Precinct One Street Olympics Summer Games Draw Thousands of Youth

Precinct One Street Olympics
Image: streetolympics.org

The chief executive of SRRE Developers & Builders, LLC, in Houston, Texas, Karun Sreerama is an experienced developer who focuses on affordable housing projects. Active in several community organizations, Karun Sreerama is a former co-chair and volunteer for the Harris County Precinct One Street Olympics.

Over the years, the Harris County Precinct One Street Olympics has grown from a summer-only recreation program to a year-round program supporting underserved Houston-area youth. The organization’s month-long Summer Games program helps youth work on skills like teamwork and good sportsmanship while they are on school vacation. Each year, the Summer Games draw thousands of children from around the area to participate in physical activities like basketball, hula hooping, track, and cycling, as well as lower-key activities like jacks and chess.

The end of the Summer Games is marked by an Olympic-style competition called The Final Event, with games, activities, and award presentations. The Final Event also features an educational component called the Bright Futures Fair, which promotes health, safety, and environmental awareness.

Congress Considers New Legislation to Improve Flood Mapping

 

Flood Mapping
Image: fema.gov

The principal of SRRE Developers and Builders, Karun Sreerama is an accomplished engineer, entrepreneur, and business leader who specializes in growing engineering, construction, banking, and technology startups. Karun Sreerama previously served on the Board of Directors of the American Council of Engineering Companies.

Founded in 1905, the American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) represents a federation of more than 600,000 architects, builders, engineers, and other specialists in the United States. In a June 2018 letter to the U.S. House of Representatives, ACEC expressed its support for the H.R. 5569: Flood Mapping Modernization and Homeowner Empowerment Pilot Program Act of 2018.

Introduced into Congress on April 18, 2018, the new legislation would authorize the administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to create a pilot program that would enhance the assessment process of urban flooding and property damage through technology-based mapping tools. The improved accuracy of the mapped data would allow the local government, businesses, and homeowners to develop better flood mitigation strategies. The results of the pilot program would be used by FEMA to establish best practices as it rolled out the program nationwide.

Engineering Options at Missouri University of Science and Tech

 

Missouri University of Science and Technology
Image: cec.mst.edu

A Houston-based affordable housing developer, Dr. Karun Sreerama has helped to increase the supply of affordable homes after Hurricane Harvey. With an extensive educational background that includes both business and engineering, Dr. Karun Sreerama earned a PhD in civil engineering from the University of Missouri-Rolla, now known as Missouri University of Science and Technology.

Offering a comprehensive civil engineering program, Missouri S&T offers concentrations in various subfields. Its environmental engineering curriculum furnishes courses in groundwater, soil remediation, air pollution control, and wastewater treatment. The structural engineering course of study covers characteristics of reinforced and high-performance concrete, cold-formed steel, and fiber reinforced polymer composites, as well as how structures react to seismic shifts and how to detect damage.

The geotechnical engineering courses educate students on soil properties and mechanics, as well as earthquake engineering. The water resources engineering program covers advanced hydraulics and hydrology, watershed and urban hydrology, and river mechanics, among other topics. Finally, the construction engineering classes teach students the design and construction management process.

Committees of ACEC Houston

 

ACEC Houston
Image: acechouston.org

A veteran engineer, Karun Sreerama earned a PhD at the University of Missouri, Rolla, and an MBA at the University of Texas, Austin, and serves as principal of The Asset Management Consultants in Houston. An active member of the professional community, Karun Sreerama has been a director, steering committee member and past president of the American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) in Houston.

For more than a century, ACEC has served as the voice of thousands of engineering companies across the United States. Over the years, ACEC has evolved to provide a range of educational programming, networking events, and policy advocacy on Capitol Hill for issues related to the engineering professions. In addition to its work at its headquarters in Washington, D.C., ACEC relies on a network of local chapters across the country to promote its goals and vision.

ACEC Houston supports the larger ACEC vision and the engineering community in the Houston region through localized programs and events. The chapter also maintains several committees that focus on sector-specific initiatives. For example, the storm water management committee meets regularly to address issues related to storm water drainage and permits, while the transportation committee serves as a liaison between ACEC and local transportation agencies.

Other ACEC Houston committees focus on the areas of geotechnical, contracts, and membership. All groups hold meetings on a regular schedule at Houston-area locations.