Congratulations to WTS Pittsburgh's 2023 Award Winners!
Congratulations to our 2023 WTS Pittsburgh Recognition Award Winners!
We can't wait to celebrate our winners at our SOLD OUT Awards Luncheon on Thursday, March 2nd!
WTS Member of the Year - Monica O'Neil, PE, HDR -
Monica’s professional experience includes 19 years with HDR in their Bridge Group. She serves as a Project Manager and Structural Engineer with experience on a wide variety of projects including bridge design and detailing for new bridges as well as rehabilitation and preservation. Monica is one of the founding members for the WTS Pittsburgh Chapter, and she has served as the Secretary, President, and Immediate Past President. Outside of work, Monica is raising two sons with her husband Jason O’Neil who is also a bridge engineer.
WTS Woman of The Year - Breen Masciotra, AICP, EcoDistricts AP, WSP -
Breen is the Planning Manager in Western Pennsylvania for WSP, overseeing transportation, transit-oriented development, and land use planning in its Pittsburgh office. Most recently, she spent over seven years at Pittsburgh Regional Transit creating and managing its transit-oriented communities program as well as supporting long-range, multimodal, and community planning. Breen has a BA in Architecture from Washington University in St. Louis and a Masters of Public Administration from the University of Pittsburgh. She is a lifelong Pittsburgher and avid walker with a love of the outdoors, travel, and her adorable dog, Theia.
WTS Employer of the Year - LOCHNER
WTS Honorable Ray LaHood Award - Damon Rhodes, PE, Larson Design Group
Damon Rhodes graduated from Lehigh University in the mid-90’s with his B.S.C.E. and too many good times! Since then, he has had the good fortune of working on many awesome projects, learning a lot with some really great clients, and making a few super friends. In his spare time, he is a PIAA basketball referee and a track and cross country coach for the Pacers Track Club in the South Hills. Most importantly, he is the father of Emily (20), Lydia (17), and Meredith (15).
WTS Rosa Parks Diversity Award - Stephen Sheerer, PE, AECOM
Steve is the youngest of 6 kids (4 brothers; 1 sister) and proudly graduated from the University of Pittsburgh. His wife, 2 out of 4 brothers, father-in-law, and brother-in-law are all engineers, so it’s safe to say engineering runs in the family. He is also the father to a 17-month-old boy, Colin, who will not be pressured into becoming an engineer! Steve is the AECOM Pittsburgh office’s ED&I champion and has participated in Big Brother Big Sister since 2019, being a “big” to his “little” Carter (who is also one of six kids!). Steve has over 12 years of experience with a background in Roadway Design and is currently focusing on Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) projects and was recently named the Northeast BRT Technical Lead.
WTS Innovative Transportation Solutions Award - Shadyside Connector
Paige Anderson
Paige is a project engineer at the City of Pittsburgh's Department of Mobility and Infrastructure and is currently managing the Complete Streets program. In her five years working on the traffic engineering team, she has contributed to over thirty miles of bike infrastructure and introduced numerous types of traffic calming measures.
Kristin Saunders
Kristin is a senior planner with a background in architecture and a focus on the planning, design, and implementation of human-scale public spaces. She brings expertise in public involvement, bicycle and pedestrian planning, data-driven project prioritization, policy development, and public space design.
Katy Sawyer, PE
Katy is a licensed civil engineer with a background in transportation and municipal engineering. She specializes in the design, construction, and maintenance of active transportation and traffic safety projects. Katy is an associate member of the National Committee of Uniform Traffic Control Devices, where she helps to advance the adoption of complete streets principles in the transportation profession.