Board of Directors

President: Marc Rosso

Organization: City of Lincoln - Transpotation and Utilities

Phone: 402.441.7701

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Marc Rosso currently serves as Treasurer for the NWEA. Marc is a 1990 graduate of the University of Colorado with Bachelors of Science in Civil Engineering. He has 30 years of experience in civil engineering work in many disciplines. Marc has been heavily involved in association work for NWEA, AWWA and APWA since coming to Lincoln in 2005. He was inducted into the NWEA 5S society in 2017. Early in his career in 1998 he presented at WEFTEC in the small systems track on the Hay Springs, NE Wastewater Land Application project. On the water side he serves as the Vice Chair for the Nebraska Section of AWWA and is also a member of the AWWA Membership Engagement and Development Committee.

President Elect: Jeremy Walker

Organization: Olsson

Phone: 402.458.5657

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As a Vice President for Olsson’s Water/Wastewater team, Jeremy leads a wide range of water resource recovery projects. His Olsson tenure began in 2005. He is a 2018 alumnus of WEF’s Water Leadership Institute. He received a BS in Civil Engineering from the University of Nebraska in Lincoln and is a registered professional engineer in Nebraska and Iowa.

A lifelong Nebraska resident, Jeremy resides in Lincoln with his wife Melissa and sons Sullivan and Carson.

Vice President: Shawn Ovenden

Organization: HDR

Phone: 402.708.5824

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Shawn graduated from Iowa State University with a degree in Civil Engineering in 1993 and earned his PE in Nebraska in 2001. His got his start in Palatine, Illinois doing projects in the suburbs of Chicago, moved to Denver, and ultimately landed in Omaha in 2000. His experience includes residential, commercial, and industrial site design on private, public, and federal projects. He has been with HDR for the past 15 years and is currently serving as a Senior Civil Engineer working on various conveyance, site civil, and sewer inspection/rehabilitation projects. Shawn has been a member of the NWEA since 2011 starting out serving as the website developer and administrator and continues to lead this effort. Serving in this position has allowed him to work closely with several committees, help support the conference planning and execution efforts, and work with the executive board. He was recently nominated to join the executive board as a Director-at-Larg and is currently serving as the chair of the Conveyance Systems Committee. He is also a member of the APWA helping with website updates and volunteering at the committee level.

Shawn is married to his beautiful bride Nancy and has two sons, Eric working toward a dual degree in mathematics/computer science and Adam working toward an associates/certification in welding. Shawn enjoys power lifting, kayak fishing, wilderness adventures, and serving the community.

Past President: Blake Birkel

Organization: JEO Consulting Group

Phone: 402/934.3680

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Blake is a Principal at JEO Consulting Group with more than 17-years of experience working on a variety of drinking water and clean water projects throughout the Midwest. He is a graduate of the University of Nebraska – Lincoln with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering (2006) and Master of Science in Environmental Engineering (2012). He is a registered professional engineer in the states of Nebraska, Iowa, and Kansas. Since joining the NWEA in 2007, he has served on multiple committees for the association including the Great Plains Conference, Membership, Publications, Scott Wilbur Award and Young Professionals. He joined the NWEA Executive Board in 2021.Blake is a life-long Nebraska resident (born in Columbus) and currently resides in Omaha with his wife (Andrea) and three school-aged children (Hannah, Halle and Mason). He and his family enjoy spending their time together outdoors – swimming/boating in the summer months and skiing the Rocky Mountains in the winter.

Treasurer: Ryan Hurst

Organization: Wahoo Utilities

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Ryan has a bachelor’s degree in Water Resource Management and an associate degree in Environmental Science both from Florida Gateway College.

Ryan started his career with the City of Seward (his hometown) as a water operator and spent 8.5 years there acquiring his water and wastewater treatment certifications and working his way up to facilities maintenance supervisor before taking a position in Minden Nebraska as Utilities Superintendent. Ryan spent 4 years with the City of Minden managing Electric Distribution, Water treatment and distribution and Wastewater Collections and Treatment.

In 2019 he took on the role of General Manager for the City of Wahoo Utilities, where he has been responsible for the development, coordination, direction and administration of the utility system including natural gas distribution, electric generation and distribution, water production and distribution and wastewater collection and treatment. Ensures that all utility systems operate in a safe and efficient manner in order to provide efficient service to the community in accordance with state and federal regulations and industry standards. Ryan also currently helps Southeast Community College as an Adjunct Instructor in the Energy Generations Operations program focused on teaching Water & Wastewater treatment electives.

Over the past 15 years Ryan has been extensively involved in statewide and national organizations providing training and networking for professionals in the Utilities industries. Ryan is on the Board of Directors for the Advanced Nuclear Coalition and currently is the Vice-Chair of the Nebraska Section American Water Works Association (AWWA), A director at Large on the Nebraska Water Environmental Associations Executive Board (NWEA). Ryan is also the Chair of the Nebraska Water/Wastewater Agency Response Network (NEWARN). Ryan is a past Chair of the NWEA Young Professionals Committee and served on the Water Environmental Federation Students and Young Professionals committee.

Secretary: Darren Jack

Organization: HDR

Phone: 402.742.2941

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Darren is a Project Manager at HDR with over 20 years of engineering experience for a wide variety of municipal and industrial projects. He has experience in the study, design and construction of pump stations, municipal and industrial wastewater treatment facility studies and designs, water distribution systems, wastewater collection systems and construction management. Darren received his Bachelor’s degree in Biological Systems Engineering from the University of Nebraska in 1997 and his Master’s degree in Biosystems Engineering from the University of Arizona in 1999. Darren served as the Great Plains Conference chair from 2021 to 2023.

Darren lives in Lincoln with his wife Kim, son Dillon and daughter Ashley. Darren is a Certified Personal Trainer and in his free time enjoys training members at Madonna ProActive.

Federation Delegate: Lucas Billesbach

Organization: Embris Group

Phone: 402.319.5951

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Lucas is an owner/Principal at Embris Group having helped form the company in 2022. He has over 15+ years of experience in assisting local governments with their water and engineering challenges. Lucas graduated from the University of Nebraska with a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering in 2005 and completed his Master of Business Administration from Creighton University in 2010. He is married to his wife Sarah and together they have three kids (Quinn, Lucy, and Vita). When not bouncing between sporting events, the family enjoys time on the lake and wake surfing. Lucas began with NWEA as chair of the Great Plains committee and continued his service through the board positions completing his term as President in 2021. In addition to his role as a delegate, he continues to assist NWEA on the finance committee, scholarship committee, and the conference planning committees.

Director-At-Large: Scott Seelhoff

Organization: City of Fremont

Phone: 402.719.9313

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Scott Seelhoff is the Assistant Superintendent for the Fremont Wastewater Treatment Plant. He began his water journey in September of 2014 as a Wastewater Operator. In the spring of 2015, he was hired as the Laboratory Technician for the Wastewater Plant. He worked in that position for several years learning laboratory testing and process control within an activated sludge system. In late 2018 he moved into the supervisory role that he has today. While in the industry he began getting involved with the NWOC. There he has been the secretary, vice chair, and currently is the committee chair. He is also the current Public Education committee chair, past Scott Wilber chair, and Training committee member. He really enjoys connecting with operators around the state and connecting with fellow water industry professionals while attending conferences. Outside of the NWEA he enjoys camping and playing golf with his family. He hopes to be a good representative for Wastewater Operators while serving on the NWEA Executive Board.

Director-At-Large: Daria Sakharova

Organization: GBA

Phone: 402.513.3154

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Daria joined GBA in 2015 and is now the Lead Engineer and Omaha Office Manager. She specializes in SSES and I&I reduction and thoroughly enjoys helping her clients figure out how to best improve and extend the lifespans of their sanitary and storm sewer collection systems. Daria graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a bachelor's degree in Environmental Systems Engineering in 2013 and from Florida State University with a master’s degree in Civil Engineering in 2014.

Outside of work Daria spends a lot of time volunteering with various organizations like SAME, Engineers Club of Omaha, ACEC, and NWEA. She enjoys living the quiet Iowa farm life with her boyfriend, 2 dogs, 2 mini donkeys, and soon to be other farm animals. She also enjoys experimenting in the garden and somehow keeps 150+ houseplants alive year-round. Traveling the world and trying ALL the food is her favorite way to spend her time off.

Director-At-Large: Kylie Wilmes

Organization: Embris Group

Phone: 402.253.4950

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Kylie Wilmes is a Principal at Embris Group with 19 years of experience in civil engineering consulting. From designing sewer separation projects to tackling complex levee and stormwater issues, Kylie enjoys working on projects and being a trusted partner for her clients. Outside of work, you can find Kylie working around the house, spending time with her family (which includes her husband, 4 children, 1 dog, 1 cat, 9 chickens, 2 guinea pigs, 3 koi fish), and making every effort to get outside for a walk, hike, bike ride, or camping trip.

Kylie started out with NWEA as the Membership Committee Chair and later worked with others to start up the DE&I Committee. She joined the NWEA Board because she appreciates the presence of NWEA and WEF as a place for everyone to come together. Kylie hopes to learn more about the needs of the NWEA members, to learn more about the WEF resources and how they can help our members, and to contribute and be a part of this Community.

At-Large Member: Joel Jirak

Organization:Olsson

Phone: 402.525.5519

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Joel is a Project Engineer with more than 23 years of experience in the water and wastewater industry, all with Olsson. After earning his civil engineering degree from UNL and then PE license, his focus gradually shifted from engineering design to construction
administration and management, particularly with "inside the fence" facility construction projects.

Joel enjoys being an active member of WEF/NWEA, serving in several committees, including as chair of the Nebraska Wastewater Operators Committee and vice-chair of the recently created Construction Committee. Born and raised in Omaha, Joel moved to Lincoln for college and never left. He prioritizes family time with his wife (Jenifer), son (Graham), and two dogs (Ollie & Koda). You can often find Joel working on projects around the house or at the family’s cabin on the Platte River near Valley.

At-Large Member: Sarah Espinosa

Organization: McCarthy

Phone: 402.770.0141

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Sarah Espinosa is a Senior Design Integration Manager for McCarthy Building Companies in Omaha, Nebraska. She has spent 14 years designing and building water and wastewater systems throughout the
United States. In Sarah’s current role, she focuses on increasing collaboration and reducing risk in collaborative delivery projects.
Sarah received her MBA from Rockhurst University and her B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Sarah has been a member of WEF since 2013. In her time as a member, she
served as vice-chair for the KWEA YP Committee and for the NWEA Collections System Committee, and also became a member of the WEF Water Leadership Institute (WLI) Class of 2024. Sarah helped start and chair the NWEA DEI Committee in 2019 and the NWEA Construction
Committee in 2025. Sarah spends a majority of her free time with her 2 daughters, Ava and Libby, her dog, Walter, and her husband, Frank.

At-Large Member: Kaden Ellis

Organization: OTC Industrial Technologies

Phone: 816.905.4319

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Kaden Ellis is a Technical Sales Engineer for OTC Industrial/JCI Industries. He graduated from the University of Nebraska at Kearney with a degree in Industrial Distribution. He began working with JCI in 2019 and was hired on as an Environmental Project Manager to manage Municipal Water/Wastewater projects. He moved to Omaha in 2021, which is the same year he started to attend the multiple Nebraska water conferences. In 2023, Kaden decided to get more involved by participating in organizations like the Joint NWEA/AWWA Young Professionals Group, NWOC Organization, and started participating as a judge for the Scott Wilber Award Group. As the YP Conference Lead, Kaden has organized the Great Plains Conference Bags Tournament and the Fall Conference Poker Tournament in both 2024 and 2025.
Kaden was promoted to Sales Engineer in January of 2025. He covers Engineered Water/Wastewater Projects in Nebraska, Iowa, Missouri, and Kansas.
In his free time, he likes to spend time with his wife and two young children.

The Nebraska Water Environment Association (NWEA) is a non-profit organization comprised of professionals dedicated to protecting Nebraska's water quality. NWEA is a member association of the Water Environment Federation (WEF®).

Board of Directors