My ITE Journey

Recently I was selected by ITE to run for International Vice President.? Throughout the coming months I hope to share my ideas for ITE—A Community of Transportation Professionals .? When I found out I had been selected, my thoughts shifted towards being #grateful.? I am grateful to my #family for supporting me during the decision process.? Without the support of my wife Tina, Ethan, and Ella this would not be possible.? I also want to thank all the friends and colleagues throughout this year that have encouraged me to run and expressed their belief in my ability to be part of the wonderful legacy of ITE leaders.? I have truly felt humbled by their kind words.? As we head into the last month and half of 2023, it’s a good time for all of us to reflect and seek out the people who deserve to be thanked for helping us be who we've become.? So, I want to take a few minutes to tell you about some of the wonderful people that helped shape my #MyITEJourney to arrive at this point in my life (all of whom have given their permission to be mentioned in this article).

My ITE Journey started in 2002 as an affiliate member of the Mid-Atlantic Section of ITE (MASITE).? My boss at the time, Mark Metil, P.E., PTOE took me to a local dinner meeting.? Mark has always been an advocate for ITE membership and he was very instrumental as one of my first professional mentors.? From Mark I learned how to hone my speaking skills and how to conduct yourself as both a professional and a collaborator.? Mark introduced me to Anthony Castellone .? Anthony signed me up on the spot and that was the beginning of my ITE career.? At the time, I was surprised that a consultant from a different company was so welcoming.? Anthony immediately drew me into the fold and within a few months I would be appointed as the MASITE Central Area Program Coordinator, covering the Harrisburg, PA area.? To say that I would not be writing this today without the support of Mark and Anthony is an understatement at best.? I am very grateful for their support and exposing me to the important role that collegialism plays in the ITE Culture.

As my MASITE role took off, two other individuals immediately volunteered to work with me on programming.? Together with Jeff Bergsten and Melody Matter , the Central Area “Team” would be formed.? I am grateful for their friendship, their energy, and their ability to tolerate my ambitious goals with grace.? ?Our impact on the region has endured and as I spoke to both while preparing this article, we all agreed that we are proud of what we accomplished and what others have continued to achieve.? Together we planned a MASITE annual meeting, introduced the concept of having meetings over lunch time at our local public agency partners locations, creating the MASITE/ITSPA Golf Challenge, moving the anchor location for our meetings to a local microbrewery, and raising the level of involvement among younger members.

As my journey continued, Dean J. Kaiser, P.E., PTOE and Jeannette Quirus, P.E., PTOE played an instrumental role in cementing my career-long involvement with ITE.? During his MASITE Presidency, Dean awarded me with the MASITE Volunteer of the Year award, my first ITE award.? During his speech, he mentioned my enthusiasm and commitment to giving back to ITE.? I can’t say that I understood those words completely at that time, but they resonate with me today.? Jeanette was the first person to approach me and encourage me to run for an elected position within MASITE.? I was surprised that someone saw me as a good leader, but after some thought I decided to run for, and was elected, MASITE Secretary.? I would go one to serve on the MASITE board for 6 years.? At the end of my term as Past President, I chose not to continue onto District service, instead focusing on my family and career.

A couple of years later I was exploring the idea of ITE Council Membership and had become frustrated with the lack of inclusion I found – including the way I felt while trying to “break in” to the inner circle.? That’s when I met Douglas E. Noble from ITE staff and Pat Noyes , the Coordinating Council Chair at the time.? They were patient and interested in my perspective and empathized with my frustration.? But they did more than listen, they acted.? Now I understand that they were practicing inclusion before inclusion had a label.? Within weeks I was invited to join the ITS Management and Operations Council, later renamed as the Transportation Systems Management and Operations (TSMO) Council.? However, that experience I had of feeling left out and feeling like I was not welcome stayed with me.? Throughout my time as part of various leadership levels of Councils, I have done my very best to make sure people felt invited and desired to participate, not just permitted.? As someone who has never followed traditional paths, this is vitally important to me.? I believe that every person deserves the opportunity to shape their ITE Journey in a way that is rewarding to them, without limitations.

The latest chapter of #MyITEJourney as a member of the ITE International Board and Chair of the Council Leadership Team (CLT) might be how you know me best.? In recent years a lot of changes have been made to improve the value of ITE membership through Council involvement.? A nearly complete overhaul in how the Council’s operate has been undertaken.? While I am grateful for the recognition I have received in this transition, there are literally hundreds of people that deserve equal amounts of credit.? Chief among them is Jason Crawford .? During his time as CLT chair he and I crafted a culture mantra to embed the needed change, it is known as the GAVE principles.?

G is for Growth. ?Choosing to become involved in Councils and in Council leadership should offer you focused growth opportunities for your career and the organizations you work for.?

A is for accountability.? Every Council member is a volunteer and that should be respected.? However, when we commit to council projects we are representing ourselves and our organizations.? Holding ourselves and each other accountable results in the most positive experience.?

V is for Value.? Value needs to be a two-way street for volunteer leaders, they need to provide value to the people participating and ITE needs to provide value back to them.?

E is for esteem.? ITE is one of the premiere professional transportation associations, as such volunteers who achieve leadership roles in Councils should be recognized as technical leaders in our industry and society.?

When I became the CLT chair, Lindsey Van Parys PE, QSD and Kirsten Tynch, PE, PTOE, ENV SP joined me as vice chairs.? In them I have seen strong leaders that are tremendous at what they do and were patient and kind with the time they gave to me.? Seeing the approach to #collaboration through their lens helped me mature as a leader considerably. I consider them eternal friends and will cherish the time we spent together.? With these individuals, others like us, and the tremendous and dedicated ITE Staff, we will continue making an impact.

Thank you for taking the time to read this article and I look forward to sharing my thoughts and ideas about how we can make a difference together as we progress towards the next ITE election.

I would love to read your story too, please tell it and use #ITEJourney so that others can feel the unity of our culture and our organization.

I appreciate your support during this campaign, if you feel compelled to actively engage, please just be sure to read and follow the instructions for conduct at this link: https://www.ite.org/pub/?id=e1dbba0e%2D2354%2Dd714%2D5110%2D405de68f85a0

Eric