Nominations are open for 2025 Distinguished Leadership Awards
Each year, DBIA’s Distinguished Leadership Awards recognize individuals whose work exemplifies Design-Build Done Right® at its best. Thanks to leadership like theirs throughout the industry, design-build is now projected to account for nearly 47% of all U.S. construction spending by 2028.
“DBIA’s Distinguished Leadership Awards honor those whose vision, influence and commitment have helped shape the future of project delivery,” Executive Director and CEO Lisa Washington, CAE, said. “These individuals don’t just champion design-build; they expand its reach, deepen its impact and inspire others.”
Nominations for the 2025 awards are now open. DBIA accepts nominations in five categories — Young Professional, Owner, Practitioner, Faculty/Academia and Student — and honorees will be celebrated at the 2025 Design-Build Conference & Expo this November in Las Vegas. Award guidelines and the nomination form are available on our website.
Curious what kind of impact this award recognizes? We’ve highlighted the achievements of previous winners in each category to give you an idea of the innovation, leadership and collaboration that define DBIA’s Distinguished Leadership honorees.
As you read through this list, think of your network. Is there a coworker whose work consistently raises the bar or a mentor who has successfully executed complex design-build projects? You can even nominate yourself if you believe you’ve made great strides in advancing design-build.
Owner
Previous winners in the Owner category have expanded the reach of design-build into new sectors, led complex projects that followed Design-Build Done Right® best practices and built agency cultures rooted in DBIA’s values.
As a lawyer, Kathy Tuznik, Assoc. DBIA, (winner in ’23) advocated for fair and reasonable legal terms for design-build projects, making her instrumental in crafting new processes for procuring and awarding design-build contracts in NYC. Jeannie Natta, DBIA, (winner in ’22) advocated for the use of design-build in universities by leading two of the University of Washington’s largest and most complex design-build projects, including the 2021 DBIA Project of the Year award-winner University of Washington Hans Rosling Center for Population Health.
Industry Practitioner
Past winners in this category represent a wide range of specialties within the architecture, engineering and construction industry, but all share one thing in common: a meaningful impact on the growth of design-build through their work.
2022 winner Daniel Rawlins, RA, FDBIA, helped guide over 100 public projects through successful source selection and project execution using design-build. James Avitabile, PE, FDBIA, (winner in ’22) advocated for the use of design-build –– including Progressive Design-Build –– and P3 on a variety of complex highway, bridge, rail and transit facility projects throughout the U.S.
Student
Student winners are leaders in design-build, whether on or off campus. Many have served in leadership positions at their DBIA student chapters and are connected within their regional chapters. Undergraduate or graduate students are eligible for this award.
Some, like 2017 winner Hunter Brown, founded his college’s DBIA student chapter and participated in DBIA’s Student Competition, demonstrating design-build understanding in practice.
Young Professional
Winners in the Young Professional category have demonstrated excellence as successful design-build professionals throughout their career, helping to shape the next generation of design-builders. They’ve pushed passed the status quo to bring new, innovative solutions to their work. Many have earned DBIA or Associate DBIA certifications.
Some, like Nick Ulliman, PE, MBA, DBIA, (winner in ’23) have worked on award-winning projects. Ulliman managed the Louisville MSD Southwestern Parkway CSO Storage Basin Project, which won DBIA’s 2019 Design-Build National Award of Excellence in the category of Water/Wastewater. Monica Blanchard, PE, (winner in ’17) was the Superintendent of the $700 million Design-Build Evergreen Point Floating Bridge Project, which won a 2016 DBIA National Excellence in Design Engineering Award.
Faculty/Academia
Faculty/Academia category winners are passionate about Design-Build Done Right® and communicating it effectively to students. These recipients have taught design-build best practices to undergraduate and graduate students and industry professionals.
Some have done this through mentorship and teaching, such as 2018 winner Sharareh (Sherri) Kermanshachi, Ph.D., PE, PMP, LEED AP, ENV SP, CMIT, DBIA. 2021 winner Dean Papajohn, PE, Ph.D., ENV SP, Assoc. DBIA, brought his extensive years of experience to the University of Arizona to create its student chapter and helped advise teams competing in the DBIA Student Competition.
This is just a snapshot of the kind of impact a DBIA Distinguished Leadership Award honoree can make. Our archive highlights the achievements of past recipients and may even help you identify someone whose work deserves recognition. The deadline to submit nominations for these prestigious awards is Thursday, July 31, by 6:00 p.m. ET.
