Birkes has provided marketing and business development leadership for AEC firms for 35 years. She is a member of the College of Fellows for the Society of Marketing Professional Services (SMPS) and a past national president of SMPS and the SMPS Foundation.

Drew Dudley
Manager and Principal
Dudley Engineering LLC

Dudley founded Dudley Engineering LLC in College Station, Texas, in 2017. He has a master’s degree in structural engineering from Texas A&M. Dudley also serves as an adjunct professor in Texas A&M’s construction science department and was a 2019 ENR Texas & Louisiana Top Young Professional.

Meloni (McDaniel) Raney
President and CEO
TEXO, The Construction Assn.

Raney has been with TEXO since 2013 and led the member programs and services efforts until her promotion to president and CEO in 2015. She is a licensed architect in Texas, and she’s active in the Young Women’s Leadership Academy in Fort Worth, which focuses on STEM education.

Natalie Pagano
Director, Marketing & Communications
Manhattan Construction Group

Pagano is a Certified Professional Services Marketer and a University of Maryland SMPS University Leadership Advancement program graduate. She holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism and broadcasting from Oklahoma State University.

Steve Penson
Vice President
Austin Commercial

Penson earned a bachelor’s degree and a master’s in mechanical engineering from Texas A&M University. Before joining Austin Commercial in 1997, he worked as a project manager in Texas Instruments’ corporate real estate group. He currently oversees Austin’s national aviation operations.

Thomas Sofranko
Associate Dean
College of Art + Design, Louisiana State University

Sofranko is a professor of architecture at LSU, where he has worked for 27 years. His research on beginning design education was recently published in “Developing Creative Thinking in Beginning Design.” Sofranko is  a licensed architect and has practiced in Ohio, Florida and Louisiana.

Safety
 

Brent L. Fisher
Safety Director
Yates Construction

Fisher is a certified safety professional and a construction health and safety technician through the Board of Certified Safety Professionals (BCSP).

Trista Shomo
Senior Safety Manager
Manhattan Construction

Shomo is currently working on the Oklahoma State Capitol project. She graduated from Southeastern Oklahoma State University with a degree in occupational safety and health in 2008.

Brandon Smith
Manager of Safety, Health & Security
Greater Baton Rouge Industry Alliance

Smith’s experience includes industrial safety, commercial industries and warehousing operations. He is a certified safety professional through BCSP and an executive board member and past president of the Greater Baton Rouge Chapter of the American Society of Safety Engineers.

Steve Trickel
Vice President of Safety
Zachry Group

Trickel’s primary responsibilities include strategic planning for safety. He leads a safety support team of nearly 400 professionals. Trickel holds a certified safety professional designation.

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