Awards
2025 Awards Recipients
Award winners are being announced each week, so check back to see all of the winners throughout April and May!
WTS-Boston is proud to announce to following 2025 award winners:
Rosa Parks Diversity Leadership Award
Amy Getchell and Liz Williams, MassDOT
Amy Getchell is the Manager of Construction Traffic Management within the MassDOT Highway Division’s Traffic and Safety Section. She has widespread experience managing high profile projects that require extensive project and traffic management coordination as well as a more engaging and robust public outreach process than typical DOT projects. Amy also works on regional traffic coordination and travel demand modeling, as well as many non-traditional highway projects. Amy holds a Civil Engineering degree from Northeastern University and began her career in the private sector before joining MassDOT in 2009.
Liz Williams is the Director of Equity and Climate Policy in MassDOT’s Office of Transportation Planning. She has over 15 years of experience as a social scientist and policy coordinator. Before coming to MassDOT in 2018, she held positions with the MBTA, the UMass Donahue Institute, the Dukakis Center for Urban and Regional Policy, and the American Institutes for Research. Liz is a sociologist with a Bachelor’s degree from Clark University, a Master’s degree from George Washington University, and a PhD from Northeastern University.
Honorable Ray LaHood Award
Thomas DiPaolo has worked for MassDOT (formerly MassHighway) for 39 years. Starting as a design engineer in one of the department’s district offices, he relocated to Boston in 1992, where he rose through the ranks to become the Assistant Chief Engineer for MassHighway in 1998. Throughout his 27-year tenure in this role, Tom has continuously chaired the Architects and Engineers Review Board, collaborated with the local chapter of the American Council of Engineering Companies on project design and contracting issues, and contributed to the development of numerous policies and initiatives, particularly in design standards, design requirements, and design contracts. Tom holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from Lafayette College.
Innovative Transportation Solutions Award
Massport Infrastructure Condition Assessment (MICA)
The Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport) faced a challenge regarding infrastructure conditions – information required for effectively informing business decisions could take too long to track down – a slow, manual process. Data was collected, stored, and reported in disparate formats and locations. These challenges prompted Luciana Burdi, Massport’s Director for Capital Programs and Environmental Affairs, to conceive the Massport Infrastructure Condition Assessment (MICA) program in 2019. MICA leverages technology to enable stakeholders to obtain current information regarding infrastructure attributes, conditions, and recommendations to help inform business decisions using an easily accessible portal.
Employer of the Year Award
WTS-Boston is proud to announce that SMK Services, Inc. has been selected as the recipient of the 2025 Employer of the Year Award. This honor recognizes an organization that supports WTS through membership, sponsorship, and employee involvement; has a strong organizational structure with women in executive and senior positions leading key initiatives; is committed to advancing women in the transportation industry through established career development and succession programs, continued education programs, and professional development support; and provides valuable internship opportunities that encourage and support women entering the transportation field.
Claire Barrett Member of the Year Award
WTS-Boston is proud to announce that Victoria Palek, Vice President/Operations Director at Arcadis, has been selected as the recipient of the 2025 Member of the Year Award. This prestigious honor recognizes a WTS member who demonstrates extraordinary commitment to the goals and growth of WTS by promoting the organization's reputation within the transportation industry and revitalizing or expanding a WTS Chapter or any of its functions.
Victoria is a passionate advocate for the advancement of women in transportation. Over the past 10 years she has consistently made meaningful contributions to the WTS organization and our industry. Through her tireless efforts as a volunteer, she has worked to revitalize and improve existing processes in our local chapter. Her efforts to attract new members and sponsors and engage with existing ones have been instrumental in increasing the visibility and impact of WTS.