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Texas Section Awards During CECON Banquet

We are excited to announce that Anwar Akhtar, PE, F.ASCE has been named a fellow by the ASCE Board of Direction and the following ASCE Houston Branch members received the TX Section Awards during CECON banquet in September 2021.

1. Award of Honor: ASCE Houston Past President, LeAnne Napolillo, PE, F.ASCE
2. Service to Student Award: Heather Guillen, P.E., ENV SP

Griselda Gonzalez was also named as ASCE 2021 Outstanding Civil Engineer Advocate of the Year.

On Behalf of ASCE Houston branch, I would like to congratulate all recipients on their achievements. ASCE Houston is proud to have such outstanding members!

LeAnne Napolillo, PE, F.ASCE is a Vice President and Project Director in HNTB’s Houston office, where she also serves as Office Operations Manager.  She has successfully managed and delivered projects in all phases, from planning to design to construction and has substantial experience overseeing complex FHWA major projects, including her previous role as Program Manager for the US 290 Corridor in Houston. 

LeAnne is a licensed Professional Engineer in the State of Texas as a Bachelors of Civil Engineering from Kansas State University and a Masters in Industrial Engineering from University of Houston.  She and her husband David have a 21 year old son, Ryan, who is a Senior at Barry University in Miami, and a 19 year old daughter, Sydney, who will be transferring to Kansas State University in the Fall of 2021.

ASCE Involvement

Houston Branch

Younger Member Committee Chair, 1996

Treasurer, 1997

Branch Director, 1999

Secretary, 2003

VP-Administration, 2004

President-Elect, President, Past-President, 2005-2007

Section Director, 2008-2010

Infrastructure Day (I-Day) Houston Co-Chair, 2010

Texas Section

VP-Education, 2010-2012

Texas Section Meeting Co-Chair Fall 2004; Fall 2009

Texas Civil Engineering Conference (CECON) Co-Chair, 2014-2016

CECON Advisor, 2017-present

CECON Site Selection Committee Chair, 2014; 2016; 2017; 2021

ASCE Texas Section Legislative Drive-in, 2019

Society Level

Legislative Fly-In, 2010

Zone III Representative, National Committee on Younger Members Governor, 1999-2003

Co-Chair Sponsorship Committee, 2001 Houston National Conference

Younger Member Track Chair, Planning Committee, 2002 D.C. National Conference (ASCE 150th Anniversary Celebration)

Member, National Task Committee on Committee Restructuring, 2010

ASCE Technical Region Board of Governors, 2015-2017

Leader Training Committee, 2020-present

Construction Institute

Construction Institute Vice-President, President, Past President, 2015-2018

Construction Institute Summit Co-Chair, 2018

Construction Institute Board Member, 2013-present

Awards

Houston Branch Edmund Friedman Award Recipient, 2002

National Edmund Friedman Award Recipient, 2005

Houston Branch Award of Honor, 2012

Texas Section John A Focht Jr Citizen Engineer Award, 2014

Texas Section Professional Service Award, 2018

Heather Guillen currently serves as the Student Activities Committee Chair for the Texas Section and has had held or assisted in this role for the past four years.  As the Student Activities Committee Chair, her responsibility has been to work with students on continuing to enhance the Student Symposium.  The 1^st annual ASCE Texas Student Symposium was held in 2015 and Ms. Guillen served a significant role which aided in the success of 4 of the past 7 Student Symposiums held from 2018 to 2021.

Ms. Guillen works closely with the Texas Section staff and the ASCE Student Conference Host to organize and run the ASCE Texas (TexASCE) Student Symposium.  This includes leading monthly and weekly meetings with the Symposium Planning Committee meetings and guiding the Student Chapter Host Chair throughout their planning efforts.  Heather also assists with developing and implementing Symposium programs geared toward student transition into professional life.  This consists of coordinating Career Fair events, seeking corporate sponsors to help keep the Student Symposium affordable for students, and identifying speakers for technical and power skill seminars.  In 2020, Ms. Guillen assisted the Symposium Planning Committee with hosting the largest attended TexASCE Student Symposium in its history with over 450 student attendees and 35+ corporate sponsors.  Heather led the efforts in development of the Symposium Sponsorship opportunities and the fundraising efforts which resulted in over $50k of corporate sponsorships, the largest amount ever obtained to support the record breaking event.  In 2021, Ms. Guillen assisted the Symposium Planning Committee in hosting the first ever virtual Student Symposium.  It was a tremendous success with 200+ student and professional attendees.

Ms. Guillen has been an active member of ASCE for over eight years and previously served as the Houston Branch VP Administration, Treasurer and Secretary.  She also served as Communications Director for the Texas Civil Engineering Conference CECON.

Heather Guillen is a Principal in the civil engineering services group at Walter P. Moore & Associates, Inc. in Houston, TX.  She has over 19 years of experience in civil engineering and project management.  Ms. Guillen is a licensed Professional Engineer in Texas.

Ms. Guillen has also been active in community organizations.  She is alumni of the Texas Society of Professional Engineers (TSPE) Professional Engineer Leadership Institute (PELI) Class 6 and Leadership Houston Class XXXIII.  Heather currently serves a board member for the City of Sugar Land Parks, Art, Recreation, Culture, and Streetscapes Board (PARCS). She is also involved with the University of Houston as a member of the advisory board for the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering.

Ms. Guillen is a graduate of the University of Alabama-Tuscaloosa with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering.  She received the 2016 Rising Stars Award from Civil + Structural Engineer and was selected into ENR Texas & Louisiana 2016 class of Top 20 Under 40. 

Ms. Guillen and her husband Wesley have been married for over 15 years and have three sons, Jordan, Jonah and Jalen.  They reside in Sugar Land, Texas.