TOPEKA, KS — Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) Secretary Julie Lorenz was awarded the 2022 George S. Bartlett Award given jointly by the American Association of State and Highway Transportation Officials (AASHTO), the Transportation Research Board (TRB) and the American Road & Transportation Builders Association for her outstanding leadership and extensive service in transportation.

Through AASHTO, Lorenz is currently leading a national effort to develop a united vision for state DOTs to deliver community centered transportation. The vision will provide state DOTs a range of strategies they can deploy to make transportation work better for people and communities in their states.

“Transportation is about people, those we serve, and those we work with to better deliver improvements in our communities," Lorenz said. “I’m honored to receive this award from organizations and colleagues I greatly admire because of our shared vision to make transportation safer and work better for all Americans.”

Lorenz has been actively involved in TRB for more than 15 years on numerous committees as well as the Chair of the National Cooperative Highway Research Program Project Panel on Administration of Highway and Transportation Agencies. She is Immediate Past President of AASHTO’s Mid America Association of State Transportation Officials, which serves 10 states in the Midwest. In addition, Lorenz serves on AASHTO’s Executive Committee and the Board of Directors as well as Chair of AASHTO’s Council on Aviation.

In 2019, Lorenz was appointed by Governor Laura Kelly to lead KDOT. This is her second tour of duty at the agency as she served as the Director of Public Affairs from 2003 to 2011. Previously, Lorenz directed national engineering firms’ strategic consulting and public engagement services for transportation projects at the local, regional, and national levels.