Photo By Michael Maddox | Brandon Brummett, Louisville District outreach coordinator, speaks to local officials...... read more read more
An outreach coordinator is often the public’s first point of contact with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers during times of need and plays a dynamic role on projects that can have lasting impacts for communities. For Brandon Brummett, Louisville District outreach coordinator, the position is a way to connect people, projects and purpose.
“This is definitely NOT where I thought my career would take me,” said Brummett.
This year, Brummett celebrates 30 years with the Louisville District, a journey that began while he was still an undergraduate student at the University of Louisville.
As part of the co-op program, Brummett sent his resume to several potential companies. Several weeks later, he received a letter from the Louisville District. “I didn’t even know what the Corps of Engineers did back then, other than building Lake Cumberland, but my parents told me that it would probably be a good job,” he said. “Based on their advice, and advice from UofL, I accepted the offer.”
He joined the soils section of geotechnical engineering, going on to complete all three of his co-op rotations with the district and continuing to work part-time while finishing his undergraduate degree in Civil Engineering. Upon completing his master’s thesis, he joined the district full-time through the Department of the Army Intern Program, a two-year program that provides opportunities for civilians to receive broad on the job training and development across a spectrum of positions within USACE.
“I think that time as a DA Intern was very valuable because I got to get a lot of first-hand experience that has helped me throughout my career,” Brummett said. “I was able to see military construction first-hand, see what a dewatered lock chamber looks like and look for cracks in the gates, visit each one of the district’s lakes and check out the bypass valves in the control towers, and get a good feel for what project managers do.”
From there, Brummett moved into a planner and project/study manager position in the Planning Division. During his time there, he passed the Professional Engineer licensure exam, gained experience with the district’s multi-disciplinary work and signed up to be the debris team action officer, deploying to assist with debris removal in West Virginia, and spending a couple of weeks in Arlington, Virginia serving as a liaison between the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and USACE after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
A few years later he moved into a project manager role focused on supporting the district’s Army Reserve mission until he ultimately settled into the outreach coordinator role in 2007, a vital position that helps people understand how USACE can support them.
He says his diverse experience with the Louisville District has enabled him to better explain what we do, how we do it and why we do it.
“I help teach people about what the Corps of Engineers does and how they can get help from us when they need it,” said Brummett. “A lot of times that is directed to cities, towns and counties but also to state and other federal agencies, as well as members of Congress and their staff.”
Brummett says he most enjoys building relationships with and helping people in his current role.
“I’ve always heard that you need to have a friend before you need a friend, and a big part of my job is building relationships with folks and then getting them connected to the different authorities we offer to get them the help they need. “This job gives me a chance to serve others, and I enjoy that.”
While Brummett enjoys his position, he notes it can be tough to balance a wide variety of responsibilities, from serving as the lead for the district’s Silver Jackets Interagency Flood Risk Management Team, which conducts diverse collaborative efforts in Indiana and Kentucky to reduce risk from floods and sometimes other natural disasters, and answering questions from Congressional staff and the general public, to trying to respond to communities after they have experienced flooding and being proactive to build relationships so that when issues arise they know how to get in contact.
“Managing stakeholder expectations is also a challenging part of my job,” he said. “When I go out to meet with people that need our help, explaining our timeline to them so they aren’t expecting us to start construction in a few weeks can be tough.”
Brummett has played a hand in many of the district’s ongoing civil works studies and projects from the beginning, and recognizes that even though his work is important, it’s all a team effort.
“I enjoy seeing something that started out as a meeting between a couple of folks from the Louisville District and some local governments turn into a project that we will construct,” he said. “Me being out there meeting with folks to lay the groundwork for these projects and studies allows more of our folks in the district to focus on delivery and execution.”
“USACE does stuff that no one else in the world can do, and I get to help connect people who have major problems with our organization which is world-renowned for being able to solve major problems.”
| Date Taken: | 04.30.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 05.06.2025 15:37 |
| Story ID: | 497190 |
| Location: | LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY, US |
| Hometown: | BROOKS, KENTUCKY, US |
| Hometown: | LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY, US |
| Web Views: | 17 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Connecting people, project and purpose: The story of an outreach coordinator, by Kelsie Hall, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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