ITS Texas Award Citations - 2010 Annual Meeting

Mike Fiske has been involved in traffic control and freeway corridor traffic management equipment for nearly 40 years as a manufacturer and distributor. Receiving a bachelor's degree from the University of Florida in Aerospace Engineering, Mike has worked alongside many in the transportation industry in Texas to provide materials and solutions to move ITS forward in Texas.

 

Mike's passion for innovation in ITS can be exemplified as co-inventor on a United States Patent issued in 1994 for a device that is more commonly known as a programmable traffic signal head. Mike has not shied away from being the first to try a new or different solution to a problem. His passion for innovation has been a benefit for ITS in Texas.

 

Tom served as the co-chair and his leadership was instrumental ensuring that the meeting was a success. Tom provided direction to co-locate a number of other meetings at the ITS Annual Meeting such as the Texas State Senate Committee on Transportation and Homeland Security public hearing. Tom also exercised his leadership to help bring 250 students to the meeting.

 

Because of his leadership he exposed new individuals and potential new transportation leaders to how technology could help address their transportation problems. This leadership benefitted ITS Texas, the Houston-Galveston Region, and the State of Texas by allowing the participants to see impressive ITS in Texas first hand.

 

Charlie has been involved in ITS Texas for a long time including service on the board of directors. Charlie has given of his time and talents to help in the preparation work for numerous annual meetings and was integral in building the vendor relationships we have today. Charlie has also been involved in a number of other ITS Texas activities such as training and newsletters and has selflessly given of himself and his time to support ITS Texas and leave it in a better position than when he came into it. In the process, we’ve been graced with his expertise, his insight, his easy smile and his good humor.

 

Brian preceded me on the board and I followed in his footsteps through the board positions. In that manner, Brian served as a mentor to me in the organization and helped impart not only organizational knowledge, but the importance of thoughtful consideration to all board activities. Brian has been the steady voice of support, not only to the board, but also to the ITS industry and the implementations in the Austin area.

 

With his passion for the scholarships and awards that ITS Texas presents, it is only fitting that we honor his service by this award. ITS Texas is a better and stronger organization for Brian’s leadership and years of service and the Board will greatly miss his contributions, his leadership and his excellence in service in all undertakings.