Winners of the 2024 ENR Mountain States Top Young Professionals competition are architects, engineers, constructors, virtual design experts, project managers and even a transportation industrial rope access program leader. Regardless of role, all of them are professionals deeply committed to improving the industry and their communities.

Some of this year’s winners began their careers as interns at the firms where they continue to work; others have moved around the industry to gain a broad range of experience. All have demonstrated a mastery of new technologies and worked hard to mentor colleagues and other young professionals about better design and smart construction practices.

As in all past years of the competition, nominees must be working full time in some aspect of the commercial construction and design industry in the Mountain States region, which includes Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, Idaho, Montana and North and South Dakota.

Companies or individuals are allowed to nominate more than one person, and individuals can nominate themselves. Some nominees may have changed roles or firms after they were initially selected as winners.

Key selection criteria include achievement of or progress toward industry certifications, significant success in creating more efficient systems, designing new processes or managing landmark projects and contributing not only to the industry but to the community as well.

The following pages contain profiles of these 20 young leaders, presented in alphabetical order, describing how their careers have evolved and sharing some of their achievements to date. Congratulations to the 2024 Mountain States TYP winners!

Matthew Breest
Designer identifies exceptional projects and trends for firm
39, Associate Principal/Senior Designer
Populous
Denver

As project lead for Populous in Denver, Breest’s high-profile projects include the 350,000-sq-ft Sue Anschutz-Rodgers Livestock Center at Denver’s National Western Center, the Resch Expo Center in Green Bay and several terminal expansions at LAX. As a member of Populous’ Architectural Resource Council – Design Committee, Breest helps identify exceptional projects and trends that may influence the design direction for the firm. He’s actively involved in the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties, Colorado, currently serving as the developing leaders chair on the group’s board of directors. He’s involved with the Downtown Denver Partnership, including serving as a member of a jury that awarded best-in-industry projects built across Denver. He’s also involved with the Denver Chamber of Commerce and Urban Land Institute. Breest is an American Institute of Architects Colorado Young Architect Award winner in the unbuilt project category for his efforts on the design for the National Museum of Intelligence and Special Operations.

Elizabeth Brown
Leader spearheads firm’s proprietary geotechnics program
38, Geotechnical Services Manager
Atlas Technical Consultants
Boise

Brown’s technical proficiency covers a broad range of geotechnical engineering areas including foundation design, pavement design and forensic investigations. This expertise is complemented by a strong focus on project management and quality control, which are among the key reasons her colleagues say she does so well as geotechnical services manager for Atlas Technical Consultants. Under her management, the firm’s geotechnical engineering department grew from a team of four with annual revenue of $864,000 to a team of 12 that added more than $12 million in annual revenue to the firm’s coffers. Brown’s team spearheaded the development of proprietary technology that helps the firm provide quick access to geotechnical investigation data, including project history, property boundaries, geology maps and fault locations. She’s contributed to several landmark projects in Idaho, including the Idaho National Laboratory Carbon Free Power Plant and the Idaho Central Credit Union Plaza Tower. Brown gives back to the community through Rake Up Boise, tutoring math students and volunteering for her church.

Matthew Bruno
Engineer oversees national rope access and inspection programs
37, Transportation Industrial Rope Access Program Leader
HDR
Denver

Bruno joined HDR as an intern in 2007 and today you might find him in a harness dangling below the Golden Gate Bridge—it’s just one part of his job as HDR’s transportation industrial rope access program leader. A licensed professional engineer in 11 states, Bruno’s experience includes overseeing inspection, ratings and analysis on more than 250 projects for nearly 100 clients in 45 U.S. states and two Canadian provinces. His client engagement skills and participation in HDR’s Colorado Area Step-Up Leadership team are credited with helping him achieve success in formalizing HDR’s national rope access program. Started with just four inspectors in 2011, the group has since grown to 49 in 2023. Bruno’s responsibilities include managing five inspectors in Colorado and Nevada along with several state bridge inspection contracts across the West. He’s a Society of Professional Rope Access technicians level-III rope access supervisor and is active with the organization, helping shape standard practices and proposing documentation changes. Last year, he joined a Bridges to Prosperity team in Rwanda, serving as the logistics lead, safety co-lead and bridge builder.

Caleb Carr
Innovator patented technology to improve crane and load safety
30, CEO
Vita Inclinata Technologies
Broomfield, Colo.

Carr leads a team that is bringing life-saving stabilization technology originally designed for helicopters to the construc- tion industry. Inspiration came after an incident while he was participating in a search-and-rescue training expedition at just 15. A rescue mission failed because the rescue litter couldn’t be safely extracted from the helicopter due to uncontrollable movements and a dense tree canopy. Carr wanted to make sure that never happened again, eventually going on to start Vita Inclinata and develop a high-tech replacement for the rope tag lines traditionally used to mitigate litter movement. The firm’s patented intelligent lifting hardware and software improves crane and load safety on jobsites. Carr works with regulatory bodies to help shape guidelines and best practices. His customers include the U.S. Army and the UAE National Search and Rescue. Carr was named among Forbes 30 Under 30 in 2019 and 2020 Manufacturer of the Year by Seattle Business Magazine. He also serves as a volunteer firefighter with Bennett-Watkins Fire and Rescue.

Rinal Chheda
Engineer brings complex transportation solutions to life
34, Senior Engineer II
Atkins
Denver

Awarded the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay’s Silver Medal as the most outstanding student of the class in 2012, Chheda’s award-winning undergraduate thesis on the optimization of solid waste management transportation led to graduate studies at MIT. Today she is a licensed senior transportation engineer and a certified professional traffic operations engineer with Atkins North America in Denver. Her projects include improving critical travel corridors such as Interstate 70 in metro Denver and a congestion reduction project for Yosemite National Park, which was recognized with a 2022 APA Federal Planning Division Citation Award for outstanding federal planning project. Within the firm, Chheda serves as a mentor and was one of 20 women nominated in 2022 from across the Americas for Atkins/SNC Lavalin’s Women in Leadership program. She’s an at-large board member for the Colorado Chapter of Women’s Transportation Seminar. Chheda rode a solar-powered electric bike as part of the 2017 15-day, 800-mile SunPedal Ride Initiative and documented her experience in an e-book, “The SunPedal Ride.”

Hoku Ching
Architect designs complex, zero-energy educational facilities
35, Associate
VCBO Architecture
Salt Lake City

With a bachelor’s degree from Stanford and a graduate degree from the University of Utah, Ching got her professional start at VCBO in 2015. She’s advanced quickly, becoming an associate in 2021 and serving as a project manager in the firm’s K-12 and higher education studio. A licensed architect in the state of Utah, she oversees large, complex architectural projects, including dozens the firm is working on for Brigham Young University–Hawaii. She is proud of her work designing zero-energy educational facilities with a focus on long-term flexibility. Ching recently completed the nationally recognized Safety Assessment Program to become a certified building evaluator, allowing her to respond to and support affected communities in the event of an earthquake. She’s actively involved with the board of the Utah Center for Architecture, serving as its president in 2021. Her work there included improving efforts to educate elementary school children through architecture, an effort that not only served 2,000 students across the state, but also led to a national AIA award and the development of a curriculum meeting Utah State Board of Education standards. Ching is involved with the local chapters of the Young Architects Forum, Women in Architecture and the National Organization of Minority Architects.

Willie De-Souza
Construction leader directs renewable energy storage system projects
36, VP Operations, Primoris Renewables
Primoris Services Corp.
Aurora, Colo.

Born and raised in Ghana, De-Souza moved to Minnesota when he was 15. He pursued construction management studies at Minnesota State University, getting his start in the industry as a field engineer. He credits his first professional mentor with igniting a passion for renewable energy. De-Souza advanced through several roles at various companies before joining Primoris Renewables in 2020. In his current role as vice president of operations, De-Souza is responsible for the leadership, direction and oversight of solar and battery energy storage system projects, from engineering and planning to construction and start-up. Landmark projects in his portfolio include solar farms from Virginia and Georgia to projects across Texas, Nevada and California. His projects have been honored both locally and nationally by ABC. De-Souza is one of 20 rising leaders nominated and accepted into the Primoris Leadership Development program. He gives back to the community through his support of Project Isaac, which connects people in the U.S. and Ghana through events ranging from food drives to tuition support in Africa.

Anthony Durst
Lead estimator launched Wyoming office and pursues large projects for firm
39, Director of Preconstruction
Adolfson & Peterson Construction
Johnstown, Colo.

Durst got his start as an intern at AP and joined the company in 2007 as an estimator after graduating from South Dakota State University. He quickly gained the attention of firm leadership, and within just a few years he assumed a big increase in responsibility, helping the firm launch its new Cheyenne office and growing its annual revenue from $10 million in 2010 to nearly $90 million in 2016. Back in Colorado, Durst is leading pursuits for some of AP’s largest projects. He’s involved with AGC Colorado, the North Metro Chamber of Commerce and the Colorado Association of School Executives. He’s served as president of the Weld RE-5J Education Foundation and as chairman of the Weld RE-5J Continuing Technical Education Advisory Board. He visits high schools, presenting on the various career pathways within the industry.

Martell Dyles
DEI leader, innovator honored with White House Changemakers Award
38, Senior Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Manager
JE Dunn Construction
Denver

Dyles started his career at RTD as a DEI analyst, steadily working his way up to a project manager role for the West Corridor Light Rail Project. He then went on to serve the Small-Disadvantaged Business Enterprise and Entrepreneurial Development program, overseeing nearly $500 million of RTD’s small business contracts. He played a key role in developing the agency’s Workforce Initiative Now program, which helped more than 2,000 people gain training and employment opportunities on the RTD-Denver FasTracks project. These efforts resulted in a White House Changemakers Award and the State of Colorado Innovative Workforce Award. Dyles helped develop JE Dunn’s minority contractor development program and supports Young Black Men in Construction. He also initiated Dunn’s Build, Organize, Learn and Earn Challenge, empowering employees to take ownership of promoting inclusivity and diversity. He serves on the board of the Crowley Foundation and mentors individuals though the Colorado “I Have a Dream” Foundation.

Kevin Harrison
Experienced contractor serves as valued resource in education market
39, Senior Superintendent
Adolfson & Peterson Construction
Aurora, Colo.

Harrison got his start in the industry working as a carpenter at AP while attending Colorado State University. He now serves as senior superintendent on some of the contractor’s most challenging projects. He’s built a reputation as a leader and resource to the education market, helping deliver more than $400 million in K-12 projects. Harrison serves as a member of the Westminster Public Schools CTE Advisory Committee, where he helps establish programming for students who pursue trade and technical education. Harrison is a member of Adams County Regional Economic Partnership’s LEAD Metro North’s Leadership Advisory Board, an invitation he received after graduating from its mentorship program in 2019. He’s also a member of AP’s construction management assistance program group and co-chair of AP’s leadership excellence group, where he mentors other employees in the company. His notable projects include the multiple-award-winning Dept. of Military and Veteran Affairs Windsor Readiness Center, the first LEED Platinum project in the country for the Army National Guard, and Orchard Park Academy, which was recognized by ENR in 2022 with a Best Project award in the K-12 category.

Jeffrey Hong
Volunteer firefighter’s drone expertise creates revenue stream for firm
28, Drone Program Manager
Parsons
Westminster, Colo.

Hong is a construction engineer by training, but one with extensive knowledge of unmanned aircraft technology and applications. Upon joining Parsons in 2018, he volunteered to support the firm’s small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS) program, growing his influence and assuming an important role on the company’s sUAS governance board. His work is credited with extending the footprint of the company’s drone program from a small support group to one that has become a significant revenue earner supporting multidisciplinary teams across business units. In just two years, the program saw a 144% increase in takeoffs and landings and a 275% increase in total hours flown. His drone projects range from locating orphaned wells and unexploded ordnance detection to environmental remediation efforts and traffic monitoring. He often educates others about the benefits of drones or how to get certified to fly them, posting weekly updates on Parsons’ internal workplace channel as well as to customers, student groups and at conferences. Hong is a volunteer firefighter at his local fire department, maintaining a Colorado Firefighter I certification and volunteering nearly 500 hours in 2022.

Brittany Huntsberger
Civil/structural engineer manages transmission projects and controls
37, Engineering Manager/Structural Leader
HDR
Billings, Mont.

Huntsberger successfully translated studies in civil and structural engineering into a career supporting power transmission projects. As the civil/structural lead for HDR’s transmission practice and a licensed engineer in eight states, Huntsberger manages projects ranging from 69kV to 500kV. She leads the development of companywide transmission resources, cross-training HDR engineers across the firm on best practices for transmission foundations and develops quality control tools for concrete and geotechnical specifications. Her efforts resulted in the firm recognizing her as an HDR Crystal Pathfinder for Internal Service, one of just eight a year given within a company of 11,000. She’s active with the Deep Foundations Institute, where she is a co-author on a soon-to-be published paper that provides a basis for ASCE’s upcoming 600-page manual of practice on foundation design standards. A highlight of Huntsberger’s career was serving as a volunteer on an HDR Foundation-sponsored trip to rural Nicaragua. Volunteers for this solar project supplied a community of 1,000 with clean water, solar panels and gardens.

Leah Loebach
Engineer launches several key initiatives within the firm
40, Department Manager
Burns & McDonnell
Englewood, Colo.

Loebach discovered a passion for engineering in high school, inspired by her grandfather, who cultivated her interest in science and math. She joined Burns & McDonnell in 2008 and served in a variety of roles, leading to her current position as department manager within the firm’s transmission and distribution group. She’s grown her Denver-based team to more than 20 engineers while managing a portfolio of challenging projects. Among them are multiple EPC projects for Bonneville Power Administration, including a new 115-kV double circuit transmission line rebuild and upgrades at five substations. She is also responsible for implementing and supporting Burns & McDonnell’s quality control processes across all client teams and projects for her department. She’s credited with multiple initiatives within the firm, including establishing onboarding curriculum, developing deliverables templates for EPC projects, creating tools for design efficiencies and generating department performance tracking tools. Loebach developed a family tradition of volunteering with the After-Hours Denver organization—providing necessities to Denver’s homeless every Christmas— and with the Denver Rescue Mission.

Rory J. Mele
Safety professional dedicated to emergency management and suicide prevention programs
38, Environmental Health/Safety Director
BHI
Vernal, Utah

Mele’s 17 years of experience spans multiple sectors such as oil and gas, mining and energy. For 16 of those years, he’s also served as an officer in the Army National Guard. He’s a dedicated safety practitioner who recently obtained a master’s degree in safety, security and emergency management from Eastern Kentucky University. Mele leads a team of 15 professionals at BHI who serve more than 700 company employees and 400 subcontracted employees across the country. He’s credited with helping develop and integrate BHI’s intranet and EHS management system using Google Workspace applications. The initiative was praised as a model that significantly improves communication and efficiency within the firm and that is also replicable industrywide. Mele has earned both the Associate Safety Professional and Certified Health and Safety Technician designations from the Board of Certified Safety Professionals and is a founding member of SPRUCE (Suicide Prevention Resources for Utah Construction Employers).

Alexandria Page
Colorado water practice executive supports firm’s emerging markets
33, Client Service Team Leader/Principal
Kennedy Jenks Consultants
Lakewood, Colo.

A principal and shareholder at Kennedy Jenks Consultants, Page serves as the deputy water practice leader for the firm. With a goal to expand the firm’s practice in Colorado while supporting emerging markets in Texas and Florida, Page manages a range of clients and project types. Her work includes planning and designs of potable, non-potable and tertiary water projects involving surface water, advanced water purification, recycled water and wastewater. Page distinguished herself early in her career as a project engineer for a pioneering and award-winning indirect potable reuse project, Pure Water Monterey. This $50-million advanced water purification facility provides 5MGD of purified water for indirect potable reuse. Page is involved with WateReuse, Rocky Mountain Water and AWWA, and she supports the firm’s recruiting efforts at her alma mater, Cal Poly.

Christine Sosnowski
Interior designer proves integration is necessary for project success
33, Design Phase Manager
GE Johnson
Greenwood Village, Colo.

Sosnowski started her career as an interior designer and quickly discovered her interests and skills were best suited for managing the coordination that’s critical to making projects successful at build-out. She found the right fit at GE Johnson, joining its VDC team as an integrated construction technician. She landed on the team for the high-profile and award-winning U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Museum in Colorado Springs, helping coordinate its unique exterior skin of interlocking diamond-shaped panels. In her current role, she supports projects such as the U.S. Air Force Academy hotel. Sosnowski was named an AGC of Colorado’s 2022 Waymaker of the Year. She has served as a mentor for construction management programs at both Colorado State University and her alma mater, Kansas State University, and launched her own podcast in 2022, in which she shares techniques for developing more positivity.

Raymond Torrejon
Leader promotes reliable, equitable water infrastructure
34, Manager, Special Projects
PCL Construction
Denver

Torrejon’s 10 years of experience in the civil construction industry includes more than $500 million in water infrastructure projects, most delivered through alternative delivery. He is sought out for his expertise on complex mechanical installations as well as start-up and commissioning of large water treatment plants. He has performed in numerous roles for the company, often relocating to help build the water infrastructure market across the U.S. Torrejon is an Envision Sustainability Professional, which is a globally recognized approach to sustainable, resilient and equitable infrastructure. He was an integral part of developing PCL’s Colorado civil division community service initiative when he transferred to Denver from Florida three years ago. He helps provide guidance on pro-bono projects, including the city of Arvada disc golf course and South Adams High Baseball upgrades. Torrejon was awarded the PCL Robert Stollery Construction Leadership award in 2019, which recognized leadership, attitude and career development. In 2022, he was selected to participate in PCL’s Peter Green Leadership Course.

Santosh Vangala
Engineer strives to make the world a more sustainable place
36, Structural Engineer
AECOM
Denver

Vangala’s experience includes expertise in the specific design requirements of minimum antiterrorism standards, Unified Facilities Criteria guidelines and progressive collapse analyses. Included among his portfolio of high-profile projects is the recent renovation of the Denver Public Library. The project required a multiphased renovation including multi-story event spaces, envelope modifications and the integration of new monumental stairs. Vangala has also designed the precast panels for Sun Trust Stadium and worked on multiple projects for Peterson Air Force Base and F.E. Warren Air Force Base. He’s a founding member of AECOM’s Structural Gatekeeper community, where he advocates for the use of digital tools and creates automation scripts to improve efficiency. He is self-taught in Python programming, developing scripts for structural design, which he routinely shares both within the firm as well as with the broader industry on GitHub. He was selected to be among the top 1% of employees to participate in AECOM’s prestigious Global Accelerate Career Development Program and is an AECOM Making a Difference award winner for exemplary project performance.

Nicole Williams
Civil engineer streamlines digital delivery processes for firm, DOTs
38, Civil Engineer/Roadway Practice Lead
Kimley-Horn
Salt Lake City

At Kimley-Horn, Williams oversees projects for the firm’s work with multiple DOTs. She helped establish guidelines for UDOT to define standardized processes to streamline digital data transfer between project phases, allowing designers and contractors to have a consistent process for faster and more efficient workflows. This helped UDOT become the first state agency to use digital delivery during the bid process. Her team’s work on UDOT’s digital twin strategic plan received the ACEC Grand Award in the studies, research and consulting category. Other key projects on Williams’ résumé include her work as lead designer on the first diverging diamond interchange in Salt Lake Valley. She participates in Kimley-Horn’s Lasting Impact for Tomorrow programs designed to help recruit, develop and mentor women, and she is a recipient of the Kimley-Horn Outstanding Mentor and Coach award. She’s the vice chair for the ACEC Utah diversity and inclusion committee and helps lead STEM activities with students to help them learn what engineers do.

Thomas Yost
Expert tackles tough structures
39, Principal/Project Manager, Structures Group
Walter P Moore
Denver

Yost is national leader in Walter P Moore’s “green team” and sustainable design community of practice. Among his responsibilities are promoting sustainable office design/build-out, encouraging sustainable transportation, education and reducing wasteful practices in office operations. He’s often assigned to challenging, one-of-a-kind structures, including in both high seismic regions and high wind zones and is experienced with a broad range of materials and project sectors. His landmark projects include several at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., including a renovation of a grandstands structure for the 2024 Derby and a $200-million seating area scheduled for the 150th Derby in 2025. Yost is a project lead and responsible engineer in charge of the Panama project for the Washington, D.C., chapter of Engineers Without Borders. He biked 9,000 miles from Philadelphia to Hato Rincón, Panama, to raise awareness for the construction of a library and technical center there. He also mentors AEC college students, helping them collaborate to empower remote communities.