UGPTI LogoSkip NavigationNDSU Logo

ND Rural Transportation Safety & Security Summit
Presenter Bios

Use the following links to jump directly to presenter's bio:

Bernie Arseneau is director of the Office of Traffic, Safety and Operations for the Minnesota Department of Transportation. He has worked for MNDOT for more than 20 years, starting after he received his B.S. in civil engineering from the University of Minnesota in 1982. Prior to that, he earned an A.A. degree in general studies at St. Cloud State University. Over the past 20 years he has held many positions within MNDOT, including director of traffic operations, area maintenance engineer for Rochester, Minn., tort claims and traffic standards engineer and Legislative Liaison for the department. Arseneau is a registered professional engineer and a professional traffic operations engineer in the state of Minnesota.

Gary Berreth is an associate research fellow with the Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute and directs the institute's Rural Transportation Safety and Security Center. He retired in 2005 from the North Dakota Department of Transportation after a 37-year career there. He is respected for his knowledge and experience in all aspects of transportation. Gary is involved with the associate degree program in transportation and logistics at Bismarck State College and is developing programs to enhance the technical education offerings on a regional basis for DOTs.

Captain Scott Brand is a native of Wahpeton, North Dakota. He received an Associate of Arts Degree in Law Enforcement from North Dakota State College of Science, Wahpeton, in 1981. He is a graduate of Northwestern University Traffic Institute's School of Police Staff and Command.

Brand began his career with the North Dakota Highway Patrol in 1981. As a trooper, he was stationed in Beulah, Center, Bismarck and Fargo. Brand was promoted to the rank of sergeant in 1994 and was stationed at Devils Lake and Grand Forks. He was promoted to the rank of captain in 2000 and reassigned to Devils Lake as district commander. He transferred to Minot in 2001 and was commander of the Minot District for nearly a year when he was reassigned to headquarters as Assistant Field Operations Commander. In 2005 he was reassigned to the Fusion Center, representing the North Dakota Highway Patrol as the Homeland Security Coordinator.

Steve Busek is the Federal Highway Administration's Safety and ITS Engineer for North Dakota. He provides oversight for FHWA-funded safety and ITS projects in North Dakota. Busek is a Bismarck native and a 1975 graduate of the North Dakota State University civil engineering program. He joined the FHWA immediately after college and completed training in Colorado, Texas and Florida. He also worked in Florida and Wisconsin as an area engineer with FHWA before returning to Bismarck in 1984.

Nancy Capes is supervisor for Altru Ambulance Service in Grand Forks. She has 26 years of experience providing pre-hospital care. Capes is the president of the North Dakota Instructor Coordinator Service and Director of the North Dakota Critical Incident Stress Management Team. In addition, she is a board member of the North Dakota EMS Association.

Kent Conrad was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 1986 and has been re-elected four times. Conrad is a renowned advocate of fiscal discipline and the protection of the Social Security and Medicare trust funds, especially in his role as ranking member of the Budget Committee and as a senior member of the Senate Finance Committee. As the representative of one of the most rural states in the nation, Conrad also serves as a senior member of the Senate Agriculture Committee.

A fifth-generation North Dakotan, Conrad was born in Bismarck and began his official career in politics in 1968 when, as a teenager, he headed up a statewide campaign to grant voting rights to 19-year-olds.

In 1980, Senator Conrad won his first statewide race for North Dakota Tax Commissioner. He was reelected to the office in 1984. Conrad holds a bachelor's degree from Stanford University, and an MBA from George Washington University.

Mark Gaydos is a design engineer with the North Dakota DOT, a position he has held since 2002. He has worked for the DOT since 1984, including five years of field construction experience on interstate concrete rehabilitation and reconstruction projects across the state; eight years of experience in the urban section of the design division, developing reconstruction plans for various state and regional highway projects; two years in technical services developing specifications and engineering students; and eight years in the design division working in various management positions responsible for engineering, right of way, environmental and safety functions. Gaydos received his B.S. in construction management from NDSU in 1983 and then a B.S. in construction engineering in 1998. He has been a registered professional engineer since July of 2000.

Don Glarum, Mandan, is with the Highway Watch Program in North Dakota. The program helps transportation professionals learn to be aware of their equipment and workplace to avoid becoming a target of terrorist activity and to avoid having their equipment become weapons of terror. Glarum joined the program after retiring last year after 32 years of service with the North Dakota Highway Patrol. He was stationed in Langdon, Valley City, Dickinson and Bismarck. He was district sergeant, was promoted to lieutenant and served as safety officer and was latter promoted to captain, serving as district commander. He attended UND - Ellendale and NDSU. He is also a graduate of the Northwestern University Traffic Institute. He is married and has four children.

Gene Griffin is director of the Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute. With more than 30 years of experience in transportation and logistics, Griffin has conducted research in economics, management, business logistics and public policy related to rail and motor transport, low-volume roads, economic development, rural transit and agricultural transportation. He has served as director of the Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute since 1980 - a tenure that has seen the Institute's annual budget increase from $175,000 to more than $5 million and the staff grown from two to more than 40. He is ultimately responsible for the Institute's eight research programs as well as the graduate and undergraduate education programs. During his tenure as director, the UGPTI gained national stature in its focus area of small urban and rural transportation and logistics. Griffin continues his involvement in research and has published numerous reports and journal articles.

In 1970, Griffin received his B.S. in mathematics from North Dakota State University, followed by an M.S. in economics in 1971. Prior to his work at the Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute, he was a graduate research assistant at the Water Resources Research Institute at NDSU.

Joel Gutensohn is the Federal Security Director (FSD) for the Transportation Security Administration, Department of Homeland Security for air, rail and surface transportation in North Dakota. Prior to his appointment as FSD, Gutensohn was the president of a domestic and international business and security consulting firm specializing in expediting business alliances, marketing strategies and security solutions. From 1996 - 1998 he was Corporate Director of Security for the Dickson Group of Companies in Hong Kong, a worldwide retail network of more than 270 stores, shops and boutiques.

Previously, Gutensohn spent 25 years as a special agent with the Drug Enforcement Administration, serving in a variety of senior management positions. His assignments included five major cities, two foreign countries and headquarters responsibilities for nine countries in Southeast Asia. He is a veteran of the U.S. Army having served three years in the paratroopers. Gutensohn is a 1970 graduate of Jamestown College with a B.A. in political science.

John Hoeven is Governor of North Dakota. Since he was elected governor in 2000, Hoeven has been working to build North Dakota's future by focusing on six pillars of growth: education, economic development, agriculture, energy, technology and quality of life. Now in his second term, Hoeven remains committed to enhancing the state's business climate and promoting North Dakota's targeted industries, which are agriculture, energy, technology, advanced manufacturing and tourism.

A native of Bismarck, Hoeven earned a bachelor's degree from Dartmouth College in 1979 and a master's degree in business administration from Northwestern University in 1981. Hoeven served as executive vice president of First Western Bank in Minot from 1986 to 1993. From 1993 to 2000, he served as president and CEO of the Bank of North Dakota. Since his election he has served as chair of the Midwestern Governors Association and the National Governors Association's Health and Human Services Committee and Natural Resources Committee as well as chair of the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission and Governors' Ethanol Coalition.

Brenda Lantz is program director for the Transportation Safety Systems Center and associate research fellow at the Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute. She has been a researcher at the institute since 1990, first as a graduate student and professionally since 1994. She specializes in the areas of intelligent transportation systems for commercial vehicle operations, business logistics and commercial vehicle safety - subjects on which she has authored and presented numerous articles.

Lantz earned her B.S. in sociology from North Dakota State University in 1990. Next, she earned an M.S. in applied statistics also from NDSU in 1994. Currently she is working on a Ph.D. in business logistics at Pennsylvania State University. In addition to her work at the UGPTI, Lantz is a member of several organizations, including the Transportation Research Board Task Force on Truck and Bus Safety, the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance and the Council of Logistics Management.

Marsha M. Lembke is director of the Drivers License and Traffic Safety Division of the North Dakota Department of Transportation. Lembke graduated with a degree in nursing from North Dakota State College of Science, and practiced nursing for 10 years. Following that, she earned a management degree at the University of Mary, Bismarck, and worked in real estate sales. In 1986, she became the manager of the North Dakota Association of Builders. In 1991, Lembke served as statewide director of the National Federation of Independent Business.

In 1998, she was hired by the North Dakota Department of Transportation where she served on both the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Governor's Highway Safety Association Liaison Committee. Currently, she is a member of the Transportation Research Board nationwide driver behavior study.

For Lembke, the most rewarding part of working with traffic safety is being able to work toward the goal of zero highway deaths.

Keith Magnusson is Deputy Director for Driver and Vehicle Services at the North Dakota Department of Transportation. As deputy director, Magnusson oversees the operations of the Motor Vehicle Division and the Driver's License and Traffic Safety Division of the NDDOT. He has served in that position since July 1993. In addition, he is the NDDOT's legislative coordinator.

He received a law degree from Washburn University in Kansas and an undergraduate degree in accounting from the University of North Dakota. He is admitted to practice law before all North Dakota courts and all levels of federal and military courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces.

Magnusson served as staff assistant to the North Dakota House of Representatives Majority Leader during the 1993 legislative session and as research director for the successful 1992 "Schafer for Governor" campaign in North Dakota.

His background also includes serving as vice president and general counsel for the North Dakota Bankers Association from 1981to 1992; serving as staff counsel for the North Dakota Supreme Court joint procedure committee from 1978 to 1981; and working in private law practice and serving as assistant state's attorney in Nelson County, North Dakota from 1976 to 1978.

Magnusson is a colonel (retired) in the U.S. Army Reserve and an adjunct instructor in transportation regulation and safety at Bismarck State College and has been an adjunct instructor in criminal justice at BSC and in state and local government at the University of Mary, Bismarck. Keith also serves on the board of directors for the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators and AAMVA Region III and is chair of AAMVA's Legal Services and Education and Training Committees.

Gary R. Ness is executive director of the North Dakota Aeronautics Commission. He graduated from the North Dakota State College of Science in 1965 and from North Dakota State University in 1967.

After graduation, Ness served in the U.S. Navy from 1967 to 1971 as a naval aviator. His last duty station was as a flight instructor in air to air gunnery and carrier qualifications while stationed at the Pensacola Naval Air Station in Florida. Prior to military service, Ness worked in his family's aerial crop spraying operation for eight years.

After his service in the Navy, he was employed as the assistant Manager of the Federal Land Bank in Grand Forks. He later became Vice President of First Federal Savings and Loan of Grand Forks. From 1980 to 1986, he served as sales manager for AGSCO, a regional agricultural chemical company headquartered in Grand Forks.

From 1989 to 1994, Ness served on the National Board of Directors for the National Association of State Aviation Officials. Previously, Ness has served as co-chair of the FAA/NASAO Intergovernmental Relations Committee, a joint issues coordination committee between the Federal Aviation Administration and NASAO.

Currently, Ness serves as President and Chairman of the Board of the Center for Aviation Research and Education, a nonprofit educational foundation created to serve the needs of aviation research and education. In addition, he serves a board member for the International Northwest Aviation Council and is present chairman of the North Dakota Aviation Hall of Fame.

Dawn Olson is manager of the Office of Traffic Safety at the North Department of Transportation. She has held this position since 2002 when she was promoted from the alcohol program manager. Since 1993, she has worked in several areas of highway safety including police traffic services, impaired driving, occupant protection, child passenger safety, and youth alcohol prevention programs.

Currently, within the Office of Traffic Safety, she supervises four program managers, four temporary employees and is responsible for the occupant protection public awareness campaigns, specifically May Mobilization. She is serving her second term on the Governor's Highway Safety Association (GHSA) Executive Committee as the Rocky Mountain Region representative. She was also selected as the GHSA representative for the NCHRP 20-7 project to develop a model driver's manual. She represents traffic safety on several state committees.

She has a B.S. from North Dakota State University in Business Administration.

Allen Radliff is a division administrator for the Federal Highway Administration. He has worked for the Federal Highway Administration for more than 33 years, and most recently at the North Dakota Division Office in Bismarck as the division administrator. In his 33 years with the FHWA, Radliff has completed engineering assignments in several locations including Denver, CO, Washington D.C. and Nashville, TN. Radliff graduated in 1972 with a B.S. in civil engineering from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. In addition, he maintains a P.E. license in Wisconsin.

Stephen Richards is the director of the Center for Transportation Research and an Associate Professor of Civil Engineering at The University of Tennessee (UT). In his role as director of the Center for Transportation Research, Richards oversees a multi-disciplinary staff of 190 researchers, technicians and faculty engaged in over 100 active research projects, with total funding exceeding $20 million in research grants and contracts. The University of Tennessee serves as the lead institution of the Southeastern Transportation Center (STC), the USDOT's Regional UTC representing the eight states of Region IV. Richards serves as the director of the STC.

Richards also is a tenured faculty member at UT. He has taught graduate and undergraduate courses in highway safety, accident analysis, traffic engineering and transportation systems analysis. Prior to coming to The University of Tennessee, Dr. Richards taught undergraduate courses in transportation engineering at Texas A&M University and the University of Houston.

Dr. Richards was a research engineer at the Texas Transportation Institute for eight years before coming to Knoxville in 1984. He also worked five years in a District Traffic Engineering Office of the Texas DOT. He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Texas, a Master of Engineering Degree in Civil Engineering from Texas A&M University and a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from the University of Tennessee.

Kelly J. Rodgers is a safety and education officer for the North Dakota Highway Patrol. In 1981, Rodgers received a B.S. degree in criminal justice in from Minot State University. In addition, he is a 1999 graduate of Northwestern University Traffic Institute's School of Police Staff and Command. Rodgers began his career in 1981 as a trooper in Kenmare and Minot. He served as district sergeant in Dickinson and Minot. In June 2005, he was promoted to lieutenant and appointed the Highway Patrol's Safety and Education Officer.

Craig Schnell is Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at North Dakota State University, providing leadership for the university's eight colleges and the Graduate School and Office of Research Administration. He came to NDSU in 1985 when he was named dean of Graduate Studies and Research. He assumed the duties of interim vice president in 1995 and was named vice president in 1997. In 2002, Schnell was named to his current position. He gained previous administrative experience at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha and at the U.S. Army's Fort Baker. He earned a bachelor of science degree in pharmacy at South Dakota State University and a masters and doctorate degrees in pharmacology/toxicology from Purdue University.

Doyle Schultz is a 35-year veteran of the North Dakota Highway Patrol. He worked his way through the ranks of sergeant, captain and major. As a major he was in charge of field operations until he retired from the uniform division in 1998. He currently is the director of the Motor Carrier Division which includes all commercial vehicle operations. He is a graduate of NDSU and currently lives in Bismarck, N.D.

Lonny Schweitzer is Assistant Chief Patrol Agent at the Grand Forks Sector Headquarters of the U.S. Border Patrol. He has held that position since 1996. Before coming to Grand Forks he was a deportation officer with the Border Patrol in St. Paul for two years and a Border Patrol Agent in Yuma, AZ, for more than six years. He served on an integrated border enforcement team in Ottawa, Canada, in 2002 and has served as a law instructor for the U.S. Border Patrol Academy. Schweitzer earned an associates degree in criminal justice and Spanish from Arizona Western College in Yuma, AZ, and served with the U.S. Army Military Police. His early law enforcement experience was with the North Dakota Highway Patrol and as a police officer in Grafton.

Cathy Spencer is general manager of the Northern Plains Commerce Center (NPCC). She is overseeing NPCC, which is managed by Mallory Alexander International Logistics for the city of Bismarck, N.D. She was first assigned to the NPCC earlier this year as a logistics consultant and has been involved with international commerce for the past 15 years. Spencer began her career in international commerce with A.W. Fenton (now Exel) in the area of import trade compliance. After seven years with Fenton, Spencer was appointed international customer service manager for Tech International. In 2002, she moved to Honda Trading America as an international supply chain manager. In addition, Spencer is president of the Sister Cities International Council of Bismarck. She has also been involved in the Columbus Council on World Affairs and worked as a volunteer for the Ohio State University Center for Slavic and East European Studies.

David Sprynczynatyk is director of the North Dakota Department of Transportation. Sprynczynatyk was appointed director in January 2001 by Governor John Hoeven. He had previously served as North Dakota State Engineer, and Chief Engineer and Secretary to the State Water Commission. Sprynczynatyk graduated from North Dakota State University in 1972 with a B.S. degree in Civil Engineering. In 1972, he began working for the North Dakota State Water Commission as a planning engineer and a surface water hydrologist. In 1977, he was promoted to director of the State Water Commission's Engineering Division, a post he held until 1989, when he took over as North Dakota State Engineer.

Sprynczynatyk is a Registered Professional Engineer in North Dakota. In addition, he is a member of the National Society of Professional Engineers and the North Dakota Society of Professional Engineers, having served one term as the state society's president. David is vice president of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials and is also on the association's Board of Directors.

He currently serves as the president of the Western Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. Sprynczynatyk recently served on the International Souris River Board of Control, the Missouri River Basin Association, the Western States Water Council, the Red River Basin Water Resource Council, the Red River Basin Board, the International Joint Commission Red River Task Force, the Red River Basin Mitigation Initiative, and the National Water Education for Teachers Project. He has also served as president of the National Water Resources Association, and currently serves on the North Dakota Water Education Foundation Board of Directors.

David is a graduate of the United States Army War College, and is currently a Major General in the North Dakota Army National Guard, serving as J-4, Logistics Director of the National Guard Bureau.

Tanya Wisnewski is program coordinator of the N.D. Safe Kids and Operation Lifesaver Programs for the North Dakota Safety Council. Wisnewski joined the council in May 2005. She previously worked with the North Dakota Association of Builders and the Minot Family YMCA.

Conference Info
© 2008 Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute
an independent research and education center at North Dakota State University.