We’re Celebrating Professional Engineers Day

Freese and Nichols has extra reason to celebrate this year: Our Oklahoma Division Manager Tricia Hatley was installed as NSPE President on Aug. 1. A longtime leader in the organization, she’ll serve in this role until mid-2021 then spend a year as immediate past president. NSPE is the leading national organization promoting licensing and high standards for the engineering profession.

“We need licensed professional engineers looking out for all of us, whether it concerns the sustainability and resiliency of our communities or the applications of technology such as artificial intelligence and autonomous vehicles,” Trish said.

“Getting licensed as a professional engineer requires meeting rigorous qualifications so the public can trust our competence to deliver safe and reliable infrastructure for our essential services, including water supplies, wastewater treatment, electrical grids, hospitals and other public buildings.”

Obtaining a PE license requires passing qualifying exams and getting years of practice on the job. Freese and Nichols’ commitment to our engineers includes support at every stage of their career:

• Paying licensing fees and offering a day off to take the PE exam
• Paying annual dues for membership in one professional organization or half dues for two organizations
• Reimbursing tuition for training, continuing education and advanced degrees
• Providing a mentoring program and internal professional development

Here’s what some of our engineers say about the value of being a PE:

Holly Ahumada, PE, CFM, Stormwater, Fort Worth

Licensure is way to show my peers and my clients that I hold myself to a higher standard in my work quality and ethics. And on a personal note, it made my grandfather — a professional engineer himself — proud to have my business card with “PE” on it.

Chris Callahan, PE, Treatment, Transmission and Utilities, Austin

I’m a PE because I enjoy solving water issues that impact our communities at a basic level. The PE license affords me the opportunity to give back to the community by providing clean water to our taps and protecting our local ecosystems.

Kristen Cartwright, PE, Water/Wastewater Master Planning, Raleigh, North Carolina

I became a PE to show my community that I have their best interests in mind at all times during my work as a water/wastewater engineer.

Estella Cota-Trevino, PE, ENV SP, Treatment, Transmission and Utilities, San Antonio

Being a licensed civil PE is important because it is the culmination of the experience and knowledge you obtained as an EIT and allows you to be a part of a group of engineers who are designing and improving the vital infrastructure of communities across the state and country.

Sid Green, PE, ENV SP, Transportation Design, Fort Worth

I am a professional engineer because it is how I want to contribute to my community. Being a professional engineer has the allowed me the opportunity to affect how my community grows. Developing improved safety and accessibility measures for infrastructure like roadways and hike/bike trails helps to keep us all connected.

Frederic Ma, PE, Water Resources Design, Houston

At an initial glance, many may see it as “just a title,” but being a licensed professional engineer holds us to a high standard of ethics and quality to ensure our products meet a certain standard. A lot of our products affect a substantial amount of the general population, with many of them unaware of how different the result could be if it weren’t for professional engineers.

Shannon L. Mack, PE, CFM, Stormwater Management, Houston

I am a PE because it was a personal goal I set for myself. Being a PE allows me to keep my commitment to professional growth and reminds me to always maintain a sense of accountability for my engineering work.

Carlos Quintero, PE, Treatment, Transmission and Utilities, Houston

I am a PE for the opportunities it gives to improve our community. Helping others with necessary infrastructure is beneficial for their quality of life and well-being.

See Also

• New NSPE President Tricia Hatley Welcomed in PE Magazine
• Tricia Hatley Continues NSPE Leadership as President-Elect
• Breggar Garrison Named to Two NSPE Leadership Roles