The inaugural meeting of the SAA Civil Engineering & Construction Club was held in the Skyline Room of the Wesley J. Howe Center on Tuesday evening, April 6, 2004. The meeting consisted of a mix of networking and information, featuring as the keynote speaker Paul J. Groce, Principal Consultant in the Wall Street office of Heidrick & Struggles.

Paul recently returned from a sabbatical where he served as an appointee to work with the Department of Defense and the Office of Presidential Personnel in support of the Coalition Provisional Authority's (CPA) mission in Iraq. Serving in both the Pentagon and Baghdad, Iraq, Paul advised and assisted the CPA in team building and talent recruitment, with a primary focus on technical and engineering needs in support of infrastructure rebuild.

Having recently returned from Iraq, Paul delivered a fascinating presentation, offering a perspective on the situation that was very different than the one often seen in the media. Paul shared, in words and pictures, his experiences in Iraq's re-building effort as they relate to engineering and construction professionals.

A Q & A session followed Paul's presentation, and the meeting came to a close with networking among the over 40 alumni in attendance. An enjoyable and informative time was had by all!