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Professor Rauf has over 25 years of experience in teaching undergraduate and post graduate engineering, science, math, business administration and MBA courses, seminars, and workshops. He earned his BS degree in Electrical Engineering, with honors, from North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina. Professor Rauf earned his Executive MBA degree from Pfeiffer University Misenheimer, North Carolina. He is a registered professional engineer in the States of Virginia, Wyoming, and North Carolina, and he is a Certified Energy Manager. Professor Rauf holds a patent in process controls technology. His last full-time engineering employment, in the corporate world, was at PPG Industries, Inc. where he served as a senior staff engineer. Professor Rauf was inducted as “Legend in Energy” by AEE, in 2014. He is a member of ASEE, American Society of Engineering Education. Professor Rauf has developed and instructed Professional Engineering and Fundamentals of Engineering Exam (NCEES) Prep Courses over the past 20 years. He develops and instructs PDHs (Professional Development Hours) and continuing education, engineering skill building seminars and courses. Professor Rauf is also an adjunct professor at Gardner-Webb University. He has published multiple texts over the last ten years. Professor Rauf also provides text editorial services to River Publishers.

Mr. Anderson has been an engineer in the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) Water Supply Engineering Section since 1984, and a senior engineer since 1995. He is the lead engineer responsible for water allocation review, policy analysis of water rights, and planning aspects of Iowa water law. He is also IDNR’s aquifer storage and recovery technical expert, from both a technical and a regulatory perspective. He has a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree, both in Civil Engineering, and both from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. He has a Hydrogeology minor, and he is also an assistant professor of Practice in Iowa State University’s Geology Department, teaching Hydrogeology.

Mr. Erbe is a graduate of the Drake University Law School. He has practiced law in Iowa since 1999 and is a sole practitioner in Des Moines. He exclusively handles civil trial and litigation matters, including boundary disputes. Mr. Erbe is a member of the Iowa Academy of Trial Lawyers, the American Board of Trial Advocates, and the Litigation Counsel of America.

Mr. Helfrich has been principal land surveyor with Craig R. Knoche & Associates, P.C. and its successor Koru Group PLLC in the Chicago area for the last 30 years. Mr. Helfrich first picked up a plumb bob in 1971 for Webster & Associates. From tape-and-transit to GPS, mortgage surveys to shopping centers, he has his seal on billions of dollars of commercial, residential and institutional developments and transactions in 23 counties in Illinois together with consulting and managing projects in 15 other states. Mr. Helfrich has enjoyed working with countless prominent developers, attorneys and other professionals in the field and the office. His specialties include real estate law, boundaries and boundary law, easements, rights-of-way and other encumbrances and servitudes, statutory and common-law plats, ALTA surveys, topography, building and site layout, construction- and project-management as well as land development consulting. He has presented classes and co-written manuals with the Illinois Institute For Continuing Legal Education along with classes at the University of Illinois and HalfMoon Education. Mr. Helfrich is a member of the National Society of Professional Surveyors and the Illinois Professional Land Surveyors Association.

As an attorney for government bodies, Mr. Hinders has substantial experience in advising boards on legal matters, interpreting ordinances and statutes, writing policies, reviewing and recommending modifications to ordinances, negotiating collective bargaining agreements, and representing municipalities in court, and he has tried numerous jury and non-jury trials. Mr. Hinders has represented clients on cases involving a wide variety of municipal law issues, including: statute and ordinance issues, open records and open meetings issues, contract interpretation issues, zoning issues, takings issues, and writs of certiorari and mandamus. He has represented municipal boards of adjustment, zoning commissions, and drainage districts. Mr. Hinders has been named a “Best Lawyer” in the State of Iowa since 2020 in the areas of employment benefits law, employer and employee labor and employment law, and as and as a litigator in the areas of labor, employment, and municipal law. He is a graduate of Simpson College, Drake University College of Business and Public Administration, and Drake University Law School.

As the conservation easement director for Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation (INHF), Ms. Van Waus acquires new conservation easements and oversees monitoring and enforcement of 240 conservation easements protecting 28,000 acres across the state. INHF is a statewide conservation organization with a mission to protect and restore Iowa’s land, water and wildlife. Celebrating 45 years as a non-profit, INHF has protected over 200,000 acres of Iowa’s prairies, woodlands, wetlands and family farms. Ms. Van Waus has completed 80 new conservation easements during her 15-year tenure at INHF. Her other duties have included invasive species management, prescribed fire and farm management. Prior to INHF, Ms. Van Waus worked at Iowa State University and Iowa Learning Farms focusing on soil conservation and residue management in agricultural systems. She received her bachelor’s degree in Biology: Ecology and Systematics and her professional science masters degree in Ecosystem Management, both from University of Northern Iowa.

Mr. Hendrickson is the owner of SportsWest Construction, a general contractor, with offices in Los Angeles and Salt Lake City, and with operations currently covering five states. He is a former board member of the American Sports Builders Association (ASBA), overseeing the Courts Division. Mr. Hendrickson was a contributor to the ASBA Official 2020 Pickleball Construction and the 2023 Courts and Rec Construction manuals for ASBA. His company has built more than 15,000 courts and other sports projects since 1987. He is currently a consultant for several pickleball complexes throughout the West. Mr. Hendrickson graduated from BYU School of Engineering with emphasis in Construction Management. His background of real estate development and construction foster his enate ability to grow the business and a multitude of networking relationships. His team of account managers, project managers, and support staff enables his company to provide the best professional service in sports construction in the industry. An avid sports fan, you will find him cheering on his favorite BYU teams, and he still plays pickleball, tennis, and golf.

Ms. Emory is a senior associate in Morris, Manning & Martin’s Commercial, Class Action and Product Liability Litigation practices, with a specialization in insurance coverage defense. She brings extensive experience and a proven track record in handling complex legal matters, drafting legal documents, and representing clients in complex insurance coverage and general liability cases. Additionally, she has experience managing cases solo in both the Superior and Magistrate Courts and drafting motions involving complex federal jurisdiction issues. Ms. Emory currently serves as the newsletter co-editor for the Young Lawyers Division of the State Bar of Georgia where she plays a crucial role in distributing important legal updates and supporting the professional growth of fellow attorneys. Additionally, she is a 2020 graduate of the State Bar of Georgia’s YLD Leadership Academy. Ms. Emory holds a J.D. degree from the University of Georgia School of Law as well as a B.S. degree from the University of South Carolina.

Mr. Lyon advises and represents clients in a broad range of insurance coverage and commercial litigation matters, including commercial general liability, property damage, property liability, and personal injury. He assists clients in evaluating the legal and factual issues in first-party and third-party insurance coverage disputes, including interpreting policy provisions. He also defends clients in complex litigation in federal and state courts. Before joining Cozen O’Connor, Mr. Lyon was a litigation associate with a law firm based in Atlanta. As an associate, he handled a wide variety of civil litigation matters, including representing domestic and international insurers in coverage disputes and construction defect claims and defending insureds against personal injury and property damage claims. He has additional experience in complex corporate matters, liability defense, real estate, and contractual disputes. Mr. Lyon earned his B.A. degree, magna cum laude, from Oglethorpe University and his J.D. degree, cum laude, from the Mercer University of Law, where he was the editor-in-chief of the Mercer University Law Review.

Mr. McElhone is a pragmatic litigator with a focus on serving families in crisis. He started his legal career as a domestic violence prosecutor in Cordele, Georgia and now practices family law at Eittreim Martin Cutler in Atlanta. He served as a representative for the Young Lawyer’s Division of the State Bar of Georgia from 2021-2023, has been published in the YLD Review, and received the YLD’s Award of Achievement in 2023. Outside of court, he is a runner and musician.

Ms. Modi is an associate in King & Spalding’s Atlanta office and is a member of the Trial & Global Disputes practice group. Ms. Modi ‘s practice focuses on representing businesses in high-stakes commercial litigation, complex business disputes, and product liability litigation. She is a team member on several matters, including representation for Fortune 500 companies such as Coca-Cola, R.J. Reynolds, and Boehringer Ingelheim.

Ms. Sabulis has been defending professional liability lawsuits involving hospitals, physicians, nurses, and other healthcare providers and entities since 2012. She has defended allegations of medical malpractice, ordinary negligence, assault and battery, fraud, and premises liability in all stages of litigation from pre-suit management through trial and appeal. In addition to representing clients in civil litigation, Ms. Sabulis has represented physicians in investigations and hearings before the Georgia Composite Medical Board, hospital credentialing committees, and insurance companies. Ms. Sabulis also has experience managing the claims side of litigation for hospitals, as well as providing professionals and organizations with risk management advice and preventative education for their personnel. More recently, Ms. Sabulis has focused on aspects of litigation away from the courtroom, including witness preparation, complex written discovery and document production, and motions practice. In her new role with the firm, she manages formal and informal education and training for attorneys new to the firm and/or medical malpractice litigation, as well as human resources issues specific to or involving attorneys.

Ms. Smith’s practice focuses on the defense of cases of alleged medical and dental malpractice, long-term care and assisted living malpractice, premises liability, automotive and transportation liability, products liability, insurance, and business litigation. Prior to joining Huff Powell Bailey, Ms. Smith was a partner at two medical malpractice and insurance defense firms, and an attorney for a leading communications, media and automotive services company handling commercial, media law, and intellectual property disputes and litigation. Her clients include physicians, dentists, medical and dental group practices, hospitals, long-term care and senior living facilities, commercial vehicle insurers, small businesses and national corporations. Ms. Smith has successfully defended medical malpractice, premises liability and automotive liability cases at trial and through the appellate phase of litigation. She also represents professionals before state licensing boards.

Mr. Evers joined Pavement Technology Inc. in 2012. He also serves as the executive coordinator of the Florida Pavement Preservation Council (FPPC). Mr. Evers has 29 years of experience in the heavy highway construction industry. He has been involved in all facets of the asphalt industry from binder supplier to contractor – consultant to association leader. Mr. Evers is the past-president of the American Public Works Association (APWA) Florida Chapter where he founded the Public Works Director Roundtable. As an active educator for the public works industry, he has spoken at 54 conferences, is the author of 32 magazine articles on Public Works and Pavement Preservation and produced over 40 hours of recorded webinars through Florida LTAP and FPPC. APWA National bestowed him with their highest honor, Top Ten Public Works Leader of 2023. Mr. Evers is married with 16-year-old twins and lives in Vero Beach, FL.

Mr. Golden is the founder and CEO of Pavement Management Group, headquartered in Heath, Ohio, with satellite offices in Tampa, Florida; Oviedo, Florida and Branson, Missouri. With over 23 years of experience directly within the pavement management, maintenance and engineering industries, his passion truly lies in helping local governments to develop better roadway networks through a standardized pavement management blueprint.

With a robust legal career spanning across litigation in various legal areas, probate, estate planning, and in-house counsel roles, Ms. An offers a wealth of experience and practical expertise. She has previously represented numerous clients in high-stakes commercial disputes, personal injury cases, complex probate cases and estate planning matters, and she now focuses her practice in probate and estate planning. Ms. An received her J.D. degree in 2017 from the University of Houston Law Center. She also received her B.S. degree in Psychology, summa cum laude, from the University of Houston in 2011. She is a current member of the State Bar of Texas, the Houston Bar Association, and the Asian American Bar Association in Houston. She is admitted to practice before all Texas State Courts.

Ms. Barr founded Barr Law, PLLC, after serving as managing attorney of RMO LLP’s Houston office for almost two years. After seeing how she could run a satellite office of another firm, she decided to venture out on her own and hang her shingle. As a seasoned litigator, her areas of practice include defending and prosecuting causes of action against fiduciaries in probate, trust, guardianship, and power of attorney proceedings. Ms. Barr also handles guardianship, probate, and trust administrations to stay abreast of any statutory changes and court requirements. As a part of this type of litigation, she has experience handling several commercial real estate transactions (including acreage), commercial and dram shop liability litigation, equitable and statutory bill of review proceedings, and appeals. Ms. Barr defends fiduciaries wrongfully accused but she also prosecutes fiduciaries who have abused their positions. Her extensive experience in discovery disputes, either defending privilege and objections to prevent production of certain documents and compelling documents, allows her to advise clients on the pitfalls of discovery. Ms. Barr earned her J.D. degree from the University of Houston Law Center.

Mr. Coufal is a Texas licensed attorney and his areas of practice are elder law, estate planning, and Medicaid planning. His goal in practicing law is to make complex legal challenges easier to understand and provide the support and education his clients need to relieve the financial and emotional stress associated with long-term care expenses. Mr. Coufal is a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA). He is also a member of the Elder Counsel, a group of attorneys dedicated to the elder law practice. In addition, Mr. Coufal is a full member of the Texas Bar College, an honorary society of lawyers who are among the best trained attorneys in Texas. Members are qualified attorneys who are interested in both high ethical standards and improved training for all Texas attorneys. He has a J.D. degree and an LL.M. degree from the Duke University School of Law. He is also a graduate of Texas A&M University Mays Business School and Dallas Baptist University. He and his family are actively involved in church ministry in north Texas.

Ms. Hoggatt concentrates her practice in estate planning and probate law, business planning and tax law. Her practice includes estate planning, providing estate administration and probate services to executors, trustees, heirs and beneficiaries in matters involving probate, estates, and trusts, general business matters, formation and financing of business ventures, entity choice and formation considerations for business entities, asset protection, and tax planning for businesses and their owners. Ms. Hoggatt received her LL.M. degree in Taxation in 2012 and her J.D. degree in 2008, both from the University of Houston Law Center. She received a B.A. degree in Government from The University of Texas at Austin in 2005.

Ms. Pierson’s main areas of practice are estate planning and probate. She realizes that a well-planned estate can mitigate a lot of the burdens families face when they lose someone they love. Ms. Pierson believes her clients deserve a plan that goes beyond the legal documents and ties up both legal and non-legal loose ends in order to give her clients’ families a path forward through their grief. She helps her clients create estate plans that do not just transfer assets. The wills and trusts she creates take a load off the survivors, prevent familial conflict, and protect future generations. Whether clients need a will, a trust, or a vehicle to protect their assets, Ms. Pierson can prepare a customized plan that will help them to achieve their goals. She enjoys counseling her clients on how to use their estate plan to protect their legacy and provide for loved ones in the event of death or incapacity. Ms. Pierson graduated with honors from the University of Texas School of Law.

Ms. Sarah E. Sibley joined Ford + Bergner in 2024. Prior to joining the firm, Ms. Sibley was with the Office of Chief Counsel for the Texas Health and Human Services Commission where she primarily focused on guardianship law. Ms. Sibley has also represented mortgage lenders and servicers in mortgage-related litigation on both the plaintiff and defense side. Ms. Sibley has gained wide ranging experience in the areas of real estate, probate, mortgage litigation, and creditor bankruptcy over the course of her career. Ms. Sibley graduated with a B.S. degree from Texas A&M University in 1999 and received her Juris Doctorate from South Texas College of Law in 2002. She is a member of the State Bar of Texas and is licensed in the United States District Courts and the United States Bankruptcy Courts for the Northern, Eastern, Southern, and Western Districts of Texas. Ms. Sibley also has her guardianship certification from the State Bar of Texas.

For more than a decade Mr. Ence has represented clients throughout Massachusetts in a variety of civil and criminal matters. He is committed to providing personalized counsel that focuses on each client’s goals and obtaining the best possible outcome. He moved to Boston to attend law school after living in the western U.S. After graduation he stayed in Boston and began working with a downtown law firm. Over ten years ago, Mr. Ence opened his own practice and moved to Western Massachusetts.

Mr. Gutbezahl has a proven track record of success in Massachusetts state and federal court. In addition to handling contentious, high stakes cases, Mr. Gutbezahl counsels his clients on the importance of developing best practices to avoid litigation and mitigate risks. After nearly a decade of representing private sector businesses and individuals, he now represents municipalities in a wide array of litigation matters. Mr. Gutbezahl is a recognized thought leader on the legal implications of generative artificial intelligence (“Gen AI”) on the workplace and is a member of multiple steering committees and task forces concerning the use of Gen AI. He has been a featured speaker for numerous associations and organizations concerning the intersection of Gen AI and employment law and is the author of a monthly newsletter on the topic, “ChatAdamG.” Mr. Gutbezahl was recently recognized by Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly as an Up & Coming Lawyer as part of its Excellence in the Law series. In 2024, he was also recognized as a Top Lawyer by Boston Magazine, as well as a Rising Star by Super Lawyers and the New England Real Estate Journal. Mr. Gutbezahl is also a 2024 graduate of the Boston’s Future Leaders Program, which is a 10-month leadership initiative conducted by Harvard Business School and the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce.

Ms. Salsburg focuses her practice in the areas of business litigation, corporate advice and counsel, and white-collar criminal defense. She represents corporations, small businesses, and individuals in contract and business disputes, False Claims Act matters, State Ethics Commission inquiries, and government and internal investigations. Ms. Salsburg also advises closely-held businesses on corporate and employment matters. Prior to joining Laredo Smith & Kane, she was a litigator at a large international law firm, in its Florida and Boston offices. Her work at the firm focused on litigation at the federal and state levels involving breaches of contract, corporate dissolution, fraudulent transfer claims, commercial foreclosures, and patent infringement. She also handled FINRA arbitrations on behalf of broker-dealers. Ms. Salsburg’s pro bono experience includes several successful CORI-sealing petitions, petitions for asylum, an appeal from an inmate on Florida’s death row, litigation and appeal to assist a not-for-profit foundation, and invoking Hague Convention protection to return a child wrongfully removed to the United States by a parent. She was also a bar advocate for criminal matters at the Boston Municipal Court (Central).

Mr. Iliff has been a certified building official for 10+ years serving communities in Texas, Illinois, and Missouri. He has taught classes on the residential, building, and property maintenance codes with a focus on preparing students for certification exams and effective administration. Mr. Iliff has 30+ years of experience as a city planner, floodplain manager, and code enforcement officer. He earned an undergraduate degree in Urban Planning and Development from Ball State University.

Ms. Avalos is a nationally renowned leader in providing accessibility-related services and is a sought-after speaker with a knack for using an upbeat approach to help others understand the complexities of compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). With over 40 years of experience, she provides expert witnessing on ADA, 504, Federal Housing Administration, and Air Carrier Access Act legal cases. In 1990 she founded Accessology Too, LLC which is a national leader in providing accessibility consulting services and is one of the largest U.S. firms dedicated solely to accessibility and access issues. Since its founding, Accessology has worked closely with the Department of Justice and the U.S. Access Board to remain knowledgeable and adept with the constant changes that occur regarding ADA guidelines. Accessology has worked on numerous multi-million dollar projects to impact accessibility compliance during all stages, from schematics to construction and final inspections. Since 2005 Accessology has specialized in the development, execution, and monitoring of the required ADA Transition Plans for Title II entities to help them avoid access-related litigation since so much litigation is tied to not having a Transition Plan on file. Ms. Avalos and her team at Accessology are committed to removing structural and attitudinal barriers that adversely impact people with disabilities.

Mr. Nuño is a civil engineering manager at the Denver office of Ware Malcomb. A 2008 graduate of the University of Notre Dame with a specialty in structural and environmental engineering, he has established himself as a leader in the field of drainage and erosion and sediment control. In his 15-year career, Mr. Nuño has excelled in the design of land development projects including grading, utility design, stormwater management, and erosion control. Through his experiences as a consulting engineer, he has prepared civil construction plans for such clients as Marriott International, San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E), Lennar Homes, Oakwood Homes, and Kiewit Infrastructure West. In the field, Mr. Nuño has provided stormwater inspection services for SDG&E, Caesars Entertainment Group, and public agencies such as the City of Carlsbad, California, and the Town of Elizabeth, Colorado. He has managed civil projects in 17 different states and prides himself on working with developers, architects, and contractors to bridge the gap between regulatory compliance and constructability in the field. Mr. Nuño is a registered professional engineer in Colorado, Montana, Wyoming, and California; a Certified Floodplain Manager; a certified professional in erosion and sediment control, a Colorado LEED accredited professional, and a qualified SWPPP developer/practitioner. He is an active member in the American Society of Civil Engineers, the Urban Land Institute, and the Colorado Association of Stormwater and Floodplain Managers.

Mr. Harmanos is a professional engineer with extensive experience in subsurface exploration, soil testing, infiltration testing, geosynthetics, and seismic and advanced analysis. His expertise includes commercial, industrial and institutional foundation design; retaining wall and steep slope design; sinkhole remediation; landfill design; site work; forensic engineering; LEED consulting; and construction quality control/assurance (CQA/QC). Mr. Harmanos is a graduate of Drexel University where he received both his BS and MS degrees in Civil Engineering (Geosynthetics and Geotechnical). Hillis-Carnes performs geotechnical engineering consulting and laboratory testing services. Its construction services include evaluation of bearing materials, inspection of pile driving, slope inclinometer installation and monitoring, and retaining wall construction observation.

Mr. Merwade he has been a professor in the Lyles School of Civil and Construction Engineering at Purdue University since 2006. During 2004 – 2006, he worked as worked as post-doctoral fellow at the Center for Research in Water Resources at the University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Merwade received his bachelor of Engineering degree in Environmental Engineering from Shivaji University, India, in 1997, his M.Sc. degree in Engineering Hydrology from University of Galway, Ireland, in 2000, and his Ph.D. degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin, in 2004. From 1997-1999, he worked as project engineer at Montgomery Watson (now part of Stantec) in Mumbai, India.

His research and teaching interests include surface water hydrology with specific focus on flood modeling and mapping. Much of his work has been on improving the simulation of hydrologic processes for flood prediction by using geographic information systems (GIS), data-driven techniques and advances in cyberinfrastructure. He has authored more than 100 peer-reviewed journal articles and conference proceedings in the area of river channels, watershed hydrology and flood modeling.

Some of his awards include the Education and Public Service Award (2025) from the Universities Council on Water Resources, the Education and Outreach Award (2024) from the Indiana Association for Floodplain and Stormwater Management, Best Technical Paper Award (2024) from ASCE’s Journal of Hydrologic Engineering, Outstanding Achievement Award (2018) from the Indiana Water Resources Association for work related to flood prediction and mapping for Indiana streams, and Excellence in GIS Award (2017) from Indiana Geographic Information Council for Soil-Based Floodplain Maps for Indiana.

Dr. Merwade disseminates his educational material as online tutorials, modules and YouTube videos, which have been used/viewed by hundreds of thousands of students, faculty and working professionals around the world who want to learn about hydrology, GIS applications, and hydrologic modeling.

Ms. Buckley is the prior president of the San Francisco Bar Association Paralegal Section and continues to sit on the board. She taught family law for two semesters at San Francisco State in their paralegal program. Since obtaining her paralegal certificate from Cañada College in 2011, Ms. Buckley has worked exclusively in family law. Prior to becoming a paralegal, she taught English at middle and high schools across the country. During her free time, Ms. Buckley enjoys reading Victorian novels, trashy true crime, and taking her Golden Retriever, Jolene, on swim dates. She has presented multiple CLEs over the years, mostly focusing on discovery.

Swanson & McNamara LLP is a trial and appellate law firm specializing in high-stakes criminal, civil, and regulatory defense and internal investigations. Prior to joining Swanson & McNamara, Ms. McGuigan worked for the Federal Public Defender in the Northern District of California for 15 years where she assisted in several trials including four complex death penalty cases, one of which resulted in an acquittal. She is a certified eDiscovery specialist holding multiple ACEDS eDiscovery certifications, as well as certifications in Cellebrite mobile forensic fundamentals (CMFF), and digital forensics, and she has over 21 hours of digital forensic training in FTK. Ms. McGuigan is the acting president of San Francisco Paralegal Association, chair of the San Francisco Bar Paralegal Section, and the director of the San Francisco Chapter of Women in eDiscovery. When she isn’t working, she enjoys spending time crafting and hanging out with her four dogs. She will be presenting at the NALA Boston conference in July, on ethical considerations in criminal law cases, text and smartphone evidence for paralegals – how to identify, preserve, collect, and produce and assisting at trial.

Ms. Skaggs serves as the president of San Francisco Legal Professionals Association (SFLPA) and has served the SFLPA Board consecutively for the last 10 years. She also serves on the Continuing Education Committee as the webinar co-chair for Legal Professionals, Inc. (LPI), where she arranges and moderates continuing legal educational webinars with a dynamic team. Ms. Skaggs is working on the Summer Court Series where courtroom clerks in both federal and state courts all over California present for one hour two to three times per month. When serving as the SFLPA Education chair, she organized a three-day legal professionals workshop at San Francisco State University, which allowed all levels of legal secretaries and paralegals to earn a certificate showing that they completed the class. Ms. Skaggs has presented on a panel with an attorney about the California Rules v. the Local Rules of the Court in the presentation, “Cracking the Code,” as well as on a panel of attorneys and a paralegal at the Bar Association of San Francisco Paralegal Section called “50 Days to Trial.” She is a Bay Area native and earned her bachelor’s degree with a major in English and a minor in Political Science from the California State University, East Bay, where she returned several years later to obtain her Paralegal Certificate. Ms. Skaggs is committed to continuing education and enjoys being a part of any organization with the commitment to supporting that cause. She recently studied for, and successfully passed, the intense 8-hour exam to become a California Certified Legal Secretary (CCLS) in 2019 and is honored to add those four initials at the end of her name. Ms. Skaggs looks forward to continuing her passion through learning, teaching, or mentoring others while contributing to their personal growth and success.

Dr. Jairo Garcia develops innovative policies and educational programs to make communities and cities cleaner, sustainable, resilient, and equitable. He is the lead author of Atlanta’s Climate Action Plan, and he led a collaborative effort with more than 40 stakeholders to the 100 Resilient Cities application, awarded to the City of Atlanta in 2016. Dr. Garcia is a member of the Georgia Research Roadmap steering committee, an initiative of the Georgia Climate Project lead by University of Georgia, Georgia Tech, and Emory University, which has a goal of improving understanding of climate impacts and solutions in Georgia. He received the Individual Climate Leadership Award by the EPA in 2017 and the Green Ring Award by the Climate Reality Project. These awards recognized Dr. Garcia’s leadership in addressing climate change and engaging organizations, peers, and partners. He represented the Mayor of Atlanta at COP23 in Bonn, Germany, and he presented at an event organized by the International Urban Cooperation Programme related to global cooperation to address climate change. Dr. Garcia’s publications on urban sustainability, climate change and sustainability education are numerous. His academic experiences include a position as a research assistant and two teaching assistant positions at Columbia University, a faculty adjunct and thesis advisor position at Concordia University, and faculty adjunct positions for the UCLA-Extension Program, the Georgia Institute of Technology and Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Garcia holds an engineering degree, an MSc degree in Management of Information Technologies, an MSc degree in Sustainability Management, and a doctoral degree in Educational Technology and Sustainability.

Ms. Gronquist has been a licensed landscape architect since 2004. She has been teaching landscape architecture since 2006, working with Ray Freeman’s LARE Preparatory Courses. She has served as an adjunct professor at many Bay Area institutions, including UC Berkeley, UC Extension, Merritt College, and Berkeley’s Owner Builder Center. Ms. Gronquist also developed online courses in grading and drainage for San Francisco’s Academy of Art University, with separate tracks for undergraduates and graduate students. After earning an undergraduate degree as a sculptor, she quickly became interested in applying her design skills on larger scale projects. She earned her M.L.A. degree at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and then made her way to California. Since that time, Ms. Gronquist has worked on a wide range of design projects, including private residential gardens, creek restorations, affordable housing developments, public park settings for monumental sculptures, and commercial mixed-use permitting and master planning. She was an early adopter of Alameda County’s ReScape (formerly Bayfriendly) landscape sustainability rating program. She was a member of the first class of Bayfriendly Qualified Landscape Professionals back in 2006 and continues to volunteer and teach at ReScape events throughout California. As a lifelong learner, Ms. Gronquist is also an enthusiastic teacher. Her SGLA Technical Training website at www.sarahgronquist.com is the registration portal for LARE webinars. New on-demand courses for the California Supplemental Exam and for refreshing basic grading skills are also available there, along with many free resources for landscape professionals seeking to learn and grow.

Ms. Bertagna focuses her practice primarily on litigation and resolving project closeout disputes, as well as contract negotiations between parties. She has a wide range of exposure to common construction disputes, including impacts on design professionals. Ms. Bertagna is focused on dispute avoidance and utilizes her legal research and analysis skills to evaluate complex ethical rules, laws, regulations, and other legal issues affecting the construction industry.

Mr. Mason’s practice focuses on patent acquisition in semiconductors, microprocessors and memory, databases and storage, graphics processing, electronic commerce, network equipment and software, and mobile computing and sensor systems. From 2006 to 2007, Mr. Mason served as general counsel of an internet advertising startup in Austin, Texas. His practice has previously included intellectual property aspects of merger and acquisition transactions, software licensing agreements and research contracts. Mr. Mason is admitted to practice in Texas and before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. He received his B.S. degree in Electrical Engineering from Texas A&M University (1999) and his J.D. degree from Baylor University (2003).

Mr. Moskowitz practices civil trial law, including employment law, business law, and commercial litigation. He represents businesses and individuals in all aspects of commercial litigation, including tort claims, employment actions, construction defect issues, contract disputes, and intellectual property matters. Mr. Moskowitz practices at all levels of the state and federal court systems and administrative agencies, from the lowest small claims court to the U.S. Supreme Court, from initial client meeting through trial and, if necessary, appeal.

Prior to coming to Texas A&M, Professor Peterson taught at Eindhoven University of Technology, and prior to that he was a Research Fellow at Cambridge University. He is the author of several books including The Ethics of Technology: A Geometric Analysis of Five Moral Principles (Oxford University Press, 2017), The Dimensions of Consequentialism (Cambridge University Press, 2013) and An Introduction to Decision Theory (Cambridge University Press, 2009).

Ms. Rogers is a technology-focused business attorney concentrating on data privacy and cybersecurity, with a rich background encompassing regulatory compliance, cybersecurity risk management, and privacy law. Ms. Rogers guides clients through comprehensive privacy and/or cybersecurity compliance programs, technology-driven privacy and cyber risks, and she offers pragmatic solutions that align with business objectives. She teaches cybersecurity and privacy law at the University of Texas School of Information’s Master’s Program in Information Privacy and Security.

Mr. Johnson provides structural engineering and forensic inspections in multiple states. His work focuses on staff development, mentoring, proper structural design practices, peer reviews and the investigation of building damage, construction or structural defects and their proper repair, legal support, report writing, expert witness services and expert reports. Mr. Johnson also consults as designer of record or peer reviewer for a variety of building types, including wood-framed single-family townhomes, and two to four-story assisted living, office, hotel, apartment, and condo complexes. He has design experience in big box retail in Florida’s hurricane prone regions, and he has experience with historic buildings codes (UBC, BOCA, SBC). A licensed professional engineer in Minnesota since 2004, Mr. Johnson earned his B.C.E. and M.S.C.E. degrees from the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities. He is also a professional structural engineer in Nebraska.

Mr. Martin reviews the performance of municipalities who administer the state building code with a special emphasis on those municipalities who hold delegation agreements with the department to perform code administration for public buildings and state licensed facilities. He inspects and plan reviews public buildings and state licensed facility construction projects to verify compliance with approved plans and state building code. Mr. Martin investigates complaints registered regarding application, administration, and enforcement of the state building code. He provides mentoring and aids municipalities in their administration of the state building code. Also, Mr. Marin coordinates the State’s response to disaster events throughout the state.

Dr. Meneses was a member of the California Seismic Safety Commission appointed by Governor Brown and confirmed by State Senate (2017-2021). He is a reviewer of seismic ground motions for the seismic design of high rise buildings for the City of San Diego, part-time faculty in the Graduate School of Civil Engineering at San Diego State University, Fellow of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), member of the Industry Advisory Board of the Department of Structural Engineering at University of California San Diego, past member of the Board of Directors of the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI), and past president of the EERI San Diego Chapter. Dr. Meneses is also a past member of the ASCE 7-16 Committee (Minimum Design Loads for Buildings and Other Structures) and current member of the ASCE 7-28 Committee, member of the ASCE 1 Committee (Geotechnical Analysis, Design, Construction, Inspection and Monitoring of Nuclear Safety-Related Structures), Honorary chair of the ASCE Geo-Institute San Diego Chapter, and member of the Academy of Geo-Professionals.

Meridian Geospatial provides technician training and continuing education seminars for the land surveying industry. Mr. Horton served in the US Air Force and with the Illinois Department of Transportation in planning, design, construction, surveying and maintenance of civil engineering projects including commercial structures, airfields, utility systems and highways, earning his PE license in 1991. Joining the full-time faculty at Parkland College in Champaign, Illinois, in 1998, he taught land surveying and construction management courses. He founded the land surveying associate degree program at Parkland College in 2001. Working during summers for local engineering firms, he earned his PLS license in 2007. Beginning in 2009, Mr. Horton presented seminars frequently with HalfMoon Education Inc., ultimately speaking in 42 states. He continues to provide training with HalfMoon, with several professional associations and for various private clients. His top priority is providing practical skill training for survey technicians. Mr. Horton retired from full-time teaching in 2023 and has joined Farnsworth Group Inc. in Champaign, Illinois, as a senior project land surveyor. You can reach him at todd@meridiangeospatial.com.

Mr. Klaas is a partner at Friedman & Huey Associates, LLP. He specializes in fiduciary, estate and individual income taxation and working with large family groups. Mr. Klaas taught as an undergraduate/graduate tax instructor at Purdue University Northwest. He received his B.S. degree with concentrations in Accounting and Finance from Purdue University Northwest and received his M.S. degree in Taxation from DePaul University. He has spoken on various occasions presenting on taxation of decedents, estates and trusts. Mr. Klaas serves as a 1041 subject matter expert for a national tax software development firm, has edited various professional publications and is an active member of the Chicago Estate Planning Council, Illinois CPA Society, and AICPA.

Mr. Wirtz is a principal at Friedman & Huey Associates, LLP. He specializes in fiduciary, charitable and individual income taxation and working with large family groups. Mr. Wirtz received his B.S. degree in Accounting from Purdue University Northwest and received his M.S. degree in Taxation from DePaul University. He also is member of the Illinois CPA Society.

Dr. Wu is an associate professor in the Department of Civil, Coastal, and Environmental Engineering at the University of South Alabama. He is the director for Interdisciplinary Center for Sustainable Engineering (ICSE), the Gulf-Coast Center for Addressing Microplastic Pollution (GC-CAMP), the Solid Waste Sustainability Hub and the director for Sustainable Asphalt Materials Lab. Dr. Wu was a senior sustainability research engineer in the Illinois Center for Transportation at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. His research and education areas include asphalt materials characterization; smart, sustainable transportation materials for infrastructure; pavement performance evaluation and modeling; and pavement design and maintenance. Dr. Wu has successfully secured over $7.8 million in research funding from various federal and state agencies, as well as industry. He has published 67 peer-reviewed journal articles, 11 technical reports, and has presented at over 56 conferences and 33 invited talks. Dr. Wu teaches a mixture of undergraduate and graduate engineering courses such as Pavement Design and Advanced Characterization of Transportation Materials. He developed a free course for students to pass the fundamentals of engineering exam. Dr. Wu is a committee member for Transportation Research Board (TRB) AJE35 and AKM 90, and a member of American Society of Civil Engineer (ASCE), American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM), and Academy of Pavement Science and Engineering (ASPE). Dr. Wu is also an editorial member for ASCE Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering, Journal of Testing and Evaluation, and International Journal of Pavement Research and Technology. He serves as a panel member for several NCHRP and ACRP projects. He is also a registered professional engineer in Alabama and a LEED accredited professional.