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Upcoming Chapter Events:
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SAVE THE DATES:
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2015-2016 OFFICERS/DIRECTORS
PRESIDENT
Matthew F. Villareale
Assistant Director of Public Works
Prince William County, Virginia
PRESIDENT ELECT
Dawn V. Odom
Planning and Investment Manager
Virginia Department of Transportation
Suffolk, Virginia
PAST PRESIDENT
Judith L. Hines
Assistant Director of Public Works
City of Newport News, Virginia
VICE PRESIDENT
Kenneth M. Eyre, P.E
Senior Associate
Greeley and Hansen, LLC
Alexandria, Virginia
SECRETARY
Steven J. Yob, P.E.
County Eng/Director PW
Henrico County, Virginia
TREASURER
Fred Whitley, P.E.
Senior Project Manager
AECOM
Newport News, Virginia
DIRECTORS
Robert K. Bengtson, P.E.
Director of Public Works
City of Roanoke, Virginia
David Bradshaw
Principal
Clark Nexsen
Virginia Beach, Virginia
Harold R. Caples, P.E.
Engineering Manager
Virginia Department of Transportation
Richmond, Virginia
Donald J. Cole
Office Leader
Brown and Caldwell
Virginia Beach, Virginia
Sherry B. Earley, P.E.
Engineering Manager
City of Suffolk, Virginia
Shont� Eldridge, PMP
Chief, Special Projects
Department of Public Works
City of Baltimore, Maryland
Gaynelle L. Hart
Director of Public Works
City of Lynchburg, Virginia
Phillip J. Koetter, P.E.
Operations Management Administrator
Department of Public Works
City of Virginia Beach, Virginia
Joe Kroboth, III, P.E., L.S., PWLF
Director, Transp. and Cap. Infrastructure
Loudoun County, Virginia
Kelly Mattingly, LEED-AP, CRM
Director of Public Works
Town of Blacksburg, Virginia
David W. Plum, P.E.
Senior Manager, Municipal Engineering
Rummel, Klepper & Kahl, LLP
Virginia Beach, Virginia
DELEGATE
Judith L. Hines
Assistant Director of Public Works
City of Newport News, Virginia
HISTORIAN
Sharyn L. Fox
Municipal Program Manager
Whitman Requardt and Associates, LLP
Newport News, Virginia
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President's Corner
This past fall, the Mid-Atlantic APWA Chapter in conjunction with Virginia Tech successfully hosted the first Public Works Institute session at Blacksburg, VA. It was attended by over two dozen Public Works professionals. The attendees ranged from directors to front line managers. This diverse assortment of perspectives facilitated more learning between the attendees and with the instructors. Feedback received from the attendees and instructors was extremely positive. The next session is scheduled for April 5-7, 2016 in Newport News, VA. The PWI is a great opportunity for organizations to develop current and future leaders to take over the reins of their agencies.
In October, the Mid-Atlantic APWA Chapter Board held its annual strategic planning session. Brian Patterson, the national APWA Chapter Membership Manager, attended our session. Brian shared with us the different approaches used by other APWA chapters to achieve their goals. Also, he provided insight into the trends of APWA national. During our session, we worked on creating measurable objectives. We will focus on attaining our three identified goals of Recruiting Young Professionals, Membership Outreach and Education. The Board was able to come up with some measureable objectives that will be shared with the chapter in the near future via our website.
As 2015 is coming to a close, I am thankful to be a part of Public Works industry. Public Works professionals are 1st Responders but more importantly we are 1st Providers. Every day, the citizens and customers of our municipalities are impacted by the work completed by Public Works professionals. From the start of our residents' days when they take a shower, put out the trash or get on the road, their lives are touched by Public Works. Not everyone can definitively state that they did something today to improve the lives of others. Public Works professionals can emphatically make that statement. I hope everyone has a Safe and Happy Holiday Season and a prosperous 2016.
Matt Villareale
Chapter President
APWA Mid-Atlantic Chapter
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Successful Inaugural Session of Public Works Institute
The Chapter and Virginia Tech University successfully launched the Mid-Atlantic Public Works Institute(M-PWI) Sept. 22-24 at the Blacksburg Hilton Garden Inn. Twenty-nine students registered for this inaugural event, jam-packed for three full days and led by a group of talented, volunteer public works practitioners. Special thanks to the following public works agencies who committed time away for the students to become engaged in this meaningful and worthwhile, unique educational experience. - City of Alexandria, VA
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Mid-Atlantic Public Works Institute inaugural Blacksburg, VA class, instructors and Steering Committee members
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- City of Hampton, VA
- City of Fredericksburg, VA
- City of Lynchburg, VA
- City of Martinsburg, WV
- City of Newport News, VA
- City of Norfolk, VA
- City of Petersburg, VA
- City of Salem, VA
- City of Virginia Beach, VA
- Town of Blacksburg, VA
- Town of Christiansburg, VA
- Town of Smithfield, VA
- Town of Vienna, VA
Steering Committee Member and Immediate Chapter Past-President Judi Hines provided an overview of APWA's Donald C. Stone Center for Excellence and
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Virginia Beach's Phil Koetter providing "Motivating Your Employees" instruction
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encouraged these emerging leaders to consider furthering their careers by pursuing credentialing in the supervisor, management and executive tracks. Steering Committee Chair Scott Smith provided several of the training sessions and weaved his Donald C. Stone experience with the other career, personal and professional insights. A welcome reception was held the first night at 622 North in downtown Blacksburg. The Chapter sponsored this networking event. Kudos to Kelly Mattingly, Director of Public Works for the Town of Blacksburg, VA, for coordinating the 622 North outing and Hooptie transportation.
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One of Buz Rhees' group exercises
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Other Steering Committee members who were instrumental in the planning and execution of the M-PWI included: David Jarrell, PE, PWLF, Director of Public Works, City of Annapolis, MD ; Tim Berkhimer, PE, (VDOT); James Jackson; Ricky Bourne, Director of Public Works, Town of Christiansburg, VA; Reed Fowler, Director of Public Works, City of Newport News. VA; Gaynelle Hart, Director of Public Works, City of Lynchburg, VA; Phillip Koetter, PE Operations Administrator, Department of Public Works, City of Virginia Beach, VA; and Kenneth Eyre, PE, Senior Associate, Greeley and Hansen, LLC.
Special recognition to Matt earnest and Scott Weimer of Virginia Tech's Continued Professional Education (CPE) office for collaborating with the Chapter to make the M-PWI a success.
Look for the next round of M-PWI sessions, to be held April 5-7, 2016 in Virginia Beach, VA. More details will be available on Chapter's website,HERE.
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Committee Volunteer Activity - UCI Bike Race Recycling Carts
What happens when 500,000 people come to Richmond to watch an international
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At Hopkins Road PW facility - all recycle cans
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bike race? They generate a lot of trash. The City of Richmond made a commitment) to the UCI Road World Championship planners to hold a sustainable event. They were the first city to receive the official UCI recycling eco-label. To help support Richmond in its goal, the APWA Mid-Atlantic Sustainability Committee decided to lend a hand in labeling over 500
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| | Becky Ruiz, Marshall Agee and John Carty from VHB finish up the trash cans |
super cans as trash, recycling or composting. The goal was to minimize the trash going to the landfill not only for this event but for future events. Kelly Mattingly, Jennifer Privette, Lynn Lancaster, Denise Nelson, and Diane Linderman spent a warm afternoon in August with Alicia Zatcoff, the City of Richmond Sustainability Direct or, as they attached Multilanguage decals to the top and sideof the cans. The APWA team finished up 75% of the cans before wrapping up and getting hydrated. Staff at VHB, Inc. came behind them to finish up the job.
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Chapter to celebrate 60th Anniversary in 2016!
In 2016 the Mid-Atlantic Chapter will celebrate our 60th Anniversary. Starting from humble beginnings, with the September 8, 1956 organizational meeting held in Richmond, VA, representatives from Washington DC and Virginia convened to formalize the Chapter. On April 2, 1958, APWA approved the addition of Maryland to our Chapter membership. In 2012 West Virginia joined our ranks, and the name was changed to the Mid-Atlantic Chapter. In 2016, the Chapter will be hosting our 58th annual public works conference and expo (in Roanoke),
 continuing the educational tradition since the 1956 organizing meeting, for all but two years of our existence!
For upcoming newsletters, we want each member and agency to share with us your most memorable Chapter moment, serious or funny. If you have photographs and dates to help tell your story, we want to hear from you! If you have other ideas and want to lead a related initiative, please contact one of your Chapter leaders.
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Chapter's 2016 Roanoke Conference Planning Underway!
Dawn Odom, President-Elect
The 2016 Conference Committee is busy planning for the 58th Conference & Equipment Show, May 4-6, 2016 at the Hotel Roanoke and Conference Center in Roanoke, VA. Development of the technical program is underway and the committee held a kickoff meeting in August to firm up logistics.
The conference theme is "Public Works Gets Things Done" and will showcase how public works agencies consistently operate and maintain infrastructure with limited financial resources, how public works professionals provide continuous service in all weather conditions and how public works leaders successfully navigate changes in state and federal policies. This theme recognizes the agencies and their employees for service that never sleeps and is a fitting compliment to the Chapter's 60th anniversary. The Mid-Atlantic Chapter turns 60 years old in 2016 and organizers plan to incorporate a fitting tribute at the conference social event to be held at the Virginia Museum of Transportation.
Please mark your calendar now for the 58th Conference & Equipment Show. This  regional conference will bring together public works professionals from the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia to meet for educational seminars and exchange ideas, information and insights. The conference program will include the annual ROAD-e-o and golf tournament and organizers hope to offer even more opportunities for attendee involvement. Look for sponsorship opportunities, logistics and registration information soon.
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The Success Mindset
What makes us successful eventually works against us.
It begins as children, when we are rewarded for following the rules: grade  advancements, positive recognition, maybe even a cookie! This Making-an-A mentality becomes embedded because it works for us. It opens doors and creates opportunities. Cooperation, compliance, hitting an established mark gets us what we want. The more time we spend in the education system, the more deeply entrenched we become, usually unknowingly, in the idea that our effort will be rewarded just because that's the way the system works.
But the Making-an-A mentality can only take us so far. In the work world, we reach a point where hitting an established mark is the basic expectation. Further advancement, salary increases and opportunities are not rewarded for just doing the job.
Sally (real person, fake name) is a great example. Her high school guidance counselor, impressed by her math scores, recommended engineering school. Appreciating a clearly defined path into a stable, well-paying profession, Sally earned bachelor's and master's degrees in Civil Engineering. She landed a great job, had key roles in some big projects, and even oversaw a small team of people. But, about 10 years into her career, she hit an invisible wall. Other people moved ahead but, despite her hard work and acceptable performance reviews, she was not advancing. She couldn't figure it out.
Sally had not yet discovered the Success Mindset. She did not know that her unexamined belief system was, in many ways, opposite to the fundamental belief system with which successful people throughout history achieved breakthrough after breakthrough. Not a problem! Many books have been written on this phenomenon. Jack Canfield's bestseller, "The Success Principles: How to Get from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be," is especially digestible, with short chapters and implementable actions that will help re-wire the brain for success. Here are 3 of his 64 timeless principles that Sally, and you, might find useful:
Success Principle#1: Take 100% Responsibility for Your Life
Taking 100% Responsibility for Your Life is fundamental to creating a successful life. This core principle gets you out of blaming and complaining and into consciously creating the life you desire. This can only happen if you are willing to take 100% responsibility for your results.
Success Principle #2: Be Clear Why You Are Here
Success stems from getting in touch with what you are put on this earth to do, your Life Purpose. This principle helps you tap into what brings you the most joy and passion. This principle is grounded in the idea that when you align your choices and actions with your life purpose, things become easier and you experience more success, fulfillment and joy.
Success Principle #19: Use Feedback to Your Advantage
This principle helps you recognize and appreciate that feedback is essential to success. A willingness to ask for feedback demonstrates a commitment to achieving your goals, and gives you vital information for achieving them.
Congratulations on the success you have enjoyed so far! Wherever you are in your career, recognize that continued success requires ongoing personal growth, developing emotional intelligence, adapting and changing, and, most of all, leveraging your unique gifts, passions and strengths. With all that, success that exceeds your wildest imagination lies ahead for you.
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Liz Garrett, your former Chapter Administrator, is shifting lives with creative, reality-based programs that work on all levels-mind, body and spirit-for deep and lasting change in individuals and organizations. Learn more at www.TrueYouAdvantage.com.
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Litter - A Dirty Job!
Nell Boyle LEED AP BD+C, City of Roanoke
Sustainability/Outreach Coordinator
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The Office of Environmental Management has provided the vehicle for the campaign
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Every community deals with litter and those pesky cigarette butts accumulate faster than you can sweep them away. How do you tackle a problem that is a small action that results in a big mess?
It's a dirty job, but someone has to do it - so we rolled up our sleeves and partnered with Roanoke County to raise awareness. In 2014, the City of Roanoke joined Roanoke County to raise awareness in the valley about litter specifically, cigarette butts. In October 2015, the second round of the campaign was launched to build on the momentum already established by the previous outreach.
The goal is to get people to "think" before they act. With consistent messaging, we anticipate that over time people will make better choices. The city and the county had individual approaches but the message is clear:
Litter is polluting the Roanoke Valley and cigarette butts are a big part of the problem!
The first outreach campaign used humorous messages on signs posted around
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Humorous litter signs posted around town
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town. The signs were moved periodically to keep the message fresh and gain attention. Clever slogans like "Butt What", "No If's, Ands or Butts", and "No Butts About It" were posted in the city market, at busy intersections, and in local community hubs. Citizens reached out to applaud the city's approach and made requests for signs to be placed at problem locations.
For the next phase of messaging, Roanoke maintained a light approach, betting on humor as the best medicine. The new campaign "Don't Throw Your Smokes in the 'Noke" is broadcast loud and clear as a car wrap on the Environmental Management's city vehicle. The Ford Explorer, which is regularly seen around town, is a bold and humorous statement intended to make people stop and "think" before they act.
It is hard to measure the success of an outreach program that addresses such a pervasive problem, but based on the feedback we received this program is working for us. This campaign has been extremely affordable and fun . . . and we believe very greatly successful.
Here are a few tips on why we believe this program has been a success.
- Partnering with our "neighbors" has tripled the impact of our efforts
- Using humor is a powerful tool that takes an easy approach but makes a big impact
- Moving the signs keep the message fresh
- Supporting this effort with social media and website messages reinforces our effort
- Engaging the community in locations to be targeted for signage garners support
To share comments or successes from your outreach program, please contact Nell Boyle [email protected] or 540-853-5430.
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Be Counted!!
Is your membership information up to date? Please update your
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Chapter Welcomes New Members!
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Top 5 Reasons Your Agency Should Be Accredited
By Elizabeth Vaughn, Public Works Information Specialist
City of Chesapeake, VA
Here in the City of Chesapeake, Virginia, we are very proud to announce that we were just re-accredited for the second time! We take the accreditation program very seriously because we have seen first-hand how it benefits our organization and makes us one of the best in the country! (Well, THE best in the country if you ask us, but we are admittedly biased.)
So for all of those agencies thinking about seeking accreditation or facing their first re-accreditation, we want to share with you a few of the reasons why we think the accreditation process is worth it.
- It promotes innovation. It's very easy to get stuck in the "that's how we've always done it" hole but that doesn't promote positive change. The accreditation process challenges you to take a good hard look at how you're doing things to see if you're being as efficient and responsible as possible. Knowing that the APWA is going to come knocking on your door every four years gives you a deadline to make sure you reevaluate your department on a regular basis.
- It encourages constructive criticism. Self-assessment is great and has its place in the accreditation process. However, we don't always see our own faults! Allowing public works professionals from other locations to come into your municipality and critique your practices can be extremely helpful. They bring an outsider perspective, different experiences and new ideas.
- It promotes organization. In order to earn accreditation, you have to have some level of organization. In Chesapeake, we created what we call Administrative Regulations to organize all of our processes. These regulations fit into the Public Works Management Practices Manual chapters, making the re-accreditation process much easier. Having these regulations have proven incredibly helpful, not only to keep our large department organized but to make sure everyone's on the same page and no one is duplicating work. They also serve as a great teaching tool for new employees.
- It allows for the sharing of ideas. One of the great things about the accreditation process is that you're able to learn about best practices other agencies are using. This helps with the whole "don't reinvent the wheel" thing. Sharing ideas, successes, even failures is a great way for all of us to improve. At our most recent re-accreditation, four of our practices were noted as model practices. These practices included our adaptive signal timing/traffic control center and one of our project planning tools. They're great ideas that have worked well for us and we're happy to share with the world. And we have been grateful for model practices started at other municipalities that have helped us here in Chesapeake.
- It helps you keep up with changes. Changes abound in our industry. Whether it be a change in your department structure, new technology or government policies, changes can upset your carefully laid plans if you're not prepared. But by keeping up with your accreditation, you're forced to adapt your procedures to accommodate change. For example, our department structure has changed many times. Since our last re-accreditation, we acquired the Facilities Department. Because of this addition, we added a chapter to our accreditation process, along with many new administrative regulations, thus allowing for a seamless transition.
Bonus reason! Five was just not enough.
It gives you bragging rights. We all know how important every public works department is to our society, but the public only notices us when something goes wrong! By earning your accreditation, and keeping up with it, you get a reason to tell the community something positive about your agency. You now have a very prestigious stamp of approval! This definitely gives you something to brag about. If we had any mountain tops in Chesapeake, we'd be perched at the highest point telling everyone about our recent reaccreditation! But since we're extremely flat, we'll settle for a press release.
We hope all of those agencies on the fence about seeking accreditation or those feeling overwhelmed with a re-accreditation process in the near future will remember all the great reasons we have to be APWA accredited. From here in Chesapeake, Virginia, we wish you all the best of luck!
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Mid-Atlantic Chapter's New Young Professional Group
APWA's Mid-Atlantic Chapter is happy to announce the creation of a Young Professionals (YP) group. Our goal is to help connect those under 35 years of age from both public and private groups working in Public Works. The YP group is planning to host a medley of networking and educational events throughout the Mid-Atlantic region, including a networking event at our upcoming conference in Roanoke. The 2016 Roanoke conference abstract listing can be found HERE.
If you or someone you know (even if they don't have the pleasure of being an official member of APWA) would be interested in learning more regarding the YP Group, please click HERE to fill out some contact information.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Amy Linderman at [email protected]
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Calling All Entry Level Job Postings!
One of the growing challenges in public works today is the aging workforce. With a large number of imminent retirements, Public Works professionals must focus on getting the attention of the upcoming generation. We must raise awareness among college graduates that working in public works is a viable and worthwhile option.
In our effort to help educate the incoming workforce, APWA's Mid-Atlantic Chapter is collecting entry level job openings from around the region to distribute to graduates and other young professionals. We are collecting any openings, full time, part time, and paid/unpaid internships, which require less than five (5) years of experience. If you have an opening that you would like to be distributed, please fill out the survey form HERE.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Amy Linderman at [email protected] |
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Chapter's Annual Golf Scholarship Outing
 The Chapter's 3rd annual college student scholarship golf outing fundraiser was held Oct. 14th at The Crossings, Glen Allen, VA. Every year at our Annual Public Works Conference, we award a series of cash scholarships to college students, where they can use the award toward their college educational needs, such as textbooks, electronic media, and other related purchases. The proceeds from this event will help fund this initiative. This year's event was another success, due in part to the extremely hard work by Committee members Brian Copple, Dave Plum and Ken Eyre.
Special thanks to this years' Platinum Scholarship Sponsors:
- Branscome Inc.
- Brown and Caldwell
- Clark-Nexsen
- Concrete Jack
- Greeley and Hansen
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- J M T
- Mid-Atlantic Waste Systems
- RK & K
- VHB Inc.
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The day was dry (a sharp contrast to last year's heavy rain) bright and sunny. Diane Linderman, VHB and her team won the best female score door prize! Door prizes were given for an assortment of categories and we thank RK&K for contributing two dozen balls. |
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Hole Sponsors
- AccuMark
- AECOM
- Draper Aden
- KDR Real Estate
- Greeley and Hanson
- JMT
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Thanks to everyone for making this annual charitable event a success! We will be returning next year, same course, around the
same date - look for announcements.
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Save the dates May 4-6, 2016!
The Hotel Roanoke & Conference Center, will once again serve as the host site for this conference. Since last held here in 2009, Roanoke has continued its transformation and promises to offer a terrific venue for learning, networking and fun! Watch for additional details!
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