WofA Board of Trustees Members

Sheila BarkevichSHEILA BARKEVICH, PRESIDENT

Sheila Barkevich graduated from Cornell University with a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering and immediately went to work for Callanan Industries, Inc., a CRH Co. She has spent her career in various roles at Callanan and while there earned an MBA from the University at Albany. Sheila has participated on the NCAT and NEAUPG Steering committees and was co-chair of the NYSAPA technical committee for several years. She is currently the Northeast Division Performance Manager at CRH Americas Materials

Sheila resides in Clifton Park, New York, with her husband, Bruce Barkevich, who is also in the Asphalt Industry, and their three children.

 

Amy Miller

AMY MILLER, P.E., MBA, PAST-PRESIDENT

Amy Miller is a graduate of the University of Florida with a degree in Environmental Engineering and a Master of Business Administration. She is a licensed professional engineer in the state of Florida. Immediately out of college she worked as a civil engineer eventually transitioning to a sales engineer role then onto a key account manager position. She currently serves as the National Director for the Asphalt Pavement Alliance.

Amy resides in northeast Florida with her husband and three children.

 

AUDREY COPELAND, PHD, P.E., SECRETARY

Audrey Copeland is the President & CEO of the National Asphalt Pavement Association (NAPA) since 2019. Previously, she served as NAPA’s Vice President of Engineering, Research, and Technology, and as a highway engineer and researcher at the U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). Audrey currently sits on the Board of Directors of the National Center for Asphalt Technology (NCAT) at Auburn University, and also TRIP – the National Transportation Research nonprofit to improve the U.S. highway, road, bridge, and transit network. She is a registered engineer in the Commonwealth of Virginia and the State of Maryland. 

Audrey lives in Kensington, Maryland, with her husband, Jose Albertini, and their two children.

 

Ashley Batson

ASHLEY BATSON, JD, TREASURER

Ashley Batson joined Ingevity as the Manager of Government Relations, Road Construction in 2021. Prior to that, Ashley served as Executive Director of the SC Asphalt Pavement Association. She began her career in law before transitioning to government relations and association management. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for TRIP and Women of Asphalt. Ashley is a graduate of the Charleston School of Law and Clemson University.

She lives in Charleston, South Carolina, with her husband and their two sons.

BETH DUFFUS

Beth Duffus graduated from Washington State University with a Bachelor's Degree in Construction Management. She has paved her career as an experienced Project Manager with over 15 years’ experience at Granite Construction Company (Granite) managing a majority of the paving projects out of the Everett, WA office. Throughout her career, Beth has become the subject matter expert for engineers and managers in the Pacific Northwest Region when estimating and managing paving projects.  

Beth resides in Lake Stevens, WA with her 12-year-old Alaskan Malamute and spends most of her free time on the golf course! 

 

Kirsten Pauley Square

 KIRSTEN FOWLER, P.E.

Kirsten Fowler graduated from Purdue University with a degree in Civil Engineering. She is a licensed professional engineer. She began her career with Rieth-Riley Construction Company where she had various roles in the asphalt industry, including estimating, asphalt quality control, and working in the field in project oversight. She then worked for consulting engineering firm, Shrewsberry and Associates, in transportation design. She joined APAI in 2016 as Technical Director and became Executive Director in 2019.

Kirsten lives in Indianapolis, IN with her husband, Cody, and two boxers, Layla and Dabo.

 

MICHELLE M. MILLER, P.E.

Michelle M. Miller graduated from Michigan Technological University with a degree in Civil Engineering where she worked in the materials and asphalt laboratories. She gained expertise with paving contractors in Wisconsin and Michigan, ultimately developing a comprehension of contractor quality control and construction practices, insight into customer support and sales of HMA, and an interest in ways to improve flexible pavements. These industry experiences prepared her for her current role as the HMA Mix Design Engineer for the Michigan Department of Transportation as the statewide specialist in HMA mix design. 

In addition to her professional work, she realized her passion for supporting, connecting, and inspiring women in the asphalt paving industry. She launched the Michigan Branch of Women of Asphalt as Chairwoman and joined the Women of Asphalt Board of Directors in 2022.

 

Debbie Novak SquareDEBBIE NOVAK

Debbie Novak started with Missouri Petroleum’s parent company, Lionmark Construction Cos., LLC, in September 1995.  Debbie is responsible for Missouri Petroleum’s Asphalt Purchasing, managing the Company’s asphalt needs for emulsions and cutbacks. She also serves as the Marketing Director for Lionmark Construction Companies, managing social media and marketing content for several companies under their parent company, Lionmark.

Debbie is a member of MAPA, Asphalt Institute & APWA Missouri Chapter and is involved with other organizations such as AGC of Missouri and SITE Improvement Association. Debbie also serves on the National Board for Women of Asphalt and is Chairwoman for Women of Asphalt’s Missouri Branch. In addition, she is on the board for Associate Members for Asphalt Institute and on the Asphalt Institute Marketing Committee.

Debbie lives in Wentzville, MO and enjoys spending time with her son Conner.

   

 RACHEL QUAM

 With 20 years of experience at Caterpillar Inc., Rachel Quam’s career has spanned roles in engineering, sales, strategy, and leadership. She leads a team focused on dealer and customer training, customer experience, prioritizing product needs/gaps within the regions, and driving profitable growth aligned with the enterprise goals. She holds an MBA from Bradley University and an electrical engineering degree from South Dakota State University. Quam is highly engaged in Society of Women Engineers, Women’s Initiative Network (a Caterpillar Inc. employee resource group), and Women of Asphalt, proudly helping launch the Women of Asphalt Minnesota/Dakota Branch and serving as the Vice Chairwoman.

VICTORIA TAFFET

Victoria Taffet graduated with a Bachelor’s in Organizational Management from Warner University in 2005 and a Master’s in Management & Leadership from Webster University in 2007. Victoria started her construction career in 2011 with Reeves Construction Company, a Colas Company, as their Continuous Improvement (CI) Manager and went on to become the Colas US CI Manager focusing on national strategic projects.  Before starting with Reeves Construction Company, she was responsible for managing maintenance on Launch Pads A & B for United Space Alliance (USA), contractor for NASA on the space shuttle program at Kennedy Space Center. While there she earned her Lean Six Sigma Blackbelt certification and launched her career in change management and process improvement. Victoria was a founding member of the Colas Women’s Initiative to increase diversity within Colas and lead the team on creating Colas’ Mentorship Program. Victoria became a WofA Board member in March of 2022.  In November of 2022, Victoria became the Director of Corporate Social Responsibility for Colas USA.

MARQUISHA WILLIAMS

Marquisha Williams joined the asphalt industry in 2004 working for various companies as a laborer. She started her career with Milestone Contractors in 2013 working in the field as a laborer and as a QC tech in the field and in the lab. Marquisha became a Safety Rep for Milestone in 2017 for the Richmond/Portland area. Marquisha is responsible for conducting employee orientation, training, jobsite safety audits, hazard recognition and abatement, safety planning, and support. She is passionate about her role in safety and building relationships with the men and women in the field.

Marquisha lives in Muncie, IN. She is a very proud USAF mom and is so proud of the young man her son is today. Marquisha likes to spend her free time surrounding herself with family and friends.