By: Dawn Palma and Linda Nguyen

The Hydrologic Engineering Center (HEC) has had a number of staffing changes since our last newsletter was published. Below is a list of staff who have joined and left HEC since the last newsletter. We are thrilled with our good fortune for the individuals who have joined HEC, and wish our former staff members great success as they begin their next chapter.

Staff who have joined HEC:

  • Eric Novotny, PhD – Eric joined HEC’s Water Management Systems (WMS) Division as a remote worker in February 2022. Prior to joining HEC, Eric worked for the St. Paul District. He received a BS in Biomedical Engineering from Marquette University. He has an MS and PhD in Civil Engineering from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. His work has appeared in peer-reviewed Journals such as, Journal of Hydrology; Journal of Science of the Total Environment; Water Resource Res.; Water, Air, and Soil Pollution; Water Practice and Technology; Environmental Science and Technology; Journal of Hydraulic Engineering.
  • Simon Evans, PE, CFM – Simon transferred to HEC from the Baltimore District in January 2022. He also joined WMS as a remote worker. He has a BS and MS in Civil Engineering from the University of California, Los Angeles. He is a registered professional engineer and registered certified floodplain manager in California. Simon initially joined USACE in 2011 with the Los Angeles District.
  • Alden Grande – Alden joined HEC in April 2022 as a Budget Analyst. Prior to HEC he was an Accountant for the California National Guard in Mather, CA. Alden has a BA in Business Administration from the University of Hawaii, West Oahu; an MS in Accountancy from the University of Phoenix; and holds a Level 2 Financial Management Certification. Alden is a Veteran and still active in the Army National Guard where he was recently promoted to Captain. He has been an invaluable addition to the HEC Executive Division.
  • Avital Breverman, EIT – Avital joined HEC’s Hydrology and Statistics Division (H&S) in July 2022 as a remote worker. Previously she worked over 3 years with the Philadelphia District. She has a BS in Civil Engineering from Drexel University and is on track to receive her MS in Civil Engineering from the Colorado State University, Fort Collins this spring.
  • David Portin – David joined the HEC WMS Division as a remote worker in August 2022. David had over 40 years of federal civilian service prior to his retirement from the Northwestern Division in 2018. He returned to the Northwestern Division as a re-employed annuitant in 2020, and transferred to HEC as a re-employed annuitant in 2022. David has a BS and MS in Applied Science from Portland State University, and is a certified Oracle SQL Expert.
  • Joan Klipsch – Joan returned to HEC WRS division as a re-employed annuitant in October 2022. Prior to retirement on 30 September 2022, Joan worked in WMS serving as a key member on the ResSim team. Joan began her career with HEC in May 1988 as a Computer Programmer. After earning her Master’s in Software Engineering in 1990 from California State University, Sacramento, she moved into a Hydraulic Engineer position. In addition to her MS she also has a BS in Architectural Engineering from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. She returned to HEC have just a short break to assist with the transition of ResSim to the new team.
  • Andrew Richter, PE – Andy joined HEC's WMS Division as a Civil Engineer (Hydraulics/Project Manager) in January 2023 as a remote worker. He transferred from the St. Louis District where he was the technical lead for the MMC CWMS National Implementation Program. He has a BS in Civil Engineering from the University of Missouri, Rolla, and an MS in Civil Engineering, with an emphasis in Water Resources, from the Missouri University of Science and Technology. He is a registered professional engineer with the State of Missouri, a member of the American Society of Engineers (ASCE), and a member of the Environmental and Water Resources Institute (EWRI).
  • Russell Errett, PE – Russell joined HEC's WMS Division in January 2023 as a remote worker. Russell also transferred from the St. Louis District. He provides plethora of experiences, such as: CWMS modeling technical; development of suite of CWMS models for real-time operations; H&H analysis of flood control projects; ecosystem restoration and enhancement analysis; experienced water manager in the Mississippi Valley Division (MVS) Water Management Division; MVD Hydrology, Hydraulics and Coastal (HH&C) Community of Practice (CoP) Subject Matter Expert (SME) for water management (real-time forecasting) and Reservoir System Analysis (reservoir regulation). He started his USACE career as a Park Ranger at the Melvin Price Locks and Dam in Alton, Illinois. Russell has a BS in Civil Engineering with a minor in Mathematics and MS in Civil Engineering with a focus on Environmental Engineering both from the Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville. Russell is a registered professional engineer in Illinois.
  • Paul Ely, PE – Paul joined HEC in January 2023 as a remote worker. He formerly worked seven years for HEC before leaving federal service to work in the private sector. He worked 38 years as a private consultant. He has written software for HEC for 45 years and was a key developer on the HEC-HMS team. Paul has a BS in Engineering Science from the Humboldt State College, and an MS in Civil Engineering with a focus in Hydrology and Hydraulics, numerical methods from the University of California, Davis. Paul has been a registered professional engineer in California since 1975.
  • Christopher Havens – One of HEC’s newest staff member joined HEC in March 2023. Chris joined the Hydraulics Division as a Computer Scientist Pathways student. He previously worked as a Software Development Contractor for HEC. Chris first became interested in computer science in middle school because of his dad’s excitement with computers. Chris started studying computer science in high school where he was in the advance placement computer science classes. He is an active member of the Codelab at UC Davis Club and is expecting to receive his BS in Computer Science and Engineering in June 2023 from the University of California, Davis. Go Aggies!
  • Joshua Hernandez – One of HEC’S newest member joined HEC’s Hydraulics (HYD) Division as a Software Developer in April 2023. Prior to joining HEC, Josh worked as a Coding Teacher at Saint Clement Catholic School; Product Manager for Jade; and Credo Semiconductor as a Product Engineer Intern. Joshua’s passion is understanding problems inside and out, diagnosing all possible solutions, and systematically finding the best answer for those he works with. He is student at UC Davis double majoring in Computer Science and Managerial Economics and is expected to graduate in June 2024. Go Aggies! 

Staff members who have left HEC:

  • Gary Brunner, PE – Gary retired from HEC in May 2021. Gary worked for nearly 36 years of Federal civilian service prior to retirement. Gary is a recognized industry leader and has been instrumental in the success of HEC. His leadership with the development, implementation, support, and training of HEC-RAS (River Analysis System) is especially noteworthy and will benefit the Corps, the water resources profession, and the people of the United States for years to come.
  • Jon Fenske – Jon retired from HEC in December 2021. Jon had a little over 31 years of Federal civilian service prior to retirement. Jon is a recognized groundwater modeling technical expert and has been instrumental in the successful application of groundwater modeling studies in support of USACE Districts, and USACE customers. His training, leadership, and technical contributions to the Tooele and Ft. Ord groundwater modeling studies are especially noteworthy.
  • Neema Nejad – Neema resigned from HEC in September 2022 to accept a position with Amazon. Neema was a Computer Scientist with HEC for a little over 3 years.
  • Ramanaprasad Vemulapati – Prasad retired from HEC in September 2022. Prasad worked for HEC for over 12 years prior to retirement. Prasad’s innovation, problem solving, and dedication to the USACE Water Management Community of Practice are especially noteworthy.
  • Joan Klipsch – Joan retired from HEC in September 2022. Joan had over 34 years of Federal service, all with HEC. Joan’s leadership with the development, implementation, support, and training of ResSim is especially noteworthy.
  • George “Chan” Modini, PE, PMP – Chan retired from HEC in September 2022. Chan had over 35 years of Federal civilian service, the last 14 with HEC. Chan is a recognized industry leader and was been instrumental in the success of HEC in his role as the Chief of the WMS Division. His leadership with the development, implementation, support, and training of the CWMS is especially noteworthy.
  • Matt McPherson, PE – Matt retired from HEC in October 2022. Matt had over 35 years of Federal service, the last 23 with HEC. Matt’s leadership with the development, implementation, support, and training of the CWMS is especially noteworthy.

Last Modified: 2023-06-09 06:34:31.845