The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) members elected Marsha Anderson Bomar, Ph.D., AICP, ENV SP, F.ITE, F.ASCE, as president of the Society for the 2025-2026 term, after a month-long election that closed June 1. With nearly 40 years of experience, Dr. Bomar is currently the commissioner emeritus for the City of Atlanta Department of Transportation and worked previously as assistant general manager of MARTA (Metropolitan Atlanta Regional Transportation Authority). A longtime advocate for safer transportation networks and practices, she founded and served as president of both Street Smarts (1990 – 2010) and Data Smarts (1993 – 2010). Dr. Bomar served on the ASCE Board of Direction 2018-2020, where she was the director of the Technical Region Board of Governors and led task forces generating member involvement and new revenue sources. She was also the board liaison for the Committee on Professional Advancement 2021 – 2022. Dr. Bomar was president (2009 – 2010) of ASCE’s Transportation & Development Institute (T&DI).
The Society president serves as the chief representative and spokesperson for the Society, working with ASCE’s executive director. The president chairs the Board of Direction and the Executive Committee and assists in educating and motivating members and potential members by promoting Society principles, policies, and goals. The president has a one-year term but will spend three years advancing Society initiatives as a presidential officer in the president-elect, president, and past-president roles.
“We are in an extraordinary time of focus on infrastructure, and it has highlighted the need for more smart, talented and hard-working individuals to join our profession. We must be vigilant in leading an effort to transform the education of new civil engineers, so their skills are relevant now and are future ready,” said Dr. Bomar. “We must provide on-going training opportunities so that we improve our ability to connect and serve our increasingly diverse membership and communities thoughtfully and appropriately.”
Dr. Bomar has been involved in ASCE since 1984 when she joined the Urban Goods Movement Committee. She co-founded the Georgia Section of T&DI and chaired the transit chapter of the 2019 Report Card for Georgia’s Infrastructure. She was named treasurer of the Technical Region Board of Governors from 2007 – 2008 and was appointed Society Treasurer in 2022 where she continues to serve as chair of the Program and Finance Committee.
Dr. Bomar recently (2024) earned her Ph.D. from the University of Georgia, College of Environment and Design, and her MS and MA in Civil Engineering from Princeton University in 1978 and 1979, respectively. She will be inducted as president-elect at the Annual Business Meeting this fall in Tampa Bay during the ASCE 2024 Convention.