I just returned from spending a week at the Illinois Public Service Institute – "a three-year training program which provides instruction expressly designed for public service professionals." Since this is my second year of the three-year program, I thought it would be a good time to share my experiences with others who might be considering attending…
Tag: APWA
Using Social Media to Communicate Emergency Response
Yesterday Dave Lawry and I presented Using Social Media to Communicate Emergency Response at the 2013 APWA North Amercian Snow Conference in Charlotte, North Carolina. It was fun to give the presentation with Dave because he had some interesting first-hand experiences with implementing social media as a communication tool, particularly during snow operations. His stories came from…
A Day in the Life of a Civil Engineer – Days 68 & 69
Days 68 & 69 After spending most of the day yesterday in meetings, getting home late, then having to run out to attend a band concert, I decided just to wait until today and post both yesterday and today in one article. So here it is! Tuesday: IDOT audit of ARRA project IDOT was scheduled…
A Day in the Life of a Civil Engineer – Day 62
Day 62 Bus Rapid Transit Today a few of our staff attended a meeting at Sherman Hospital in Elgin. The county arranged for the meeting to discuss bus rapid transit (BRT) along the Randall road corridor. It was a well attended discussion that lasted for most of the morning. A representative began the presentations by…
A Day in the Life of a Civil Engineer – Days 34 through 38
In an effort to catch up on my postings due to attending the APWA conference, I'm combining all last week into one post then following up tomorrow with the first two days of this week. Days 34 through 36 Day 34 was spent attending the APWA conference in Denver. You can read a short summary…
Opening Day at 2011 APWA Congress & Exposition
This year's International Public Works Conference & Exposition is being held in Denver, Colorado. The event opened yesterday morning with a welcome by the outgoing president, George Crombie, and a transfer of leadership to the new president, Diane M. Linderman. First General Session – Michael Hayden The first general session followed with keynote speaker, Michael Hayden,…
Every Day Counts – Report from the Midwest Meeting
Yesterday, I had the opportunity to participate in a Peer Exchange workshop on Project Delivery as a representative for APWA. The meeting was one of four regional meetings organized and hosted by AASHTO to facilitate dialogue between federal, state, and local agencies. By encouraging discussion and building partnerships, they are hoping to provide guidance for…
Every Day Counts Peer to Peer Networking
Over the summer, FHWA is hosting Peer-to-Peer Exchanges in partnership with AASHTO, NACE, and APWA for the purpose of highlighting and promoting best practices in implementing the Federal-aid program by local governments. I'll be attending the meeting for the midwest region on July 19th in Cincinnati, Ohio, to participate in discussions with people from all levels…
From the Floor at APWA Congress 2010
Due to budget cuts I was only able to attend the APWA Congress for one day since I was speaking on a panel at the show. Normally, I try to attend the entire event because I always come away with many valuable insights and opportunities to reconnect with fellow professionals. This year, in the short…
Celebrate Public Works Week
This week, we celebrate public works week – a time to stop and think about the people who take care of all those things we don’t normally even think about. Like making sure roads are safe and in good repair, making sure the water comes out when we turn on the faucet, and making sure…