Young Professionals Event

Monday, September 27, 1:00 – 2:00 PM ET

The Young Professionals Event will provide young professionals (40-years-old and under) with the opportunity to hear from industry peers. Whether you are a recent graduate, new to the industry, or a young professional excited to succeed, this panel will be valuable to you! It will offer an informative discussion with three industry professionals on Keys to Jumpstart Your Career in the Railway Industry. A Q&A session will be open at the end of the discussion, so bring your questions for our panelists. Meet and mingle during the networking event.

This panel conversation will cover:

  • Insights from young professionals who have excelled in their railway industry roles.
  • Finding early success on the railroad.
  • How to Network with other young professionals within the railroads, consultants, and supplier segments of the industry.

Schedule

1:00 – 1:30 PM ET 
Keys to Jumpstart Your Career in the Railway Industry

1:30 – 2:00 PM ET
Cocktail Demonstration and Networking Reception

Moderator

Gio DiDomenico, PE, P.Eng
Track Engineer
KIEWIT Engineering Group Inc. 

Gio is a Track Engineer at Kiewit Engineering Group in Denver with 6 years of experience in track design and construction inspection. After several years as a design consultant, he now supports Kiewit's design-build transit projects with development of final design plans and construction engineering support. He has been an AREMA member since 2013, and currently serves on Committees 5 (Track) and 12 (Rail Transit). Locally, Gio has formed a group for young professionals in the rail industry. Gio graduated with a BS in Civil Engineering from Colorado State University (2013) and an MS in Civil Engineering from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (2015). 

Panelists

Mitch Beard
Assistant Director Signal Design
BNSF Railway
 
Mitch currently leads a team of signal engineers working on new technologies to improve safety and capacity at BNSF. He has held positions in maintenance, construction, and design over the past 11 years. He is also an active member in AREMA through involvement in Committee 36 (Highway-Rail Grade Crossing Warning Systems), Committee 37 (Signal Systems), and acting chair of Committee 39 (Positive Train Control). Mitch graduated with a BS in Electrical Engineering from Kansas State University and a BS in Physics from Fort Hays State University in 2010. 
Amanda Kessler, PE
Manager, Reference Surfacing
Amtrak

Amanda is the manager of the Reference Surfacing implementation project, which is a track maintenance improvement project in support of the new Acela21 program. Reference Surfacing will use LiDAR survey data, GPS, and track designs to create tamping solutions for execution of track surfacing maintenance. Amanda has a BS in Civil Engineering from Northeastern University and began her career in 2006 working as a roadway design engineer. In 2012 she took a position at Amtrak as a Management Associate and spent a year and a half on a whirlwind tour of Amtrak’s Engineering Department. She then moved into a position in the Track Clearances, Inspection, and Testing group where her work included capital maintenance planning for surfacing and undercutting and track geometry data analysis. Amanda is the Vice Chair of AREMA Committee 11 and is the Committee Research Coordinator for TRB Committee AR050. When she is not busy working on the railroad Amanda enjoys yoga, running, and chasing around her 5 and 7 year old kids. 

Cocktail Demonstration

Back by popular demand, join us for an exciting cocktail demonstration with Regine from Shall We Wine, Inc. as she prepares a Smoked Old Fashioned. Gather your ingredients ahead of time to prepare your drink along with her or take note of the recipe for later.