By: Lea G. Adams, P.E., BC.WRE

Staff who have joined HEC:

Lauren Coe, PE – Lauren joined the Hydrology and Statistics Division at HEC in July 2023 as a remote worker, transferring from the Los Angeles District. Prior to her 6 years with Los Angeles where she worked extensively with HEC tools, she worked for more than 5 years at the Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory at ERDC. Lauren got a running start into her duties at HEC, having completed a developmental assignment with the H&S Division in 2022. Lauren has a BS in Biological Engineering from the University of Florida and an MS in Civil Engineering from Mississippi State University. She is a registered professional engineer in the state of Mississippi.

Kimberly Core – Kim joined HEC as our new Chief Administrative Officer in April 2024. She came to HEC from the Sacramento District, where she served as a lead program analyst for the Mega Projects Center. At HEC, Kim oversees a team of four who handle budget, contracts, personnel and a myriad of other tasks that are foundational to the success of HEC. We feel very fortunate to have Kim on the HEC team!

Kathryn (Kat) Feingold – Kat joined HEC’s Water Management Systems Division in July 2023 as a remote worker, transferring into HEC from the Savannah District. She had 7 years of service at the Savannah District in the Water Management section. Kat's water management duties included flood forecasting, data management, and coordination with project operators. Kat has a BS in Meteorology from Penn State University, a MS in Environmental Science: Hydraulics and Hydrology from the University of Oklahoma, and an MS in Project Management from Embry Riddle.

Matthew Fleming, PE – Matt filled the vacant Water Management Systems Division Chief position in July 2023 after serving as the Hydrology and Statistics Division Chief since November 2013. He has been part of the HEC team since June 2002. Matt has a BS and an MS in Civil Engineering from Tennessee Tech University. He is a registered professional engineer in the state of California.

Oskar Hurst – Oskar joined HEC's Water Management Systems Division in April 2024. Oskar graduated from UC Berkeley with a BS in Computer Science and Electrical Engineering before joining HEC. 

Gregory Karlovits, PE – Greg filled the vacant Hydrology and Statistics Division Chief position in December 2023 after serving as its temporary chief since October 2022. He has been part of the HEC team since February 2017, and before that the Risk Management Center and the Rock Island District, totaling almost 14 years of USACE experience. Greg has a BS in Civil Engineering from Michigan Tech and an MS in Civil Engineering from Washington State University. He is a registered professional engineer in the state of Illinois.

Krishna Khatri PhD, PE – Krishna joined HEC's Water Management Systems Division in November 2023 as a remote worker. Prior to joining HEC, Krishna worked for the Utah Division of Water Resources. Krishna has more than 20 years of work experience in government service, consulting firms, and academia in water resources planning and development, infrastructure systems design, hydrologic and hydraulic modeling, climate change and adaption assessment, risk and uncertainty analysis, and project management. Krishna has a PhD in Civil Engineering and Geoscience from Delft University of Technology. 

Treyson Le – Treyson joined HEC's Water Management Systems Division in May 2024 as a remote worker. Treyson is working towards his BS in Computer Science at Regis University while working with HEC. Treyson will serve as the Secretary for the Asian Student Association this year at Regis University and for fun is learning how to sketch.

Jordan Lucas – Jordan joined HEC's Water Resources Systems Division in June 2024 as a remote worker. Jordan was previously with the Mississippi Valley Division's Economics Branch where he worked flood risk management studies, dam and levee safety risk assessments, and other various economic analysis. He has a BS and MA in Economics from University of Missouri - St Louis, with minors in Mathematics and Political Science. He also has a certificate in Applied Econometrics and Data Analysis from UM - St Louis, and a certificate in Risk Management from Notre Dame of Maryland University.

Melissa Mika, PE – Melissa joined the Hydrology and Statistics Division at HEC in July 2023 as a remote worker, transferring from the Sacramento District. Melissa performed a wide range of H&H and statistics modeling studies and supported the Dam and Levee Safety programs in her 5 years in Sacramento. Melissa has a BS in Civil Engineering from Iowa State University an an MS in Civil Engineering (Water Resources) from Virginia Tech. She is a registered professional engineer in the state of California.

Chris Nygaard, PE – Chris joined HEC’s Hydraulics Division in February 2024 as a remote worker, transferring into HEC from Portland District.  He had 23 years of federal civilian service as a river engineering specialist in the Pacific Northwest prior to joining HEC.  Chris’s work experience spans a wide range of river related topics including FEMA NFIP development, sediment transport and fluvial geomorphology, flood risk assessment and planning, navigation, and ecosystem restoration.  Chris has a BS in Civil Engineering from Portland State University.  He is a registered professional engineer in the state of Oregon.

Jordan Van Aalsburg – Jordan joined HEC as a Computer Scientist in January 2024. He lives in Oregon and works remotely for the Water Management Systems and Water Resources Systems Divisions. After graduating from UC Davis he worked with the KeckCAVES on various data visualization projects. He left academia to join a startup and spent the next decade designing and building web platforms. Jordan has a BS in Physics from UC San Diego and a PhD in Physics from UC Davis.

Amanda Walsh, PE – Amanda joined HEC's Water Resources Systems Division in August 2023 as a remote worker. Amanda was previously with the Los Angeles District's Reservoir Regulation Section for 14 years. While with Los Angeles District, she performed various tasks but for the last 8 years she was the CWMS Model Lead, Data Lead, and a Shift Leader. Amanda was responsible for the running all the CWMS models prior to events, the reservoir historic records and surveys and leading shifts during flood operations. Prior to Los Angeles District, Amanda worked in HEC's Water Management Systems Division as a STEP hire for 1 year while working on her MS at UC Davis. Amanda has a BS in Civil Engineering from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and a MS in Civil and Environmental Engineering from UC Davis. She is a registered professional engineer in the state of California.

Sharon Welch – Sharon joined HEC's Executive Division in July 2024. Sharon has a diverse background in Civil Service (both law and medical), and she has various other areas of expertise, such as a Class A Commercial Driver. She is also fluent in American Sign Language. Sharon has an AS in Criminal Justice from Napa Junior College.

Staff members who have retired:

Christopher Dunn, PE – Chris retired from HEC in March 2024. Chris had 37 years of Federal civilian service at his retirement, with 25 years at HEC. Chris started as a senior hydraulic engineer in HEC’s Water Resource Systems Division (called the Planning Analysis Division at the time Chris joined HEC), then moved to the Division Chief position before his selection as HEC's Director. During the 18 years Chris served as HEC's Director, he oversaw tremendous innovation and organizational transformation; his tenure as Director ensured that HEC was well-positioned for the future. While HEC staff miss Chris, he reports that he is thoroughly enjoying retirement.

Dawn Palma – Dawn retired from HEC in March 2024. Dawn served as HEC’s Chief Administrative Officer for more than 7 years and worked as Federal civil servant for almost 37 years. Dawn came to HEC from the Army Civilian Human Resources Agency, South Pacific Division Civilian Personnel Advisory Center, where she supervised a team of 12 in the Recruitment, Placement, Classification and Personnel Systems section. Dawn reports that retirement is wonderful and highly recommends it – she has never felt more at peace.