Rounding out our exceptional 2025 Federal Engineer of the Year Award Finalists is Mile Yaw, P.E. Before becoming Program Manager and Lead Hydrologist at the Tennessee Valley Authority, Mile Yaw earned his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering at Washington State University and his master’s degree in the same engineering discipline at Colorado State University. His education has served him well in his professional endeavors. At the TVA, Yaw led a team to develop and improve estimates of hydrologic risk in order to enhance dam safety. Under his guidance, they created a highly efficient system to generate baseline risk estimates, evaluate structural and policy alternatives, and estimate climate change impacts on the safety of the TVA’s dam portfolio as well as the benefits of the agency’s management of the Tennessee River System. This framework has become an essential component of readiness in advance of significant natural events, helping TVA prepare for and manage the risks of extreme hydrology. Due to its impact on the industry, Yaw’s work has been featured in a USSD Bulletin, won the TVA Climate Change Action Award, and been the subject of a keynote address on Modeling Frameworks to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s PFHA conference. Yaw has used the platform he has earned to engage the industry more broadly, providing lectures and presentations to federal partners, universities, and industry groups. #FEYA #NSPEAwards
Great work, Miles!!