Last updated: June 16, 2020
Article
Bethany Barron, Chief, Construction Program Management Division, WASO Park Planning, Facilities, and Lands
What does your job involve? An easy way to explain what I do is that I manage a small staff of hard working, smart, and experienced program managers, dedicated to helping parks and regions address their highest priority construction needs.
Construction Program Management Division (CPMD) Programs include:
• Project Development and Analytics – Technical support for regions to identify and scope projects.
• Line Item Construction (LIC) – Collaboration with regions, our Washington budget office, and other Washington office programs (cultural resources, natural resources, housing, etc.) to evaluate and prioritize projects based on service-wide priorities. A five-year plan is published in the National Park Service (NPS) budget justifications (also known as the Green Book) and Congress appropriates construction funding for the individual projects in the first year of the plan.
• Value Analysis – Ensures projects are making and documenting sound decisions throughout the life of the project (value planning, value-based decision inventory, value analysis, value engineering, etc.) starting at the initial investment decision through construction.
• Board staff for the Development Advisory Board (DAB) – The DAB hosts three meetings a year to review projects.
• Capital Planning and Investment Control (CPIC) – Tracks the facility planning, project development, budget formulation, and execution of major construction projects (>$2 million total project costs) and reports progress to the Department (eCPIC) and lessons learned to DAB.
• Dam Safety – Maintains inventory of dams and levees, manages risk assessments, formulates funding for studies and minor repairs, and assists parks with submitting projects to compete for funding for major repairs.
The workload for CPMD has significantly increased over the years. The program grew by $220 million between fiscal year 2015 and 2020.
How did you get into the engineering industry? My dad was a civil engineer and worked for the Bureau of Reclamation his entire career. Growing up, my family moved every two to three years from one “dam” construction project to another, primarily in Texas, and New Mexico. Like my dad, my older sister attended Texas Tech University in Lubbock, TX, and received a degree in industrial engineering. Following in their footsteps, I also attended Texas Tech University, and received a degree in civil engineering with a special emphasis in water resources. After graduating, I was determined to work for a consulting firm, and started my career with Parkhill, Smith & Cooper, Inc. in El Paso, Texas. After several years, I decided to move closer to family and started my federal career with the Bureau of Reclamation in Phoenix, AZ in 1990. I worked with my dad on the Coolidge Safety of Dams’ project, where I was the project coordinator and he the field engineer. It could be awkward at times working with dad, Don, or Mr. Barron. It was a great experience, and my dad was a role model and mentor in many aspects of my life!
In 1993, I moved to Colorado and found a job with the National Park Service (NPS), Denver Service Center (DSC). During the downsizing of DSC in the late 1990’s, I accepted a position at the United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Regional office located in Golden, CO. I worked there for 16 years and returned to NPS in 2015 as a program manager in the Construction Program Management Division (CPMD). I was selected as the Chief of CPMD in the fall of 2016.
What do you think is the best thing about a career in engineering? Simply put, the best thing is helping people and solving problems. A career in engineering is also flexible, you can choose to be specialized (e.g. water treatment) or general (e.g. facilities). I also found that being an engineer allowed me to be competitive in other job series such as environmental, facility management and program management.
What are you most proud of? I was once crowned the “Toilet Queen” in the Forest Service. I was a contracting officer’s representative for the Precast Concrete Building Contract and approved the models offered on the contract. The contract allowed the Forest Service and other land management agencies to order and install precast concrete toilet and utility buildings all over the country. As the COR, I was able to add the new Rocky Mountain vault toilet models onto the national contract. The Rocky Mountain models are still available today.
What are the career benefits of working for the National Park Service? The NPS offers a unique experience that you won’t find anywhere else. You get to work on the Nation’s treasures with people who are passionate about protecting resources and enhancing visitor experiences. Employees are top notch in their fields and work collaboratively. You will have the opportunity to work on unique challenges and a variety of projects. Engineering in the NPS also provides employees with career paths throughout the levels of the organization.
What would your advice be to someone interested in an engineering role at the National Park Service? I think it is important to understand the roles, functions, and challenges that occur at park, region, and Washington levels, so my recommendation is to try different positions, even if for only a short detail. I think it helps to better understand our customer’s needs no matter where the request is coming from. It is also an opportunity to stretch professionally and possibly discover a new passion. As a personal example, I was a regional water/wastewater program manager for the Forest Service and participated in environmental compliance audits as a trainee. I loved visiting Forest Service sites, and exploring administrative sites, air tanker bases, job corps centers, research stations, and campgrounds. I enjoyed the interaction with the people, listening to the challenges and brainstorming ideas to solve them. I enjoyed the training opportunity so much that I applied for and was selected as the lead auditor for the National Environmental Compliance Program. I remained in that position for over five years and visited over 50 Forest Service units.