Conference Speaker Bios
Dr Jejal Reddy Bathi
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
Associate Professor
423-425-2789
My name is Jejal-Reddy Bathi, and I am an UC Foundation Associate Professor, Environmental Engineering Coordinator in the Civil and Chemical Engineering Department within the College of Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.
Dr. Kay Bernard
University of Tennessee
Postdoctoral Research Associate
830-928-1024
Dr. Kay Bernard is a researcher with interests in water resources, public policy, and ecological health. Currently, Kay is a project manager for Dr. Jon Hathaway on a project installing novel stormwater infrastructure called gravel tree stormwater systems throughout Knoxville, TN.
Claudia Bible Tolson
Civil & Environmental Consultants, Inc.
Assistant Project Manager
865-314-1173
Claudia Bible Tolson has a BS in Civil & Environmental Engineering and MS in Environmental Engineering from UT. She has been working at CEC since 2022 in the Knoxville Water Resources group. Her work includes flood & dam breach studies, floodplain permitting, and stormwater planning & modeling.
Braden Bruce
The University of Tennessee
Masters Student
618 696 7097
Bradan completed his undergraduate work in mechanical engineering from the University of Evansville. He looked to pivot to working with water resources following graduation. He landed at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville in Dr. Hathaway’s research group studying the gravel tree stormwater systems.
Ben Burchfield
City of Athens
Public Works Director
423-744-2769
Ben has served as the Public Works Director for the City of Athens, Tennessee since 2017. Through this role, he prioritizes public service and community improvement while overseeing stormwater, MS4, and infrastructure improvements within the city.
Ben Butler
Civil & Environmental Consultants, Inc.
Project Manager
615-333-7797
Ben Butler, P.E., is a water resources engineer with 8 years of experience in hydrologic and hydraulic analysis, floodplain studies, and municipal plan review. He specializes in FEMA submittals, hydraulic modeling, and regulatory compliance.
Steven Casey
Civil and Environmental Consultants, Inc.
Vice President
Steve works with a talented group of professionals as the CEC Nashville operations lead. Much of his career has been in the water resources field, focusing on hydrology & hydraulic modeling, MS4 compliance, EPSC, and NPDES, and enjoys mentoring others to serve a variety of clients.
Priya Chowdhury
The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
Graduate Research Assistant
865-209-1128
I am a Ph.D. student in Engineering at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, working with Dr. Jejal Reddy Bathi on stormwater management and sustainable urban water systems. My research focuses on hydrologic modeling, LID, green infrastructure, urban water resources planning
Roy Chuang
NEXCOM International Co., Ltd.
ESG Consultant
510-656-2248
Masters of Chemistry and Environmental Engineering from Tennessee Tech. Univ.
Env. Engineering works for Environmental consultants at Oak Ridge, TN and Taiwan. Also worked at State of Tennessee and currently working at NEXCOM International as ESG Consultant.
Katie Cromwell
Raftelis
Vice President
919-368-0116
Katie Cromwell has spent eleven years at Raftelis advising local governments on stormwater program development, utility feasibility, implementation, and organizational reviews. She brings a finance background alongside strong skills in data management, geospatial analysis, and relational databases.
Dr. Tania Datta
Tennessee Tech University
Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Dr. Tania Datta is a Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Tennessee Technological University. She earned her Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering from the University of Utah in 2010 and joined Tennessee Tech in 2013 after spending three years as an environmental engineer with CH2M HILL. Dr. Datta has more than 15 years of research, field, and professional experience in surface water quality assessment, biological wastewater and residuals treatment design and optimization, environmental microbiology, stormwater management, integrated watershed management, and emerging contaminants, particularly microplastics. Her work focuses on developing sustainable solutions to complex water quality challenges and advancing watershed protection through science-based management strategies.
Tori Denney
Tennessee Technological University
Graduate Student
931-510-9648
Tori Denney is a graduate student in Civil and Environmental Engineering at Tennessee Technological University, where she also earned her undergraduate degree. Her interests include stormwater management, GIS applications, and water resources engineering.
Nelson Elam
Barge Design Solutions
Vice President
423-723-8450
Nelson Elam is a VP, Client Service Leader, and Kingsport Office Leader. He’s been with Barge since 1987 and is a 34-year registered land surveyor in TN, VA, and KY serving public/private clients in NE TN/SW VA. He helps his wife run a 6,000-SF antique mall and has 4 children and 3 grandchildren.
Joseph Fan
NEXCOM International Co., Ltd.
Director, Product Management
510-656-2248
M.S. in Mechanical engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology. Experienced Industrial PC manufacturing management. Currently working as Director of Environment & Energy Solution Business Unit. Directing the development of IoT technologies in water monitoring.
Karen Ferency
CDM Smith
Civil Engineer
865-963-4314
Karen Ferency, PE, is a Knoxville, Tennessee-based Water Resources Engineer with 15 years’ experience in watershed master planning, MS4 permit compliance, and environmental remediation/restoration. Karen serves on TNSA’s conference committee and SESWA’s communication committee.
Ryan Forte
City of Gallatin
Stormwater Project Manager
615-451-5965
Ryan is a Project Manager in the Stormwater Division for the City of Gallatin. He specializes in plans review for all types of development, focusing on green design. Whether a contractor, engineer, developer, or citizen, Ryan works effectively with many people daily to help Gallatin grow positively.
Parci Gibson
WSP
Senior Consultant, Environmental Planning
865-257-2210
Parci works at the intersection of stormwater policy, design, and reality—where things don’t always go as written and sometimes go completely off script. She’s written more manuals and plans than she cares to admit and now helps communities create guidance they might actually want to use.
Christine Guy-Baker
Civil and Environmental Consultants, Inc.
Project Manager
615-516-9006
Christine Guy-Baker works as a project manger within the water resources practice at Civil and Environmental Consultants, inc for nearly 9 years. She thrives on the unique challenges of stormwater related problems while collaborating with various municipalities throughout Middle Tennessee.
Mary Halley
WSP
Vice President
865-414-0642
Mary Halley has nearly 30 years of experience in municipal stormwater management, much of which was developed in Tennessee. Her focus areas include MS4 permit planning and compliance, stormwater master planning, and land development policies tied to stormwater and floodplain management.
Amy Hathaway
Ardurra
Senior Project Engineer
919-522-3747
Amy Hathaway lives in Knoxville with her husband and 2 kids. Her family enjoys camping in their pop-up and visiting national parks and state parks. As an engineer, Amy specializes in MS4 stormwater programs, with experience in watershed planning, green infrastructure, and NPDES compliance.
Rebekah Higgins
Gresham Smith
Stormwater Practice Leader
becky.higgins@greshamsmith.com
708-769-0491
Rebekah is the TN Stormwater Practice Leader at Gresham Smith. She holds a BS and MS in Civil Engineering. She has spent the last 15 years of her career focused in stormwater management, modeling, and design. She holds her PE in 6 states and is a CFM in the state of Tennessee.
Jeremy Holley
Tennessee Emergency Management Agency
TN NFIP Program Coordinator
629-266-9961
Jeremy Holley is Tennessee’s State NFIP Program Coordinator. He supports communities through floodplain management training, technical assistance, and local coordination, with prior experience in emergency management, public safety, and local government.
Dannis Huang
NEXCOM International Inc. Ltd.
Vice President, Director of R&D
Education and Professional
EMBA, Industrial Engineering & Management National Taipei University of Technology, 2021
Associate, Electronic Engineering National Taipei University of Technology, 1990
Experience Record
2013 Jun ~ Present NEXCOM International Inc. Ltd. [ Vice President, R&D Center ]
1993 Jun ~ 2013 Jun Networking Communication BU
Shelia Huffmire, P.E.
UT Municipal Technical Advisory Service
Public Works Engineering Consultant
615-549-0857
Shelia Huffmire, P.E., is a Civil Engineer and graduate of Tennessee Technological University with more than two decades of professional experience in roadway design, project management, municipal engineering, stormwater management, and public works. She most recently served as Assistant County Engineer for Rutherford County before joining the University of Tennessee’s Municipal Technical Advisory Service (MTAS) as a Public Works Consultant. Her experience working with both local governments and development review processes provides a practical perspective on implementing Public Chapter 1044.
Jordan Hyatt
Barge Design Solutions
Engineer Team Lead
770-584-8146
Jordan Hyatt, P.E., is a Civil Engineer Team Lead at Barge Design Solutions with expertise in stormwater modeling, GIS, and data management. He works with municipalities to improve infrastructure planning and decision-making through innovative, data-driven tools and workflows.
Gretchen Judkins
Metro Water Services
Environmental Compliance Officer
gretchen.judkins@nashville.gov
615-906-6325
Gretchen Judkins earned her bachelor’s from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and currently works for Metro Water Services in Nashville. She inspects industrial facilities and is the public education coordinator for Nashville’s MS4 permit.
Theodoros Kyriakopoulos
University of Tennessee
Graduate Research Assistant
847-262-1339
Theo is a PhD student at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.
Degrees:
B.S. Civil Engineering, University of Patras, Greece
M.S. Design and Construction of Underground Works, National Technical
University of Athens, Greece
M.S. Environmental Engineering, University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Matthew Lockheart
Metro Water Services
SCM Inspection and Compliance Program Manager
matthew.lockhart@nashville.gov
615-571-9108
Matthew Lockhart supervises the Stormwater Control Measures (SCM) Inspection and Compliance Program of Metro Nashville. He has over seven years of experience with inspecting and reporting on SCM structures. He routinely coordinates with sites to ensure maintenance compliance of SCM structures.
Jacob Mabrey
Civil & Environmental Consultants, Inc.
Project Manager
615-577-9323
Jacob Mabrey earned a B.S. in Environmental Engineering from the University of Georgia (2019) and joined CEC’s Nashville office. He works in water resources, focusing on erosion control, SWPPP design, NPDES compliance, MS4 support, and H&H modeling. He is a Tennessee PE.
David Mason
CDM Smith
Vice President; Water Resources Engineer
919-971-9767
Mr. Mason is a water resources engineer for CDM Smith with over 26 years of experience in stormwater master planning, GIS inventory, infrastructure design, MS4 permitting and stormwater utility development. He is based out of the CDM Smith Nashville, TN office.
Crystal Moore
KCI
NC Water Practice Leader
919-278-2466
Crystal Moore is the NC Water Practice Leader for KCI Technologies with 15+ years in hydraulic design for transportation projects. She specializes in hydrologic and hydraulic analysis for bridge replacements, including FEMA flood hazard areas.
Tom Murray
Ardurra
Watershed Services Practice Director
919-610-9434
Tom Murray has more than 26 years of experience guiding communities through complex stormwater and watershed challenges. As an engineer and certified floodplain manager, Tom helps his municipal clients navigate regulatory requirements, long term planning, and infrastructure resilience initiatives.
Evan Needham
Barge Design Solutions
GIS Manager
Evan Needham serves as GIS Manager for Barge Design Solutions, where he leads geospatial initiatives that support engineering and infrastructure management projects. His experience includes data engagement, spatial analysis, field data collection, web mapping, and GIS program implementation. Evan works closely with technical teams and stakeholders to streamline workflows to deliver practical, data-driven solutions that improve project outcomes and operational effectiveness.
Van Oldham
EverGreen Infrastructure
Owner/Operator
615-633-1353
Van Oldham, PE, founded EverGreen Infrastructure in 2019 to help property owners inspect, monitor, and maintain stormwater control measures. He oversees compliance reporting and maintenance coordination to ensure sites meet municipal stormwater regulations while minimizing long-term costs.
Cadence Oliver
East Tennessee State University
Undergraduate Geosciences Student
270-702-6208
Cadence is a Geosciences and Communication Studies student at ETSU with a concentration in Geology and Environment. She will graduate in December 2026 and plans to pursue a career in natural hazards with a focus on risk perception.
Ceara Parks Oliver
University of Tennessee
Graduate Assistant
412-526-0172
Ceara Parks Oliver is a Ph.D. student in Water Resources Engineering at the University of Tennessee, advised by Dr. John Schwartz. Her research focuses on compensatory mitigation for stream restoration in urban watersheds. Previously, she worked as a stormwater engineer in the transportation field.
James Riddle
Woolpert Inc.
Program Director
803-422-4048
James Riddle is a Program Director and has worked at Woolpert for over 25 years. He is a licensed professional engineer with a career devoted to water resources. He has managed water resources projects across the southeast with an emphasis in continuous water quality and quantity monitoring.
Rick Roark
City of Gallatin, TN/ Volunteer Sales LLC
City of Gallatin Engineering/Stormwater
615-613-1736
Rick Roark is a veteran stormwater professional and University of Tennessee graduate. He manages construction site stormwater projects for the City of Gallatin, in one of Tennessee’s fastest‑growing regions.
Lena Rodante
East Tennessee State University
Undergraduate Geosciences Student
423-310-0701
Lena Rodante is a Geosciences student at ETSU with a concentration in Geology and the Environment, and a minor in Geography. She will graduate in 2027 and plans to pursue her PhD in geology with the ultimate goal of working as a university professor.
Aaron Rogge
CDM Smith
Client Service Leader
615-340-6518
Aaron Rogge, PE, is a water resources engineer with CDM Smith in Nashville Tennessee. He has over fifteen years of experience working with utilities and MS4s to solve their most pressing stormwater issues.
Regina Santore
Wild Ones Smoky Mountains Chapter
President
president@smokymountainswildones.org
865-742-3248
Regina Santore is current President of Wild Ones Smoky Mountains Chapter. Wild Ones is a national educational non-profit focused on the benefits of native plants for ecosystems and a healthier planet. A Realtor, she successfully uses logic and lived experiences to persuade people to plant natives.
Matt Schlicker
Kimley-Horn
Project Manager
matt.schlicker@kimley-horn.com
989-280-3676
Matt has 14 years of experience in stormwater design on a wide variety of projects. He loves bringing creativity and technical expertise together to solve challenging problems for communities throughout middle Tennessee.
Danielle Schwanke
RK&K
Water Resources Engineer
252-876-7699
Danielle Schwanke, Water Resources Engineer at RK&K, has 7 years’ experience in stormwater master planning, MS4/TMDL compliance and asset management, drainage design, erosion and sediment control, construction oversight and inspection, and post-construction stormwater management facility design.
John Schwartz
Tennessee Water Resources Research Center, UTK
Professor
865-335-2127
Dr. John Schwartz is a professor in the Civil Engineering Department at the University of Tennessee Knoxville, and Director of the Tennessee Water Resources Research Center. His research area relates to improvements in watershed management and water quality.
Lauren Smith
Kimley-Horn
Professional Engineer
256-303-0020
Lauren Smith is a civil engineer with 8 years of experience delivering stormwater solutions across Florida and Tennessee. Her work spans stormwater master planning, drainage design, construction administration, watershed studies, and infrastructure assessment.
Adam Spiller
KCI Associates of NC, PA
Service Line Leader
919-475-3696
Mr. Spiller is the Water South Service Line Leader for KCI Technologies, overseeing water management across the Southeast. With 21 years in natural resource restoration, he leads collaborative, resilient projects including stream, wetland, and dam restoration.
Will Stallard
City of Kingsport
Civil Engineer - Utilities Department
423-224-2921
Will, a UVA BSCE ’86 graduate, brings 40 years’ leadership, including 20 as a U.S. Navy nuclear submarine officer and 13 as a landscape business owner. He serves on SESWA and NMSA boards, shaping clean water policy, and has been married 40 years, with 2 children: a surgeon and ICU nurse.
Dana Stayer
StormTrap
Regulatory Specialist
614-800-5386
Dana Stayer is a Regulatory Specialist at StormTrap supporting the Eastern U.S. region with over a decade of experience in the stormwater industry. She leads efforts to secure regional regulatory approvals and provides technical guidance on the selection and evaluation of post-construction BMPs.
Lori Visone
CDM Smith
Water Resouces Engineer
404-720-1283
Lori is a water resources engineer with CDM Smith. She helps communities develop and implement plans and projects to address flooding, improve water quality, and stream ecology with an objective of building a more sustainable and equitable world.
Lisa Wells
Ardurra
Market Leader for Water Resources and Watershed Services
864-313-1580
Lisa Wells is a civil and environmental engineer with 30 years of experience in public infrastructure and private development. She specializes in stormwater program management, asset planning, and regulatory compliance, and is a licensed Professional Engineer and Certified Floodplain Manager.
Grace White
Tennessee Tech University
Masters Student
615-524-1856
Grace is a current master’s student at Tennessee Tech, studying water resources engineering under Dr. Tania Datta, and will graduate in May 2027. She has been working on watershed management plans since 2023 and is currently expanding approaches to watershed planning for Tennessee in her thesis.