Tuesday, September 28th

At noon on September 28th, we are in for a treat. We have Jenn Donahue, seismic engineer, businesswoman, and best-selling author, coming to speak to our local Chapter! Join us at Century West office located at 1020 SW Emkay Drive, Suite 100 or join us online (this will be a hybrid presentation)

Unshakable: Navigating Change, Crisis, and Chaos

Your project teams are stretched thin. Timelines compress, scope shifts mid-build, code and regulatory requirements change underneath you, and the skilled workforce that used to carry the load is harder to find and keep every year. The pressure doesn't announce itself; it quietly builds until a schedule slips, a safety issue surfaces, or a key engineer walks.



In this engaging and story-driven keynote, engineer and 27-year Navy veteran Jenn Donahue draws on her career evaluating seismic risk for dams, bridges, and critical infrastructure, and leading engineering teams under combat conditions, to show technical leaders how to create stability when the ground keeps shifting. Jenn learned that in both earthquakes and organizations, disruption is rarely sudden, it's the release of pressure that had been building for a long time.

Using practical frameworks from her Unshakable Method, built on the same principles engineers use to assess and prioritize risk, Jenn equips leaders with tools to spot early warning signs, make sound decisions under incomplete information, build trust across teams, and lead with confidence through schedule pressure, budget constraints, and shifting requirements. Through compelling stories, research-backed insights, and actionable strategies, attendees will leave with a renewed sense of control and practical techniques they can apply immediately on the jobsite or in the office.

Leaders will discover that the greatest competitive advantage isn't eliminating uncertainty, it's becoming unshakable within it.

Key Takeaways:

●     Identify the early signals, in communication, behavior, and morale, that show pressure is building on a project or team before it becomes a crisis.

●     Apply a risk-based framework to decide where to act now, where to prepare, and where to let go, so attention goes where it matters most.

●     Apply the Five R's of Trust, Rapport, Responsible, Respect, Reliable, Recognize, to build the trust that keeps project teams aligned when schedules and scope keep shifting.

About Jenn Donahue:

Jenn Donahue PhD is a best-selling author, retired US Navy Captain and former Commodore for an 1,800 personnel Regiment. She is also a civil engineer who works on large-scale, high-profile projects. Over her 27-year military career, Jenn has built a bridge across the Euphrates River in the midst of the Iraq war, commanded an 800-personnel Battalion in Afghanistan, and constructed combat outposts in the middle of deserts filled with insurgents.

Jenn passionately helps others overcome the obstacles that prevent them from achieving their grandest dreams and most ambitious goals. She is an international keynote speaker with speeches including leadership and mindset.

Today, Jenn is the Founder of JL Donahue Engineering, Inc. and Dare to Rise. She also lectures at UC Berkeley, UCLA, and CalPoly.

NEW - This program is Free for PEO Members / $20.00 for Non Members (pay at the door check or cash or online with a credit card)

Click here to pay in advance.

Register in advance for this meeting:

Online Zoom Registration:

https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/dr5JT_y5TPOomytOhzDR2A 

Other News

Welcome our 7 new members to the Central Oregon Chapter of PEO.

• Jim Albin, DOWL Engineering
• Sean Loughran, Century West Engineering
• Khalid Luqman, ESI Solutions
• Justin Mason, DOWL Engineering
• Trevor Munro, Becon Engineering
• James Staszko, MayAir
• Gordon Yutzy, GY Consulting

I hope to see you at our chapter meeting

Professional Engineers of Oregon is pushing for a Membership Drive. With that, your local leadership team will be calling the local offices to pitch all of the good things we have to offer at the local, state and national levels of PEO/NSPE. Here locally, we have 4 meetings already lined up for 2026 (see below calendar). 

Thank you to our dedicated PEO Central Oregon Chapter members for driving professional excellence in our region...

Shape the Future of Engineering in Oregon –

The Professional Engineers of Oregon (PEO) is launching our 2026 Membership Drive.

Soon, local leadership will reach out to highlight the significant professional benefits, advocacy, and networking opportunities available at the local, state, and national (NSPE) levels.

• Local: Get involved locally with four planned meetings for 2026.
• State: In-Person Presentations and Workshops
• National: Access to NSPE resources and advocacy. https://www.nspe.org/

PEO Membership - Local, State, National

Your Central Oregon Chapter prides itself in bringing PDH’s to our local engineers.  We have been providing 8+ monthly chapter events per year each worth 1 PDH.  Many of these are live hybrid events that are available for you to join if you cannot attend in-person.  Our chapter serves a large geographical area, and we know members have challenges attending.  Nonetheless, we would love to see our engineering community and grow each other’s fellowship and comradery. 

At the national level, NSPE has been providing WORKability Wednesdays with professional engineering topics every other Wednesday.  There is also a free suite of on-demand topics members can join for PDH’s.   

If you are a member, thank you for your continued support!  If you are not a member, please consider membership.  

Enterprise Membership - Click Here to Learn More

Explore NSPE Member Benefits - Your employees will gain access to career advancement resources, professional growth, discounts on continuing education offerings, and meaningful engagement across the profession. A gain for your employees is a gain for your organization. 

Alliance for Professional Licensure - Instructional Videos

Watch these practical videos to prepare you to discuss and answer questions about the importance of professional licensure and learn about the several types of opposition that threaten our profession.

PS Call for Leadership:

Please let me know if anyone is interested in joining our leadership team. We need all levels of board positions. We also will need help with the Job Shadow, MATHCOUNTS, and the High School Engineering scholarship committee.

Dirk Duryee, P.E., P.L.S, C.W.R.E.

PEO Central Oregon Chapter President

President, Tye Engineering and Surveying, Inc

dirk@tyeengineering.com

2026 Past Events

July 27^th Bend High School Tour

June 22^nd Deschutes Solids Waste Siting, Ryan Rudnick

April 27^th, Westman Hotel Tour

March 23^rd Switchblade sports car /airplane tour

February 23^rd City of Bend Public Works campus tour

January 26^th Infiltrator, Orenco, and Ecopod on-site septic systems

2025 Past Events

Dec Pizza Social with PLSO and COID

November 24^th Steve Shropshire On Oregon Water Rights Law

October 9^th Jackstraw Tour Led by Jake Keudell

July 28, Steve Shropshire, Attorney on Oregon Storm Water Law

June Rebecca O’Neill- Senior Capstone Project Hulk Smash

April 28, Emerald Shirley ODOT Wickiup Junction Overpass Update

March 17, James Ferris, P.E. Redmond St. Charles Cancer Center Tour

February Adam Deheer, LeapFrog

January 27 Adam Larsen- Geotechnical Challenges in Central Oregon

2024 Past Events

December Member Pizza Social

October 29 OSU Cascades Mechanical Engineering Degree Rebecca Webb

August 28^th Thermo Fisher On-Site Presentation Polyurethane Foam

July 29 Dan Holborow- TerraFirma

June 27^th Tour of Prineville water treatment, storage and recapture

April 3^rd Tour of Leapfrog Greywater Reuse

February 18^th Christine McTavish E/One Sewage Grinder Pumps

January 22^nd Topa3D Drone Surveying

2023 Past Events

December- Member Pizza nights

November 27^th Dan Pedersen with OnBoard Dynamics

October 23^rd GreenSavers Home energy services and home electricfication

September 25^th Josh Bailey North Unit Irrigation District 1 hr

August 28 Lisa Seales and the Deschutes River Conservancy 1hr

July 24 COID Power Generation Facilities Tour 1hr

June Engineering Social Event at Silvermoon 1hr

May Engineering Conference

March 21^st Allen Block retaining wall technical training. 6hr

February 27^th EDCO- John Stark and the Central Oregon Economy

January 30^th 2023, Caldera High School Tour-1hr