Bill Bracken recognized as 2017 Educator of the Year |
| The International Code Council (ICC) is proud of the dedication and commitment of its members from around the world. Given in honor of Brent Snyder, a renowned Code Council educator and Past Presiding Officer, the ICC Educator of the Year Award recognizes excellence in promoting professional development. The recipient of the 2017 Educator of the Year Award is Bill Bracken, a nationally-recognized expert in structural engineering and disaster response.
Bill's expertise, analysis and solutions that impact public safety and well-being are often relied upon by state and federal governments. Deeply dedicated to educating public officials and other industry leaders in disaster response, Bill dedicates his time and his company's resources to developing and instructing building safety seminars for ICC. Over the last 10 years, his time and resources have equated to the contribution of several thousands of dollars to ICC education and safety. Bill has also been one of the main developers of ICC's "When Disaster Strikes Institute," one of only two programs in the nation accepted by the Federal Emergency Management Agency for structural assessment after a disaster. Not only has he educated public officials for disaster preparedness and structural condition evaluation through this ICC institute, but by making this institute a resounding success, Bill has also made significant contributions to ICC's training reputation. Since 2012, Bill has taught 34 ICC seminars with approximately 1,400 participants. In addition, annually, Bill hosts a training event at the Bracken Engineering office where he teaches seminars on codes and related topics free of charge to offer opportunities for participants to receive Florida Continuing Education Units. Bill invented and filed a patent for an interior underpin bracket, system and method for elevating a structure (US 20080152434 A1), which allows better foundation repairs on sinkhole restoration. He sponsors a scholarship for an engineering student at the University of Southern Florida, and he is a strong advocate for internships at his firm. Recently, Bill led an initiative to combine the forces of the National Council of Structural Engineers Association's (NCSEA) Structural Engineering Emergency Response (SEER) program with the ICC Disaster Response Network. True to form, Bill recently volunteered for a seven-day deployment to assist those in need as a first responder as Florida braced for Hurricane Irma, to which Bill responded with, "This is truly an opportunity for us, as a profession, to give back to our community. And, we certainly wouldn't be able to do it without everyone's efforts and support." ICC is honored to recognize the hard work and dedication of members like Bill Bracken. |