Emerging Professionals Webinar Panel – Part Two

Speakers

Jomar Maldonado
Director for NEPA
White House Council on Environmental Quality

Jomar Maldonado is the Director for the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) at the Council on Environmental Quality. In this role, he provides policy guidance to Federal agencies to assist with their implementation of NEPA. Jomar has over 20 years of environmental policy and legal experience within the Federal government, working on environmental review matters such as NEPA, Endangered Species Act, Floodplain Management, Wetlands Protection, and similar requirements. Prior to joining CEQ, Jomar worked as the Project Development Team Lead within the Office of Environmental Review and Project Development for the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). His career includes experience as an environmental attorney at FHWA and as the Environmental Officer of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. In his various roles he has worked on many complex issues such as assignment of NEPA responsibilities to States, initiatives to expedite permitting of Federal projects, resiliency/ hazard mitigation, floodplain reviews, environmental review of the National Flood Insurance Program, Buy America requirements, contract administration for highway projects, environmental justice considerations, and tolling and innovative financing for highways.

Jomar is originally from Puerto Rico. In 2000, he earned his Bachelor’s of Science degree in environmental science from the University of Puerto Rico. He earned a joint Juris Doctorate and Masters in Public Policy from the University of Maryland in 2003. Jomar teaches a National Environmental Policy Act course at the University of Maryland’s School of Law each fall. He lives in Maryland with his wife, Lynnette, and two sons, Gabriel and Miguel.

Sophie R. Godfrey-McKee, EOP/CEQ
Deputy Director for Permitting and Innovation
White House Council on Environmental Quality

Sophie Godfrey-McKee serves as the Deputy Director for Permitting and Innovation at the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ). In this role, she advances technology modernization initiatives for environmental review and permitting processes, in coordination with Federal agency partners, through CEQ’s new Permitting Innovation Center. Prior to joining CEQ, Sophie worked for NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service focused on interagency coordination during the research, planning, and environmental review and permitting processes for infrastructure development. Prior to this role, Sophie served as the NEPA Coordinator for NOAA's Office of National Marine Sanctuaries where she led environmental compliance processes for the designation and expansion of national marine sanctuaries and permitting to support sanctuary management and resource protection. Previously, Sophie completed a Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship at NOAA, and worked as a contractor at the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council and the Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Research and Development.

Sophie holds a Master of Public Policy from The George Washington University’s Trachtenberg School of Public Policy & Public Administration, where her studies focused on environmental policy and law, applied economics, and data analysis. During her graduate studies, Sophie interned on CEQ's NEPA team and served as a summer associate at the Congressional Budget Office's Budget Analysis Division. 

Nicolas  Frederick 
Department Lead - Environmental Planning & Permitting (EPP) – East Central
Jacobs

Nic Frederick has over 16 years of experience managing environmental projects, including NEPA, Natural and Cultural Resources, and public involvement. He is the Vice President of NAEP and heads the communications committee. As a member of the board, he has helped spearhead the initiative to broaden the scope of services offered by NAEP. He is also the cohost of the NAEP podcast, Environmental Professionals Radio. As the East Central Department Lead for Jacobs, he is responsible for the development of Jacob's core competencies related to environmental policy and is the primary facilitator for the career development of the team. He has provided general Environmental Planning services to a wide variety of federal and state clients and has been an integral part of the development of these services for Jacobs.