Mehran Pourzanjani, SE
President
SEAOSC: New Awards and Events
Traditionally, the yearend President’s Dinner has included different award recognitions and the transition of the Presidential gavel. The Excellence in Structural Engineering Awards recognizes outstanding projects that are unique and innovative. The various individual awards recognize the contributions and accomplishments of SEAOSC members that have gone above and beyond the call of duty in giving to the association and the profession. This year we will be expanding our awards program by starting a new tradition with a change in the format of our President’s Dinner and year end events. The new Safer Cities Gala and President’s Dinner will feature the “Excellence in Structural Engineering Awards” and the “Safer Cities Awards” which will recognize leaders in the industry, or public arena that have made outstanding contributions towards Safer Cities or the advancement of the industry. This new format will provide an opportunity to broaden the scope of the event by inviting architects, contractors, owners, policy makers, and building officials to celebrate the recognition of a colleague or share in the award for a project that they participated in. The long term vision for the President’s Safer Cities Gala is to build it into a premier industry event with an expanded scope of attendees. Members are encouraged to invite industry associates to celebrate their award winning projects and share in their accomplishments as part of a team. We will be hosting the Safer Cities Gala and President’s Dinner at Biltmore’s Gold Room. This year ABC 7 Anchor David Ono will serve as the emcee.
There will also be a President’s Luncheon and Achievement Awards this year which will be devoted to recognizing and celebrating SEAOSC’s members that have distinguished themselves in various capacities, the Engineer of the year, and include the transition of the Presidential gavel to incoming President Ken O’ Dell. This event will be held on June 19th at the LA Grand Hotel. We hope that you will attend this luncheon to celebrate and recognize our distinguished colleagues and their accomplishments, and welcome the incoming SEAOSC President, Ken O’ Dell. The yearend technical summit will be held earlier in the morning at the same location and will include the luncheon at a discounted rate. The summit will be a multi-track event providing interest based choices for the attendees.
The Women in Structural Engineering Committee is presenting a Leadership Symposium on May 8th at the Biltmore. This event is generously sponsored by CSI. This full day event is focused on leadership and soft skill topics, tools for success in any field. The details for the symposium are on our website.
On Saturday May 4th we will hold our member appreciation event, a walking food tour of Historical Downtown LA for members. The tour will emphasize the history and architecture of LA buildings and is integrated with a Cinco de Mayo theme which includes food stops along the way. You can find out more about this tour on our website.
The OC Dinner event will be held on Wednesday May 22, please visit the website for more information.
Suffice to say that May and June will be busy months for SEAOSC! Please invite your industry friends, architects, owners, and contractors to these events; particularly to the President’s Safer Cities Gala that will recognize industry leaders of the year and Excellence in Structural Engineering. We look forward to seeing you at the upcoming events!
Lastly, it is with great sorrow that I share news of the passing of SEAOSC Past President Brian L. Cochran (1999-2000). Brian passed away from complications due to surgery. Condolences to his son, Past President Michael L. Cochran (2009-2010), and the Cochran family.
