HDR Transportation Engineers Transforming Communities With Smarter Mobility Solutions

2026 ENR Regional Top Young Professionals Honored for Their Expertise, Impact and Talent

Two HDR transportation engineers have been recognized as 2026 Top Young Professionals by Engineering-News Record’s regional editions. The competition honors construction and design professionals under 40 years old in each region for their leadership, career growth, community involvement and contributions to landmark projects.

Both help manage costs for clients and implement the latest transportation technology, while inspiring future industry leaders. Alma Valencia always reminds young engineers to ask questions and learn the why; Jacob Weiss organizes lunch training sessions and leads a quarterly TransModeler user group to solve issues that others may have. Together, they have worked on projects totalling over a billion dollars.

Alma Valencia, P.E., deputy project manager; Irvine, California; ENR West

Valencia began her career more than 17 years ago as a construction office engineer reviewing labor compliance for the I-215 Segments 1 and 2 reconstruction projects in San Bernardino, California. She rose through the ranks in the years that followed and led administrative efforts on major transportation infrastructure projects.

Committed to a solutions-based approach, Valencia has developed tracking tools to efficiently review project costs and budgets, saving clients millions of dollars. Today, she is the deputy project manager for the $650 million Orange County Streetcar project, leading a team embedded within the Orange County Transportation Authority.

Valencia is also a longtime WTS Inland Empire member, dedicated to increasing the number of women in transportation engineering careers.

Jacob ‘Jake’ Weiss, P.E., PTOE, senior traffic engineer; Omaha, Nebraska; ENR Midwest

Since joining HDR as an intern in 2013, Jake has developed into a skilled industry leader. His expertise in traffic simulation and multimodal concept development supports corridor studies, interchange design, simulation projects, active transportation initiatives and more.

A key recent achievement of his has been advancing Omaha’s first bikeway to be constructed alongside the Omaha Streetcar. He was also recently named 2025 Young Professional of the Year by the American Council of Engineering Companies of Nebraska.

For eight years, Jake served as DriveSmart coordinator for ITE Nebraska, presenting to high school students about the dangers of distracted driving and the importance of safe driving habits.