In this issue
2026-2027 Leadership
2026-2027 Board of DirectorsPresident
Alban Gjongecaj, S.E.
Vice President
David Miller, S.E.
Treasurer
Kevin Logsdon, S.E.
Secretary
Leticia Valenzuela, P.E.
Past President
Sonia Eliseo, S.E.
Director - Central District
Thelbert Sexton, P.E.
Kendall Johnson, S.E.
Anthony Tiapon, P.E.
Jake Gruber, S.E.
Director - East District
Isabella Villafuerte, P.E.
Director - North District
Julio Silva, P.E.
Director - South District
Megan Chang, S.E.
2026-2027 Committee Chairs
Audit/Budget/Finance
Kevin Logsdon, S.E.
Business Forum
Matthew Melcher, S.E.
Bylaws & Policies
David Palmer, S.E.
Communications
Kendall Johnson, S.E.
David Miller, S.E.
Continued Education
Daryl Santos, P.E.
Disaster Emergency Services
Steven T. Hiner, S.E.
Structural Engineering
Excellence Awards
David Miller, S.E.
Existing Buildings
Hannah Hillegas, S.E.
Doug Mayer, S.E.
Golf Tournament
Nick Herskedal, S.E.
House
James Sweeney
Legislative
Ryan Kersting, S.E.
Devon Lumbard, S.E.
Membership
Kate Worcester, P.E.
Newsletter
Rachel Leung, S.E.
Professional Practice
OPEN
Program
Doug Mayer, S.E.
Public Relations
Gillian Montgomery, S.E.
Scholarship
James Carlson, S.E.
S.E. Exam Interview
Edwin Nicholson, S.E.
SE3 Committee
Lisa Hartley, P.E.
Seismology & Load Criteria
Rachel Leung, S.E.
Social Media
Leticia Valenzuela, P.E.
Structural Standards
Christos Tokas, S.E.
Student Relations
Francisco Rodriguez
Catherine Smith, P.E.
Sustainable Design
OPEN
Website
OPEN
Wind
Ken Luttrell, S.E.
Norm Scheel, S.E.
Younger Member Forum
Francisco Rodriguez
Catherine Smith, P.E.
Have any questions or want to get involved? Contact any of the Committee Chairs or Board Members above. To find their contact information, login to seaocc.org and access the Member Directory through the Member Area sidebar.
Newsletter Submissions
Hiring? Submit a job opening for the Job Forum at the link here. These will be posted on the website and the newsletter will link to the website posting.
If you are interested in having a job ad or general advertisement in the body of the newsletter, you can find more information here.
Do you have any articles or information of interest to the membership to submit for the next newsletter? If so, please email the newsletter editor at [email protected] and the Executive Secretary at [email protected]!
Silver Sponsors
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Archives
Quick Links
October 2026 
President's Message
Hello SEAOCC Community,
Fall is in the air, and SEAOCC will soon turn a new leaf as we transition to a new website platform. At the end of this month, we will launch our new website and member portal, powered by Novi AMS. This will be a shared platform for all SEAOC members across California. You should have received a heads-up email recently and we’ll follow up with more announcements once the website goes live. Please keep an eye out for the emails and follow the directions to activate your account.
I’d like to take a moment to thank Dave Miller, Kendall Johnson, and Heather Caya for their hard work behind the scenes to make this transition as seamless as possible. I also want to extend a heartfelt thank you to Krystinne Mica (SEAOC Executive Director) and Selena Silva-Ortega (SEAOC Director of Strategy and Operations) for all their efforts throughout this process.
The SEAOCC Board and transition team are committed to making the change as smooth as possible. If you encounter any issues, please reach out to us. If you have not yet renewed your membership, please do so soon through the current website.
Beyond the website transition, SEAOCC’s fall programming is well underway. Last week’s SAP Evaluator Training Seminar had a great turnout. Thank you to our instructors, Matt Melcher and Hussain Bhatia, and to Lionakis for hosting.
Our October dinner meeting will be held on Tuesday, October 20th, featuring a presentation from this year’s T.R. Higgins Distinguished Lecturer, Dr. Caroline Bennett – there is still time to register. On November 2nd we’ll host a full-day, in-person seminar on the new SEAOC Structural/Seismic Design Manual. Our November dinner meeting returns to our regular second Tuesday schedule, on November 10th, with a presentation on The Resources Building Renovation, one of last year’s SEE Awards winners. Finally, as the Holiday season approaches, please save the date for our Holiday Party on December 8th.
As we look ahead to SEAOCC’s 80th anniversary in 2027, our Reflections from a Fellow article series continues this month with a contribution from John Weninger. Please take a moment to read it, and watch for the next one in November.
Thank you for reading and for being part of the SEAOCC community. We have some exciting milestones ahead, and I look forward to seeing you at one of our upcoming events. Until then, enjoy the fall weather.
Alban Gjongecaj, S.E.
2026-2027 SEAOCC President
Calendar of Events
SEAOCC Dinner October 20, 2026 AISC T.R. Higgins Lectureship: Fracture Beyond Fatigue
October 20, 2026
5:30 PM to 9:00 PM
The Spaghetti Factory
1625 Watt Avenue
Sacramento , CA 95864
SEAOCC Dinner October 20, 2026 AISC T.R. Higgins Lectureship: Fracture Beyond Fatigue
SE3 Symposium – Bridge the Gap: Connecting Engagement to Retention October 27, 2026
October 27, 2026
12:30 PM to 5:00 PM
Hilton Union Square, San Francisco
SE3 Symposium – Bridge the Gap: Connecting Engagement to Retention October 27, 2026
SEAOC Structural/Seismic Design Manual In-Person Seminar Monday November 2, 2026
November 02, 2026
8:00 AM to 5:00 PM
West Sacramento Community Center
1075 W Capitol Ave
West Sacramento, CA 95691
Venue website
SEAOC Structural/Seismic Design Manual In-Person Seminar Monday November 2, 2026
SEAOCC Dinner Meeting November 10, 2026 “The Resources Building Renovation Project - A Seismic Retrofit of a 17 Story Building Utilizing Dampers”
November 10, 2026
5:30 PM to 9:00 PM
The Spaghetti Factory
1625 Watt Avenue
Sacramento , CA 95864
SEAOCC Dinner Meeting November 10, 2026
SEAOCC Holiday Social December 8, 2026
December 08, 2026
5:30 PM to 8:30 PM
Mix Downtown
1525 L Street
Sacramento, CA 95814
SEAOCC Holiday Social December 8, 2026
Reflections from a Fellow
The Community That Shaped My Path
By John Weninger, S.E., Member SEAOCC, SEAOC College of Fellows
My involvement with SEAOC goes all the way back to my college days and has been a steady part of my career ever since. I’ve always felt I owed a great deal to the organization, and I try to return that support whenever I can. My advisor, Dr. Ajit Virdee—a past SEAOC president and one of the early SEAOC Fellows—was the first to introduce me to the community. At the time, the only way a student could attend a SEAOCC meeting was through a professor’s invitation. I’m glad to see how much more open and inclusive things have become since then.
Dr. Virdee also connected me with one of his former partners, David Crane. Before I realized it, he hired me for my first engineering job. A few years later when I was looking for a new opportunity, my friend Ed Nicholson, then the Newsletter Editor and a future SEAOC Fellow, tipped me off to an opening at Lionakis Beaumont. That led me to working under Tim Fry, who strongly supported my involvement in SEAOCC.
In SEAOCC, I consecutively volunteered for the roles of Secretary, Newsletter Editor, Treasurer, Board Member, and eventually President. I even found myself serving as both Convention Chair and local President in the same year—something that probably tested Tim Fry’s patience at least once or twice in spite of his support. Even with all that support, I could not have succeeded without the wholehearted support of Executive Secretary Lori Campbell, who is just incredible.
When I eventually left Lionakis, it was to work with Bill Warren. Bill was a former SEAOC president, NCSEA president, and SEAOC Fellow. He highly encouraged SEAOCC involvement to the degree that it was expected as part of employment, and I was happy to oblige.
Over the years, I gravitated toward the technical side of the annual conventions. I’ve run the technical program several times, and the Central Section Convention Committee is already busy planning next year’s Monterey Convention. If you’re interested in helping with the convention, please contact Kendall Johnson.
I also spent about two decades organizing dinner meeting presentations by finding topics and recruiting speakers. Eventually, I stepped aside and thereby encouraged the Board to find a replacement to bring new perspectives and topics to members.
I strongly encourage SEAOCC members to attend at least two dinner meetings each year. They’re an easy way to stay connected, see what others are working on, and keep learning. SEAOC is a volunteer-driven organization, and it thrives when more people take part.
Like a concrete beam made from many materials, we are stronger together.
Welcome New Members
NEW YEAR MAKE THIS THE YEAR YOU JOIN SEAOCC
New members Posted Members October 13, 2026
Haylie Rockwell - Associate, HED
Maxwell Hardy - Dewberry, Member
Alejandro Ruiz - San Jose State University, Student
New members Approved Members
Arth Belvi - Student, UC Davis
Michael Auchter - Member, Ardurra
An Chuong - Student, UC Davis
Ronald Belknap - Member, Belknap and Assoc
Job Forum
Job Posting for Members
Job listings are submitted for SEAOCC approval before being posted. Once approved by SEAOCC your listing will be posted for two months from the approval date. For listing to be reposted please resubmit your job listing.
The member fee for a 2 month posting is $150. You will be prompted for a credit card payment after clicking on the "Submit" button.
Job Posting for Non-Members
Job listings are submitted for SEAOCC approval before being posted. Once approved by SEAOCC your listing will be posted for two months from the approval date. For listing to be reposted please resubmit your job listing.
The nonmember fee for a 2 month posting is $250. You will be prompted for a credit card payment after clicking on the "Submit" button.
Submit an Ad - members Submit an Ad - Non-Members
Experienced Professional/Structural Engineer
PZSE, Inc. Structural Engineers
Job Posting
Sep. 22, 2026
Designer / Professional/Structural Engineer
Buehler Engineering, Inc.
Job Posting
Sep. 15, 2026
Ask SEAOCC Leadership
What is Your Go-To Comfort Food when the weather gets chilly?
When the weather gets chilly, I'm all about the chai! Each mug is like Thanksgiving in a cup." - Megan Chang
"Spaghetti." - Heather Caya
"Chicken Adobo and rice." - Catherine Smith
SEAOCC Gear Available
Looking for SEAOCC gear? Our Lands’ End company store offers a selection of apparel and accessories featuring the SEAOCC logo.
Visit business.landsend.com/store/
