PENSACOLA, Fla. – Congratulations to Senior Project Engineer Elizabeth Graham, PE, and Pensacola Office Leader and Project Manager Julian Poole, PE, on graduating from the Florida Engineering Leadership Institute (FELI) Class of 2025.
As part of this year’s 10-month program, Graham and Poole contributed to several impactful initiatives, including helping raise $100,000 to establish Little Free STEM Libraries across Florida, supporting last year’s class project that distributes STEM kits to classrooms statewide, and providing ongoing STEM programming assistance.
FELI, a professional leadership program of the Florida Engineering Society (FES) and the American Council of Engineering Companies of Florida (ACEC-FL), is a competitive development training designed to cultivate leadership skills among Florida’s engineers. Graham and Poole were two of only 40 participants selected for the Class of 2025. Several DRMP staff members have been accepted into the FELI class over the years.
“FELI was a great opportunity to collaborate with engineers across the state of Florida and gain perspective on the importance of engineers contributing to our communities,” Poole said.
Each FELI class develops and executes a group project. This year’s class set out to install 25 Little Free STEM Libraries but surpassed their goal by completing 47 fully stocked libraries across the state, including erecting one in front of DRMP’s Pensacola office.
“I want to express gratitude to DRMP for supporting Liz and myself,” Poole said. “DRMP contributed to our FELI class project and sponsored a STEM Library that was installed in front of our Pensacola office. I am thankful for the investment that DRMP has put into my career and for the opportunities that they provide their employees.”
Like Poole, Graham acknowledged DRMP’s support for her participation in FELI.
“I am grateful to DRMP for supporting my participation in FELI and growth in my leadership skills,” she said. “The program not only made me a better leader, but it also deepened my passion for our profession and its potential to impact lives.”
The class also continued to support the 2024 FELI class project, promoting the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) and American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) STEM box program. This initiative aims to inspire the next generation of civil engineers by providing STEM training and supplies to teachers in schools across Florida who are interested in participating. As part of this effort, the 2025 class members contacted teachers statewide to raise awareness of the resources available through the FDOT/AASHTO collaboration.
The class also made a significant donation to the Orlando Math Circle Program to further support STEM education programs in Florida.
Graham said participating in FELI was a rewarding opportunity.
“The program provided a unique blend of leadership training, team collaboration, and personal development,” she said. “FELI reinforced the importance of intentional leadership and broadened my perspective on the impact engineers can have beyond their work.”
One of the key takeaways for Graham is that leadership is not about a title.
“It’s about influence, intention, and connection,” she said. “It reminded me the importance of being intentional while leading and the impact we can have in our communities.”
Poole said one of the takeaways for him is that professional engineers have an obligation to be leaders in the office and leaders in their communities.
“The most valuable aspect of FELI was the relationship building exercises,” he said. “FELI is very intentional about forcing the class to hang out and spend time learning about each other. You learn a lot about yourself and others when you are outside your comfort zone.”
A key challenge was getting 40 engineers to agree on anything, Poole noted.
“Rather than eliminating project ideas, we ended up taking on three different projects,” he said.
Building on these lessons, Graham said she plans to continue fostering a culture of collaboration and accountability within her team, while encouraging creative ways to give back to communities through engineering.
“I hope to become more intentional with mentorship, communication, and strategic thinking,” she said. “I expected leadership development, but I was surprised by how much we focused on emotional intelligence, communication, and purpose. These were important focuses because they are often overlooked when discussing effective leadership.”
About DRMP
DRMP is a multi-discipline firm serving clients in the public, private and industrial sectors in the development of infrastructure and has been in business since 1977. DRMP currently employs 700 professionals in 23 office locations spread strategically across our service area. Today, DRMP is ranked among Engineering News-Record’s “Top 500 Design Firms” in the United States. For more information, please visit www.drmp.com.
