| | | | WPC Officers Kristy Kastner, PSP Chair kkastner@nvenergy.com View Profile Carla Thomas-Baksh CCT Co-Chair Carla.Thomas-Baksh@jacobs.com View Profile Marlene Hyde, CCE Committee Officer mmhyde@aol.com View Profile Julie Owen, PSP CCC Committee Officer owenj@metro.net View Profile  Hannah Schumacher Committee Officer hschumacher@kitchell.com View Profile Marina Sominsky Committee Officer msominsky@kitchell.com View Profile Valerie Venters CCC Committee Officer vventers@aol.com View Profile Jennie Amos AACE® Headquarters Representative JAmos@aacei.org View Profile   Profiles Kristy Kastner PSP, is a Senior Project Controls Consultant working on transmission and distribution projects with NV Energy. As a young professional, she has ten years project controls and information technology experience in the government and utility industries. Kristy has been a member since 2006 and earned her Planning and Scheduling Professional certification in 2008. She was the first woman to be President of the AACE Nevada Section and currently serves as the section’s Director of Membership. In 2007-08, she contributed to increasing monthly section attendance by 70%. She has a strong drive to network with AACE members and believes lifelong learning is vital in career development. Kristy holds her Master of Public Administration and Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, Management Information Systems from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She is a recently married and will celebrating her first anniversary. Carla Tomas-Baksh CCT, is currently a Lead Cost Engineer at Jacobs Engineering, an EPC company. She has over 10 years of combined experience in Programming and Project Controls. Her dual background has allowed her to play a key role in the development of project controls systems as well as a Senior Cost Engineer on large capital projects primarily in the Oil and Gas Industry. She joined AACE in 2007 and was certified as a CCT in 2008. She is a member of the Houston Gulf Coast Section. Carla has been part of AACE Pilot Mentoring Program; and is currently pursuing her CCC certification. She holds a BS in Computing and Information Systems from the University of London. Carla is initially from Trinidad & Tobago and is married with two young sons. Marlene Hyde CCE EVP, has 36 years' experience in project controls, estimating, scheduling, and project management. She has been active in AACE® since 1991, and was certified as a CCE in 1993 and as an EVP in 2009. She has held a number of AACE® positions including president of the Albuquerque section for 2 years and VP-Programs in North Florida, and was on the AACE International Board of Directors as the VP of Finance from 2006-2008 and previously on the Certification Board. She has been actively involved with the Women in Project Controls task force since its inception. She is currently a project controls consultant on large government projects for the Department of Energy, State Department, Army Corps of Engineers and others. She also volunteers with Wycliffe Associates, working on schedules and managing projects in various parts of the world. Her career has included constructing hospitals, an Intel manufacturing plant, office buildings, research facilities, and airports. Over 30 years ago, she was the first woman to obtain a master's degree in civil engineering from the University of New Mexico. Marlene is married and lives in Florida, and has a daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter who live in Northern Ireland. Julie Owen PSP CCC, has over twenty years of experience in project management, project control, cost engineering, scheduling, contract administration and schedule delay claim analysis. She currently works as project controls supervisor for LA Metro managing the $40 billion over 30 year initiative to improve LA County transportation infrastructure. She worked her way up the management ladder holding positions such as assistant project manager, project engineer, construction manager, scheduler, cost engineer and intern engineer. Julie joined AACE International in 1994 and became certified in 2007. Julie currently instructs the PSP certification prep course on behalf of the AACE International certification board. Julie is past president of the Southern California section of AACE International and currently serves as Director of Region 6 (Western US). She received her masters degree in business administration from University of Redlands and her bachelors degree in construction science from Texas A&M University. Hannah Schumacher, LEED® AP, PMI-SP, PSP, is the Scheduling Manager for Kitchell Contractors. She has over 18 years experience in the construction industry with a primary focus on scheduling and project controls. She has worked on a broad range of industial and commercial projects including refineries, power plants, healthcare, schools, casinos, hotels, museums, retail, master-planned communities, and custom homes. She is a LEED® Accredited Professional, a certified Scheduling Professional (PMI-SP), and a certified Planning & Scheduling Professional (PSP). Hannah joined AACE in 2006 and became certified as a PSP in 2009. An active member of AACE, she is currently serving as the Secretary for the Planning & Scheduling Committee (since 2008) and the President for the Arizona Section. Hannah received her BS degress in Contruction Management and Building Construction Technology from Wentworth Institute of Technology, Boston, Massachussetts. She is married and lives in New River, Arizona. Marina Sominsky is the IT Project Manager for Kitchell Contractors. She has ten years project controls and information technology experience in the construction, semiconductor, transportation and government industries. Marina is a certified Project Manager Professional. She joined AACE in 2008 and is currently serving as the Secretary for the Arizona Section. Marina received her BS degree in Chemical Engineering from University of Kansas, Laurence, Kansas. Valerie Venters CCC, has over 20 years of experience in Project Controls related fields. She joined AACE International in 1997 and became certified in 2000. Currently, Valerie serves as the Chairperson of the AACE Certification Board. While very active in the Houston Gulf Coast Section, she enjoys networking and sharing ideas with other professionals in the industry. In 2005, she founded Venters Consulting LLC, a company specializing in Project Management and Project Controls expertise. Most of the consulting work performed by Venters Consulting LLC is associated with the Oil and Gas industry in the Gulfcoast region. Valerie is married to a Planner/Scheduler and together they make a “dynamic duo” – she working the Cost Management, he working the Schedule Management. Jennie Amos. About Us |  Officers |  Brochure |  Surveys  |  Home |  aace Home