03/02/2026
Amanda Carpenter, Stacy Hill, and Daniel Soto each came to the Transportation Leadership program from very different careers within the transportation industry, representing areas such as construction, policy, and consulting. In December 2025, the students graduated with master’s degrees in civil engineering, specializing in transportation leadership, demonstrating that no single path directly leads to becoming a transportation leader.
The UFTI celebrated the graduates’ accomplishments with a pre-graduation reception at the I-STREET Lab on December 13, where their families were also invited to celebrate this very important moment together, along with Siva Srinivasan, Ph.D., professor and UFTI associate director, Kyle Riding, Ph.D., professor and head of the Department of Civil and Coastal Engineering. Representatives from the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) joined the celebration, both in person and remotely.
The interdisciplinary nature and experience of the students accepted into this program are exactly what define the Transportation Leadership program. It was created for working professionals who already have a career in the transportation industry; people who are shaping policy, improving safety, managing growth, or working in the funding and communications sphere. These roles require much more than technical skills alone; they require professionals to think like a leader and learn how to make important transportation decisions that affect communities.
Read what the students are saying about the program at https://www.transportation.institute.ufl.edu/2026/01/16/transportation-leadership-masters-program-celebrates-fall-2025-graduates/
