Meet our new Board members
On September 28, 2026, Governor Tate Reeves appointed four individuals to serve on the Mississippi Board of Licensure for Professional Engineers & Surveyors. We'd like to introduce you to them below:
Catherine "Colby" Willis White, PE
Colby Willis White, P.E., is a civil project engineer and partner with Willis Engineering, Inc. in Grenada, Mississippi, where she works with local, state, and federal partners on transportation, infrastructure, water, wastewater, and community improvement projects throughout the state. She currently serves as County Engineer for Leflore and Carroll Counties.
A native of Grenada, Colby earned her Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Mississippi and has been a licensed Professional Engineer in Mississippi since 2014. Prior to joining Willis Engineering, she spent 13 years with the Mississippi Department of Transportation, serving in a number of engineering and leadership roles and ultimately as Assistant Chief Engineer for Preconstruction.
Colby chose civil engineering for the opportunities to solve practical problems and to see that work make a tangible difference in communities. Throughout her career, she has been particularly drawn to public infrastructure and transportation—work that may often go unnoticed when it functions well, but that directly affects the safety, mobility, economic opportunity, and quality of life of Mississippians. She has also remained actively involved in the profession through service with the University of Mississippi Civil Engineering Advisory Board, the Mississippi Engineering Society, WTS Mississippi, AASHTO committees and councils, and the Mississippi Roadworkers Foundation.
Colby views service on the Mississippi Board of Licensure for Professional Engineers & Surveyors as both an honor and a responsibility. Licensure represents the public’s trust that engineers and surveyors will practice with competence, integrity, and an unwavering commitment to protecting the health, safety, and welfare of the public. She looks forward to bringing the perspective of both public- and private-sector engineering to the Board, while helping uphold the standards of the professions, supporting the next generation of engineers and surveyors, and ensuring that licensure continues to serve the people of Mississippi well. Colby and her husband, Brad, live in Madison with their two sons, Barrett and Jack.
David Russell Bowman, PE
David Russell Bowman is a Professional Engineer whose career and passion for engineering span three generations.
Born and raised in Greenwood, Mississippi, David grew up in a family deeply rooted in the engineering profession. His grandfather, Charles M. Bowman, was among Mississippi's earliest licensed electrical engineers and founded Bowman & Bowman Consulting Engineers in 1938 with his brother, Edwin Bowman. Although Edwin passed away unexpectedly from tuberculosis shortly after the firm's formation, Charles continued building the practice into a respected engineering firm that served Mississippi communities for decades. David's father, Charles M. Bowman Jr., joined the firm as an architect in the early 1960s, and the company remained active until his retirement in 2012.
David graduated from Greenwood High School and went on to attend Mississippi State University, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering in 1988. He became a registered Professional Engineer in January 1994.
He began his engineering career with the City of Jackson, Mississippi, before joining Neel-Schaffer, Inc. in 1992 as a water and wastewater engineer in Jackson. Over time, his responsibilities expanded into civil site development and community infrastructure projects. In 1996, he helped establish Neel-Schaffer's Columbus, Mississippi office and played a key role in its growth before returning to Jackson in 2001.
Throughout his career, David has served in a variety of leadership and technical roles, all centered on fostering a culture of service to the communities where people live, work, and play. Among the most challenging and rewarding experiences of his career was contributing to the rebuilding efforts along the Mississippi Gulf Coast following Hurricane Katrina, helping communities restore critical infrastructure and rebuild for the future.
Today, David resides in Starkville, Mississippi, where he continues serving clients across the state through Neel-Schaffer's Starkville office. He and his wife, Kate, have a remarkable story of their own. Growing up on the same street in Greenwood, they dated through high school and college before marrying in 1989. After more than 30 years as a secondary mathematics educator, Kate recently retired from teaching.
Grounded in a family legacy of engineering excellence and committed to improving communities and advancing the engineering profession throughout Mississippi, David is honored to serve his fellow engineers and the citizens of the state.
Larry Saucier, PS
Ronald W. Cassada, PE, PLS
Ronald W. Cassada, P.E., P.L.S., was born and raised in Danville, Virginia, and is a principal of Gardner Engineering, P.A., in Indianola, Mississippi. A licensed professional engineer and professional land surveyor, he began his engineering career in 1988 and has 38 years of experience helping communities with roads, bridges, drainage, water, and wastewater infrastructure. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Physics from Presbyterian College and a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from Clemson University, followed by graduate studies in environmental and water resources engineering at the University of South Carolina. He also attended Mississippi State University to complete the required surveying education for his professional surveying licensure.
Ron’s interest in engineering began in childhood, when he was always taking things apart to understand how they worked and building things of his own. That curiosity developed into a career devoted to solving practical problems and serving communities. His professional leadership includes service as president and national director of the American Council of Engineering Companies of Mississippi and as president of the Mississippi Association of County Engineers. Having lived in Mississippi since 1998, Ron has developed a deep love for the state and its people. He accepted his appointment to the Mississippi Board of Licensure for Professional Engineers and Surveyors as an opportunity to give back to the professions and the state he loves, while helping uphold professional standards and protect the public.
Ron and his wife are in their 40th year of marriage. He enjoys traveling with his wife and family, spending time with his three grandsons, woodworking, fly fishing, and hunting.
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