President
Name: Sari Tukiainen
Email: Sari.Tukiainen@swe.org
Hometown: Stuart, Florida
Position (s): Mechanical Designer, Wojcieszak & Associates, Inc.
Discipline: Mechanical Engineering, Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning
Degree (s): Bachelor of Science Mechanical Engineering, Concentration: Thermal Fluid Science
Year of Graduation: 2004
Interests: Home Improvement, Arts & Crafts, Sewing, Drawing & Painting, Reading, Racing

Why I joined SWE:
I originally joined SWE in College for the leadership opportunities, networking, activities and the great people. When I returned home to South Florida, the Section was inactive; I am happy to be part of a team to revitalize the section. I am proud to be part of an organization that supports today's women, and future female leaders in a technologically advanced world.

Why I joined SWE: I joined SWE for fellowship and professional development opportunities.

Treasurer
Name: Eileen M. Vélez-Vega
Email: Eileen.Velez@swe.org
Hometown: West Palm Beach, Florida
Position (s): Civil Aviation Analyst, Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc.
Discipline: Civil Engineering, specialized airfield pavements and aviation design
Degree (s):
- Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez
- Masters Degree candidate, Civil Engineering University of Florida
Year of Graduation: 2003
Interests: She enjoys traveling with her husband, teaching Yoga and Pilates as well as reading, dancing and relaxing at the beach.

Why I joined SWE:
I’m happy to have served as the Southeast Florida section President and to help revitalize SWE in the area. My SWE journey began as a student member of the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez (UPRM) Section where I held several officer positions such as the secretary, president, and chair of the 2003 SWE Region D Conference in Puerto Rico. At the Region C level, I was Professional Development chair (2004), and served as the SWE counselor for the Louisiana Tech University student section. For the past two years I’ve been a speaker at Regional and National conferences, and served in the SWE Conference Programming Board as a student liaison. One of my main goals in SWE has always been outreach. I have a passion for helping young students and professionals develop themselves in SWE to promote leadership and career advancement. In 2005 I was very fortunate to become the founder and president of the SWE Mississippi River City Section in Vicksburg, Mississippi. This was the first SWE professional section in the state of Mississippi. I also consider other engineering societies important for my career specially those associated with my engineering discipline, which is why I’m an active member of the American Society of Civil Engineers where I’ve worked in the Engineers Week activities and National technical committees. I’m also a member of the Flexible Pavement Construction and Rehabilitation Committee of the Transportation Research Board. But even though I enjoy working with these other societies and organizations SWE has been one of the most valuable assets in my engineering career. SWE is an opportunity to develop as a strong leader and inspire engineers to achieve their highest potential. You never know who you might inspire next!
Learn more about me...

Section Representative
Name: Julianna (Julika) Michna
Email: julianna@sageenvironmental.com
Hometown: Jupiter, FL
Position: Project Manager, Sage Environmental Consulting, L.P.
Discipline: Environmental Engineering, specialized in air permitting and air quality compliance
Degree (s):
- Bachelor of Science, Polymer & Textile Chemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, 1999
- Master of Science, Textile Technology, Institute of Textile Technology, 2001
- Master, Environmental Engineering, Rice University, 2004
Interest: I enjoy travelling, shopping, going to the theater or movies, home improvement projects, and watching TV.

Why I joined SWE:
Throughout my college career I had numerous friends that were members of SWE. I never got involved because my undergraduate degree was not in engineering, but was always curious. A few years ago I had a client in Texas that was a SWE member and she would tell me about all of the projects and activities that she did as part of SWE. She encouraged me to learn more about my local section to see what opportunities were available. I become involved and really enjoyed the service projects, fun activities, and networking. I am very excited to be an officer this year. My only regret is that I did not join SWE sooner.

• Community Colleges – Sona Kundalkar sona.kundalkar@gmail.com
• Miami Section Representative – Myriam Bachs myriam_bachs@hotmail.com
• Girl Scouts Chair – Laura Kerr kerrlj@earthlink.net
• Public Relations Chair – Tinú Peña tinu.pena@ibigroup.com
• Newsletter Editor – Eileen Vélez-Vega Eileen.velez@swe.org
• SWE UM Collegiate Section Faculty Advisor – Dr María Martinez memartinez@miami.edu
• SWE UM Collegiate Section Rep (Counselor) – Marianne Grunwaldt mgrunwaldt@micruscorp.com
• SWE FAU Collegiate Section Rep (Counselor) – Tinú Peña tinu.pena@ibigroup.com
• SWE FAU Collegiate Section Faculty Advisor – Dr. Shihong Huang shihong@cse.fau.edu
• SWE FIU Collegiate Section Rep – Stephanie Strange sstra001@fiu.edu
• SWE FIU Collegiate Faculty Advisor – Dr. Berrin Tansel tanselb@fiu.edu

• Professional Development Committee Chair