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February 2026 President's Message

Is it already February?!

Yes, it is – and what a month that is always jam-packed with opportunities for fun and engagement in our industry and in our personal lives. First I want to say that I hope all were able to weather the storm and inclement conditions, and that you and your families continue to remain safe and warm throughout the winter ahead.

This month will have Valentine’s Day, so be sure to use it as an opportunity to tell those closest to you how you feel. Engineers Week (“E-Week”) runs this month so please look for the events and learning courses that will be offered by all the organizations that promote the engineering practice, including but not limited to ASCE Dallas and our ‘Engineer of the Year’ and ‘Young Engineer of the Year’ award winners being present at the Texas Society of Professional Engineers (TSPE) Awards Luncheon on Wednesday February 18th in Plano. We celebrate Black History Month which also celebrates a 100-Year Milestone. President’s Day is this month, where George Washington is often cited as America’s first engineer. It is also American Heart Month, never forget how important your health is, and of course there’s a little national football game that takes place.

The weather we experienced had some of our exciting events needing to pivot and some to be rescheduled. Our branch’s volunteers for Future Cities helped the organization go from in-person to virtual; a huge success and testament to the great planning and execution to promote engineering to our youth with the theme “Farm to Table”. The ASCE Dallas STEM Education Outreach event with St. Philips School on January 27th was postponed; and we are instead going on February 10th. In addition, on March 24th – 25th, we will be having another STEM Education Outreach event with Frisco ISD where we will need +20 volunteers. Professionals will be able to present on Civil Engineering, ASCE, and coordinate a Class Activity for +200 high school students from one of 7-8 time slots. It is extremely fulfilling and we welcome you to sign-up and join us! --- Please contact Isaac Aguilar, P.E. at [email protected] for more details.

Our branch’s Younger Member (YM) group continues to engage with fun and educational events. A great event at Top Golf in The Colony kicked off the year on January 22nd, and another event is already in the mix. On February 19th, there will be a YM Event at the Hilti Group testing facility, and we are gracious for their synergy to help guide us for an impressive tour with hands-on demonstrations. Space is limited so we are asking folks to only sign-up if you are very confident you will be there! --- Learn more here: February 19th YM Event - Hilti Group Facility.

We are saddened to inform that recently a long contributing member of ASCE, Jim O’Connor has passed away. Also, a former volunteer-and-president of the ASCE Dallas Branch, James “Buddy” Porter passed away in late 2025. We wish the best for their families and honor the contributions they have made to our industry.

Our upcoming meeting on Monday February 9, 2026, sponsored by Ameritex, will feature Michael Pantell, PE, CFM, Principal Engineer at Waterway Engineering as the Keynote Speaker. He will be presenting the topic “Guadalupe River: The Flood Modeling of the July 4th Event“. In addition, we will have a morning Technical Session led by Dr. Ahmed Ismail, PhD, PG, President & Principal Geophysicist at Maxima Geophysics, LLC presenting the “Engineer’s Guide to Geophysics: Communicate Better; Choose the Right Methods; and to Cut Costs and Reduce Risk”.

I look forward to seeing you on February 9th – and remember we are always looking for feedback: ideas for Keynote Speakers and Technical Session Speakers, and we are anxious to show you the benefits your firm can have by contributing to one of our Sponsorship Tiers. Reach out to myself or anyone who volunteers on the Branch Board!

Kind regards,
Patrick Williams, P.E., LEED AP 
ASCE Dallas Branch | President 2025-2026
[email protected]