Articles

Happy New Year! 

 I hope you enjoyed the holidays and are as excited to welcome 2024 as I am – because it is our “Centennial Year!” 

 To kickoff off our first Membership Meeting of 2024, scheduled for Monday, January 8th, Mr. Ed Penton, P.E., our Centennial Celebration Committee Chair and Past President, will share some interesting, historical facts related to our profession that generally occurred in the first decade of our Branch’s existence, as well other information related to theme of “Honoring our Past, Celebrating our Present and Engineering our Future!” You don’t want to miss it. 

 We’re also excited to welcome Mr. Clarence Daugherty, P.E., Director of Engineering – Collin County, as our keynote speaker presenting on the topic, “Collin County: Past, Present, Future.” Last November, Collin County voters approved five propositions of a bond totaling $683 million for roads, other government facilities and more. Collin County has a population of more than one million and is the third-fastest developing county in the nation, according to the U.S. Census. 

 Immediately prior to our luncheon keynote presentation, beginning at 11:00 AM, Mr. Nishant "Nick" Dayal, P.E. of HNTB Corporation will present on, “Understanding & Enhancing Factor of Safety (FoS) in Retaining Wall Design & Construction.” Please visit our website to register for these sessions. 

At our December Membership Meeting, Mr. Quinn Spann, P.E. led our Christmas is for Caring fundraising drive. Because of his efforts and your generosity, the members of the Dallas Branch of the American Society of Civil Engineers donated $1,445 toward the 45th Annual “Christmas Is for Caring Campaign.” To date our members have given $34,485 to the Denton State Supported Living Center (formally known as the Denton State School) since we started in 2003. This is incredible and I’m incredibly proud of our Branch. 

 We have volunteer opportunities! 

 Mr. Eric Webb, P.E., our “Future Cities Champion,” is seeking volunteers to serve as judges for the upcoming Future Cities Competition scheduled for Saturday, January 27 at Tarrant County College - Trinity River Campus. The Future City Competition inspires young students about engineering by challenging them to solve the real-world problems associated with building a livable city of the future. Through a series of fun, hands-on applications, student teams will apply the principles of every branch of engineering to address their future cities’ issues. This year’s theme is “Electrify Your Future.” More than 50 schools are working hard on their city concepts and their solutions to the city electrification challenge. If you’re interested in participating, please contact Eric at [email protected]. Thank you, Eric, for your leadership. 

 Mr. Carlos Negron, P.E., our “Girl Scouts Champion,” is seeking volunteers to assist with the Girls Scouts of Northeast Texas’ “Cookie Mega Drop” scheduled for Thursday, January 11, 2024, at the Girl Scouts Garland Warehouse. They are still in need of a couple more volunteers for the 12:30 pm to 4:30 pm shift. Volunteers will distribute packages of cookies to troop volunteers to help them kick off their cookie businesses for the 2024 Cookie Program! This is a non-girl facing event and you will be interacting with troop volunteers and our amazing Girl Scout leaders. Please contact Carlos at [email protected] to participate. Thank you, Carlos, for your leadership. 

 This month our President Elect Fadi Faraj, P.E. and Younger Member Committee Chair Clint Owens, P.E. will participate in the Society’s 2024 Regions 3, 6, & 7 Multi-regional Leadership Conference (MRLC.) The purpose of the MRLC is to provide a venue for upcoming leaders to gain knowledge of the Society and their Region, interact with students, younger members, section, branch, and institute leaders, while gaining personal leadership skills. I want to thank them for their dedication to our Branch and their commitment to advancing our Branch into the future.  

 Thank you to all who submitted nominations for our 2024 Engineer of the Year (EOY) and Young Engineer of the Year (YEOY) awards – we received several excellent candidates. Our Honors Committee is presently reviewing and evaluating the nominees and will soon announce our awardees. The Dallas Branch is excited to not only honor our 2023 and 2024 EOY and YEOY awardees at our very own October Awards Banquet, but at the forthcoming 2024 TSPE Engineering Weeks Awards Luncheon scheduled for Wednesday, February 21, 2024, as well. 

 Lastly, I want to congratulate Nancy Cline, P.E. (Dallas Branch President ’22-’23) and the 2022-2023 Board of Directors for being awarded the 2023 Outstanding Section and Branch Award Certificate of Commendation, in the Medium Section and Branch membership category, by the Leader Training Committee of the Society. Winners of the 2023 Outstanding Section and Branch Awards for the following categories include: 

 Small Sections and Branches: Richmond Branch 

Medium Sections and Branches: Miami Dade Branch 

Large Sections and Branches: Metropolitan (NY) Section 

Very Large Sections and Branches: Texas Section 

 Please don’t hesitate to contact me with your ideas, questions, and feedback. I am here to serve you and the Dallas Branch to the best of my abilities. If you are looking for ways to get involved, I’d love to speak with you. Together, we can do our part to advance the Dallas Branch for the next 100 years. 

 My best! 

 Reece E. Taylor, P.E. 

ASCE Dallas Branch | President ’23 - ‘24