When Baseline Engineering Corporation (Baseline) was founded by John McLain, PE, in 1998, the company’s foundation rooted from its expertise in civil engineering. From there, various different specialties have been added to the company’s services such as planning, surveying, landscape architecture, and more. Undoubtedly, John’s passion for the engineering industry, and the people within it, is what sparked and developed the formation of this firm. He created Baseline with the intention to build an incredible company, by and for its employee owners; clearly, he was not only passionate about engineering and helping communities, but even more focused on the people that keep the business running. Similarly, in the spirit of valuing the individuals that make the company incredible, Baseline celebrates our civil engineering team during this year’s National Engineers Week (2/22-2/27).

National Engineers Week was first founded by the National Society of Professional Engineers in 1951. The celebration always occurs during the week in February following President’s Day, to commemorate the nation’s first recognized engineer, George Washington. This week serves many purposes. Whether that’s recognizing engineers for their hard work, encouraging the youth to consider this field of work, emphasizing the significance of pursuing a technical career, inspiring future engineers, or anything in between—there are countless reasons to celebrate.

Baseline would like to acknowledge its own team of engineers who contribute immensely to the company, our local communities, and society overall. Our engineering team is composed of 21 individuals who are each overwhelmingly skilled, detail-oriented, knowledgeable, and passionate. Our staff collectively brings a diverse set of skills that work cohesively in the continual push towards success.

Another core goal of National Engineers Week is to honor and inspire a diverse workforce, and reiterate the importance of having a technical education rooted in high level science, math, or technology; therefore, Baseline would like to highlight some of these individuals that help enrich our own team. Among the engineers, there are 11 (and counting) licensed Professional Engineers (PE), 3 females, and 7 individuals who have worked in the industry for over 20 years; these are just a few of the outstanding characteristics and accomplishments of our staff.

Within the engineering industry, obtaining one’s Professional Engineer license can be a daunting yet gratifying feat. Morgan Clapp, PE, a project engineer at Baseline since 2017, most recently achieved this license. As she reflects on this journey, Morgan says that the most rewarding part is the opportunities that come along with it. This was the next big step in her career and she is excited for the heightened responsibility and level of expertise that she carries. For anyone that also hopes to pursue this license, Morgan advises those to communicate closely with other PEs; each individual has a new and insightful tip to offer. Lastly, she encourages everyone to “remember that it’s normal to feel overwhelmed and walk away from the test feeling horrible. All of those PEs before you made it through, so you can too!” Hours of studying and hard work all contribute to attaining the PE license goal.

Another one of the few females on the team, Sarah Parsley, EIT, gives advice to her fellow aspiring women engineers. She encourages those in this male-dominated field to not shy into the shadows because you’re outnumbered, but rather to embrace that—it’s what sets you apart. She continues: “you have an obligation to the rest of the female engineers out there to become a solid presence and loud voice in the room.” Sarah has almost 20 years of experience in the engineering industry and hopes to one day open up a firm of her own. She follows in the footsteps of her father, an experienced civil engineer, who founded and owned his own firm. This is where Sarah’s sense of purpose and motivation roots from in which she hopes to keep advancing her career and encourages other women to do the same.

Finally, this team of skilled individuals is led by our Civil Engineering Division Manager, Noah Nemmers, PE, for the last 10 years. Noah has worked within the industry for well over 20 years and has much experience with large-scale project design, project management, and everything in between. Noah admits that what he enjoys most about his job is “being a trusted advisor to our clients, delivering sound advice, and designing projects that benefit our communities. I enjoy the process of analyzing and evaluating different sites and overcoming the obstacles we face on each site whether it is challenging topography, drainage, utility and easement constraints, or accessibility. Each project is unique and each client has a different set of goals and expectations that you need to understand and incorporate into the project.” It is clear that being an engineer is no easy task, but the challenges bring much fulfillment and sense of purpose from helping to create better communities. Again, we want to thank and acknowledge all of the incredibly accomplished engineers out there, within Baseline and beyond.