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President's Message May 2026

Dear ASCE Houston Branch Members,

This month has been especially active for our Younger Member and Education Committees. Our biannual volleyball fundraising tournament kicked off the month with great success—22 teams participated, helping us raise over $3,600 for our scholarship program. During our April Branch Meeting, the Houston Branch and our Institutes awarded scholarships to 19 local high school and university students! As we approach finals season, I’d like to wish all of our local students the best of luck in finishing their semesters strong.

Our 6th Annual Shadow an Engineer Day was also a tremendous success, thanks to our Primary & Secondary Education Chairs and our host companies. This year, we welcomed more than 200 students—more than double last year’s participation.

These achievements would not be possible without the support of our dedicated volunteers and generous company sponsors. Their continued investment of time and resources directly impacts our ability to inspire and support the next generation of engineers.

Although we were disappointed that Commissioner Briones was unable to attend our April Branch meeting due to an H-GAC executive session, we appreciate her continued advocacy for infrastructure in our region. We also thank Dr. Rey Guerra for stepping in and providing an insightful overview of the impactful projects underway in Harris County Precinct 4 and highlighting the importance of cross-agency collaboration in delivering meaningful improvements to our community.

Looking ahead, I hope many of you will join us for our upcoming Younger Member and Student Social on May 12 at Cidercade. This free event will be a great opportunity for students and young professionals to connect and build relationships within our engineering community.

This month also marked an exciting milestone with the official founding of the Construction Institute Houston Chapter. To celebrate, the new chapter will host a construction-focused panel at our May Branch Meeting titled “Beyond the Blueprint: Bridging the Gap Between Design Intent and Field Reality.” The panel will feature Houston Engineer of the Year Brian Manning (CEO of MC² Civil), Andrew Holick (Director of Construction, TxDOT Houston District), and Leilani Theilen (Deputy Director of Capital Projects & Infrastructure, HCTRA), and will be moderated by our Construction Institute Chair, Moe Elahmad.

We are excited to launch this new Institute and look forward to the valuable insights this discussion will bring on turning engineering designs into real-world solutions.

Thank you for your continued engagement and support of the ASCE Houston Branch. I look forward to seeing many of you at our upcoming events.

Sincerely,

Anna Chamberlain, PE, CFM, ENV SP

President

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