Meet the Team

Cerasela is ATCS’ Transportation Design Director. She oversees the transportation facilities design, hydraulics design, and public outreach staff. She has over 30 years of professional experience in transportation engineering and civil infrastructure design. She has expertise in multimodal design with her 2010 dissertation on Optimization Modeling for Urban Street Design for George Mason University and her project work. She is a contributing author for TRB papers related to evaluating bicycle facilities on urban arterials. She hold a Master's and a PhD degree from George Mason University.

She has been an active member and the past president of the Potomac Section of ASHE. Her active involvement with ASHE began in 2015.

Cerasela served as President of the ASHE Potomac Section (2017-2018), and has served on the Executive Board on various positions since 2015. She is also active in WTS DC as a volunteer and has served as the treasurer (2022-2024) and Professional Development Chair (2014-2022). She is the Curriculum Committee Chair and Past Chair of the Civil Engineering Institute Board at George Mason University. She teaches the capstone course, Senior Design at George Mason University.

Email: ccristei@atcs.com

Anis Shaikh is an Alternative Delivery Integration Manager with Fay, S&B USA Construction. He brings more than 30 years of experience leading and supporting complex transportation infrastructure projects for state, regional, and local agencies. His expertise is in design-build and public-private partnership delivery, with extensive involvement on major highway and bridge projects across the Mid-Atlantic region. In his current role, Anis serves as a key liaison between owners, designers, and construction teams, helping align technical requirements, schedules, and stakeholder expectations so design-build projects are delivered efficiently, collaboratively, and with reduced risk. He is known for integrating technical execution with proactive coordination, client engagement, and problem-solving to achieve cost-effective, high-quality outcomes that improve mobility and safety. Prior to joining S&B, Anis held senior leadership roles including Vice President and Senior Transportation Manager at leading engineering firms. In those roles, he led multidisciplinary teams, supported major pursuits, and managed high-profile transportation programs across the region.

Anis graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology and earned his Bachelor’s degree from Virginia Tech. He has been an active member of ASHE since joining in 2007 and has held multiple leadership roles within the organization, including serving as President and Past President of the Potomac Section and Chair of the ASHE National Scanner Committee.

Lauren is a Senior Project Manager for the Water Resources team at McCormick Taylor in Baltimore, MD. She has 14 years of engineering experience and is a registered PE in Maryland and Delaware. Her design experience includes highway drainage, erosion and sediment control, low-impact development, stormwater management design and permitting, hydrologic and hydraulic analysis, hydraulic modeling, dam design and embankment classification, FEMA floodplain mapping, and flood mitigation. She has her B.S. in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Villanova University.

Lauren has been an active member on the ASHE Chesapeake board since she first began volunteering in 2018. She is currently serving as the President of the Chesapeake Section.

Email: lhjacobson@mccormicktaylor.com

Khatereh Vaghefi is a Structures Project Manager at Infrastructure Consulting and Engineering, bringing over 15 years of expertise in bridge design, structural analysis, and load rating. She has played a key role in the successful delivery of transportation infrastructure projects across Virginia, Washington D.C., North Carolina, and Georgia, with extensive experience in both on-call and design-build contracts.

A dedicated industry leader, Khatereh served on the ASHE Potomac Section Board of Directors from 2016 to 2023, including terms as President, Vice President, Secretary, and Young Member Coordinator. Her active leadership in professional organizations reflects a strong commitment to advancing the field of civil engineering and supporting the next generation of engineering professionals.

Email: khatereh.vaghefi@ice-eng.com

Rich is a Director in RK&K's Fairfax office, focusing on alternative delivery in the southeast. He has 40 years of experience in the transportation and traffic engineering fields. In addition to consulting, his experience includes 16 years in local and state government (City of Charlotte, NC and Virginia DOT) and more than 10 years working with a major contractor. His broad range of experience gives him a valuable knowledge and a big picture perspective to provide clients with creative solutions using common sense engineering.

Rich has a BS in Civil Engineering from Virginia Tech and did his graduate work in Traffic Engineering at UNC Charlotte. He has been an active member of ASHE since serving as the Secretary for the organizing committee of the Carolina Piedmont Section. Rich later became a leader of the organizing committee for the Greater Hampton Roads Section, becoming the second President of that section. Rich was the co-chair of the 2006 ASHE National Conference held in Williamsburg, VA. He became the National Director for Region 7 in 2003 and served in that role until being elected to National Second Vice President in 2006. Rich served as the ASHE National President for 2008/2009.

Biplesh is a Roadway/Civil Project Manager and Civil Group lead at the GFT- Fairfax, Virginia office. He carries over 16 years of professional expertise in Roadway design and construction, and is a registered professional engineer in Virginia, District of Columbia, and Maryland. Throughout his career, he has focused in infrastructure projects in several Design-bid-build and Design-build projects in different geographic regions of the US. He has been active member of ASHE Potomac Section since 2018.

His hobbies include traveling to new places, hiking, and reading.

bniroula@gftinc.com

Ms. Harasty is a Roadway/Highway Design Engineer in Pennoni’s Transportation Division with over 11 years of experience. In addition to her engineering work, she plays a key role in client coordination, project management, and interdepartmental collaboration.

She is actively involved in company and industry groups, including Pennoni’s CADD Coordinators Group, PennoniGIVES, and the Sustainability Group. She also serves as a mentor through the WTS Mentoring Program and the STEM for Her initiative, supporting the next generation of women in STEM.

From June 2023 to June 2025, Ms. Harasty served as Treasurer of the ASHE Chesapeake Section. Her responsibilities included overseeing financial operations, supporting event logistics, and ensuring compliance with national reporting requirements.

Email: eharasty@pennoni.com

Melvin Harvey, PE, CCM serves as Senior Vice President and leads the Transportation Group at Cube Root Corporation, where he brings strategic direction, technical expertise, and a collaborative leadership style to the firm’s growing portfolio of infrastructure work. Mel plays a hands on role in pursuing, shaping, and delivering transportation initiatives throughout the region. He oversees a talented team of engineering professionals who support a wide range of infrastructure programs, ensuring projects are executed with precision, responsiveness, and a commitment to community needs.

With more than 35 years of experience, Mel has built a versatile career across the transportation industry. His background spans roadway design, project and program management, and construction oversight, including roles as roadway designer, design project manager, program manager, area construction engineer, and construction project manager. His contributions have supported agencies and communities across both the District of Columbia and the Commonwealth of Virginia, strengthening mobility, safety, and long term infrastructure resilience.

Since April 2023, Mel has served as the Gold Sponsor Chair for the ASHE Potomac Section. In this role, he fosters meaningful engagement between ASHE member firms and the broader engineering community, creating opportunities that elevate the profession and support the organization’s mission throughout the Potomac region.

Dion K. Ho, P.E., is the Practice Leader for KCI Technologies’ Highway Transportation Division, with over 24 years of experience in the planning, design, and delivery of transportation infrastructure. Licensed in seven states and Washington, D.C., he is recognized for his expertise in innovative project delivery methods, constructability, value engineering, and stakeholder coordination.

Mr. Ho served as President of the ASHE Chesapeake Section from 2017–2018 and remains active in professional and community organizations. He is dedicated to mentoring and professional development through KCI’s internal programs and external initiatives, including the P-TECH program, to support students and emerging professionals in the engineering field.

Beyond his professional commitments, he volunteers as a softball commissioner and coaches with the Prettyboy Recreation Council, serves on the board of the Hereford Zone Recreation and Parks Council, and enjoys golf and family activities.

Email: dion.ho@kci.com

Mike is a Senior Vice President at Athavale, Lystad & Associates (ALA) with over 30 years of experience in both the public and private sector as a transportation planner and/or engineer managing multimodal transportation improvement projects within the Mid-Atlantic region. His concentration areas include alternatives development and evaluation, traffic calming design, NEPA environmental documentation efforts, coordination of public involvement programs, and liaison with governmental agencies.

Mike holds PE licenses in 6 states; is a Certified Planner through the American Planning Association,and a certified Professional Transportation Planner through the Institute of Transportation Engineers. He has been an active member with both the Chesapeake and Potomac Sections of ASHE; is a Past President of the Maryland Section of ASCE, and currently serves as a Board Director for ACEC Metropolitan Washington.

Mike earned a bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from Clemson University and a Master’s degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of Maryland. He currently lives in Lovettsville, VA amongst the horse farms and wineries.

Email: mperrotta@alaengr.com

Alyssa is a Senior Project Engineer in the Environmental practice area of Barton & Loguidice in Annapolis, MD, with nearly 9 years of experience. Her work experience includes stormwater management, drainage design, erosion & sediment control design, stormwater management inspections, construction oversight, 1D/2D H&H modelling, feasibility studies, flood mitigation, green infrastructure design, and other duties of engineering design, inspection, and construction.

Alyssa has been an active professional member of ASCE for many years, and has served many roles on the ASCE Maryland Section and Younger Member Group. She is the Vice President of the ASCE Maryland Section, the Chair of the Professional Objectives Committee of the ASCE Maryland Section, and the Chair-Elect of ASCE National's Committee on Younger Members. Alyssa is also a member of the American Society of Highway Engineers (ASHE) and the Maryland Association of Floodplain and Stormwater Managers (MAFSM).

In her free time, Alyssa enjoys exploring new places, taking Polaroid photos, and reading cute fiction novels.

Email: asooklal@bartonandloguidice.com

David is a Project Manager with more than 24 years of experiance in Water Resources Engineering at Johson, Mirmiran, & Thompon, Inc.  His work inlcudes drainage design, stormwater management design and inspection, erosion & sediment control design, and reviews of stormwater mangement, erosion and sediment control, and drainage plans for varrious regulatory agencies.  In addition, David also sits on Johnson, Mirmiran, & Thompon's Charitibale Giving Committee and helps oversee the company's Annual Giving Campaign and other charitable requestst with matching donations to nearly 500 different charities across 16 states and the District of Columbia.

In his free time, David enjoys traveling, stamp collecting, and reading mysteries.

Email: dheckman@jmt.com

Nimish is a Deputy Business Unit Manager with 25 years of experiences and oversees Dewberry's Transportation Operations in Maryland including Roadway, Water Resources, Enviornmental, Traffic and Structures. He has a BE in Chemical & Environmental Engineering and a MS in Transportation Engineering.

Nimish is currently serving as a National Director (2022-Present) from the Mid-Atlantic Region and has served as President of the ASHE Mid-Atlantic Region (2018-2022), President of the Chesapeake Section (2012-2013) and has held several different positions on ASHE Mid-Atlantic Region and Chesapeake Section's board since 2004. He has also served as the Treasurer for the ASHE 2015 National Conference in Baltimore. He is the current Secretary of ACEC MD and remains active in professional organizations.

In his free time, he enjoys travelling, watching professional sports and volunteering in local school and community events.

Email: ndesai@Dewberry.com