A Better World By Design
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By: Clinton Willson, PhD, PE
ASCE Baton Rouge Branch President

First off, let me say what and honor and privilege it is to serve as the ASCE Baton Rouge Branch President. Over the past several years while serving as a board member and officer I have had the pleasure of getting to know an outstanding group of men and women dedicated to serving our members and improving our profession. I would like to give a special thanks to Adam Smith for his strong leadership over the past year.

 

For those who don’t know me, I grew up in western PA and earned my B.S. in Aerospace Engineering from Penn State. After graduation, I spent almost 7 years in the U.S. Marine Corps and then attended the University of Texas at Austin where I obtained a M.S. in Environmental Health Engineering and a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering. After two years as a postdoctoral research associate at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, my family and I moved to Baton Rouge. I’ve been a faculty member in the LSU Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering for 13 years teaching mostly water resources and some environmental engineering classes.  I’ve been married to my wife, Kay, for over 22 years and have three sons - Andrew, Tyler and Meyer.

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Russell J. "Joey" Coco, Jr., P.E. MBA
2011 Edmond Friedman Young Engineer Award for Professional Achievement

Earlier this year, Joey Coco, was nominated by the Louisiana Section of ASCE for and was recepient of the Edmond Friedman Young Engineer Award for Professional Achievement.   This prestigious award is presented by the Society to recognize achievements of ASCE members who are 35 years and younger who have demonstrated service to the profession, achievements in their careers and contributions to public service.  The award citation reads "For professional achievement in service to the advancement of the profession, evidence of technical competence, high character and integrity, and contributions to public service outside his career."  As part of his selection, the committee cited Joey's work ethic and service to the community.

Joey is an integral part of ASCE as the Secretary/Treasurer of the Baton Rouge Chapter, the Deputy Director of the Louisiana Report Card, and as a Director for the Louisiana Section.

Joey was presented the award at the October 20-22 ASCE National Conference in Memphis, TN.

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Free PDH Session and 2011-2012 Baton Rouge Board Introduction Highlight September Luncheon
The Baton Branch provided 3 PDH credits prior to the September 15th luncheon at Drusilla 's Seafood.  The training session and luncheon were provided free of charge to the branch as a way to help pay back the generosity and commitment from the branch membership.  During the luncheon the 2011-2012 Baton Rouge Branch Board was sworn in by Charles Eustis.  The picture to the right shows a majority of the board.  From left to right: Jennifer Richmond, Danielle Welborn, Steve Gunter, Clint Willson, back row: Rudy Simoneaux, Sam Amoroso, Kirk Lowery and Adam Smith. 

The topics and speakers during the training session were:
  • Sam Amoroso, Engensus - Seismic Loading Basics for Buildings
  • Joe Harmon, LAPELS (Ethics) - LAPELS Regulations for Signing and Sealing
  • Brad Ponder, CSRS - Green Light Program Update
  • Frank Smith, Pipe Tech, Inc. - Computer Modeling of Pressure Transients
  • Robert Werner, Ardaman & Associates - Geotechnical Design and Monitoring for Staged Construction
UPCOMING EVENTS


Luncheons:
                                       

January 19, 2012 - Stormwater Underground Detention/Retention Infiltration Systems Design and Material Selection

       Speaker: Bill Aller, Contech
      
Time and Location:  11:30, Drusilla Catering
       $25 Members, $30 Non-Members, $10 Students
       Sponsors: GEC, Inc. & Brown and Caldwell
                                   1 PDA will be provided!
                                   RSVP:
secretary.ascebr@gmail.com 


November 17, 2011 -   Mississippi River Flood 2011
     Speakers: Susan Douglas, CH2M Hill
         and Jim Ferguson, DPW
         Time and Location: 11:30 Drusilla's Seafood
                                     $25 Members, $30 Non-Members
                                     Sponsor: GeoEngineers, Inc.
                                     RSVP: 
secretary.ascebr@gmail.com
           
December 2, 2011 - Annual Christmas Party
             Bocage Racquet Club
             7600 Jefferson Highway
             7:00 PM to 10:30 PM
                            
Upcoming Events:

October 2011
October 20

ASCE BR Chapter

Field Visit to Pinnacle Casino Job Site

More Info

October 27-28

Region 5 Seminar

Deep Foundations: Design, Construction and Quality Control

More Info

November 2011
November 3-4

Region 5 Seminar

Stormwater BMPs That Work: Effective Analysis, Design and Maintenance

More Info

November 16-18

Region 5 Seminar

Techniques for Pavement Rehabilitation

More Info

November 17

ASCE BR Chapter

Mississippi River Flood 2011

More Info

November 17-18

Region 5 Seminar

Practical Hydrology of Rural and Urban Watersheds More Info
November 17-18

Region 5 Seminar

Soil and Rock Slope Stability More Info
December 2011
December 2 ASCE BR Chapter Annual Christmas Party

More Info


IN THE NEWS


Making the Grade

The Louisiana Section of ASCE is moving forward to join only 22 other states that have published Infrastructure report cards. The report card is intended to raise the public’s awareness on Louisiana’s infrastructure. The Louisiana Report Card Committee is comprised of 40 volunteers from both public and private sectors with many different technical and administrative backgrounds. Kam Movassaghi, Ph.D., P.E., serves as the executive director of the report card.

There are 9 major infrastructure categories that will be considered in the Louisiana Report Card: Roads, Bridges, Dams, Hazardous and Solid Waste, Drinking Water, Wastewater, Levees, Aviation, and Ports. Data on each of these topics was collected and grades assigned to each area based on factors such as the infrastructure’s overall condition, capacity, funding, operation and maintenance, public safety, and resilience. Recommendations were made, where applicable, to advise key decision makers on ways to sustain positive grades or ways to improve upon poor grades.

It is anticipated that the Report Card for Louisiana’s Infrastructure will be completed in the January of 2012. We ask for your support of the volunteers who are ...
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AROUND THE BRANCH


Young Members - Activities! by Jennifer Richmond
Congratulations! The Louisiana Section has won the 2011 Younger Member Renewal Race! We are splitting the prize with the three other Louisiana YM Groups. The Younger Member group volunteered on November 18, 2011 at the Great Baton Rouge Food Bank. Members from our Southern Chapter also helped out! 

Also, Younger members attended the Baton Rouge Branch ASCE Christmas Party on December 2, 2011. A big group of us went out to The Cove after the festivities! Attendees included: Stephanie Bayne, Ashly Adams, Paul Tschirky, Jas Singh, David Salom, Thomas Montz, Jasmin Richardson, Chris Banks, Blake Vutera, Vindhya Kemisetti and Stephanie Hanses.
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ASCE Fellow

Billy Wall, P.E. was accepted to the fellow membership grade with ASCE. ASCE Fellows occupy the Society’s second-highest membership grade, exceeded only by Honorary Members. Fellow status must be attained by professional accomplishments via application and election by the Membership Application Review Committee. It is a prestigious honor held by fewer than 5% of ASCE members. Fellows are practitioners, educators, mentors, and most of all leaders. They have distinguished careers that have contributed significantly to the Civil Engineering profession. The accomplishments of Fellows have left their marks on their communities, society, and future engineering professionals. Billy has recently become the 34th Fellow of the Baton Rouge Branch.   Rudy Simoneaux is shown presenting the Fellow plaque to Billy.

Billy Wall received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Civil Engineering from Louisiana Tech University in 1986.   He has over 25 years of experience working for private industry, consulting and in the public sector.  Billy's career started at the Texas Highway Department in Dallas, Texas before moving to the Baton Rouge area in 19...
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Engineer's Humor

To the optimist, the glass is half full.
To the pessimist, the glass is half empty.
To the engineer, the glass is twice as big as it needs to be.


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