Disaster Recovery Estimating: Staging for New Challenges and Rewards

Jeff Griffith, MSCM, PMP, CPE, is a Vice President at CW Construction, Inc., where he leverages his extensive experience in program and project management, particularly for State, Local, Tribal, and Territorial governments seeking FEMA grants. He has also contributed to large-scale development programs for investment groups, providing technical planning and cost analysis, including scalable computer system rollouts. His expertise extends to disaster recovery, where he has over fourteen years of experience in FEMA's Public Assistance program, serving in roles such as Senior Estimator and Critical Infrastructure Team Specialist, and has estimated over $2B in project value. Griffith's deep understanding of FEMA PA policy and construction estimation is evident in his work. He has advised on and applied FEMA PA policy, estimated, and performed site inspections in numerous local and regional venues. He has supported the Office of the Chief Counsel in arbitration cases and FEMA responses to the Office of Inspector General in audit cases. Notably, he developed the first SOP for USACE Expert Panel independent reviews for large projects and recently served as Technical Task Lead for the revision of FEMA's estimating instructional tools. Currently, he is contributing to FEMA's Critical Infrastructure Team in Florida, assisting with complex recovery projects and providing expert guidance on FEMA PA policy. He also supports the ASPE in updating exams and reviewing CPE candidates’ technical papers.

Cecil Walker is the CEO, Founder, and Owner of CW Construction, Inc., a 33-year-old Native-American-owned company providing a wide range of services including executive program management, design, construction, and disaster recovery. CW serves Federal, State, Local, Tribal, and Territorial governments, as well as the private sector, with projects spanning theme parks, airports, disaster recovery, and government facilities. Notably, CW has participated in over 50 declared national disasters, representing both Applicants and FEMA, and possesses deep expertise in federal grant compliance and management. Mr. Walker's extensive experience includes over 45 years in construction estimating, disaster recovery estimating for FEMA, and expertise in arbitration and claims. He has been recognized for his work through his membership in The Worshipful Company of Constructors and has served on various boards, including the TEKCHILLS Foundation in Ghana, and past advisory boards for the University of Kansas and construction industry associations. He holds a Florida Class A "High-Rise" General Contractor License and was a Certified Construction Arbitrator.

Rhonda Walker, PE, PMP,is a Civil/Environmental Engineer and Subject Matter Expert in Disaster Recovery and Federal Policy Compliance with AECOM. She has 25 years of experience in disaster recovery, federal compliance, project development, planning, civil and environmental engineering, program management, project management, contracts, arbitration support, and budget control systems. She has managed Disaster Recovery divisions/groups with over 50 people while managing in excess of one billion dollars in damage. Rhonda has worked with many grant programs including FEMA-PA, FEMA-IA, CDBG-DR, ARPA, and IRA. Her FEMA-PA experience includes Section 406 Hazard Mitigation, the Sheltering and Temporary Essential Power (STEP) housing program, cost estimating, document validation, and closeout. Her experience with PA project development includes light to heavy horizontal projects such as roads, bridges, infrastructure, and marinas, as well as light to heavy vertical projects such as wastewater treatment facilities, water treatment facilities, schools, universities, hospitals, and government facilities. As our ARPA Policy and Compliance Lead for other ARPA consulting contracts, she is well-versed in policy, compliance, eligibility validation, monitoring, and reporting necessary for ARPA-funded projects. Rhonda has been proactive and instrumental in developing new clients and opportunities. She has led capture and performed technical writing for a wide variety of proposals for federal, state, and local entities across the country. Her background also includes civil and environmental engineering, environmental construction management, remedial design, including construction design and specifications and operations and maintenance for remedial systems, corrective action implementation and reporting, closure reports, and environmental regulations. She has a proven record of handling multiple projects that are multi-faceted from conception through development, design, construction, and closeout.