Fall 2020

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all in-person ITS Michigan events, including Board meetings, lunch-and-learn sessions and the Annual Meeting, have been indefinitely postponed. For now, Board meetings and any other events possible will be conducted remotely using video conferencing technology.

President: Gary Piotrowicz, PE, PTOE, Deputy Managing Director/County Highway Engineer, Road Commission for Oakland County.

Vice President: Kiel McIntosh, PE, Sales Engineer, Carrier and Gable Inc.

Treasurer: Jeffrey R. Feeney, PE, PTOE, ITS/Traffic Project Manager, HNTB Michigan.

Secretary: Tony Geara, PE, PTOE, ITS and Traffic Engineer, City of Detroit.

Member name: Square One Educational Network

Primary contact and website address: Barb Land,

How long a member of ITS Michigan: One year

Type of organization (company, individual, public sector, academic): 501c3 non-profit

Primary product or service: Square One is a Michigan-based non-profit educational organization serving K-12 students and teachers with hands-on, project-based experiences focused on science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). We provide innovative vehicle-design engineering challenges for high school students around electric, autonomous and connected technologies.

Reason you’re involved in the field of ITS: With an emphasis on narrowing the skills gap and growing talent for tomorrow's mobility workforce, Square One and ITS Michigan have much in common. We are on a mission to develop the next generation technical workforce by empowering teachers with real-world resources and engaging students through authentic, hands-on, project-based learning. The mobility industry will offer an estimated 100,000 jobs in the next decade, and Square One strives to ensure that the talent will be in place to drive the economy and industry forward.

What are your favorite benefits of ITS Michigan: My favorite benefits of ITS Michigan are the networking and learning opportunities. It's fascinating to see the many organizations in this intelligent transportation eco-system working cooperatively to advance their common goals.

What excites you most about ITS and the future of the ITS industry? For me, the most compelling piece of intelligent transportation and the future of the industry is in the lives that will be saved. But, it doesn't stop there. The positive impact on the environment, in service to the community and in long-term time and cost savings are exciting facets to this industry that should be a driving force in building a confident, competent and innovative future workforce.

Anything else you would like to add about ITS Michigan? I'm honored to be a part of the ITS Michigan Board of Directors and look forward to being a conduit between K-12 education and industry. Square One strives to build career awareness for the dynamic opportunities that exist in this industry, provide high quality STEM experiences to showcase the talent of today's youth and build relationships between stakeholders.

2020 has certainly been a strange year so far, thanks to the pandemic, and that has certainly had an impact on ITS Michigan.

Unfortunately, we have had to cancel or postpone a number of events, including our scholarship fundraising bowling event, our annual meeting and more. And while we have continued to have virtual Board meetings, it is certainly much more challenging to operate an organization when we cannot meet in person.

This is particularly true of an organization for whom one of the greatest benefits is our ability to network and to create a true community within the many and diverse elements of the connected-vehicle universe. We are, however, doing everything we can to maintain that community during these times.

We are continuing to provide webinars when we can. And our Board meetings are open (virtually) to any ITS Michigan members. Our Board committees continue to meet virtually, and we are sharing information with membership when possible, through means such as this newsletter.

Nonetheless, I am anxiously awaiting the time when we can return to in-person meetings and events. Stay tuned.

I’d like to thank immediate past President Steve Verkest for doing a fantastic job during his tenure (of course, he only had a pandemic for the last few months of his term). He really provided great leadership and kept the organization running like a finely tuned machine. He also provided importance guidance during the transition.

Big thanks also to my fellow ITS Michigan executives this year: Vice President Kiel McIntosh of Carrier and Gable (who previously served as treasurer); Jeff Feeney of HNTB who stepped up as the new treasurer; and Tony Geara of the City of Detroit who jumped in as the new secretary of the Board.

They say an organization is only as good as its volunteers. If that is true, based on these folks and the many other ITS Michigan volunteers, we certainly have a great organization.

Finally, congratulations to our two outstanding 2020 ITS Michigan Scholarship winners (see story above). Both are highly deserving, and I wish them the best as they embark on their college careers.

Due to the coronavirus, they could not come to a Board meeting to receive their scholarship checks and certificates in person, but I had the privilege to meet with each of them individually and was quite impressed with both.

Thanks to everyone for giving me the opportunity to serve as president. I look forward to the year ahead.

Newsletter comments or content? Contact:

cbryson@rcoc.org