PRESIDENT'S PERSPECTIVE: PART 2/2

September / October 2013
President's Perspective

by Carolyn Berg

President, 2013-2014

Here I stand, at the beginning of my sixth year with our ASCE Branch Board. Within a mere blink of the years, it has been my good fortune of getting to know our local civil engineering community, of being inspired by the dedicated individuals involved in our Branch and of growing personally as a community member and a leader. Throughout those years I have witnessed true testaments to dedication, enthusiasm and genuine interest in building our local community. Thanks to you, it is now my opportunity to give back to our members while serving as Branch President.

To jump start my efforts in this new role, I attended the ASCE Presidents and Governors Forum in Washington D.C. Several speakers asked us to consider why we got involved in ASCE. And more, why we continued to stay involved. Essentially pointing us to figure out what about ASCE brought value to each of us. What we found was that people get involved for a whole gamut of reasons (my first boss, John Hollenbeck, strongly “encouraged” my involvement by setting an Annual Review goal to participate in ASCE – I had no idea the impact that would have). Whatever the catalyst though, many of us now find ourselves rooted in this wonderful community.

I encourage each of you to reflect on why you first engaged in ASCE. And digging deeper, consider why you have continued to stay involved in our local ASCE Branch. The reason I stay involved is ultimately the hope of touching lives, building a stronger community, and (cliche as it is) making a difference - all of which start here with our local members and volunteers, YOU. Whatever your reasons may be, thank you!

Our Board works hard each year to bring value to your Branch and your experience of ASCE. Each officer brings particular strengths and ideas to the table, but we all look to you to help define where our Branch should focus its efforts. This year is no exception. We are fortunate to have an energized, creative and hardworking Board at the ready - looking for ways to improve ASCE. Please take a few minutes to fill out our survey later this month and help us to bring the most value to your ASCE experience.

With your input and help, we hope to continue to build on the momentum and hard work of last year’s Board members by: engaging in Younger Members Forum events (thanks to the dedicated efforts by Kyle Anderson, Wes Thomson and the YMF Board!), continuing our annual K-12 Outreach efforts (thanks to Cara Martinez’s leadership and our many volunteers!), advocating for infrastructure improvements (thanks to Mike Britton for attending the last year’s Fly-In!), spreading the word about what we as CEs do (thanks to Wes Thompson for creating our local ASCE SLO blog!), mentoring and working with the Cal Poly SCE students (thanks to Jazz Gilbert, Gregg Fiegel, and the SCE officers), or encouraging members to grow into leaders, as Tom Martin did so effectively over the past year. I welcome you all to jump right in this year and get involved – welcome new members, talk with the SCE students, volunteer or come to events, and take ownership of your Branch!

Again thank you so much for your participation in our local ASCE activities. I look forward to seeing you all soon! Please feel free to reach out to me with any ideas you have or to get involved in our many wonderful opportunities.

Carolyn K. Berg

ASCE SLO Branch President