In San Marcos, Texas, almost 700 members of the civil engineering community gathered to celebrate the future of the industry at the Texas Civil Engineering Conference (CECON). The three-day event — organized by volunteers and American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Texas Section staff members — allows engineers to develop professionally, build business relationships, and engage in peer-to-peer technical exchange.
Roughly 12 years ago, several ASCE Texas Section leaders had a vision when starting CECON. That vision was to provide a conference that covered the breadth and depth of civil engineering. After years of dedication and collaboration, that goal has been achieved through partnerships with four ASCE Texas Institute Chapters: the Geotechnical Institute (GI), the Architectural Engineering Institute (AEI), the Transportation and Development Institute (T&DI), and the Construction Institute (CI). Through these partnerships, CECON has been able to structure a comprehensive program with professional development tracks tailored to its members and specialties.
Hosted at the Embassy Suites by Hilton San Marcos Hotel Conference Center, CECON 2025 provided a way for design consultants, contractors, manufacturers, agencies, students, and other professionals to relax, reconnect with peers and colleagues, strengthen their technical knowledge, and gain insights that help raise awareness of the profession and inspire future engineers to choose civil engineering. This year also marked the final year in San Marcos, as attendees celebrated the close of an era and looked ahead to the next chapter of CECON.
Attendees expressed their delight with this year’s event, from the curated programming content to the lineup of exhibitors and speakers. The ASCE Texas CECON Planning Committee would like to thank all attendees, event supporters, sponsors, industry partners, and exhibitors.
This year, the theme was “Breaking Barriers.” Engineers are entrusted with protecting the health, safety, property, and welfare of the public, and fulfilling that responsibility requires overcoming technological, social, procedural, and physical barriers. CECON 2025 showcased the pioneers leading the way in that progress.
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Presentations focused on advancements in leadership, succession planning, design innovation, safety, operations, technology, process improvement, communication, collaboration, and construction methods and materials. The program celebrated both success stories and lessons learned, providing an exchange of knowledge so the profession can continue to grow, adapt, and enhance Texas infrastructure.
The CECON 2025 opening ceremony began with the opening keynote speakers, Kenneth Mika, PE, BC.GE, F.ASCE, and Carol Haddock, PE, MPA, F.ASCE. Haddock is the incoming President Elect for ASCE and Professor-in-the-Practice at Rice University. Haddock and Mika spoke about the future of ASCE during the presentation.
The second keynote of the conference was a presentation with the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB). This presentation was provided by Reem Zoun, PE, Assistant Deputy Executive Administrator, offering attendees a glimpse into the ongoing efforts to invest in water-related planning. The new state flood plan outlines TWDB’s major initiatives, legislative funding actions, and long-term priorities for strengthening Texas water and flood infrastructure, including new revenue dedicated to the Texas Water Fund and expanded program eligibility under recent legislation. It concludes with an overview of funding programs such as the Flood Infrastructure Fund, recent appropriations, and the role of continued planning and investment in reducing future flood impacts.
Following the TWDB keynote was a Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) Transportation Planning & Development (TP&D) Panel Discussion. Panelists included Roberto Rodriguez, PE (Director of TP&D - Laredo); Heather Ashley-Nguyen (Director of TP&D - Austin); and Richard De La Cruz, PE (Director of TP&D - San Antonio). Melissa Montemayor served as moderator for this discussion about the insights into the TP&D departments across different TxDOT districts.
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The rest of the afternoon held breakout sessions, which included the specialty tracks curated by the members of the partner ASCE Texas Institute Chapters.
Wednesday evening, attendees were treated to a tailgate evening social at the hotel. Attendees and families joined in the activities, including cornhole, axe throwing, and more. The event also had a surprise visit from the Texas State University mascot, Boko the Bobcat, and members of the cheer squad.
Thursday morning began with coffee with Daphne Kent (North Central Texas InterLink) to discuss the Texas labor market and economic development, providing an opportunity for attendees to discover employment and economic trends in Texas. With Texas’ economic success, the state offers a favorable business climate, attracting companies from across the globe. The future outlook for the Texas economy will lead to investment in infrastructure and entrepreneurship innovation.
After a short break, the conference resumed with the Design-Build Panel, marking the inaugural discussion of its kind at CECON. Moderated by Patrick Tarlton, the panel featured a lineup of leaders from various technology sectors: Shri Eathalapake, PE, PMP, CMQ/OE (LJA); Clint Harris, PE (Corsair Consulting, LLC); Steve Hrncir, PE (HNTB); Eduardo Suescun, PE, Ph.D. (Ferrovial Construction); and Derrick Horvath, PE (Cobb Fendley). The panel delved into a range of pressing topics related to the evolution of design-build in Texas. Each panelist brought a unique perspective based on their respective projects and backgrounds, sparking a discussion on lessons learned, best practices for team alignment, and how design-build continues to transform project delivery across Texas.
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After the panel and sessions, CECON hosted the Technology & Innovation Build Panel, which included Steve Archer, PE, as the moderator and panelists Erika Kemp, PMP (TxDOT); Luke Urie, PMP (AECOM); Jeremiah Kuntz (Aurora); Karlis Ozolins (SPH Engineering); and Christine Breakfield, MPA, CBO (DigEPlan). The panelists engaged in a discussion about the evolving needs of the engineering community as emerging technologies move from small-scale pilots to mainstream adoption, highlighting the opportunities and challenges that come with integrating new tools, data systems, and innovations into everyday practice.
The afternoon was packed with breakout sessions covering a vast array of topics, including “100 Years of Roadway Foundation” by Donavan Spotsville (Solmax); “Bringing Automation into Structural Health Monitoring and Assessment of Bridges” presented by Zhibin Lin, PE (UTA); and “Developing an AI-driven ConcreteVision Framework” presented by Derek White, PE, Ph.D. (Civiltronics).
Following these sessions, attendees had the opportunity to earn additional continuing education credits through technical presentations before transitioning to a more relaxed atmosphere. Happy Hour gave attendees a chance to network and mingle with colleagues and industry supporters in a relaxed setting before taking their seats again to listen to a keynote message from Michael Hingson, motivational speaker and author.
Thursday concluded with the ASCE Texas Section Annual Awards Ceremony and Casino Night Gala: Night at the Haunted High Rise. A packed room of attendees supported and celebrated the 2025 ASCE Texas Section annual award recipients for their achievements and excellence in the field. Planned by the ASCE Texas Section Younger Member Committee, this year’s gala had several casino table games to choose from and a variety of prizes as payouts.
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ASCE Texas Section 2025 President Mark Boyd, PE, Ph.D., and Honors Committee Chair Michael Gurka, PE, emceed the Awards Ceremony, honoring the following award recipients:
- Government Civil Engineer Award: Genest Landry, PE, PMP
- Professional Service to Students Award: Eva Reynal, PE
- History & Heritage Award: Edward Penton, PE
- Professional Service Award: Julia Clarke, PE, F.ASCE
- Service to People Award: Ron Reichert
- John A. Focht Jr. Citizen Engineer Award: Glenn Goldstein, PE, PMP, PMI-RMP
- Award of Honor: Sean Merrell, PE, PTOE
- Young Civil Engineer Award: Gilbert Portillo, PE
- Outstanding Civil Engineer Student Award: Nisha Sthapit, MS, EIT
- Texas OCEA Award: Project 11: Houston Ship Channel Expansion, Segments 1-2 (joint venture of Port of Houston, AECOM, and GBA)
- Texas OCEA Award of Merit: Northaven Trail Bridge (HNTB and TxDOT - Dallas District)
The third and final day of CECON 2025 kicked off with a last-minute additional keynote, “The Story of the July 4th Guadalupe River Flood Event” by Charlie Hastings, PE, CFM, and Matthew Pantell, PE, CFM. It went into an in-depth, exclusive look at the events of the 4th of July floods.
Afterward, there was a well-attended ethics keynote by Aaron Mann as well as breakout sessions, continuing to include specialty tracks by the partnering institutes. Friday’s sessions included technical and industry practice topics like “Full Depth Reclamation - The Benefits & Innovations” presented by Richard B. Rogers, PE (Richard B. Rogers, PE, LLC); “Navigating the New Wave of PFAS Regulations” presented by Swaroop Puchalapalli (STV); and “Subsurface Utility Engineering (SUE): How to Use it Effectively & Efficiently” presented by Jim Herbert, PE (Cobb Fendley).
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The combined ASCE Texas Section Business Meeting and Luncheon on the “State of Our Community” was presented by ASCE and Texas Section leaders including Jenni Peters, CAE (ASCE Texas Section Executive Director); Mark Boyd, PE, Ph.D. (ASCE Texas Section President 2025); and Russell Carter, PE (ASCE Incoming Texas Section President 2026).
Fitting with the “Breaking Barriers” theme, the final keynote of the conference, Robert Schraeder, PE, President of Schraeder Solutions, was the second speaker in the Texas Civil Engineering Foundation Leadership Series. His presentation was an exploration of how civil engineers can break barriers and elevate their roles from managing to truly leading, drawing on Schraeder’s real-world experiences and principles for building strong teams and thriving in complex project environments.
A guided tour of the Steven M. Clouse Water Recycling Center by the San Antonio Water Systems concluded the conference. This behind-the-scenes experience offered attendees a firsthand look at one of the region's most innovative water infrastructure projects. Participants were introduced to the facility’s advanced systems and processes, designed to maximize the reuse of treated wastewater for non-potable purposes such as irrigation and industrial use.
ASCE Texas Section’s CECON Planning Committee strives to make each year better than the last, incorporating lessons learned and best practices discovered the year before. The committee has already begun planning for CECON 2026: “Revitalizing Resiliency” in Corpus Christi, Texas, from September 16-18, 2026.
