Dick Bedard, center, honored as Distinguished Alumni
Richard J. Bedard, PE, was recently inducted into the Academy of Distinguished Alumni of the UMASS Amherst Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Dick was one of 14 members of the inaugural class honored at a dinner in Amherst September 23. He is a native of Athol, Massachusetts, a 1969 graduate of Mount Wachusett Community College, and a 1973 graduate of UMASS Amherst Civil and Environmental Engineering Department.
For UMASS, he served as alumni advisor to the UMASS ASCE Student Chapter and President of the Western Mass. Branch of the Boston Society of Civil Engineers. Dick also served as a member of the CEE Advisory Committee for the last 25 years, serving 7 years as chairman.
Dick joined CH2M in Boca Raton, Florida, in 1981 as a project manager. He managed four different regions for the firm over the next 20 years, from Florida to New England, leading major water and wastewater client projects.
For CH2M’s water business, he took on various global roles. He led the global wastewater team for about 5 years, and then the global program management team another 5 years. Internationally, he led the winning and startup of major wastewater programs in London, Abu Dhabi, Doha, Singapore, and Australia. Bedard retired from full-time service in 2010, but still consults to CH2M regarding major East Coast clients.