ASCE President-elect Blaine D. Leonard to Keynote at 2009 Solutions Conference

Online Registration for this Event will Close April 15

Aurora, Colo., April 2, 2009—The Geospatial Information & Technology Association (GITA) is pleased to announce that Blaine D. Leonard, president-elect of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and the research program manager with the Utah Department of Transportation, will keynote at GITA’s 2009 Geospatial Infrastructure Solutions Conference, scheduled for April 19-22, 2009, at the Tampa Convention Center in Tampa, Florida.

Leonard’s address at the 2009 Solutions Conference, focusing on the recently released 2009 ASCE Infrastructure Report Card, will kick-off a program of more 100+ educational sessions, a diverse exhibit hall, and top-notch networking events. He will speak during the Opening Session Monday, April 20, at from 1:30-3:00 p.m.

At the Utah Department of Transportation, Leonard is responsible for balancing needs, priorities and resources in the Research Division, and managing a wide variety of geotechnical, structural, seismic, environmental, and traffic safety research efforts. 

Prior to joining the Department, Leonard spent 20 years in the consulting engineering business, with broad experience in site engineering, utilities, roads, geotechnical investigations, and earth dams, and was a partner in a Salt Lake City engineering firm.  He earned Bachelors and Masters degrees in Civil Engineering from the University of Utah. He is a licensed professional engineer in six western states.

Leonard is active in the American Society of Civil Engineers, where he currently serves as the Society’s President-elect for 2009. He has served as a Zone IV Vice President, a Governor of the GeoInstitute, President of the Utah Section, and has been on a number of national ASCE committees. He currently chairs the Task Committee to Achieve the Vision for Civil Engineering in 2025. ASCE awarded him the William H. Wisely American Civil Engineer Award in 2006.

Online registration for the 2009 Geospatial Infrastructure Solutions Conference will close Wednesday, April 15, at noon mountain daylight saving time. Registration fees start at $379. Exhibits-only passes are $25. Full details about the conference are available at www.gita.org/gis, or by contacting GITA headquarters at 303-337-0513; e-mail info@gita.org.

About GITA
The Geospatial Information & Technology Association, or GITA, is the professional association and leading advocate for anyone using computerized mapping for the extraction of data to own, operate, maintain, and protect the infrastructure. GITA is the source for professional best practices, education, and employment.