Lamp HERstory, Women’s History Month 2022

In a historically male-dominated industry, we understand how important it is to recruit and support women. Together, we champion gender equality, challenge the norms, and drive profitability. We focus on experiences and continually allying to advance all women across Lamp Rynearson. LampHERstory was founded in 2020 and is a source of knowledge on gender equality issues; providing a space to connect with others and foster a supportive, inclusive culture of belonging.

In support and celebration of International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month – we seek to break the bias for women in the workplace – advocating for gender equality. We celebrate the diverse women across our firm, who are an intricate part of our daily legacy. Below are some of their stories.

My gender never played into any of my considerations in mapping my career path. Initially, I did not consider going to a women’s college; however, fate had other plans when my mother wanted to visit the campus my grandmother attended. Smith College hummed with the energy of dynamic, talented women. The school’s focus is academic – students attend to be smart and strong – not smart and strong women – just smart and strong humans. This is a theme I have carried with me throughout my career. When I got out of college, the oil bust happened – and there were no jobs in geology. So, I changed my trajectory and became a surveyor. Surveying at the time was a male-dominated industry. While surveying continues to be primarily a majority male field, strides have been made and gender is not a barrier to advancement. As the only woman in the Colorado Lamp Rynearson survey department, I was honored when asked to lead the Colorado team. Being part of a woman-led firm is a source of inspiration. Here I can be smart, strong, and my authentic self. I know daily, I can show up to work and be Laine. –Laine Landau, PLS, Fort Collins Survey Practice Lead

I remember knowing in the third grade that I wanted a career in science. I didn’t know what that meant at the time, but that dream always stuck with me. I originally planned to go into biology or zoology, but the universe had other plans and I found myself working at an engineering firm shortly after graduating high school. What was supposed to be a “gap year” before college turned into 15 years at that firm and falling in love with the industry. I worked my way up from receptionist to project manager before deciding it was time to seek out new opportunities to learn and grow. In 2016, my journey brought me to Lamp Rynearson as a Project Designer for the Omaha Design Group, where I spent my first year and a half with the firm. In mid-2017 I was exploring growth opportunities and trying to choose between degree programs to help me take that next step. Both of my first two managers at Lamp Rynearson, Mike McIntosh and John Coolidge, recommended that I talk to Nancy Pridal, who was at that time was beginning to transition into her new role as company President. And I’m so glad I did! Nancy told me about an upcoming opening for an Organizational Development position, which was not a role I was very familiar with and suggested I give it some thought. After quite a bit of introspection, and a little bit of Googling, I decided to go for it and apply. I’ve now been an Organizational Development professional for over 4 years. Just like engineering, OD is a career path I never thought I’d be on, but a path I’m loving every step of. And 3rd grade me – who dreamed of being a scientist – has gotten her wish, as a love of the life sciences in school became a love of the physical sciences throughout my time in engineering, and now an opportunity to use behavioral sciences each day in my current role. At Lamp Rynearson, your career is truly what you make it. I could not have asked for better leaders and mentors along the way. I’ve been allowed to learn, experiment, try (and sometimes fail) as I’ve figured out how to grow into the leader that I’m meant to be. –Kim Shanahan, Organizational Development Lead

Growing up on the Gulf Coast of Florida, I was fully submerged into a culture of storytelling – where yarns were spun endlessly on salt air and sea mist, pirates and lost fortunes, and a longing for vastness only the ocean could cure. My passion for storytelling, writing, and design has weaved itself through the fabric of my life in numerous forms. From my first “book” I wrote and illustrated at the age of 11 about the adverse effects of pollution – to studying under the guidance of published fiction and non-fiction authors during an MFA writing residency in New England. Or when I designed an art book of Man Ray’s photography – to my stint as the Director of Communications for a Florida Public Library System consisting of 5 branches. None have been as purposeful as my creative journey here at Lamp Rynearson. The desire to write and design comes from not just the urge to be creative – it’s an innate need to help others. Stories can empower and humanize – make us think and feel. As Corporate Communications Lead, I work with leadership to craft messages that are meaningful, support brand standards, and align with our core values. The support and allyship I have received as a creative female professional at Lamp Rynearson have allowed me to grow my career and professional self in unique and equitable ways. The power of purpose I have gained at our firm, reminds me that stories are not mere flights of fantasy. They provide us with critical insight into the present and enable us to envision and author the world as it might become. –Teddianne Vaught, Corporate Communications Lead

English primatologist Jane Goodall once noted, “You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.” Landscape Designer & Environmental Specialist Sam Howland, firmly believes that when we help our communities, help our lands – we help everyone – what we do daily makes a difference. It is up to us to decide what type of difference we make.

Sam’s interest for our environment started in childhood. Growing up in a rural farming community, she learned firsthand about farming practices and their impacts on our planet. After college, she knew what kind of impact she wanted to have – tending to the world we live in. Lamp Rynearson is where she chose to do that.

Sam understands that the environment has been put under an insurmountable toll through global warming; however, she consistently focuses on making a significant and positive difference. She’s helping our communities think creatively about the importance of environmental considerations within a project.

At Lamp Rynearson, Sam has taken her childhood passion and turned it into a blossoming career. Daily, she crafts sustainable solutions by thinking of our ecosystems, understands the impacts humans are having through their actions, and ultimately leaves of legacy for all of us. –Sam Howland, Landscape Designer & Environmental Specialist

When I graduated in December of 1983, only four out of 100 graduates were women at Oklahoma State University. In 1985, while working for the US Army Corp of Engineers District in Tulsa, OK, we started our family. My request to work part-time after maternity leave was rejected. Although other career fields had flexibility for women, engineering did not. So, I didn’t return to work and somehow ended up with an almost 15-year break to stay home and raise my family. In 1990, I took a graduate environmental engineering class while living in Vicksburg, Mississippi. One day, we took a class field trip to a wastewater facility. The operator would not look at or talk to me, as I was the only woman in the class. Ironically, I had the best understanding of the topic at hand. It made me highly aware that there was still a gender gap in the wastewater field.

When I was growing up, my father was the managing partner of Larkin Group. Upon returning to the workforce in 1999, I knew that this was the place I wanted to re-focus my career. I was thankful to be hired and allowed to work part-time in the Wastewater Group. If that option had been available in 1985, I would not have been out of the workforce for over a decade.

I’ve held numerous positions and jobs that built upon each other to allow me to be where I am today. Such as the most amazing job as the US Forces Afghanistan Environmental Chief in the Engineering Division, stationed in Kabul, Afghanistan, from February 2011 through April 2012. Throughout my professional journey here at Lamp Rynearson, I’ve been provided the training and opportunity to grow into the Wastewater Group Leader without feeling that my gender was any barrier. Overall, the company has been consistent in their concerted effort to keep gender from the equation for attaining leadership roles. –Laura J. Gray, Wastewater Group Leader

My journey as a creative female professional has not gone from point A to point B, but rather traveled all over the map in a long squiggly line. I grew up in a small town in the heart of the Ozarks where everyone knows everybody. We didn’t have a lot, but I found my creative passion quickly, picking up a paintbrush around the age of 2 or 3. My creativity became evident after that as a part of who I was, and despite the challenges of growing up isolated, I decided to take the leap of nurturing my talents into a career. My creative career has encompassed everything from children’s literature programming, graphic design, writing, papier Mache creations, illustration, prototype exhibit creation, and art direction. I see my diverse creative career as a support beam in everything I do.

I was sold on Lamp Rynearson’s culture from my first interaction with the company. The positive energy and desire to diversify the firm is something I had yet to experience in previous interviews. There is a genuine investment in the employees here. Now having worked here over two years, and not to mention during a pandemic, it is still evident to me that the people here are committed to getting the job done while taking care of each other. I look forward to seeing where my own path takes me here as well as watching the firm grow overall and expand their services. –Nicholette Haigler, Marketing Coordinator