September 2007 Virginia Engineers On The Move

September 2007 Virginia Engineers On The Move
 

The Bay Design Group has announced that Derek DiDonato, EIT has joined the firm. A 2007 graduate of Virginia Tech, Mr. DiDonato will be involved with site engineering and will work out of the firm’s Richmond office.
James M. Pruett, head of surveying services for Bay Design Group’s Northern Neck office, is now a licensed Land Surveyor in the Commonwealth of Virginia. A 1992 graduate of James Madison University, Mr. Pruett has been employed by Bay Design since 2003.

Jonathan Clary, a Staff Engineer/Junior Project Manager at Golder Associates Inc., has recently received his Engineer-in-Training (E.I.T.) certification. Mr. Clary is a junior level Civil Engineer with experience in solid waste, stormwater management, Construction Quality Assurance, and land development. He received his B.S. degree in Civil Engineering from West Virginia University.

Gary Downey, professor of science and technology in society in the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences at Virginia Tech, has been named a Alumni Distinguished Professor. He developed and teaches the award-winning course Engineering Cultures, and is credited with helping students develop strategies for understanding cultural difference and engaging in shared problem solving. Dr. Downey has been a contributor to the emerging field of engineering education. He serves as Senior Fellow at the U.S. National Academy of Engineering and is cofounder of the International Network for Engineering Studies. A keynote address to the Word Congress of Chemical Engineering has become an influential policy document at the National Science Foundation (NSF) and at the National Academy of Engineering. Dr. Downey received a bachelor’s degree and master’s degree from Lehigh University and a master’s degree and Ph.D. from the University of Chicago.
J. Michael Duncan, Distinguished Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering in the College of Engineering at Virginia Tech, was conferred the title, “Distinguished Professor Emeritus” by the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors during the board’s quarterly meeting on June 4th. A member of the Virginia Tech community since 1964, Dr. Duncan has made substantial contributions to the discipline of geotechnical engineering through his work in areas of soil shear strength and slope stability, seepage through soils, embankment dam engineering, and finite element analysis methods for soil structures. Dr. Duncan received his bachelor’s degree and master’s degree from Georgia Tech, and his Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley.
Hanif Sherali, the W. Thomas Rice Chair of Engineering in the Grado Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Virginia Tech, has been named a University Distinguished Professor, a rank that honors select members of the faculty for widely renowned scholarly achievements. Dr. Sherali, who joined the Virginia Tech faculty in 1979, is one of the university’s most respected and sought-after teachers. He is the only member of the engineering faculty to receive the Dean’s Award of Excellence in all three categories – teaching, research, and service. Among Dr. Sherali’s contributions to engineering system design is the invention, in collaboration with graduate students, of the ground-breaking Reformulation-Linearization Technique. He completed his master’s and Ph.D. degrees in operations research at Georgia Tech and received his bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Bombay University in India.
Thomas Reppert, a summa cum laude graduate from the Virginia Tech College of Engineering with a bachelor’s degree in aerospace and ocean engineering, has been awarded grants for graduate studies from both the U.S. State Department’s Fulbright program and the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship program. He was a student in Virginia Tech’s University Honors Program, which nominated him for the Fulbright grant. As a Fulbright scholar, he will receive travel and living expenses and tuition for graduate study and research during the 2007-2008 academic year at the University of Zaragoza in Spain. After completing his studies at Zaragoza, Mr. Reppert plans to use his NSF fellowship to earn a Ph.D. in aerospace engineering at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
John J. “Jack” Lesko, professor of engineering science and mechanics in the College of Engineering at Virginia Tech, has been named special assistant to the vice president for research for energy initiatives. He will have oversight responsibility for all energy-related research activities within the university’s Research Division, announced Bob Walters, vice president for research. Dr. Lesko teaches upper level courses and conducts research on the mechanics of polymers and composites, material interfaces, and composite structural design. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland and his master’s degree and Ph.D. from Virginia Tech.
Randy Dymond, P.E., Ph.D. has now become a co-director of Virginia Tech’s Center for Geospatial Information Technology. He has vast experience in GIS, civil infrastructure systems, water resources, land development, and land use change impacts. Dr. Dymond is involved with projects such as storm water runoff Best Management Practices, FEMA floodplain delineation and hazard mitigation. He also has served as associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech since 1998.
Kathleen Hancock, P.E., Ph.D. recently accepted the position of co-director at Virginia Tech’s Center for Geospatial Information Technology. She has been involved in projects dealing with geospatial solutions to transportation problems, freight operations and planning, and transportation safety. Ms. Hancock has been associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech since 2004.

Tyler Emery has joined the Environmental Team as a Staff Technician for Draper Aden Associates in their Blacksburg office. His duties include soil and groundwater sampling and environmental site assessments. Mr. Emery is a 2007 graduate of Virginia Tech with a B.S. degree in Environmental Science.
Draper Aden Associates has also announced the recent addition of David Gray and Cameron Ryder as crew members on the Surveying Team in the firm’s Richmond office. In their new positions, both Mr. Gray and Mr. Ryder, graduates from Lee-Davis High School, will be responsible for a variety of duties including basic boundary surveying, data collection and equipment maintenance.
The firm also announced that Kenneth Herrick has joined their staff as a Project Technician on the Geotechnical Team in the Richmond office. Mr. Herrick’s past work experience includes construction materials testing and geophysical subsurface surveying. He has a B.S. degree in Geology from Wright State University.
Draper Aden is pleased to announce that Lori C. Livingston, PG, has been promoted to Project Geologist on the Environmental Team in the Blacksburg office. She is a Registered Brownfields Professional, has a M.S. degree in Environmental and Engineering Geosciences from Radford University and a B.A. in Geology from Appalachian State University. In her new position, Ms. Livingston will take on the added duties of project management, development of soil and groundwater sampling plans, data analysis, site remediation and proposal and report writing.
Draper Aden is also pleased to announce that Jessica Cuenin, E.I.T., has joined the firm as a Staff Engineer on the Geotechnical Team in the Richmond office. Ms. Cuenin’s duties will include completing geotech reports, lab testing, and field work. She has a B.S. Interdisciplinary Dual Degree in Civil Engineering/Engineering and Management from Clarkson University.

McDonough Bolyard Peck, Inc. (MBP) Team members, John Machner and Scott Samsel have been honored with a Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) Commissioner’s Award for Outstanding Achievement. This award was presented for their innovation and team efforts on the development of the Project Record Keeping System (PRKS), a resource management system designed to store materials, reference manuals, and forms needed for transportation projects.

Pavement engineer Khaled Galal has joined the professional staff in the Richmond office of Stantec. As a managing associate with the Company, he will lead the firm’s pavement and materials research work in the U.S. Dr. Galal has worked in pavement engineering for nearly 20 years, primarily with the Virginia Transportation Research Council and the Indiana Department of Transportation’s research division. He holds a Ph.D. in asphalt materials and pavement engineering from Purdue University. Dr. Galal also holds an M.S. degree in Civil Engineer from California State University–Fresno in addition to a B.S. degree earned in Egypt.

Hankins and Anderson, Inc. is pleased to announce that Michelle Nicholas, Stephen Lowe and Adam Mease, employees of the firm’s Mechanical Department, have all recently passed the Professional Engineering Exam.

Anderson & Associates, Inc. welcomes Nash Pleasant, as Blacksburg Engineering Technician; Dustin Brookman as Blacksburg Design Technician; and Ron Spears as Johnson City GIS Project Manager.
The firm also congratulates Steve Somick on his promotion to Assistant Project Manager; Dale Lehnig on her promotion to Middletown Regional Manager; and Blacksburg Project Engineer David Inman for earning his Virginia Professional Engineer (PE) Licensure.

John J. “Jack” Harmon, P.E., Fellow ASHRAE, Life Member, has received a Distinguished 50-Year Member Award from the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE). The award was presented recently at the Society’s Annual Meeting. Mr. Harmon is president of John J. Harmon Consulting Engineering in Richmond.

Skip Groupe, President of The Engineering Groupe, Inc., welcomes Christopher J. Lupia, P.E., to the company as the Branch Manager for the Leesburg office. Mr. Lupia will work out of the firm’s Leesburg office overseeing projects in Loudoun County, Winchester and West Virginia. He brings over 28 years of civil engineering and land development experience and has been instrumental in overseeing and contributing to many development projects in Loudoun County, Prince William County, Fairfax County and the City of Alexandria. He holds a B.S. degree in Civil Engineering from Catholic University and received his MBA degree from Averett University.
The Engineering Groupe, Inc. also announces that Mike Myers, P.E., has been promoted to the position of Branch Manager of their Piedmont Office located in Charlottesville. Mr. Myers will continue to work out of the firm’s Piedmont Office where he has been the Director of Engineering since January, 2007. He will oversee projects in Albemarle County, Charlottesville, Culpeper and the surrounding areas. He brings 13 years of civil engineering experience in residential and commercial land development engineering, including planning services, plan preparation and processing, permitting assistance and construction phase services. He holds a B.S. degree from the University of Virginia in Civil Engineering and is a Designated Plans Examiner in Fairfax and Prince William Counties.

James “Jim” Curren, P.E., has joined PBS&J as a senior program manager in the firm’s federal planning program. In his new position, Mr. Curren will be responsible for the transportation elements of the BRAC-related Fort Belvoir Master Plan and Program Integration contract that PBS&J is executing as part of a joint venture with Skidmore, Owings and Merrill LLP (SOM). Mr. Curren has more than 30 years of experience in transportation, including research, planning, and design, as well as project program management. He has served in various technical and management capacities on projects throughout North America and has been active in the Washington, D.C., market for over 20 years. Mr. Curren holds two bachelor’s degrees: one in engineering from Dalhousie University and one in civil engineering from the Technical University of Nova Scotia. He also pursued advanced studies at the University of Calgary, where he earned a master of engineering degree in project management.

Chris Adkins, a surveying technician with Engineering Concepts, Inc. (ECI), has recently passed the Fundamentals of Surveying exam to become a land surveyor-in-training. His responsibilities at ECI include providing surveying and engineering support for projects throughout Southwest Virginia.

Burgess & Niple, Inc. is pleased to announce that Kenneth R. Davis, Jr., P.E., was elected as the new President of the firm effective July 12, 2007. He succeeds Terrence A. Sack, P.E., who passed away in April 2007. Mr. Davis joined Burgess & Niple in 1970, was elected an owner in 1990, and has served seven one-year terms on the firm’s Board of Directors. He most recently held the position of Director of Engineering and Architectural Services Operations for the Columbus, Ohio, headquarters office. Mr. Davis earned a B.S. degree in Civil Engineering from The Ohio State University.

S&ME, Inc., an engineering and environmental consulting firm, has announced the recent addition of two new members to the firm’s laboratory staff.
Joe Fuscaldo will serve as laboratory manager in the Richmond branch. Mr. Fuscaldo holds dual B.S. degrees in Geology and Environmental Sciences from The College of William and Mary. He spent the past 6 months managing environmental restoration teams and community outreach programs.
Karen Hudson has joined S&ME as a laboratory technician. She brings with her 25 years of laboratory experience.
S&ME, Inc. is also pleased to announce the recent addition of several new professional and technical staff.
Brock Bryan has joined as a Staff Scientist. Mr. Bryan graduated from The Pennsylvania State University, Altoona with a B.A. degree in Environmental Studies. Previous experience includes work with environmental laboratories and Penn DOT. In his new poition, Mr. Bryan will be working with field investigations and environmental sampling for the firm.
Anna Best, a 2007 graduate from Earlham College, Indiana with a B.A. degree in GeoSciences, has returned to S&ME as a full-time employee after spending the summer of 2006 as an intern with the company. Ms. Best will be working with field investigations and environmental sampling for the firm.
Lisa Ennis has transferred to the Richmond branch from S&ME’s Raleigh office. Ms. Ennis holds a B.S. degree in Geology from Appalachian State University. She is responsible for Soil Testing, Groundwater Sampling and Monitoring, Geographical Information Systems (GIS), Graphical Boring Logs, and Stormwater Monitoring Services.

Facility Engineering Associates, PC (FEA) would like to announce the addition of five new staff members.
Maria Fara joined FEA’s Washington, DC office as a Project Geologist. Ms. Fara comes to FEA with 10 years of geology and environmental consulting experience. She received her degree at the University of Cagliari in Italy.
Philip P. Winterland, EIT, joined FEA’s Denver, Colo., office as a Mechanical Engineer. Mr. Winterland is a recent graduate of the University of Colorado at Boulder.
Natasha P. Jurakhan joined FEA’s Washington, DC office in July as a Facility Management Consultant. Ms. Jurakhan is a recent graduate of Ferris State University in Big Rapids, Mich., where she obtained her degree in Facility Management.
Frank M. DeSimone, RRC joined FEA’s Boston, Mass. office as a Senior Project Manager. Mr. DeSimone is a registered roof consultant with over 35 years of experience in building envelope construction.
Jason P. Riggs, P.E. joined FEA in July as a Senior Project Manager and will be working in Charlotte, NC. Mr. Riggs brings 15 years of experience in the engineering field to FEA. ##

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