We are a couple of months into our 2023-24 ASCE calendar. The Kansas Section hosted a Coffee Social in Lawrence, Manhattan, Topeka & Wichita on Friday, November 3rd to celebrate ASCE Day (November 5th) and the Society’s 171st Anniversary. At our November lunch meeting, the KS Section met at KDOT Eisenhower State Office Building and Secretary Calvin Reed covered KDOT Updates along with summing up the October Local Consult Meetings process hosted throughout the state. Looking ahead to the Spring 2024 Calendar we have planned a lunch meeting in February at Topeka, the Joint KS Section and Student Chapters Banquet Meeting on March 26th in Lawrence.
As Dr. Schiff pursued a career opportunity in another state this summer, we want to thank him for his years of service on the KS Section Board and his leadership with the K-State student chapter. We welcome newcomers Dr. Chien-Ho Ko and Scott Lindebak to the KS Section Board. I also want to thank Daniel Schrant for agreeing to stay on as Kansas Conference Chair during his Past-President role this upcoming year. Daniel and the committee have done an outstanding job of creating a diverse list of guest speakers and topics that have generated very good attendance coupled with the social outing afterwards at the Wind Surge Baseball game the past couple of summers.
Award nomination applications have been sent out and are on the website. Please consider nominating a member for the following award categories: Section Outstanding Younger Member, Outstanding Member, Outstanding Faculty Practitioner Advisor, & Lifetime Achievement. Our members forwarded very well deserving candidates for consideration last year and the board looks forward to the same this year.
Lastly, I encourage our membership to get involved in your community. There are multiple opportunities to do this on a local level with such programs as Future City Competition, Mathcounts, ASCE Key Contacts, and so on. Help share your knowledge base with up and coming engineers and help shape policy to fund infrastructure in our communities.
Jim Ubert, P.E.
ASCE – KS Section President
