Awards from the ACEC and ASCE Highlight SME’s Volunteer Leadership in Advocacy and Outreach

SME Team Members, Myndi Bacon and Brad Ewart II, honored by ASCE and ACEC

How does Michigan keep track of its infrastructure’s condition and create innovative solutions? How can we get the next generation more involved in the engineering field? These two questions may seem unrelated, but SME is tackling them through our activity on volunteer boards – and is getting results that are evident in our communities.  

Myndi Bacon, PE and Brad Ewart II, PE of SME received the American Society of Civil Engineers National Outstanding Advocate of the Year Award along with the entire ASCE Michigan Infrastructure Report Card Committee. The committee created the report over two years, during which the COVID-19 pandemic interrupted the typical flow of work, communication, and publication that are essential for gathering information for the report card.  

From left: Ron Brenke, PE, Danielle Rhodes, PE, Dan VanderHeide, PE, Andrew Rossell, PE, Lucas Porath, PE, Brad Ewart II, PE, Myndi Bacon, PE, Brad Shepler, PE, and Therese Harrison, PE.

Myndi, a senior consultant celebrating 28 years with SME, was responsible for the roads and dams sections of the report card. “The Sanford Lake dam failure was top of mind while we were writing the report card,” Myndi recalls. “That incident demonstrated the urgent need we have seen across the state’s infrastructure.” The goal of the report card is to objectively inform Michigan’s public and government about the infrastructure’s present condition and provide practical recommendations for improving it. 

Myndi also received the Michigan Leadership Award from the American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) for her efforts as the council’s Transportation Committee Chair in Michigan, providing crucial leadership while working on the infrastructure report card. Furthermore, because of her critical role in transportation in Michigan, she recently became part of the national board of ASCE and is the regional governor to represent the state of Michigan. Her goal is to work with lawmakers to create legislation that bolsters and protects the state’s roads, bridges, waterways, and more.  

Lastly, when Myndi isn’t busy with Michigan’s infrastructure, she volunteers for the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC). She has served as president of her local chapter, whose programs (such as the Block Kids Building Program, where children construct their own Lego creations and enter them in a contest) get K-6 kids involved with STEM, inspiring them for a future in engineering or a related field.  

Additionally, Brad Ewart II, SME’s Vice President of Corporate Development, was also a member of the Infrastructure Report Card Committee. Along with the rest of the committee, Brad and Myndi gathered information by speaking with industry professionals, and interviewing state lawmakers, and culling insights from relevant publications. The team met regularly with the Michigan Department of Transportation, Department of Natural Resources, the department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, and legislators to build a foundation of mutual respect and become an effective advocate.  

Brad was also president of ASCE Michigan Section in 2023 and has been an active participant in the board, taking up the roles of secretary, treasurer, and vice president over the last six years. As immediate past-president, Brad received the ASCE Distinguished Service Award.  

From left: Brad Shepler, PE, Brad Ewart II, PE, and Lucas Porath, PE

“I’m proud of how hard we worked on the report card,” says Brad. “We didn’t want to miss anything. Our goal was to deliver the report with informed, detailed recommendations – and we hit the target.”  

We’re always looking for talented individuals to join our team. View our open positions for engineers, consultants, and more.

Interested in how we can help your project team? Check out our areas of expertise and related projects.