ACPA Concrete Pavement Progress - Quarter 3, 2021

www.acpa.org Quarter 3, 2021 7 I N T E R V I E W W I T H L A U R A O ’ N E I L L K A U M O S: What do you enjoy most about English Football? L: The athleticism—90+minutes of just pure grit. It’s impressive! Related, I love when theNFL plays an American Football game in the UK, and you see all the fans showing up in all different NFL jerseys besides the teams on the field. It’s like you feel people from across the ocean making an effort to understand America. I watch EPL because I didn’t really grow up with soccer, but I want to make an effort to understand why it’s important to millions of people. I certainly get it now! S: Washington, D.C. seems to have several dif- ferent views when it comes to infrastructure, do you see any opportunities that can benefit ACPA and the membership? L: One of our main priorities is to continue to seek increased investment for highways and airports. We will continue to work with our partners in D.C. to advance that message, but moreover we are going to do what we do really well and that’s talk about concrete paving. We are going to look for every opportunity to do just that with the federal agencies and on Capitol Hill. The authorization and appropriations process are going to provide a good opportunity to talk about concrete paving for many years to come. We will also shore up existing efforts. The progress we have made for concrete pavement research and technology in recent years has been solid. We are going to continue to foster and develop contacts at key agencies as well, like FHWA and FAA. Our mission is to continue to be an effec- tive advocate in D.C. for the concrete pavement industry, leveraging the opportunities that come with significant infrastructure investment to the benefit of our membership. S: If you had to describe yourself in three words, what would they be? L: Never give up! S: It was great to meet you at the Mid-Year Meeting inMilwaukee, howwas the experience? L: Well Scott, it was a whirlwind tour for sure, somewhat overwhelming, but definitely a good experience to meet the attendees. I am really looking forward to meeting our membership at the 58th Annual Meeting in Huntington, Beach California (November 30–December 2, 2021). At the annual meeting we have a great agenda planned and there will be more time to visit, listen, and engage. I also will be discussing my 100-day plan and give an overview on the changes we’ve made and the course we are head- ing—getting everyone’s buy-in on that vision is an important part of our success. It’s exciting and I look forward to seeing everyone. EDITOR’S NOTE: Registration is open, please visit ACPA.org and click on the events dropdown. S: Laura, is there anything you would like to share with our members? L: ACPA has great group of members. We are going to focus on increasing membership value proposition. This includes strengthening our team, looking at our program goals and initia- tives and proactively planning to ensure the highest level of success. If you want to hear more, joinme in Huntington Beach, California for our Annual Meeting.