Washington, DC — Thornton Tomasetti, the international engineering firm, announced that project engineer Dara Naderi, P.E. has received the 2018 Rising Stars in Structural Engineering Award from the Structural Engineers Association of Metropolitan Washington (SEA-MW). Naderi was honored at the organization’s Excellence in Structural Engineering Awards Gala on February 24 at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, D.C. The annual award recognizes engineers for their professional achievements, for serving as role models through service and public outreach, and having a positive impact on their profession, communities and the world.

Thornton Tomasetti Senior Project Engineer and past Rising Star recipient (2016) Brian Petruzzi, P.E. presented Naderi with the award. Senior Associate Chris Crilly, P.E., LEED AP was the association’s first Rising Star award winner in 2014.

Naderi has a strong background in the analysis, design and detailing of structures. His project credits include the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collections, Conservation and Research Center in Bowie, Maryland, a Department of Justice forensics laboratory in Alabama and the United States Embassy in London, England.

Dara serves on several of Thornton Tomasetti’s technical committees and heads its Flat Slab Community of Practice. He has also held several key leadership positions within SEA-MW. He is a board member of the SEA-MW Young Members Group and served as its chair. Last year as the co-chair of the organization’s student outreach program “The Next Step – A Forum for Future Structural Engineers,” he helped attract more than 120 students to the annual event. He has also volunteered with the ACE Mentor Program at a local D.C. high school for two years.

Naderi holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering and a master’s degree in structural engineering, both from Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, and is a licensed professional engineer in Virginia. He is a member of the National Council of Structural Engineers Associations’ (NCSEA) Seismic Provisions Code Committee and D.C.’s Construction Codes Coordination Board Structural Technical Advisory Committee.

Also honored at the SEA-MW awards gala was Thornton Tomasetti Principal Peggy Van Eepoel, P.E., F.SEI, who received the Chairperson’s Award. She was recognized for her work as SEA-MW’s 2013-14 chairperson as well as her service to the organization spanning more than a decade. She played a key role in the growth of its membership and in many of its initiatives. In addition, Thornton Tomasetti’s Reston Station OB1 project, a trophy-class office building designed by JAHN architects in Reston, Virginia, received the Merit Award for New Construction over $75m.

The SEA-MW is a professional organization that provides a forum to improve the quality of structural engineering and related business practices, promotes professionalism among its members and elevates the reputation and image of structural engineers.