPE and a past member of NSPE’s House of Delegates.

In the Springfield area, Brady is a member of Ozarks Greenways Technical Committee, past president of the Springfield Little Theatre Board of Directors, past member of the city’s Green Building Task Force and the Greene County Storm Water Management Task Force. He and his wife, Tonya, have three children and live in Springfield, Mo.

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Dr. Genda Chen, PE
Robert W. Abbett Distinguished Professor of Civil Engineering
Missouri University of Science and Technology
Rolla, Missouri

HONORARY MEMBER

Dr. Genda Chen earned his bachelor and master of science degrees from Dalian Institute of Technology in Dalian, China. In 1992, he received his Ph.D. from the State University of New York at Buffalo. After a few years of consulting, in 1996 Chen joined the civil, architectural and environmental engineering department at Missouri S&T as an assistant professor. Since then he has been an outstanding instructor in our department by teaching undergraduate and graduate courses and introducing new courses. His research interests include structural health monitoring, deterioration of composite structures, adaptive passive dampers, and seismic analysis and retrofit, among others. He is now associate director of Missouri S&T’s Mid-America Transportation Center and the Robert W. Abbett Distinguished Professor of Civil Engineering. He holds three patents, has received several national and university awards (e.g. National Science Foundation CAREER Award), has been a U.S. delegate on nearly 20 national and international workshops, and has been an invitee to post-disaster reconnaissance, including the 2011 Japan earthquake, the 2010 Chile earthquake, the 2008 China earthquake and Hurricane Katrina in 2005.  He has authored over 120 journal articles and over 170 conference articles, written 37 engineering reports and advised 42 Ph.D. and M.S. students. Chen and his wife, Sharon, have one daughter Jingwen, a graduate student in computer science at Missouri S&T.

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Sean C. Henry, PE
Director of Public Works and City Engineer
City of Carbondale
Carbondale, Illinois

Sean C. Henry earned his bachelor of science degree in civil engineering in 1995 from Missouri S&T. While in school and shortly thereafter, he worked as a summer engineering technician and then as a civil engineer for the City of Carbondale. In late 1996, he joined the consulting engineering firm of Asaturian Eaton & Associates in Carbondale, Ill. He was their first civil engineer with a degree and was instrumental in growing the civil engineering business for the firm. In the summer of 2006, he returned to the City of Carbondale and served as the city’s maintenance and environmental services manager until the spring of 2011 when he was appointed to be the city’s director of public works and city engineer. As director of public works, he is responsible for the administration, management, oversight and daily operations of 20 distinct operating divisions with an annual budget of $19 million and 85 full-time employees. Some of his responsibilities include: water and wastewater treatment; water distribution and wastewater collection; storm water management; streets and traffic signals; building maintenance and operation; refuse and recycling collection; cemeteries; forestry; equipment maintenance; engineering design and construction oversight of all city construction projects and review and permitting of development projects within the city. Henry is a member of the American Public Works Association (APWA), the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) and the National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE). He is also chairman of the Professional Advisory Board for the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Southern Illinois University. In that capacity, he has also served as a senior design project mentor.

Henry is an Eagle Scout and has been active in the Boy Scouts of America throughout his lifetime. He is currently guiding his two sons through Cub Scouts and has received several awards for his and his family’s dedication to scouting. He lives and works in Carbondale, Ill.

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Jim Kirby, PE
Black and Veatch (Retired)
Kansas City, Missouri

Jim Kirby earned his bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1963. He joined Black and Veatch, Consulting Engineers and over the next 33 years amassed an impressive career in responsible leadership and in the planning, design and construction of large water resources projects, water supply and treatment, wastewater collection and treatment and storm water systems. Examples of the projects for which Jim was responsible include: a large Corps of Engineers water resources project in Puerto Rico; a USAID-funded wastewater collection and treatment project in Cairo, Egypt, serving about 5 million people; a World Bank-funded wastewater project in Izmir, Turkey, serving 2.5 million people which included equipment procurement and installation of a pumping station which used German electric motors, Japanese-built pumps and U.S. electrical switchgear (it worked); an internationally funded water resources project in Chile that would rival Bureau of Reclamation projects in California; and review of a wastewater and stormwater master plan for Dubai. Kirby retired after serving six years with the Kansas City Water Services Department as engineering division section manager for plant and process design. Jim is a diplomate in the American Academy of Environmental Engineers and is a member of several professional societies. He served as trustee and member of the Board of Directors of the Mid-Continent Library, as deputy commissioner with the Kansas City Election Board and a board member of Heartland Honor Flight. Kirby lives in Kansas City, Mo.

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Dr. Larry Mays, PE
Professor
School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment
Arizona State University
Tempe, Arizona

Dr. Larry Mays earned his bachelor and master of science degrees in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1970 and 1971, respectively. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Illinois in 1976 after serving in the military. After 13 years at the University of Texas at Austin, where he rose from assistant professor to professor to director of the Center for Research in Water Resources, Larry joined Arizona State University (ASU). Over the past 27 years there he has served as department chair and as professor of civil and environmental engineering. Mays’ research has focused on the optimal design and operation of water infrastructure systems. He has been the author, co-author or editor-in-chief of 24 books, including the textbooks, Applied Hydrology; Hydrosystems Engineering and Management; Water Resources Engineering; and Groundwater Hydrology. He has supervised to completion 34 Ph.D. students, published over 115 refereed journal articles, another 100 proceedings papers, and authored or co-authored over 70 chapters in books for which he was the editor-in-chief. Expanding his interest in ancient water systems, Mays has traveled the world photographing them and developed the book, Ancient Water Technologies and co-edited the book The Evolution of Water Supply through the Millennia. He has done volunteer work or been a consultant to the UN, the World Bank, Texas Attorney General’s Office, AWWA, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and others. He is a fellow member of ASCE, the International Water Resources Association, and the International Water Association. In addition, he has won several national and international awards in engineering including the ASCE Julian Hinds Award, the Prince Sultan bin Abdulazizz International Prize for Water – Surface Water Prize and the Warren Hall Medal from UCOWR.
 
Mays has three children, helped in Boy Scouts and little league, backpacked Alaska, and loves snow skiing, fly-fishing, welding, scuba diving, photography, and traveling the world. He and his wife, Susi, share their time between Mesa, Ariz., and Pagosa Springs, Colo.

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Rocky Miller, PE
Missouri House of Representatives
(District 124)
Miller Companies
Osage Beach, Missouri

Rocky Miller earned his bachelor of science degree in civil engineering in 1988 from Missouri S&T and then worked for Laclede Gas and Iowa Southern Utilities before returning home to the Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri. Rocky now owns his family’s engineering and environmental services firm, the Miller Companies. Active in lake and state institutions, Rocky served on the School of the Osage as a board member, including four years as president. He is a former director of the Missouri School Board Association and member of the Daybreak Rotary Club. Elected to the Missouri Legislature in 2012, Rocky represents District 124, the Lake of the Ozarks area. As a state representative, Rocky is chairman of the energy and environment committee and serves on committees for natural resources, utilities and solid waste. Rocky has received awards from the Electric Cooperatives, Missouri Chamber, St. Louis Business Journal and Missouri Farm Bureau for his work in the legislature. He has also been placed on the Southern States Energy Board, the energy and environment committee for the Southern Legislative Conference and the energy and environment committee for public policy with the Council of State Governments.

Miller and his wife, Della, live in Osage Beach, Mo. They have four children and four grandchildren.

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Dr. Steve Starrett, PE
Associate Professor of Civil Engineering
Director of Honor and Integrity Systems
Kansas State University
Manhattan, Kansas

Dr. Steve Starrett earned his bachelor of civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1989 and his master degree and Ph.D. in water resources and environmental engineering from Iowa State University. He joined the civil engineering faculty at Kansas State University in 1994. Today, he is an associate professor of civil engineering and is director of the honor and integrity systems at Kansas State. Starrett is also the director of the civil engineering undergraduate program.  With a key interest in engineering ethics, he has developed and taught courses on the subject and is near completion of co-authoring a book titled, Pursuing Engineering Ethics Through Real World Case Studies. Active in the National Institute for Engineering Ethics, Starrett served on its executive board from 2012 to 2014. He is currently the president-elect of ASCE’s Environmental and Water Resources Institute, and has served as the chair of the ASCE Committee on Ethical Practice. The National Academy of Engineering recently recognized one of his courses as an exemplar course in engineering ethics education.

Starrett and his wife, Shelli, a 1988 electrical engineering graduate of S&T, live on a farm near Manhattan, Kan., where she is an associate professor of electrical and computer engineering at Kansas State. They have three children.

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Gregg Wilhelm, PE
MoDOT (Retired)
Three Avocados Coffee Co.
Director of Sales and Operations
St. Louis, Missouri

Gregg Wilhelm earned his bachelor of science in civil engineering in 1983 from Missouri S&T and began his career with MoDOT in the St. Joseph District.  In 1985, he transferred to the St. Louis District, where he worked on a variety of projects, including the geometric and hydraulic design of the I-64 at I-270 interchange. Shifting focus, he became the local programs design engineer, helping communities with projects that enhance transportation and the local economy. He was the MoDOT lead in working with Trailnet, a local active transportation advocacy group, to rehabilitate the Old Chain of Rocks Bridge from a declining vehicular structure into an active transportation link across the Mississippi River. He retired from MoDOT in 2014.

Active as a head elder at Messiah Lutheran Church, in 2010 he went on a mission trip to Uganda. After returning from that trip, Three Avocados, a non-profit coffee company, was formed and Gregg has been actively involved with Three Avocados ever since. Wilhelm serves as the director of sales and operations, and all profits are sent to Uganda to help provide clean drinking water, or to Nicaragua to improve education for children. Since its formation in 2010, sales of Three Avocados coffee have helped provide over 21,000 people in Uganda with clean drinking water. He and his wife, Rachel (a 1987 engineering management graduate of S&T), live in O’Fallon, Mo.

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David Wisch, PE
Fellow
Chevron Corp.
Houston, Texas

David Wisch earned his bachelor of science and master of science degrees in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1975 and 1977, respectively. He began his career in offshore engineering with Texaco and today is Chevron’s global technical authority in civil, structural and marine engineering. He is the engineer of record for the first U.S. offshore platform to undergo a certified verification agent (CVA) certification and provided engineering oversight for the world’s deepest self-standing structure. Dave has worked for more than 30 years in industry standards development for the API and ISO. He chaired the API Committee on Offshore Structures and led the U.S. delegation to ISO’s Offshore Structures Standards Committee. After hurricanes Ivan, Katrina and Rita, he led an API task force to develop consensus interim industry standards for mooring of floating drilling vessels in less than 90 days.

Dave has chaired the Chevron Fellows program and the company’s Mentoring Excellence in Technology programs. He has chaired many national technical committees and served two terms as a Marine Board Member for the National Academy of Engineering. He has received awards for his work from the API, ISO, Chevron and the National Academy of Engineering.

Dave was a placekicker on the Miner football team and an officer of S&T’s ASCE Student Chapter. Dave and his wife, Leslie, live in Richmond, Texas. They have one daughter, Christine, who is a Ph.D. candidate in musicology at the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University.

Randy Dreiling, PE, SE
Vice President and Senior Structural Engineer
Design Nine, Inc.
St. Louis, Missouri

Randy Dreiling received his bachelor of science degree in civil engineering in 1981 from Missouri S&T and began a career in structural engineering. He worked for Missouri Pacific Railroad in the bridge department, Zurheide Hermann, Booker Associates and Parsons Brinckerhoff, all in St. Louis, before joining Design Nine, Inc., in 2000. Randy currently serves as vice president and senior structural engineer for Design Nine, a firm which specializes in providing engineering services to the railroad industry. He has served as president of the Engineers’ Club of St. Louis, was a member of the Miner Alumni Association Board of Directors from 2000 through 2012, serving as director, assistant secretary and vice president, and is a member of the American Railway Engineering Association, serving on the committee for seismic design. Randy is also a member of the Missouri Society of Professional Engineers (MSPE) and has held many local chapter committee and officer positions, including chair of MSPE’s PEPP Board. Over the past 20 years, he has been a huge supporter of the Miner Alumni Association St. Louis Section, serving on nearly all the committees and holding officer positions, as well as, organizing section activities and events. The annual Section Scholarship Fundraising Golf Tournament, held every June, routinely has participation exceeding 100 golfers. In 2014, Randy received the Association’s “Frank H. Mackaman Volunteer Service Award.”

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Diane Heckemeyer, PE
Department Chair, Construction and Civil Technology
State Technical College of Missouri
Linn, Missouri

Diane Heckemeyer received her bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1986. After graduation, she worked for the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) as area engineer and senior estimating engineer before being named state design engineer in 2001. In 2005, Diane was hired as department chair of construction and civil technology at the State Technical College of Missouri. She was named the Missouri Breaking Traditions Post Secondary Educator of the Year in 2014 and in 2013 was named a Chapter Honor Member of S&T’s Chi Epsilon chapter. She was named the American Public Works Association (APWA) Missouri Chapter’s professional engineer of the year in 2012, and was the 2009 recipient of the National Women in Construction’s Crystal Vision Award.

Diane and her husband, Roger, live in St. Elizabeth, Missouri, with their two daughters. Their oldest daughter, Kelly, is a civil engineering student at S&T and is a catcher on the Lady Miner softball team.

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Karin M. Jacoby, PE, JD
Senior Counsel
Husch Blackwell
Kansas City, Missouri

Karin M. Jacoby received her bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1985 and joined Booker Associates in St. Louis as a design engineer. In 1995, feeling drawn to public works, she moved across Missouri to Kansas City, where she served as assistant city engineer and manager of waterways for 14 years. Karin earned a master of public administration and a juris doctorate, both from the University of Missouri-Kansas City in 1999 and 2006, respectively. She has spent most of her career in water resources, waterways, flooding and levees. She founded SPICA Consulting in 2009 as an engineering firm focused on flood risk management. In 2013, she began practicing law and now provides legal services to clients in the Midwest and South. Karin is involved in development of the nation’s policy on flood protection, serving as a member of the congressionally established National Committee on Levee Safety, and co-authoring with the National Academy of Sciences Levee Committee a report to FEMA with recommendations for the National Flood Insurance Program. Since 2001, Karin has been the executive director of the Missouri and Associated Rivers Coalition, a non-profit advocating for more beneficial use of water and related land resources. She received the Commander’s Award for Public Service from the Army Corps of Engineers and the Kansas City Industrial Council’s Progress Award for Improving Waterways. In 2005, the Kansas City Star named Karin “One of Five People to Watch.” She has addressed students in the CArE engineering department and in 2014 was the Chi Epsilon’s Chapter Honor Member. Karin is an avid fisherman and spends her time on Missouri’s spring-fed rivers.

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Steve Meyer, PE
Director of Environmental Services
City of Springfield
Springfield, Missouri

Steve Meyer received his bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1975 and began his career working for the Illinois Department of Transportation. He has worked as an engineering consultant in Florida before becoming an associate civil engineer for the City of Springfield in 1987. For the City of Springfield, he has served as superintendent of streets and public grounds, assistant director of environmental services, and since 2011, the director of environmental services. In that position, Steve is responsible for leading and managing the city’s sanitary sewer collection system and its two wastewater treatment plants, stormwater management, solid waste collection and disposal, and maintaining compliance with the city’s MS4 permit. His department is also responsible for coordinating citywide sustainability practices and there is an effort to make the city’s southwest plant energy neutral within 10 years.

Steve is a member of the Water Environmental Foundation, American Society of Civil Engineers, American Public Works Association, Missouri Society of Professional Engineers and the Institute of Transportation Engineers and is on the board of the National Association of Clean Water Agencies.

Steve has coached YMCA youth sports, volunteered with Boy Scouts of America and the Salvation Army. He and his wife, Judy, live in Springfield, Missouri. They have two children and four grandchildren.

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Allen G. Minks, PE
Geotechnical Department Manager
Terracon Consultants, Inc.
St. Louis, Missouri

Allen G. Minks received his bachelor and master of science degrees in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1981 and 1983, respectively. Since graduation, Allen has spent his career in the geotechnical field with firms such as McClelland Engineers, Shannon & Wilson, Inc. and SCI Engineering. He is currently the geotechnical department manager for Terracon Consultants, Inc. in St. Louis. Active in the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) since his days as a student, he has held every office in the St. Louis Section and served as president in 2007-2008. He is a Fellow of ASCE, is the recipient of the St. Louis Section’s Professional Recognition Award in 2012 and the ASCE National Edmund Friedman Recognition Award in 2013. He has taught a Missouri Society of Professional Engineer-sponsored geotechnical professional engineer refresher course for over 10 years. In addition, he serves on the city of Florissant, Missouri, Planning and Zoning Commission and is a member of SAVE Coalition, which performed building inspections in Joplin, Missouri, after the 2011 tornado.

Allen coached all three of his sons in soccer and baseball from kindergarten to eighth grade — a total of over 30 teams. He and his wife, Connie, live in Florissant, Missouri. They have three sons, and their fifth grandchild is due next month.

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Charles E. Powell, PE
Owner
CEPCO, LLC
Ozark, Missouri

Charles E. Powell received his bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1971. He initially worked for Brown & Root in Houston and London, then returned to the Springfield, Missouri, area where he worked for consulting engineering firms, including Anderson Engineering, ET Archer and Scott Consulting Engineers. In 2006, he formed CEPCO LLC, a consulting firm that does forensic building investigations for insurance companies and attorneys. He also provides structural engineering services for governmental agencies.

Charles has been active at the local and state level of the Missouri Society of Professional Engineers and the American Society of Civil Engineers, serving as state and chapter president of MSPE and section president of ASCE.

Currently he is chairman of the Christian County Health Department and a member of the City of Ozark Planning and Zoning Commission. He is a SAVE Coalition Structural Inspector 1 and a member of the Missouri State Emergency Management Agency Task Force.

Charles and his wife, Connie, live in Ozark, Missouri. They have two sons and several grandchildren.

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Dr. David Richardson, PE
Associate Professor of Civil Engineering
Missouri S&T
Rolla, Missouri

Dr. David Richardson received his bachelor of science and master of science degrees in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1971 and 1973, respectively. He owned his own consulting firm for 22 years, working in Texas and Arkansas, before selling it. He then returned to Missouri S&T and earned a Ph.D. in civil engineering in 1984. In that year, Dave became the area head for construction and construction materials and has taught those courses in the S&T civil department. He has received 17 teaching awards plus numerous advising and faculty awards, including the Academy’s Faculty Achievement Award. He has published research papers, conducted 180 short courses and directed 60 asphalt and concrete conferences, and he provides continuing education to engineering professionals and technicians. Dave has been a positive influence on S&T’s civil engineering graduates, as well as the paving industry in Missouri. He is a Fellow in the American Concrete Institute, has chaired national ACI technical committees and has been president of the state ACI chapter.

Dave has been an elder and treasurer at Ozark Highlands Christian Church for over 30 years. He and his wife, Carol, live in Rolla, Missouri, and have three children and six grandchildren.

Francisco "Frank" M. Benavides, PE
Executive Director
PENTA Engineering Corporation
St. Louis, Missouri

Francisco “Frank” M. Benavides of St. Louis is executive director of PENTA Engineering Corp.; principal consultant of PEC Consulting Group LLC; and executive director of PENTA India Cement & Minerals Pvt. Ltd. He earned a bachelor of science in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1970, and an MBA from Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management. A founder of PENTA and member of its board of directors, Benavides has provided the company with strategic direction and employee development for 27 years. His engineering experience includes technical and economic feasibility studies for major capital investments for the minerals and energy industries; plant valuations; management of engineering and construction projects, including the planning, coordination and supervision of construction and commissioning of process equipment. He is a licensed professional engineer in seven states and is registered with the U.S. National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying. He holds memberships in numerous organizations, including the Society of Mining Engineers and the Manufacturing Technical Committee of the Portland Cement Association. He is also the Consul of Peru for Missouri.

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Reginald H. Benton, PE, SE
President & Principal
Benton & Associates Inc.
Jacksonville, Illinois

Reginald H. Benton of Jacksonville, Ill., president of Benton & Associates Inc., earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1979. His more than 34 years of experience includes working for consulting engineering firms and the Illinois Department of Transportation. Benton is fortunate to be a second generation engineer, beginning his practical experience on the survey crew and other duties at Benton & Associates from 5th grade through college graduation. As a Benton & Associates principal and president, he has ultimate responsibility for the quality, schedule and budget for a wide range of projects. Benton also serves as senior structural engineer for the firm, designing bridges, buildings, swimming pools and special structures associated with water and wastewater treatment. Benton is a licensed professional engineer in Illinois and Missouri, and is a licensed structural engineer in Illinois.

He has served on the boards of United Way, Sherwood-Eddy YMCA, Elm City Rehabilitation and Kiwanis, and he currently serves on the Passavant Area Hospital board and as an elder at First Presbyterian Church in Jacksonville. He has held leadership positions with the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Central Illinois Section, American Council of Engineering Companies of Illinois, and Illinois Society of Professional Engineers (ISPE). He was named “Young Engineer of the Year” by ISPE and a “Fellow” by American Council  of Engineering Companies. 

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Michael W. Burke, PE
Executive Vice President
J.S. Alberici Constructors Inc.
St. Louis, Missouri

Michael W. Burke of St. Charles, Mo., an executive vice president for J.S. Alberici Constructors Inc., earned bachelor of science and master of science degrees in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1991 and 1992, respectively. He is responsible for Alberici’s steel fabrication subsidiary, Hillsdale Fabricators, in addition to leading Alberici’s North American Water and Waster Construction Division including two water and waste water subsidiaries in Atlanta and Topeka, Kan. Burke has worked on large projects in the U.S., Grand Bahama, Aruba, Portugal, Newfoundland, Saskatchewan and Alberta, Canada, with responsibilities for both design and project management. He was involved in the fabrication and erection of the structural steel used in the Indianapolis Colts’ Lucas Oil Stadium. A licensed professional engineer in Missouri, Burke has served on the boards of the American Institute of Steel Construction and Associated General Contractors.

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John Frerking, PE
Business Development Manager
Engineering Surveys & Services
Columbia, Missouri

John Frerking of Columbia, Mo., business development manager for Engineering Surveys and Services, earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1987. He began his career as a sales engineer at CSR-Hydro Conduit in Kansas City. In 1996, he joined Burns & McDonnell as project development manager for the firm’s Infrastructure Division. In his current position since 2012, Frerking is responsible for planning and implementing strategies to grow the company’s market share with public sector clients. Over the years, he has chaired committees for the Missouri Society of Professional Engineers (MSPE); KC Metro and Missouri Chapters of the American Public Works Association; and the Engineers’ Club of Kansas City, including serving as president from 2004 to 2005. John has been active in the Miner Alumni Association’s Kansas City Section for many years, including serving as president. He has also served on the Miner Alumni Association’s Executive Board from 2005 to 2011. He received the S&T Civil Engineering Exemplary Young Alumni Award in 1998. Frerking is a licensed professional engineer in Missouri.

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Dale L. Houdeshell, PE, FASCE, PWLF
Director of Public Works
City of Clayton
Clayton, Missouri

Dale L. Houdeshell of Lake St. Louis, Mo., director of public works for the City of Clayton, earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1972. He began his career with Bogina Architect Engineers Inc., in Lenexa, Kan., and held positions as director of streets and engineering, city engineer and manager of public works services in several Midwest communities. Houdeshell retired from the City of Manhattan, Kan., in January to return to the St. Louis area. In Manhattan, he was responsible for managing development review; infrastructure design and construction; water, wastewater and storm water enterprise funds; and a capital improvement and sustainability program. He also provided technical guidance for the Manhattan Regional Airport upgrade, Flint Hills Discovery Center Museum, local parks and pools, and the Department of Homeland Security’s National Bio and Agro-Defense facility. In his current position, Houdeshell is responsible for managing development review; infrastructure design and construction; facilities maintenance; fleet maintenance; forestry; and a capital improvement program. He has held positions with Kansas Society of Professional Engineers (KSPE), American Public Works Association, Transportation Engineers Association of Metro St. Louis and MSPE St. Louis Chapter. Houdeshell is an ASCE Fellow and received the Government Engineer of the Year Award in 2013 from KSPE. Other awards include: Order of the Engineer, Public Works Leadership Fellow, Top 10 Public Works Leaders of the Year and Outstanding Engineer in Government. He is a licensed professional engineer in Missouri and Kansas.

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Ralph C. Jones, PE
Chairman & CEO
Structural Engineering Associates Inc.
Kansas City, Missouri

Ralph C. Jones of Overland Park, Kan., chairman of the board and CEO of Structural Engineering Associates Inc., earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1980 and a master of science degree in civil engineering from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 1985. Since joining Structural Engineering Associates in 1986, he has served as field inspector, resident project representative and designer. He is currently the principal in charge of field operations including inspections, structural investigations, building forensics, masonry restoration design and concrete repair design.

Jones has held several positions with the International Concrete Repair Institute (ICRI) including president of the Great Plains Chapter. He received the ICRI Project Award of Excellence in the masonry category in 2008 for his work on the Masonry Renovation of the Historic Quad at Missouri State University. He also received the ICRI Award of Merit in the water structure category in 2009 for the repair and waterproofing of the Kauffman Baseball Stadium Fountains.

He has been a member of the Downtown Kiwanis Club of Kansas City for over 25 years and served as president of the Kiwanis Student Assistance Program from 1995 to 2003, which assists high school students who are living on their own to stay in school and receive their high school diplomas.

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Alard Kaplan, PE
Owner
Energy Projects Consulting
Houston, Texas

Alard “Al” Kaplan of Houston, owner of Energy Projects Consulting, earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering (cum laude) from Missouri S&T in 1972. His career began at Mobil Oil, where he managed offshore and liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects in Indonesia,the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and Qatar. He served as vice president for major projects with Marathon Oil Corp., and after retiring in 2008, set up an independent consulting firm. He has since served as acting head of wind projects for BP U.S., an advisory board member for an Algae to Biodiesel Co. and is currently LNG project manager for the Mozambique LNG Project with Anadarko Petroleum Corp. His consulting business has had recent projects in West Africa, the Gulf of Mexico and Australia. Kaplan has served on the board of directors of the Construction Industries Institute and on the Project Management Practices Advisory Board at Texas A&M University. He has authored several technical papers on LNG production and transport and holds related U.S. patents.

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Sanjeev Kumar, Ph.D., PE, Fellow ASCE
Chair, Professor & Distinguished Teacher
Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering
Southern Illinois University-Carbondale
Carbondale, Illinois

Sanjeev Kumar of Carbondale, Ill., chair, professor and Distinguished Teacher in the civil and environmental engineering department at Southern Illinois University (SIU) Carbondale, earned master of science and Ph.D. degrees in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1993 and 1996, respectively. He began his professional practice career in India and then joined Geotechnology, Inc. in St. Louis in 1994. He joined SIU as an assistant professor in 1998. He has received more than $2 million in research grants, and has published 36 articles in professional journals and more than 60 articles in conference proceedings. He has completed more than 100 engineering projects as a project engineer, manager, peer-reviewer or consultant. He has received numerous outstanding teaching awards, including the Engineering Excellence Award, Outstanding Faculty Research Award, Professional Recognition Award (ASCE), Distinguished Scholar (Phi Kappa Phi), Distinguished Fellow from the Institute of Hospital Engineers (India) and the S&T Civil Engineering 2003 Exemplary Young Alumni Award. He has served on many of ASCE’s national committees and has chaired the Committee on Continuing Education.

David Ahlvers, PE
State Construction and Materials Engineer
MoDOT
Jefferson City, Missouri

David Ahlvers of Jefferson City, Mo., state construction and materials engineer with the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT), earned bachelor of science degrees in civil engineering and engineering management from Missouri S&T in 1984. He served as a construction inspector and as district engineer of MoDot’s Northwest District. In 2003, Ahlvers moved to his current position, where he is responsible for the geotechnical section, physical and chemical testing laboratories, pavement design, research, materials testing and oversight of the state construction program. He chairs the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials’ Roadways and Structures Committee and serves as Missouri’s representative to the Research Advisory Council. He was an officer in the St. Joseph Rotary Club and served on the board of directors for the Chamber of Commerce. He participates in his church as a Eucharistic minister and teaches Sunday school. David also attends many school activities and coaches. He and his wife, Laura, have three daughters.

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Gary Amsinger, PE
Vice President
MCarthy Building Companies, Inc.
St. Louis, Missouri

Gary Amsinger of Defiance, Mo., corporate vice president of safety for McCarthy Building Companies Inc., earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from S&T in 1980. He joined McCarthy as a project engineer and worked in the field managing construction projects in both commercial and heavy civil areas. He was a project manager, project director and divisional director of engineering prior to his current position. Amsinger led an effort to require that all personnel use fall protection when exposed to falls greater than 6 feet, which is now an industry standard. He holds a U.S. patent for developing a crane safety device. Amsinger chaired and held executive leadership positions in the Safety and Health committees for the national and St. Louis chapters of the Associated General Contractors (AGC); served on the Executive Committee of the National Construction Safety Executives organization; and served on the editorial board of Superintendent Magazine. He is on the S&T Career Opportunities and Employer Relations Advisory Board and led McCarthy’s recruiting efforts at S&T for more than 25 years. He led McCarthy’s United Way of Greater St. Louis Campaign for more than a decade. He has served as a Leader in the Boy Scouts, coached youth baseball and served as president of the Church Council at Friedens Peace UCC in New Melle. He and his family are currently members of Dardenne Presbyterian Church. Gary and his wife, Janet, have two sons.

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Dan Booher
Retired, Senior Vice President of Design and Construction
Kohl's Department Stores
Springfield, Missouri

Dan Booher of Springfield, Mo., retired senior vice president of design and construction for Kohl’s Department Stores, earned bachelor of science and master of science degrees in civil engineering from S&T in 1980 and 1981, respectively. His extensive career in the retail construction business began with Walmart Stores Inc., where as vice president for construction international in Mexico City he was involved in the creation of the Walmart Supercenter. Booher joined Einstein Bros. Bagels when it was a start-up and helped grow the company to 600 stores. At Toys “R” Us, he supported domestic and Asian operations, and as vice president of design and construction for Office Depot, he and his team developed stores in the U.S., Asia and Europe. In 2002, he joined Kohl’s, where he was responsible for site development, engineering and architectural design, and interior design as well as construction operations. He now does limited consulting work through his company, Blue Ocean Advisers. After retiring from Kohl’s in 2010, Dan built his dream home on 32 acres. He is active in the International Council of Shopping Centers, the Second Baptist Church and Habitat for Humanity. Dan and his wife, Karrolyn, are fortunate to have their three children attending school in Springfield.

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John Branham, PE
President
Branco Enterprises, Inc.
Neosho, Missouri

John Branham of Stella, Mo., president of Branco Enterprises Inc., earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from S&T in 1970. He founded Branco Enterprises Inc. in 1976. The construction company was recognized by MoDOT as its top achiever in the small volume category for 2011 and received an Excellence in Paving Award. Branco was recognized by Engineering News-Record (ENR) as a top 200 environmental contractor and by Concrete Construction Magazine as a top-100 concrete contractor. Branham has been an American Arbitration Association arbitrator since 1986. He served as chapter president of the Missouri Society of Professional Engineers (MSPE) and as chair of the AGC of Missouri. He is now vice president of AGC of Kansas City. He served as president of the Neosho Chamber of Commerce and is a member of the Neosho Planning and Zoning Commission and the Neosho Rotary Club. John and his wife, Vi, have four children and eight grandchildren.

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Michael L. Davis, PE
President/CEO
Barton Engineering Company, Inc.
Lebanon, Missouri

Michael L. Davis of Lebanon, Mo., president and CEO of Barton Engineering Co. Inc., earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from S&T in 1975. A registered engineer in Illinois and Missouri, he worked for Benton & Associates, a consulting engineering firm in Illinois, for eight years prior to joining Barton Engineering Co. Inc. in Lebanon. Barton provides consulting engineering services to the private sector and to municipalities, corporations and governmental entities. Davis served on his local school board for 12 years and the Missouri State School Board for four years. He is president of the Lebanon Education Foundation and was named Volunteer of the Year by the Laclede Literary Council. He is a board member and past president of the Lebanon Rotary Club, and was named Rotarian of the Year. In 1991, he was appointed to the Selective Service Board by President George H.W. Bush, retiring in 2011. A Chamber Ambassador, he received the Outstanding Community Service Award from the Lebanon Chamber of Commerce in 2002. He is active in the Ozark Chapter of MSPE and was named its Young Engineer of the Year in 1986. In 1997, he received the S&T Alumni Service Award. Mike and his wife, Joy, have two children and two grandchildren.

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Richard Henry
President, Northern Pacific Division
McCarthy Building Companies, Inc.
San Francisco, California

Richard Henry of Lafayette, Calif., president of the Northern Pacific Division of McCarthy Building Companies Inc., earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from S&T in 1983. He was assigned to McCarthy’s first project in California and worked in the field as a project engineer, project manager and vice president before his promotion in 2002 to his current position. He is responsible for projects that produced more than $550 million in revenue last year, including the 1-million-square-foot Kaiser Replacement Hospital in Oakland, Calif., and the new $857 million Stanford Hospital. Henry is an expert in public school design and construction processes and worked closely with the California State Architect as an appointed Advisory Board member to improve procedures and delivery guidelines for public projects throughout the state. He is a member of McCarthy’s board of directors and serves on the boards of the Construction Employees Association, the Bay Area Council, and the Sacramento Area Commerce and Trade Organization. Rich and his wife, Angela, have three children.

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Dr. Robert Holmes Jr., PE
National Flood Hazard Coordinator
U.S. Geological Survey
Rolla, Missouri

Dr. Robert “Bob” Holmes Jr. of Rolla, Mo., national flood hazard coordinator for the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), earned bachelor of science and master of science degrees in civil engineering from S&T in 1987 and 1989, respectively. He earned a Ph.D. in civil engineering from the University of Illinois in 2003. He previously served as chief of hydrologic data collection and director of the USGS Illinois Water Science Center. Holmes now works for the USGS Headquarters in Reston, Va., but is based in Rolla, where he coordinates operational response to major flood events nationwide including developing operational plans with other agencies. He also serves as senior advisor to the USGS director and associate directors for flood science issues. Holmes is an adjunct professor in S&T’s civil, architectural and environmental engineering department, teaching undergraduate and graduate courses in water resource engineering topics. He is a diplomat in the American Academy of Water Resources Engineers and past president of the Mid-Missouri Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). He has received awards from the USGS, the Department of Interior and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Bob and his wife, Joanne, MetE’91, have four daughters, including one who recently graduated from S&T and one who is a current S&T student. Bob has coached Rolla youth softball and basketball, been active with a local camp for children of prisoners, and serves as a board member for the Champions of Rolla Education.

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Terry Leeds, PE
Director, Water Services Department
City of Kansas City
Kansas City, Missouri

Terry Leeds of Kansas City, Mo., director of the water services department for the city of Kansas City, Mo., earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from S&T in 1984. After spending 10 years as a design engineer for Black and Veatch, he joined the city of Kansas City where he’s held positions as a design engineer, section head, division head, project manager and assistant director. In his current position, he is responsible for drinking water supply treatment and distribution, stormwater management and wastewater collection and treatment. His department includes 960 employees and a budget of approximately $262 million. Leeds is active in the Water Environment Federation, ASCE and is a board member of the Wet Weather Partnership and Association of Missouri Cleanwater Agencies. He received the Golden Manhole Award from the Missouri Water Environment Association. He is active in many civic organizations such as Habitat for Humanity, PTA and Community Blood Center (he is a 3-gallon donor). Terry is an ordained deacon and has held various church leadership positions. He is currently a Bible study shepherd for 3rd graders at Pleasant Valley Baptist Church. Terry and his wife, Dana, have five children.

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Fred Palmerton, PE
Vice President
Palmerton and Parrish, Inc.
Springfield, Missouri

HONORARY MEMBER

Fred Palmerton of Springfield, Mo., vice president of Palmerton and Parrish Inc., earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Washington University in St. Louis in 1960. After several years working with Reitz and Jens Inc. in St. Louis, Palmerton joined Anderson Engineering Inc. in Springfield. In 1989, he co-founded Palmerton and Parrish Inc., a consulting engineering and materials testing firm with 45 employees and offices and laboratories in Springfield, Branson and Joplin. He has been active in MSPE, serving in all officer positions and as president in 1998. He has served on many National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE) committees and was the national chair of its professional engineers in private practice (PEPP) division in 2008. He is a member of ASCE, the American Concrete Institute and ASTM International. His honors and awards include NSPE Fellow, NSPE/PEPP Outstanding Service Award and MSPE Hall of Fame. Fred has assisted with the department’s asphalt and concrete conferences for many years. He is an Elder in the Hillcrest Presbyterian Church and has served as the Board Chairman of the Springfield Council of Churches. Fred and his wife, Rae Jean, have four children and six grandchildren.

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Tom Sieckhaus
Senior Vice President and Partner
Clayco Construction Corporation
St. Louis, Missouri

Tom Sieckhaus of Fenton, Mo., senior vice president and partner of Clayco Construction Corp., earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from S&T in 1988 and an MBA from the University of Missouri-St. Louis in 1996. After six years with Turner Construction, he joined Clayco in 1994 as a project manager. He is currently responsible for all commercial projects for the national design build and construction firm, which employs nearly 1,000 people and has annual revenues of nearly $850 million. In 2005, Sieckhaus received the “40 under 40” award from the St. Louis Business Journal. He is on the board of directors of the Matthews Dickey Boys Club and served on the Carpenters Labor Committee of the AGC and on the St. Paul’s Church Building Committee. He once served on the Carpenters Labor Committee of the AGC, as well as the St. Paul’s Church Building Committee. He and his wife, Michelle, have two sons.

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Curtis Skouby, PE
Director of Public Utilities
City of St. Louis
St. Louis, Missouri

Curtis Skouby of St. Louis, director of public utilities for the city of St. Louis, earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from S&T in 1985 and a master of science degree in civil engineering from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 1999. He began his career with the city of St. Louis as a civil engineer and was appointed to his current position in 2008. Skouby is responsible for the utilities and the water and communications division, operating with a staff of approximately 400 employees. He is a member of the American Water Works Association, served as chair of the Missouri section and received the 6 Guardian Award from AWWA in 2007. He serves on the Missouri Safe Drinking Water Commission and is a plan reviewer for the Partnership of Safe Drinking Water. An Eagle Scout, he is a leader and volunteer with both the Boy Scouts of America and Girl Scouts of the USA. Curt’s wife, Mary, his father and two of his siblings also have degrees in civil engineering. He and Mary are volunteers at Glendale Lutheran Church. They have 10-year-old twins, Brian and Sarah.

 

Brett Hanke, PE
President
Hanke Constructors
Wentzville, Missouri

Brett Hanke received his BSCE from UMR in 1972 and his MS in Engineering Management in 1984. Commissioned through UMR’s Army ROTC Program, Brett’s career began as an engineer officer with the 82nd Airborne Division. After eight years in various assignments and at the rank of Captain, he left the active Army, but stayed in the Missouri National Guard. From 1980 until 2004, he worked for Booker Associates, Sauget, Illinois, and was the Director of Public Works for Granite City, Collinsville, Illinois and Wentzville, Missouri. In 2002 he retired from the Army as a Colonel. In 2004 Brett returned to active duty, serving a tour in Iraq, where he was responsible for the $4 billion reconstruction program for water and wastewater facilities. He was a security engineer for SAIC until retiring in 2007. In 2009 he came out of retirement and formed Hanke Constructors. Brett took up sky diving while in the Army, and has over 100 jumps. He also enjoys karate and holds a 6th degree black belt. Brett has three children, who have all served tours in Iraq. He and his wife, Ann, enjoy their family and farming for fitness near Wentzville, where he can be recognized as being “out standing in his field,” using 1930s vintage farm equipment.

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Alan A. Kamp, PE
Vice President &
Senior Project Manager
Black & Veatch
Kansas City, Missouri

Alan Kamp received his BSCE from MSM in 1964 and his MSCE from UMR in 1965. He began his career as a structural engineer for gas and oil process plants for Phillips Petroleum Company. He is now Vice President and Senior Project Manager for the Oil and Gas Business Line at Black & Veatch. He has designed and managed projects in China, Australia, Abu Dhabi, Scotland and the United States. These projects have included gas treating, sulfur recovery, LNG peak shaving and base load facilities, oil refinery units, one sugar refinery in Africa, and a coke gasification facility that produces ammonia fertilizer. Alan is a long time member of ASCE, has served as a Boy Scout Leader, chaired Black & Veatch’s United Way efforts, and received Black & Veatch’s Robinson Outstanding Management Award in 1995. Alan and his wife, Illa, are part owners of and operate the Branson Scenic Railway, which operates dinner and excursion train service in Branson, Mo. Married 45 years, they have two children and five grandchildren. Alan and Illa live in Kansas City and Branson.

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Pat McCown, PE
CEO, McCownGordon Construction
Kansas City, Missouri

Pat McCown received his BSCE from UMR in 1974 and entered into the construction industry in 1974, working for Fluor in California. In 1977, he moved to the Kansas City area and has worked for Pritchard, JE Dunn, and Walton Construction. He received his Professional Engineer License in 1980 and his MBA from UMKC in 1983. In 1999, he founded McCownGordon Construction, the company he now directs and serves as CEO. The company offers construction management and design build delivery methods and has built projects in a broad range of segments including corporate, bio/life sciences, higher education, healthcare, mission critical and municipality. Pat has served on a variety of technical committees, including those for ASCE, GSA and AIA. He currently serves on the boards of UMB Bank N.A., Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce, Kansas City Area Development Council, Ronald McDonald House Charities, Kansas City Art Institute, Starlight Theatre, UMKC Conservatory’s Advisory Committee and the Leadership Committee for United Way. McCown is co-chair of the Business Council for the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art, a member of the Metropolitan Arts Council and a corporate partner of the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art. Pat and his wife, Beth, have four children and three grandchildren.

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Ranney McDonough, PE
President
McDonough Engineering Corporation
Houston, Texas

Ranney McDonough received his BSCE from UMR in 1966. Through Army ROTC, he was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant and volunteered for Army Rotary Wing Flight School. A little over two years later, he was flying for the 187th Assault Helicopter Company in Vietnam. Captain McDonough was there during Tet 1968, flying the III Corps Commanding General. He left the Army in 1969 to begin his civil engineering career. In 1977 he founded McDonough Engineering in Houston, Texas. Since then his company has completed the civil engineering design of many projects in the Texas Gulf Coast Region. Projects have included commercial, industrial, public works, governmental and transportation. Ranney is a member of several technical/professional societies and has served on the Executive Board of the Bay Area Houston Transportation Partnership and is a Past President of the Harris County (Texas) Flood Control Task Force. He is a member of S&T’s Order of the Golden Shillelagh and is active in the Alumni Association Houston Section. Ranney has supported the Boy Scouts, the American Festival for the Arts and Houston Livestock Show. Ranney and his wife, Linda, live in Houston, Texas.

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Stephen H. McVeigh
Independent Oil & Gas Consultant
Houston, Texas

Stephen McVeigh received his BSCE from UMR in 1972. His entire career has been in the engineering and management aspects of oil and gas exploration and production. He retired after 32 years of service in the domestic and international upstream sector of Royal Dutch Shell Companies. From 2000-2004, Stephen served as CEO for Sakhalin Energy Investment Company in the Russian Federation. This company manages the Sakhalin 2 project and is the first offshore oil and gas development and LNG project in Russia. The Sakhalin Project was built from scratch in the harsh sub arctic environment of Sakhalin Island in the Russian Far East. Under Stephen’s leadership, the joint venture and its share holders (Shell, Mitsui and Mitsubishi) reached a positive final investment decision for a $10B grass roots integrated oil, gas and LNG development, one of the largest such projects ever attempted. Married to his wife, Janet, for 36 years, they live in Houston near their three sons.

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Michael Perry
President
HBD Construction, Inc.
St. Louis, Missouri

Michael Perry received his BSCE from UMR in 1980. He graduated from UMR on a Saturday and started with HBD the following Monday, bought a house the next month and was married the next month. Today he is President of HBD, leading one of the largest general contracting and construction management organizations in St. Louis. The company builds commercial and multi-family projects and recently won a “Project of the Year Keystone Award” from the AGC of St. Louis and was just recently nominated as General Contractor of the Year by the American Subcontractors Association. Mike currently serves as Immediate Past Chairman of AGC St. Louis and is Chairman of their Membership Committee. He is involved with the AGC Construction Careers Center, which prepares students in grades 9-12. He also serves on the advisory board for Youth Lifeline America, which helps disadvantaged inner city youth by teaching life skills. Mike is on the Board of the American Heart Association of St. Louis and coordinates their annual Heart Walks. He is a St. Louis Rotarian, RCGA Leadership Circle Member and serves on the legislative committee for the Missouri Growth Association. Mike and his wife, Tina, live in St. Louis. They have four daughters, which includes 17-year-old twins.

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Amy Strauss, PE
Senior Engineer
City Utilities
Springfield, Missouri

Amy Strauss received her BSCE then MSCE from UMR in 1990 and 1991, respectively. She began her engineering career as a co-op student with Springfield City Utilities, and has progressed through many aspects of the Utilities’ systems and is currently a Senior Engineer in Power Generation. Amy is responsible for the management of various power plant projects as well as process monitoring and projects to increase efficiency. Over the years, Amy has been very active with the Ozark Chapter of MSPE. She chaired S&T’s Civil Engineering Department’s Advisory Council, has co-chaired the Greater Ozarks Chapter, American Red Cross’ “Every Day Heroes Event,” and served as Board Chair of the Red Cross Chapter, assisting the Red Cross efforts to acquire and renovate a building for office expansion. Following the Joplin tornado last year, Amy was deployed as part of SEMA’s Structural Assessment Visual Evaluation Team. Amy was the NSPE National Young Engineer of the Year in 2000. Amy has two teenage sons and she and husband, Gary, live in Springfield, Mo.

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Paul Wojciechowski, AICP, PE
Senior Associate, St. Louis Office Manager
Alta Planning and Design
St. Louis, Missouri

Paul Wojciechowski received his BSCE from UMR in 1983 and began his career with MoDOT in Willow Springs in 1983. He is now a Senior Associate and St. Louis Office Manager for Alta Planning and Design, a company with 20 offices nationwide, based in Portland Ore. He has spent 28 years working with transportation planning for public sector entities as well as consulting firms. Paul served in planning and design positions at MoDOT for 17 years, most of which was in the St. Louis Metro District. He later served as Director of Public Works for the City of Clayton from 2004-2008 and was responsible for all aspects of public works projects, capital improvement budgeting, parking, traffic, vehicle fleet management and building maintenance. While in Clayton, Paul received an Outstanding Local Government Leadership Award from the East West Gateway Council of Governments in 2007. An avid bicyclist, who often rides his bike to work, Paul’s career has been focused on planning and design of streets that serve all users throughout the St. Louis area. His work in “bike ped” issues and facilities has earned him Trailnet’s Healthy Active Living Award and Missouri Bicycle Federation’s Distinguished Service Award. Paul lives with his wife, Sharon, in the City of Wildwood, where he has served as City Council Member, P&Z member and Town Center Advisory Committee Member. He is currently on the Board of Adjustment for the city.

 

Wayne Laufer, PE
Bois d’Arc Energy, Inc.
Retired CEO
Sanibel, Fla.

Wayne Laufer received his BSCE from UMR in 1967. His career in offshore oil exploration and development began that year at Shell Oil. In 1977 he co founded S.A. Holditch & Associates, now a part of Schlumberger. In 1998 Wayne co-founded Bois d’Arc Offshore, LTD, which became Bois d’Arc Energy. Bois d’Arc Energy has concentrated on exploring, drilling, completing, operating, and producing natural gas and oil reserves in the Gulf of Mexico region. In five years the company drilled 54 exploration wells and 38 development wells. In 2005 Bois d’Arc Energy was taken public on the NYSE with Wayne as president and CEO. The company was sold in 2008. In 2009 Wayne and his wife announced a gift to endow a chair in energy research at Missouri S&T. Their gift is the largest for an endowed faculty position ever received by the University of Missouri system. Wayne received his professional degree from S&T in 2009. He and his wife, Gayle are members of the Order of the Golden Shillelagh. They live in Sanibel, Fla. and Friday Harbor, Wash.

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Kent Lynn
Senior Sale Executive
IBM
Bethesda, Md.

Kent Lynn received his BSCE from UMR in 1985 and his MBA from the University of Nebraska in 1991. Kent began his career with IBM in Omaha after graduating from UMR. He began as a systems engineer working with DoD clients, but quickly moved into sales roles with increasing responsibility. Kent has particular expertise in the telecommunications and service-provider industries, spanning his twenty-six year career in Information Technology. He served in various software sales and consulting roles, including global practice leader and principal consultant to utility, energy and media/publishing companies, prior to holding his current position as Client Executive, where Kent is responsible for managing relationships with some of the company’s largest commercial clients. Throughout his career, Kent has traveled extensively, and from his experiences decided to establish a scholarship fund at S&T to support international service learning. Kent is a member of the Order of the Golden Shillelagh and received a Professional Degree in Computer Science from S&T in 2009. A 14-year resident of Washington, D.C., Kent advises local non-profit institutions and schools on technology issues. He serves on the Community Council of the public radio station at The American University in Washington, D.C., where he is also a member of the Leadership Council. Kent is an avid triathlete, marathoner and distance cyclist.

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Michael J. McEvilly, PE
Senior Executive
Vice President of Operations
Spitzer Industries, Inc.
Houston, Texas

Mike McEvilly received his BSCE from UMR in 1980 and an MS in Engineering Management in 1981, also from UMR. He has spent his career in the oil and gas industry with positions with Cities Service Oil & Gas Corporation, then Facilities and Construction Manager Deepwater Worldwide with Anadarko Petroleum Corp., then Vice-President of Capital Projects with Helix Energy Solutions, and currently as Senior Executive Vice President of Operations for Spitzer Industries, Inc. In that position he principally oversees the design and fabrication operations of approximately 1000 employees in four facilities totaling 525,000 square feet, manufacturing process and subsea equipment used in offshore oil and gas production operations. He is a member of several technical societies, professional societies and advisory boards, was named the Young Engineer of the Year by Sam Houston Chapter for the state of Texas, received the Distinguished Achievement Award for Projects at the Offshore Technology Conference for the years 2007 and 2010, for the Marco Polo Tension-Leg Platform in 4,300 feet of water, and the Independence Hub Semi-Submersible in 8,000 feet of water respectively, both of which were record water depths at the time of installation. Mike is a member of the Elks Lodge, Lions Club, Masonic Lodge, Scottish Rite and Shriners. He has served as a Little League coach and umpire and in youth basketball and soccer as a coach and umpire. In his student days at UMR, Mike was the president of Chi Epsilon, Blue Key and Intercollegiate Knights. He is a member of Tau Kappa Epsilon Fraternity, and was named a National Top Teke in 1980. He is a member of the Order of the Golden Shillelagh, and will be inducted into the Academy of Engineering Management this April. Mike lives in Spring, Texas with his wife Mary, who is also a graduate of UMR.

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Dr. M. Brad Parks, PE
Senior Manager
Advanced Threat Technology Development
and Response Group
Saudia National Laboratories
Albuquerque, New Mexico

M. Brad Parks is the Senior Manager for the Advanced Threat Technology Development and Response Group at Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), Albuquerque, New Mexico. Brad received his MSCE and PhD (1987) in civil engineering with a specialty in automotive structures. Since 1987 he has worked at SNL on a variety of projects including accident performance of containment buildings housing nuclear power plants, structural analysis of ship-to-ship collisions to determine potential damage to on-board containers carrying radioactive materials, scientific advisor to the DOD’s office that deals with counter proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and manager of a department studying transportation-related nuclear explosive security issues. In his current position at SNL, Brad manages four departments that are focused on nuclear weapon security, nuclear emergency response, and consequence management for nuclear, chemical, or biological incidents. Brad has received many awards, including the 2000 Sandia Employee Recognition Award. He has authored approximately 50 publications. Brad and his wife Stacy live in Albuquerque along with their two sons, Jordan and Ethan.

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Brad R. Parrish, PE
President
Palmerton & Parrish, Inc.
Springfield, Missouri

Brad R. Parrish received his BSCE and MSCE from UMR in 1977 and 1978, respectively. Brad began his career in geotechnical engineering and construction materials testing in 1979, in 1989 cofounded Palmerton & Parrish, Inc., and is currently the firm’s president. The firm offers geotechnical, environmental, and design engineering services and operates a full service construction materials testing laboratory. Brad is licensed as a Professional Engineer in four states. Over the years, Brad has been very active in MSPE and also has served as President of MSPE. He has also been active in ACEC-MO, having served as a Director and PAC Trustee. In 1989, he was honored as MSPE Ozark Chapter’s Young Engineer of the Year. In 2000, he received the MSPE “Extra Mile” Resolution Award for his work on Engineering Licensure and Registration. In 2008, Brad was UMR’s Chi Epsilon Chapter Honor Member. Active in the North Side Christian Church of Springfield, Brad has worked in church and youth activities for many years. Married to his high school sweetheart, Cora, for 34 years, he lives in Springfield and enjoys spending time with his grandchildren.

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Chuck Taylor, PE
Group Manager,
Aviation Services
Crawford, Murphy
and Tilly, Inc.
Springfield, Illinois

Following in his father’s footsteps Charles (Chuck) Taylor enrolled at Rolla and graduated with his BSCE from UMR in 1983. He went to work for Crawford, Murphy and Tilly, Inc. in their aviation services division and today Chuck serves as CMT’s Group Manager of Aviation Services. Throughout his career, Chuck has worked on airports throughout the U.S., engineering solutions to technical, as well as political and funding problems, all the while meeting the stringent requirements of the FAA. His work on rehabbing Runaway 30R at Lambert Field in St. Louis won him a National Paving Award from the American Concrete Paving Association, Lambert’s first national award. Chuck is a member of the Association of Airport Executives, the Missouri State Aviation Council, ASCE and other technical/professional societies. A member of the St. Agnes Catholic Church in Springfield, Illinois, Chuck volunteers for many parish activities, including youth softball, football, and basketball. Chuck and his wife Jenny have two children: Jessica who attends Wesleyan University and Clayton who is in the 8th grade at St Agnes School in Springfield, IL.

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Jeff Theerman, PE
Executive Director
Metropolitan
Sewer District
St. Louis, Missouri

Jeff Theerman is the Executive Director of Metropolitan Sewer District (MSD), St. Louis. He received his BSCE from UMR in 1980, MSCE from SIU-Edwardsville and his Professional Degree from Missouri S&T in 2009. A long-time engineer at MSD, Jeff has swum upstream and now is responsible for all engineering, construction, operations and administration for the District. MSD employs about 950 people and has an annual budget of about $400 million, about $200 million of which is construction. The District is responsible for all wastewater collection and treatment, as well as all storm water collection and conveyance for St. Louis City and County, which serves a population of about 1.4 million. Jeff has been a great ambassador of civil engineering and S&T. Within the many technical, professional and community societies he works to further his profession as well as be a spokesman for engineering, MSD and Missouri S&T. Jeff is serving as the national president for the National Association of Clean Water Agencies and is a member of several other technical/professional organizations. He is an Elder in the First Presbyterian Church of Kirkwood, he is an Eagle Scout and serves as an assistant Cub Scout Pack leader, was MSPE’s Engineer of the Year for 2008 and is an Honorary Member of the Select Society of Sanitary Sludge Shovelers. Jeff, his wife Barb, and their two children live in Kirkwood.