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Nashville, TN – Heather Smith Sawyer, PE, a civil engineer in the Nashville office, has been nominated as a candidate for the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Outstanding Young Alumni Award. Presented by the UAB National Alumni Society (NAS), the award is presented to a UAB alumnus in good standing who has graduated in the past ten years and shown outstanding achievement in his/her career, demonstrated notable service to the community, and shown commitment to UAB.
Heather has served as the School of Engineering representative on the Board of Directors for NAS for the last three years, working with the alumni and serving the students of UAB and the Birmingham community. She has participated in events such as the annual Dollars for Scholars 5k/10k, which annually raises approximately $60,000 for scholarships; inner city clean-up programs; and honoring students at scholarship banquets and NAS alumni receptions in Birmingham, Washington, D.C., and Nashville
Along with her position on the Board, Heather also assumed responsibility for revitalizing the UAB Engineering Alumni Association (EAA). After appointing a president of the association, Heather helped to initiate the re-engagement of alumni, hosting happy hours, tailgates, dinners, and holiday events, while also providing students connections to the industry whenever possible.
Currently, Heather is chairing the formation of an Alumni Leadership Committee for the Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering (CCEE) Department at UAB. Along with identifying qualified committee members and establishing a mentoring program, she is working on the endowment of a scholarship for CCEE students. With the implementation of this committee her hope is that there will be a stronger alumni connection and more student interaction.
Heather has worked at BWSC since 2009 and is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering at Vanderbilt University. She obtained her Master of Science in Civil Engineering from Georgia Tech in 2004 and her Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from UAB in 2003. Heather is a Professional Engineer in Tennessee and Virginia and along with her leadership roles at UAB, she is a member of Engineers Without Borders and the American Society of Civil Engineers.
The UAB Outstanding Young Alumni Award will be presented on September 23, at the Alumni Awards and Recognition Luncheon.
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