The following questions were posed to our 2026 Western District candidates to get to know them a little better.

Why do you want to be a District officer?

Being a district officer will give me a clearer understanding of how ITE operates as a whole and allows me to contribute in a more meaningful way. I bring a different perspective from others in this field, and I want to use that to help grow and strengthen the organization.

Why did you join ITE?

I joined ITE because a colleague encouraged me to get involved when the section needed support. Before that, I mostly knew ITE through conferences as a vendor. Saying yes was one of the best decisions I’ve made! It gave me a better understanding of the industry and introduced me to people I now value working with.

What is your favorite ITE memory?

My first Traffic Bowl. It was great seeing the future of our industry in this competitive and fun environment where everyone really got to nerd out about the stuff only we know. Seeing Alumni cheer for their teams and students getting excited about winning. It is just such a great celebration of our niche world.

What was the best advice you’ve been given?

Who you are is defined by what you’re willing to struggle for

What is the most challenging project you have worked on?

Monterey California Adaptive Signal project. I had to coordinate multiple stakeholders, solution providers, contractors, and the general public to come together on a tight budget, tight timeline, and above all…it had to work!

What is a fun fact about you that not many people know?

I am 6’8” tall, and have always been absolutely terrible at basketball

What are three words that best describe you? 

Social, creative, and hiker

If you could travel anywhere, where would that be and what would be your preferred mode of transportation?

I am actually doing that later this year! I finally booked my trip to the Alps, I will be driving from Munich down to Austria and across to Switzerland then riding the train to Milan. From there I will be taking a ferry across the Adriatic Sea. Literally hitting all forms of transportation in one trip!

Why do you want to be a District officer?

ITE has been critical for improving my knowledge in the fields of transportation planning and engineering and has played a key part in my professional development as a civil engineer. I would like to become a District officer to help the organization continue to support transportation engineers, planners, and those looking to enter the fields throughout the Western District.

Why did you join ITE?

I started with Students in Transportation Engineering & Planning (ITE-STEP), the Portland State University student chapter, when I was wrapping up my undergraduate degree. As my focus in engineering evolved from structural to transportation during my graduate studies, I turned to ITE for additional educational opportunities to expand my knowledge and learn more about the field. After finishing my M.S. degree, I continued to rely on ITE to keep up with current practices.

What is your favorite ITE memory?

Early in my career and during one of my first visits to Washington, D.C. for the Transportation Research Board, I was invited to attend a social event at newly opened ITE Headquarters. At that event I was able to meet many professionals to discuss their experiences in the field and even met Rock Miller who was working his way towards International President at the time. This event introduced me to ITE’s exceptional community.

What was the best advice you’ve been given?

“Always keep learning” has been the advice that has stuck with me since a young age. Between meetings, webinars, and the ITE Journal, ITE has helped me continue to learn about the best practices in the field of transportation engineering as well as new advancements in transportation technology.

What is the most challenging project you have worked on?

While working at Lancaster Engineering, I was tasked with drafting a “rough concept” for a roundabout at a busy intersection. No one at the firm had experience with roundabouts, so I used resources from ITE and FHWA to design what I thought a roundabout would look like at that location. The concept was liked so well, we were hired to prepare full construction documents and it ultimately was built per my design.

What is a fun fact about you that not many people know?

I enjoy all things aviation. I’m easily distracted when aircraft are flying overhead, I geek out over aviation history, I love looking over planes at airshows and museums, and I even have worked towards obtaining my private pilot certification. My love of aviation was what got me into engineering.

What are three words that best describe you? 

“Curious” – I’m always wondering why or how something works. I have a tendency to dive deep into “rabbit holes” and research when trying to understand a problem.

“Adaptive” – There are almost always multiple solutions to issues and constraints or even goals are shifting often. I aim to be flexible when picking what appears to be the best solution to tackle the issue.

“Detailed” – See the “curious” discussion above. I enjoy digging into the details to find understanding.

If you could travel anywhere, where would that be and what would be your preferred mode of transportation?

If I can’t go back in time in a 1981 DeLorean or an 1891 Rogers 4-6-0 locomotive, I’d choose to go to London via the Concorde. From there I’d love to explore the history of the city using a combination of The Tube, double-decker buses, and a bicycle.

Why do you want to be a District officer?

The role of an International Director is to represent the Western District on the ITE International Board of Direction (IBOD) and provide members with updates on ITE through the Sections, Chapters and Student Chapters. I look forward to representing all 3700 members of the Western District at the international level to leave the district and institute in a better place when I am done. I want to be a part of the evolution of ITE.

Why did you join ITE?

As an entry level in the northeast, I had little exposure to ITE. When I relocated to SoCal, I worked for a small company and needed a way to expand my network and improve my technical skills. Attending ITE meetings accomplished both and provided me with an outlet for professional development with great people and up to date technical information. My experience in ITE has been very rewarding.

What is your favorite ITE memory?

I have many great memories of attending ITE Western District meetings. My favorite memories revolve around the friends I have made and this feeling of family that surrounds our organization. I think my favorite memories were related to attending the Hawaii meeting with my family and combining a great conference with wonderful memories of my children enjoying Honolulu in 2006.

What was the best advice you’ve been given?

I have had a lot of great mentors and friends in the industry, many made through ITE. I owe a lot to ITE and met my future wife at an ITE conference. Early in my career, I had a supervisor who told me, “No one is going to care about your career as much as you do”. That was a wakeup call! As a result, I accepted a new job in SoCal, joined ITE and expanded my career. It has been a great ride, and I want to continue to give back to the institute.

What is the most challenging project you have worked on?

I have had the opportunity to work on some amazing regionally significant projects in my career. In RI, I got to work on the Civic Center Interchange project, during the late 1990’s I was working at the forefront of ITS (then called IVHS) nationwide. Now, I have the satisfaction of working on multimodal projects all over LA. Honestly, one of most challenging things I have done in my career was working on the LAC for the 2022 Palm Springs Meeting, a truly rewarding experience!

What is a fun fact about you that not many people know?

I am an avid sports fan and play tennis whenever I can get away with it, sometimes four or five times per week! I am a huge fan of European football (Soccer) and cannot wait for the World Cup this summer. I support my Boston teams, the Red Sox, Celtics and Patriots along with Liverpool FC.

What are three words that best describe you? 

This is a tough question so I asked a few of my family and friends and they say that I am Hardworking, dependable and adaptable but far from perfect…..

If you could travel anywhere, where would that be and what would be your preferred mode of transportation?

Anyone who knows me knows I hate to fly, I do it to get places I want to go! So, once I am there any mode goes except for getting on another plane. I would really like to go back to the UK and Europe and travel by train. Scotland and Croatia are my favorite. I would like to visit southeast Asia someday.

Why do you want to be a District officer?

In addition to my work with the ITE Western District, I’m also involved in standards development such as NTCIP and ATC. These standards are joint products of ITE, AASHTO, and NEMA, with ITE playing a significant role in project delivery. There are process and governance improvements I believe can be made to improve the quality of our standards. As an International Director, I want to help shape the next generation of high-quality standards.

Why did you join ITE?

Three months into my first job as a traffic engineering consultant, one of our principals found me in the breakroom and said, “Oregon ITE is looking for a new scribe. I think it would be a good opportunity for you.” In that moment, I was too scared to say anything except “yes.” That “yes” turned out to be the first step in my professional ITE career, and one of my best life choices.

What is your favorite ITE memory?

It’s hard to pick just one, but I’ll try. I was the co-chair of the 2018 ITE QUAD Conference, a joint meeting of the ITE Washington, Oregon, Greater Vancouver, and Vancouver Island Sections. The feeling of exhilaration, exhaustion, and satisfaction that came over me after successfully executing the meeting is one of my favorite ITE memories. I’m sure many Annual Meeting LAC Chairs can relate.

What was the best advice you’ve been given?

“Whenever possible, listen first and talk later.”

What is the most challenging project you have worked on?

One of my most challenging projects was signalizing two closely spaced intersections outside of Bozeman, Montana. This project had it all: a recent fatality, a rail crossing, personnel turnover, and new CAD standards. In the end, the team found a solution that met everyone’s needs. The project delivered Montana’s first rail pre-signal and came in on time and within budget.

What is a fun fact about you that not many people know?

In addition to being a traffic nerd, I’m also an art nerd. You’ll often catch me adding a vacation day to business trips to visit an art museum. I’m looking forward to presenting at this year’s ITE International Meeting and adding a visit to the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA). Despite common preconceptions about Detroit, the DIA is consistently ranked among the top art museums in the United States.

What are three words that best describe you? 

I’m all in!

If you could travel anywhere, where would that be and what would be your preferred mode of transportation?

The Moon! I would presumably travel by rocket ship, but I wouldn’t turn down a trip via space elevator or teleporter. If we’re thinking a bit more down to earth, I’d love to visit the world’s largest collection of paintings at the State Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg. Sadly, the current political situation in Russia makes that impractical in the near term.