May 2015

Great outreach event or other activity? Let the whole Region know! If you’re a local ASCE leader and your Section, Branch, Younger Member Group, or Student Chapter has staged any special events, engaged in outreach from grade-school kids to lawmakers, done charity work, fund raising or anything of the sort, let ASCEnews Weekly know and we may include it in next month’s Region report. You may already have written about it and posted pictures in your newsletter, website, or social media. Share the details and any photos at asce.org/localnews. Got questions? Write to submissions@asce.org. See the other Region reports for May If you live adjacent to a Section in a different Region, or are merely interested in the other Region reports for May, click on each to view them:   Region 1   Boston Society of Civil Engineers Section, Buffalo Section, Connecticut Society of Civil Engineers Section, Ithaca Section, Maine Section, Metropolitan Section, Mohawk-Hudson Section, New Hampshire Section, New Jersey Section, Puerto Rico Section, Rhode Island Section, Rochester Section, Syracuse Section, Vermont Section Region 2   Central Pennsylvania Section, Delaware Section, Lehigh Valley Section, Maryland Section, National Capital Section, Philadelphia Section, Pittsburgh Section Region 3   Akron-Canton Section, Central Illinois Section, Central Ohio Section, Cincinnati Section, Cleveland Section, Dayton Section, Duluth Section, Illinois Section, Michigan Section, Minnesota Section, North Dakota Section, Quad Cities Section, Toledo Section, Wisconsin Section Region 4   Arkansas Section, Indiana Section, Kentucky Section, North Carolina Section, South Carolina Section, Tennessee Section, Virginia Section, West Virginia Section Region 5   Alabama Section, Florida Section, Georgia Section, Louisiana Section, Mississippi Section   Region 6   New Mexico Section, Oklahoma Section, Texas Section Region 7   Colorado Section, Iowa Section, Kansas City Section, Kansas Section, Nebraska Section, South Dakota Section, St. Louis Section, Wyoming Section Region 8   Alaska Section, Arizona Section, Columbia Section, Hawaii Section, Inland Empire Section, Montana Section, Nevada Section, Oregon Section, Seattle Section, Southern Idaho Section, Tacoma-Olympia Section, Utah Section Region 9   Los Angeles Section, Sacramento Section, San Diego Section, San Francisco Section Region 10  All International Sections, Branches, and Groups Missed last month's Region 2 update? See the April edition of  News Around Region 2  Share this page via social media and email:

PITTSBURGH SECTION Carnegie Mellon Chapter named Region 2’s most distinguished for 2015 Courtesy CMU Student Chapter Carnegie Mellon University’s Student Chapter recently was awarded the 2015 ASCE Distinguished Chapter Award for Region 2. This award is in recognition of the chapter’s activities, programs, participation, and outreach on and off campus. ASCE has recognized the CMU student chapter with this award for two consecutive years. Read more about the chapter at the CMU website.  Section website>>

NATIONAL CAPITAL SECTION Virginia legislator presented with 2015 OPAL award for government Noted for his work to improve education in Virginia at both the K-12 and higher education levels, and as a champion of infrastructure improvements, especially in transportation, state Delegate Thomas D. Rust, P.E., M.ASCE, of Reston, VA, received ASCE’s 2015 Outstanding Projects and Leaders award for government during the Society’s recent OPAL Gala. A member of the Virginia House of Delegates since 2002, and previously mayor of Herndon for 19 years, Rust is recognized as one of the Virginia General Assembly’s most effective legislators. In addition to sitting on the labor, education, transportation, and science and technology committees, he chairs the Joint Commission on Technology and Science, a permanent legislative commission that promotes advancement of technology and science in Virginia. Discover more about what made Rust worthy of the honor in ASCE News.  Section website>>

NATIONAL CAPITAL SECTION Vice president of Bechtel presented with OPAL award for Construction Andrew K. Phelps, P.E., M.ASCE, whose more than 35 years’ diverse leadership experience in engineering, construction, and facilities operations focused on large capital projects, major government programs, and plant operations, mining and nuclear facilities, and environmental remediation, is the recipient of ASCE’s 2015 Outstanding Projects and Leaders lifetime achievement award for construction. Principal vice president and manager of operations for Bechtel Mining & Metals, Phelps is responsible for the execution performance on 10 major capital projects valued at $25 billion in Peru, Chile, Argentina, Canada, and the U.S. Read about Phelps and his contributions in ASCE News.

NATIONAL CAPITAL SECTION ASCE Foundation first president Curtis Deane dies at 63 Former ASCE senior executive and the first president of the ASCE Foundation Curtis Charles Deane, died April 24 at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach, FL. He was 63.  His influence in the campaign to find, purchase, and renovate a new headquarters for the Society helped it exceed the $3.5 million fundraising goal. Another lasting contribution was the launch of the Legacy Society, an effort to encourage members to leave ASCE a gift in their estate plans. He also oversaw ASCE’s 150th anniversary celebration. Learn more about his life and achievements in ASCE News.

NATIONAL CAPITAL SECTION Keeping the water at bay in historic Alexandria Alexandria, VA, is preparing to beautify its historic waterfront, reconnecting it to the Old Town district, while it protects near-shore development from future flood events. Explore the innovative plans in ASCE’s web-exclusive edition of Civil Engineering magazine.

NATIONAL CAPITAL SECTION Georgetown opening itself up to more transportation options Transportation has garnered the most headlines on the Georgetown Business Improvement District’s Georgetown 2028 report since its release last year. The 15-year vision outlines several ambitious transit plans to better connect Georgetown with the rest of the District. These include a new Metro station – the neighborhood's first – a streetcar along K Street, a pedestrian and bike bridge to Theodore Roosevelt Island, and, most unexpectedly, a gondola line over the Potomac. Explore the interesting approaches to keeping people moving in and through one of Washington’s oldest neighborhoods in ASCE’s web-exclusive edition of Civil Engineering magazine.

IN ASCE’s CIVIL ENGINEERING ONLINE MAGAZINE More detailed bridge data will help stretch repair budgets Shay K. Burrows, P.E., M.ASCE, is leading the creation of a new Federal Highway Administration database of element-level data from bridge inspections that will give a much more detailed picture of the state of the bridges in the National Highway System and help owners stretch their repair budgets. Read about the data collection in ASCE’s web-exclusive Civil Engineering magazine.

CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA SECTION Longtime ASCE journal editor inducted into Virginia Tech Academy of Engineering Excellence Charles E. Bakis, A.M.ASCE, distinguished professor of engineering science and mechanics at Pennsylvania State University, is among the newest inductees into Virginia Tech's College of Engineering Academy of Engineering Excellence. Since 2003, Bakis has served as editor of ASCE’s Journal of Composites for Construction. He has organized or co-organized nine conferences, and he chairs international committees that develop standard test methods for composite materials in civil infrastructure. Get to know Bakis.  Section website>>

DELAWARE SECTION University of Delaware pioneer in sustainability elected Distinguished Member Sue McNeil, Ph.D., P.E., Dist.M.ASCE, an early leader in sustainable thinking and brownfield development, has been elected to the 2015 class of ASCE Distinguished Members. McNeil, a professor of civil and environmental engineering and of urban planning and public affairs at the University of Delaware, has served on the executive committee of the Transportation Research Board. Learn of the other achievements that made McNeil deserving of Distinguished Member status in ASCE News.

NATIONAL CAPITAL SECTION Active member Fred Berger, chair emeritus of the Louis Berger Group, dies at 67 ASCE Fellow Frederic Steven “Fred” Berger, P.E., F.ASCE, chair emeritus and board director of the global professional services firm Louis Berger Group, as well as an expert in the civil engineering field, died recently in Washington, DC. He was 67. Berger spent his career advancing globalization within the engineering and development fields, playing international leadership roles with ASCE, the American Council of Engineering Companies, and the International Engineering and Construction Industry Council. He also advised the Department of Commerce and the Export-Import Bank on trade issues.  Read more about Berger in ASCE News.