Owen Kohashi

State President

My term as SEAW State President officially ended at the last board meeting at the end of May, and Patrick Lindblom is the new President for the coming year. Patrick served as Seattle Chapter President and State Board Vice President this past year. I will remain on the board as a non-voting Past President and will continue to help out where I can.

Looking back at my term as President, I’m proud to say that SEAW had some amazing accomplishments. Thank you and congratulations to everyone that contributed to make all of this happen!

In case you were in a cave somewhere and hadn’t heard, 2025 was the 75th Anniversary of SEAW. We started in 1950, a year after the magnitude 7.1 Olympia Earthquake in April of 1949, and SEAW predates the NCSEA by more than 4 decades. Plus, 2026 was the 25th anniversary of the Nisqually Earthquake which puts into perspective the continuing mission of SEAW that goes back to our founding.

In September, the Spokane Chapter hosted the Northwest Conference – it was a great event, and the results really showed the hard work of the organizing committee! The technical sessions were top notch, and it was great to reconnect with everyone and meet new faces. While this year’s Northwest Conference was scheduled to be hosted by Idaho, unfortunately things didn’t come together and we will skip having a conference in 2026. Stay tuned for more information about the 2027 conference in Montana.

In October, we celebrated the SEAW 75th Anniversary at the Museum of Flight in Seattle. More than 300 people turned out for this milestone event and enjoyed a fun evening of food, drinks, socializing, music, dancing, singing, and giveaways. Thank you to the Seattle Chapter and co-chairs Lisette Terry and Violeta Tihova. What a party!

Immediately after that, we launched WildApricot, our new online membership platform and website. It definitely improved the membership experience, and members can now directly manage their account, pay annual dues, register for events, and access many other cool features. Thanks to Evan Jordan and Anand Mourougassamy for leading the efforts. We’re still making some improvements, so look for additions like the Hall of Fame and the 2025 Strategic Plan in the coming year.

We faced some tough financial decisions the last couple of years, requiring us to make significant cuts to our budget, and we’re not out of the woods yet. Over the past year, we made some steps to get healthier financially. These initiatives include sponsorships, merchandise, and education. The income from education offerings and the merch shop is not the main reason they exist, but even these small income streams help our financial situation so we are not solely reliant on membership dues.

We launched a corporate sponsorship program this year and are offering annual packages with marketing benefits and exposure to SEAW members through the membership platform and Equilibrium to companies that would like to support the mission of SEAW. The board has recently reached out personally to industry partners and vendors and has received commitments from several new sponsors!

We started a merchandise shop to offer SEAW 75th Anniversary merchandise for sale online. You can still get some 75th Anniversary gear if you want to purchase a memento and show off your SEAW pride, and we plan to offer other SEAW designs in the future. 

The Education Committee is central to many aspects of the new Strategic Plan, as one of SEAW’s primary missions is to provide educational opportunities to our members. The Education Committee has lost members over the last several years (due to things like COVID, computer-based testing for SE licensure, NCSEA webinars, and more), the co-chairs were not able to continue. The Outreach Committee, which reaches out to the general public to increase awareness and to students to encourage them to consider structural engineering as a career path, has faced similar challenges. We are excited to announce that the State Board of Trustees has decided to combine the two committees to gain critical mass in membership. The newly formed Education & Outreach Committee is restarting with Scott Earnest as chair and Connor Lester as vice-chair. Thank you for stepping up and working to reenergize the committee and to set a new direction! We have some members that will continue from the previous committees, but we need a lot more participation, so please reach out if you’re interested in joining!

Finally, we began efforts to redefine the scope of the Executive Director, especially with all the changes with the new online membership platform. We hope to get an RFP out in the fall and will evaluate proposals from AMI and other proposers. Thanks to Chun Lau for leading that committee.

Whew! I’m looking forward to what SEAW accomplishes in the next year under Patrick’s leadership. I know he plans to tackle redoing the Policies and Procedures which haven’t been updated in years, especially focusing on how they align with the Strategic Plan and the online membership platform, and will continue work on the efforts that were started this past year.

Thank you for coming on this journey with me and for everyone’s support, and I hope this encourages YOU to get more involved with SEAW to help make it better. Get involved in your local SEAW chapter or join an SEAW committee! It may take a few hours of your time each month, but your participation is invaluable and you will likely find that you get a lot of personal benefit. Even if you don’t feel that you have any particular knowledge to contribute to a committee, it’s a great opportunity to learn more, build expertise, and network with other structural engineers. We can do great things if we all contribute!

Owen Kohashi and the event emcee address the audience at the SEAW 75^th Anniversary celebration last October at the Museum of Flight. Photo by CSI.

The newly formed Education and Outreach Committee aims to increase structural engineering education for SEAW members, students, and the public – including for events like this bridge building activity at Mountlake Terrace High School. Photo courtesy SEAW Outreach.

Tom Walters

Seattle Chapter

On June 4th, SEAW held its inaugural SEAW Seattle Awards. This well-attended event was a great opportunity to highlight the work that has been done this last year by all the firms and individuals in SEAW Seattle, as well as offer an opportunity to connect with our fellow structural engineers! Each individual and structural firm award recipient highlighted these achievements and the boundaries of structural engineering that we continue to push in our everyday work life.

The first few individual awards presented were to the three SEAW/SEFW scholarship recipients:

• Ava Rifenbury, Gonzaga University
• Cassadie Golding, University of Washington
• Edward Zarmbinski, Saint Martin’s University

Each scholarship recipient was highlighted having a disciplined work ethic and a passion for structural engineering. Each scholarship winner was awarded $5,000 to continue their studies in structural engineering. Congrats to all three of you!

Continuing on with the individual awards, we spotlighted four individuals this year. The first award was the President’s 2026 Award, whose recipients were Violeta Tihova & Lisette Terry. Both individuals exemplified hard work and passion for the SEAW Seattle chapter as well as diligently planning the SEAW 75th anniversary party!

The next award was the Young Engineer of the Year 2026 Award which was won by Paolo Bourdeau. Paolo was the president of the SEAW Seattle YMG this past year and was both hardworking and devoted to keeping our YMG active with multiple events and happy hours throughout the year.

The final individual award of the year was the Engineer of the Year 2026 Award, which went to Owen Kohashi. I could go on and on about what Owen has done for the SEAW, but I believe it is fitting to highlight what he said in his acceptance speech. The main message of his speech was to simply “get involved!” With all of the SEAW state level committees, it doesn’t matter if you don’t feel the most knowledgeable, just simply attending and contributing will bring a benefit to the committee as well as your individual career.

Congrats again to all of the individual award winners!

Next, we recognized our first SEAW project awards! Each project applicant represented the significant structural engineering achievements of our SEAW Seattle members and the structural firms that support our organization. Here are the award winners:

• Infrastructure Project of the Year: CG Engineering for The Makah National Fish Hatchery Weir Repair
• Special Use Project of the Year: Coffman Engineers for the Lowell Observatory Constellation Structure
• Retrofit/Alteration/Historic Preservation: HDR for the Los Angeles Public Health Laboratory
• New Construction: MKA for the Seattle Convention Center Summit Building
• Community Impact Award: CKC Structural Engineers for the Snoqualmie Casino & Hotel
• People's Choice Award: Coffman Engineers for the Lightwell Hotel

Congratulations everyone! Have a wonderful summer and we will see you for more SEAW events in the fall.

Darrell Staaleson (left) presents Owen Kohasi with the 2026 Engineer of the Year Award. Photo by Paolo Bourdeau.

Patrick Lindblom (left) shakes hands with Kyle Johnson and other Coffman Engineers staff after recognizing the firm with the People’s Choice Award for the Lightwell Hotel. Photo by Paolo Bourdeau.

Katie Bohocky

SEFW

The Structural Engineers Foundation of Washington (SEFW) is proud to invest in the next generation of structural engineering professionals through its continued support of student scholarships. For 2026, SEFW funded three $5,000 scholarships through the Structural Engineers Association of Washington (SEAW) scholarship program, providing a total of $15,000 in educational support.

The 2026 SEFW-funded scholarship recipients are:

Ava Rifenbury

Gonzaga University

$5,000 Scholarship Recipient

Cassadie Golding

University of Washington

$5,000 Scholarship Recipient

Edward Zarmbinski

St. Martin’s University

$5,000 Scholarship Recipient

These outstanding students have demonstrated academic achievement, leadership potential, and a commitment to pursuing careers in structural engineering. Through these scholarships, SEFW aims to help reduce financial barriers to higher education while encouraging the development of future leaders within the structural engineering profession.

SEFW remains committed to supporting students and strengthening the future of the engineering community throughout Washington state. By investing in promising scholars today, we help ensure a strong and innovative profession for generations to come. You are invited to participate in his mission by making a tax-deductible donation to SEFW as part of our annual fundraising campaign!

 A donation of just $50 or more can go a long way in strengthening our profession and inspiring the next generation of structural engineers. Every contribution helps build a more resilient and innovative future. Your generosity ensures that SEFW can continue building an enduring legacy for structural engineering in Washington. You can make a donation by visiting www.sefw.org.

Congratulations to Ava, Cassadie, and Edward on their achievements, and best wishes as they continue their educational and professional journeys.

Alejandro Esparza

Seattle Chapter

This year’s election process has come to an end, following SEAW’s bylaws. The Seattle Election Committee was convened, appointed by the Chapter President, and their nominations were put forth in the monthly Equilibrium newsletter for the SEAW membership to review. Elections were held via electronic ballots, with Seattle Chapter members being able to vote for the nominees or for any other eligible member. The polls closed on May 30th. Congratulations to the new SEAW Seattle Chapter board members!

The newly elected officials will fill the following positions in the SEAW Seattle Chapter:

• Kyle Johnson, President
• Jeff Dragovich, Vice President
• Evan Jordan, Director
• Doug Smith, Director
• Craig Roberts, Director

Thank you to the individuals who stepped forward to shape the future of the SEAW Seattle Chapter, and to the members who took the time to vote. Get to know your new leadership by reading their information below.

Kyle Johnson, P.E., S.E., is a Structural Engineering Discipline Manager for Coffman Engineers in Seattle, leading teams in delivering high quality, practical structural solutions. He has been involved with SEAW for over 10 years and is the chair of the SEAW Outreach Committee and is currently on the SEAW and NCSEA Seismic Committees. He’s known for collaborative leadership, clear communication, and supporting engineers through complex project challenges. He has worked on a variety of project types around the country with specific emphasis on advanced manufacturing and seismic retrofits and renovations.

Jeff Dragovich, Ph.D., S.E., F.ACI, is an Associate at DeSimone Consulting Engineers (DCE). He is a Seattle native with over 30 years of engineering experience in the industry and academic, and as a research structural engineer in the NEHRP group at the National Institute of Standards and Technology. His primary focus is Performance-Based Design, having worked on many projects in Washington and California since 1998. At DCE, he leads their internal R&D efforts and provides technical expertise to design projects. He has been a member of SEAW since 2012 and a previous member of the SEAW board of Directors. He is a main committee member on ACI 318-31, ACI 369 Seismic Repair and Rehabilitation, and ACI committees related to performance-based seismic and wind design. In addition to SEAW, he is a member of ASCE, SEAOC and EERI, and the Secretary on the SEI Advancement of Performance Based Design Committee.

Evan Jordan, P.E., LEED AP BD+C, is a Senior Design Engineer with Magnusson Klemencic Associates in Seattle. His project portfolio spans a variety of vertical construction market sectors across the country, including commercial offices, life science buildings, parking garages, airport terminal structures, and existing buildings, totaling over 4.2 million square feet. He enjoys designing concrete and steel structures, both gravity and lateral, while heavily emphasizing collaboration among his colleagues to deliver impactful structural solutions. Evan became involved in the SEAW YMG and strove to improve organizational success through the COVID era. He currently co-chairs the SEAW Online Membership Platform Committee and seeks to improve SEAW’s organizational sustainability and effectiveness both internally and externally.

Doug Smith, P.E., S.E., is the Structural Engineering Supervisor for Seattle City Light. He received his BSCE from the University of Washington in 2000 and has been a registered Structural Engineer in Washington since 2012. Doug practiced in consulting for more than 20 years, with a focus on new design, forensics, and specialty medical equipment, before joining the city. In his current role, he works to preserve historic structures and improve seismic resiliency for the utility’s equipment and facilities, from the generation sites to the underground vaults. He has been active with the NCEES structural exam committee as a grader and writer for 15 years and has leveraged his ability to understand and interpret building codes into a successful hobby as a youth baseball and softball umpire.

Craig F. Roberts, P.E., S.E., is the president of CT Engineering, Inc., in Seattle. He has 35 years of engineering experience and is licensed in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Nevada and Arizona. His early career included civil engineering projects, construction management and inspections. His projects range from single family projects to multi-family podium projects, retail buildings and excavation and shoring designs. He has been serving as a board member of the SEFW since 2018 and served as the chair between 2020 and 2022. He has been a member of SEAW for over 30 years. Craig has actively supported the efforts of both SEFW and SEAW.

The 13th U.S. National Conference on Earthquake Engineering (13NCEE) is coming to the Oregon Convention Center in Portland from July 13th - 17th, hosted by the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI).

The 13NCEE will feature content focused on the Pacific Northwest and Cascadia as well as easy travel logistics for PNW locals! Don't miss this chance to learn and participate at this unique event that only takes place every four years, especially when it is being hosted in your own backyard!

Register for 13NCEE to connect with other experts and learn from the vast technical program for a whole week of networking and more. If your schedule is limited, you can register for just for one day with their new special offer designed with locals in mind.

Disaster Prep/Response Committee (DPRC) Committee Meeting

June 16th | 12:00PM - 1:00PM | Virtual

SEAW Seattle YMG Happy Hour Series

September 17th | 5:00PM - 7:00PM | DPR Construction

Visit the SEAW website for other event dates and information.

Welcome New Members!

Scott Earnest, Member SE (Integrated Design) | Seattle Chapter

Calvin Tsao, Member SE (Coffman) | Seattle Chapter

Structural Engineers, All Levels

Seattle, Tacoma and Central Washington Offices

Swenson Say Faget is hiring Structural Engineers at all experience levels across its offices. The firm values strong technical fundamentals, good judgment, curiosity, teamwork, and persistence. SSF offers hands-on responsibility, direct client interaction, mentorship, and opportunities for professional growth in an informal but high-expectation environment. Employees are challenged and supported while working on a wide range of meaningful projects with experienced colleagues and trusted clients.

Qualifications:

• PE License Preferred for Project Engineers and Project Managers
• Meticulous attention to detail with demonstrated analytic, problem-solving, and three-dimensional conceptual skills.
• Excellent command of the English language with above average verbal and written communication skills.
• Must be authorized to work in the United States.

Our annual salary ranges represent the low and high end at SSF. Actual compensation will be based on various factors including but not limited to experience, skills, depth and breadth of technical ability, and individual performance.

• Staff Engineer: $80,000 - $88,000
• Project Engineer: $87,000 - $98,000
• Project Manager: $97,000 - $110,000

Salary is one component of SSF’s total compensation package. Other compensation includes annual discretionary bonuses based on company profitability and employee contributions to SSF’s success plus additional wages calculated and paid quarterly for extra time and effort above set goals.

Benefits:

• 100% employer-paid medical, vision, dental (including orthodontia), vision, life, and long-term disability insurance for staff
• 4 weeks’ Paid Time Off (PTO) each calendar year
• Flexible Spending Account (FSA) for Health Care and Dependent Care expenses
• 401(k), including pretax and Roth options, plus employer match with immediate vesting
• Subsidized ORCA transit passes (Seattle office)
• Eight Paid Holidays each calendar year
• Up to 32 hours of Paid Volunteer Time Off each full calendar year of employment
• Professional Testing and Licensing reimbursement



For a full list of benefits and more information, check us out at https://ssfengineers.com/careers/. Submit your resume and letter of interest to info@ssfengineers.com.

Sales Engineer PNW

Nucor | Vancouver, WA

Vulcraft and Verco Decking, divisions of Nucor Corporation, are leading manufacturers of steel joists and decking products serving the Western U.S. market. The VVG West team is seeking a Sales Engineer to expand Vulcraft and Verco’s presence in the design and construction community throughout the Pacific North West. The successful candidate will be a relationship-driven professional who thrives on connecting with contractors, structural engineers, and architects to promote innovative framing and decking solutions that deliver value to building projects.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor of Science in Engineering or Construction Management from an ABET – Accredited institution.
• Minimum 3 years of working experience in Structural or Construction Engineering.
• Proven client-management experience, including serving as a point of contact for clients, contractors, and the design team on a project.
• Willingness to travel regularly to meet with clients and attend industry events.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Licensed Professional Engineer (PE) or Certified Construction Manager (CCM).
• 4 years of working experience in Structural or Construction Engineering. 
• Experience in preconstruction decision-making.

Engineer-in-Training (Structural/Civil)

Weyerhaeuser | Federal Way, WA

Weyerhaeuser is leading the world's structural frame market with innovative products, systems, and services for use in a variety of residential, light commercial and home improvement applications worldwide. We're looking for people who can contribute, grow, think, and create. We thrive in a culture that embraces diversity and rewards results. Our associates are the real reason we've been in business for over 100 years. Their skill and ingenuity have made Weyerhaeuser one of the largest manufacturers and distributors of wood products in the world. Our vision is to develop superior sustainable solutions for the world and our focus is as much on building our people as on building the business. We are committed to creating an environment for associates that value safety, integrity, citizenship and innovation. We seek out achievers, with leadership potential. In return, we offer a highly competitive salary, excellent benefits, and outstanding career development.

Key Functions:

• Actively participate in a safety-driven workplace culture 
• Work independently or under the supervision of engineers:
• Developing product literature and software design specifications, 
• Resolving technical field problems 
• Preparing code evaluation submittal documentation 
• Supporting test laboratory by developing experiment plans, witnessing testing and writing technical reports 
• Manufacturing activities such as reviewing QA data and conducting plant audits



Preferred Qualifications:

• Engineer-in-training certification 
• Bachelor’s degree in civil or structural engineering from an accredited institution required 
• Critical thinker with a desire to become an integral part of our team 
• Highly motivated and organized individual who excels in a dynamic team environment 
• Goal-oriented attention to detail and deadlines 
• Willingness to safely participate in a results-based culture 
• Strong communication and analytical skills 
• Proficient in Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint 
• Functional knowledge of AutoCAD or related drafting software preferred 
• Functional knowledge of Visual Basic macro development in Excel preferred

Structural Engineers Association of Washington 

5727 Baker Way NW, Suite 200 | Gig Harbor, WA 98332

206.338.7376

info@seaw.org

www.seaw.org

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