Message from the President
Welcome to the Kittyhawk Post!
Dayton has always been a place where progress starts with a question: what if? From the Wright brothers’ first flight to today’s work in aerospace, engineering and national defense, our region keeps proving that curiosity drives innovation. I want that same spirit to drive the Kittyhawk Post this year.
SAME has spent more than a century bringing together architects, engineers, constructors, and technical professionals to support our nation’s security. That mission hasn’t changed. Whether designing resilient infrastructure, modernizing facilities, integrating emerging technologies, or improving how projects are delivered, success depends on bringing together people with different expertise who share a common purpose.
That’s the opportunity I see for our Post. With Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, the Air Force Institute of Technology, the Air Force Research Laboratory, multiple strong universities and a thriving defense industry all around us, we have everything we need to be the place where those connections happen.
I didn’t come to this community as an engineer. I built my career in federal proposal management, working alongside engineers and builders, listening to them and learning how they think. That experience taught me that curiosity matters as much as expertise. It’s what turns a specialist into a collaborator and a collaborator into a leader.
I want the Kittyhawk Post to keep welcoming that range of professionals: engineers and architects, but also scientists, educators, marketers, anyone whose work supports the mission. Good ideas often come from someone outside the room asking a question no one else thought to ask.
This year, my priorities are straightforward: strengthen our industry-government engagement, invest in leadership development for our members, support STEM and workforce programs, and create more chances for real technical exchange. These aren’t new ideas. They’re the things SAME does well, and I want to make sure Kittyhawk keeps doing them.
Thank you for being part of this Post. I’d like you to get involved this year: volunteer, mentor someone, ask a question, bring an idea. I’m looking forward to serving alongside you.
Respectfully,
Michele Atkinson
President, SAME Kittyhawk Post
“Change is inevitable. Growth is optional.”
John C. Maxwell
Communities of Interest
SAME’s Communities of Interest offer members a chance to engage nationally with other professionals focused on a particular technical field or demographic within joint engineering and the A/E/C industry.