Center Staff

Hye Yeong Kwon - hyk@cwp.org
Executive Director
As the Executive Director of the Center for Watershed Protection, Hye Yeong's responsibilities include organizational management, fund-raising, and program development. With more than 15 years of experience in nonprofit management and a background in biology, Hye Yeong has combined her education and training to help lead the Center toward a multi-disciplinary strategy to protect and restore watersheds throughout the country. Her project experience has included a wide range of technical subjects, including environmentally sensitive site design, watershed planning, and consensus building. Hye Yeong has a B.S. in Biology, an M.S. in Management, and an MBA. Hye Yeong lives in Silver Spring with husband Rob and daughter, and enjoys traveling, scuba diving, camping, eating good food, and good company.

David Hirschman - djh@cwp.org
Program Director
Dave joined the Center staff in 2005 as a Senior Water Resources Specialist. He has worked for 20 years in the public, private, and non-profit sectors on a variety of water resources and environmental health issues. In his life prior to the Center, Dave managed a water resources program for a local government, managed a non-profit organization, ran a small environmental consulting office, and taught water resources courses at the university level. His areas of concentration include innovative stormwater design and implementation, stormwater program development, land use planning, and training. Dave works for the Center from the satellite office in Charlottesville, Virginia. He has a B.A. in Biology from Duke University and a Masters of Urban & Regional Planning from Virginia Tech.

Greg Hoffmann, P.E. - gph@cwp.org
Program Director, Practices
A Wisconsin native, Greg is a Professional Engineer with a Master of Engineering from Michigan Technological University.  Prior to joining the Center, Greg worked for a private consulting firm in Port Huron, Michigan, gaining experience on a wide variety of engineering projects, ranging from private site plans to large-scale stream restoration and watershed planning.  Greg began at the Center in 2008, and has been involved with development of stormwater regulations and guidance documents, watershed assessment and planning, stormwater retrofitting, local program development, and training on various stormwater and watershed topics.  Greg lives in Baltimore City with his wife, Elizabeth, and spends his spare time hiking, traveling, and working in his garden.

Karen Cappiella - kc@cwp.org
Program Director, Research
Karen is a former GIS guru who now manages the Center’s Research Program.  She enjoys translating research results into practical guidance for watershed managers, and special areas of interest include impervious cover measurement, urban forestry and wetlands.  Karen has been with the Center since 2000, and has a B.A. in Geography from Millersville University and an M.A. in Geography from East Carolina University. She lives in Frederick County with her husband Steve and daughter Kat, and enjoys playing soccer, making soup, painting landscapes and researching her family ancestry.

Paul Sturm - pes@cwp.org
Program Director/Biologist
Paul is a water quality specialist/watershed planner at the Center. His past experience includes six years performing research on both urban and agricultural BMPs. With the Center since 2000, his responsibilities include developing watershed management plans, performing conservation area assessments and providing technical support and capacity building to local watershed groups. Paul has a B.S. in Biology from St. Mary's College and enjoys birding, flyfishing, training for triathlons and quaffing microbrews - usually in that order. He lives with his wife Jill and his children Abby and Ben in Eldersburg.

Bridget Edwards - bae@cwp.org
Marketing Manager
Joining the Center in 2009, Bridget brings extensive experience in proposal submission, marketing, graphic and web design, and public relations to her position. Bridget is orginally from South Carolina and a graduate of Winthrop University, but has adopted Baltimore as her home, Hon. In her time away from the Center, she enjoys taking road trips, being outside as much as possible, cooking/eating (especially eating), listening to music, and doing self-imposed projects.

Bryan Seipp - bts@cwp.org
Watershed Manager/Professional Forester
Bryan, a Maryland native, came to the Center in 2009.  Prior to working at the Center Bryan worked for the Maryland DNR Forest Service and more recently the Potomac Conservancy where he was the Director of Restoration. Bryan has experience working with individual landowners, organizations and governments to improve water quality by restoring stream buffers, building stormwater BMPs, and managing agriculture and forested properties. Bryan has a B.S. in Forest Resource Management from Virginia Tech, is a licensed professional forester in the state of Maryland and serves as the Policy Chair for the Maryland/Delaware chapter of the Society of American Foresters. His responsibilities at the Center include watershed planning and implementation, GIS mapping and analysis, conducting field assessments, training workshops, and capacity building for local watershed organizations. Bryan lives in Baltimore, and outside of work hours he enjoys photography, mountain biking, fishing, and scuba diving.

Cecilia Lane - cwl@cwp.org
Watershed Technician
Cecilia joined the Center team in 2009 after successfully completing a Spring internship. Cecilia has B.S. in Geography and Environmental Systems from the University of Maryland Baltimore County. As a technician, Cecilia provides assistance on a variety of stormwater management and watershed projects. Cecilia lives in Carroll County with her daughter Macey and her dog Moose. She spends her free time hiking, reading, working on crossword puzzles and exploring Baltimore.

Chris Swann - cps@cwp.org
Watershed Planner /CIO
Chris has been a watershed planner at the Center for the past 10 years. From his start as an underpaid intern to his rise to the dizzying heights of watershed planning, he has benefited from the expertise and input of his fellow colleagues at CWP. His work time is split between two responsibilities; researching and writing technical guidance on watershed management issues, and trying to keep the CWP technology in check and functioning properly. Since joining the Center in 1997, Chris has contributed in the writing of numerous Center publications, including the Urban Subwatershed Restoration Manual series and the Better Site Design Manual. Chris has a B.S. in Natural Resources Management from the University of Maryland, as well as a B.S. in Biology from James Madison University.

Deb Caraco, P.E. - dsc@cwp.org
Senior Watershed Engineer
Deb rejoined the Center at the end of 2007 after leaving the Center in 2004 to move to New York State. For her first eight-year run at the Center, along with more recent projects, Deb's areas of focus have included Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination (IDDE), cold climate stormater management, watershed analyses, and stormwater program development. Deb has a Masters of Engineering in Biological and Environmental Engineering from Cornell University, and enjoys camping, kayaking, reading, cross country skiing, and water gardening. Deb lives in Ithaca, NY with her husband Rob, children Desiree and Devin, and cats, Pekoe and Trotsky.

Joseph Battiata, P.E. - jgb@cwp.org
Senior Water Resources Engineer
Joe has over 25 years of experience in water resources and stormwater management, including serving as a Senior Water Resources Engineer and Project Manager with Williamsburg Environmental Group, Inc., and the Regional Regulatory Manager for CONTECH Stormwater Solutions. Joe has also worked in the public sector serving as a Senior Hydraulics Engineer for the Virginia Department of Transportation’s Location and Design Division, where he developed and managed the implementation of VDOT’s Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) and Construction General Permit Programs. He also served as the Stormwater Program Manager and Chief Engineer with the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR).  Joe started his career as a consultant in the D.C. metro area after graduating from The Catholic University of America with a B.S. in Civil Engineering.

Julie Schneider - jas@cwp.org
Watershed Planner
Julie’s responsibilities include technical analysis, writing, and training focusing on watershed management, restoration and protection strategies. She coordinates the Center's Better Site Design program which encourages communities to reduce environmental impacts during the development process. Prior to joining the Center staff, Julie worked for an ecological consulting firm in Columbia, Maryland.  Julie has a B.S. in Environmental Science from the University at Buffalo and a M.S. in Environmental Science from the College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse, NY.  Julie is an avid hiker, baker, and loves any and all opportunities to visit Maine.

Kelly Collins, E.I.T. - kac@cwp.org
Water Resources Engineer
Kelly joined the center in 2008, coming by way NC State where she received her M.S. in Biological and Agricultural Engineering. With a background in urban stormwater management, Kelly spends her time crafting ways to eliminate runoff from the 100-year storm event.  A PA native and PSU alum, Kelly spends her free time skiing, brewing beer, rooting for the Eagles, and waiting for the 100 year storm!

Laurel Woodworth - lw@cwp.org
Stormwater and Watershed Planner
Laurel, who joined the Center in 2008, provides assistance on a variety of stormwater management and watershed projects.  She works for the Center from the Charlottesville, VA satellite office.  Her past experience includes working for the County of Albemarle, VA on stormwater BMP maintenance inspections and coordinating the citizen water quality monitoring program and other projects for the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay.  She has a B.A. in Environmental Science and a B.A. in Environmental Thought & Practice from the University of Virginia.  Laurel, who grew up in southern France and in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, enjoys playing music and ultimate Frisbee, cooking, and exploring the world of innovative stormwater management.

Lindey Brown - lab@cwp.org
Financial Officer

Lisa Fraley-McNeal - lfm@cwp.org
Research Specialist
Lisa has extensive GIS experience, including geoprocessing, geodatabase development, and watershed analysis.  Her interests include fluvial geomorphology, urban hydrology, and sedimentology.  She has a B.S. degree in Geography and Environmental Systems, with a writing minor and cartography certificate from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Lisa also has a M.S. degree from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County in Marine and Estuarine Environmental Science. Lisa currently lives in Severn with her husband Jeff.  During her free time she enjoys traveling, science fiction novels, billiards, and weight training.

Lori Lilly - lal@cwp.org
Watershed Ecologist/Planner
Lori came to the Center in 2009 from Astoria, OR where she served as Director for a local watershed association.  Lori has experience in organization and program development, volunteer coordination, public outreach, salmon habitat restoration, non-profit management, forest / plant ecology, agricultural systems, technical writing, meeting facilitation and stakeholder integration, water quality monitoring, and grant writing.  Lori has a B.S. in Natural Resource Management from the Rutgers University and a Master’s degree in Marine, Estuarine and Environmental Science from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore.  Her responsibilities at the Center include watershed planning and implementation, GIS mapping and analysis, field assessments, and capacity building for local watershed organizations.  Lori spends her down time cooking and baking, swimming, enjoying the outdoors and playing with her two kids.

Neely Law, PhD - nll@cwp.org
Senior Research Analyst
Since joining the Center in 2004, Neely’s primary responsibilities include research on stormwater techniques, planning and management to include, for example stormwater indicators, urban wetlands and street sweeping. As part of the research and other applied Center projects, Neely provides data synthesis and analyses, survey development and writing technical reports and management plans.  She has additional experience in public education/teaching, community outreach and land use planning.  Neely has a B.S. in Environmental Studies and Urban Planning from the University of Waterloo, an M.A. in Geography from the University of Toronto and a Ph.D. in Geography from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.  Neely lives in Leesburg with her husband and three children.

Nichelle Bolden - ndb@cwp.org
Administrative Assistant
Experienced in supporting nonprofits, Nichelle joined the Center in 2009. She provides extensive administrative and programmatic support to the technical team, Executive Director, Financial Officer, and the Board of Directors.

Sadie Drescher - srd@cwp.org
Watershed Planner
Sadie joined the Center in March 2009 and focuses on watershed restoration and protection techniques. Before coming to the Center, she worked for SC’s Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management in the Science and Policy Division and focused on stormwater, low impact development, translating science to management, and working with local stakeholders. Sadie holds a MS in Environmental Science from the College of Charleston and a BS in Biology from Tennessee Technological University. She lives in Baltimore, Maryland, and enjoys exploring the area, volunteering in the community, and visiting family and friends whenever possible.

The Center for Watershed Protection is proud to be an equal opportunity employer.

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