2026 Fee Award Recipient - Sean Dirscherl ’16 M.Eng. ’16

The Harold R. Fee 1920 Alumni Achievement Awards recognize and thank alumni who, through their engagement, have helped build a vibrant and supportive alumni community at Stevens. The 2026 Fee Awards will be bestowed to four deserving Stevens alumni at Alumni Weekend on June 6, 2026.

Sean Dirscherl ’16 M.Eng. ’16

Harold R. Fee 1920 Alumni Achievement Award

Sean Dirscherl ’16 M.Eng. ’16 was the first in his immediate family to pursue a four-year college degree. As a result, he and his parents relied on a college screening service to identify schools. Fortunately, the service matched Dirscherl’s high school qualifications and interest in engineering to Stevens.

“Still, my parents were a little skeptical about the Hoboken location, as they hadn’t visited the city since the 1980s,” he recalls. “They were surprised by how much it had changed since. The admissions office had a panoramic view of New York Harbor. Stevens’ location was, and is, ideal for activities and internship opportunities. In addition, the university’s offer of a competitive financial aid package made so much sense for us.”

While expanding his knowledge of civil engineering, Dirscherl developed his leadership abilities as president of the Stevens chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers, participation in the Student Government Association and involvement in the Alpha Phi Omega National Service Fraternity. He also built communication and presentation skills as an ambassador and tour guide for the Stevens Office of Undergraduate Admissions. Dirscherl’s hard work was recognized by membership in the Gear and Triangle Honor Society, the Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society and the Chi Epsilon Civil Engineering Society.

“As a student my best times were experienced through organizations and the lifelong friends made in the process,” he says. “Those affinities drive my spirit of volunteerism to this day.”

Dirscherl’s career is closely connected to the waterfront. “I started my career with a large waterfront contractor constructing port facilities and laying subsea transmission cables,” he says of his role as a staff engineer at Weeks Marine, Inc. He later managed projects for McLaren Engineering Group. In 2024, he joined KCI Technologies as a project manager, rising to the role of practice leader with the firm’s Transportation Alternative Delivery unit in 2026.

“I pivoted to the design space, working as a project manager for waterfront infrastructure inspection, permitting and design,” he says. “I cover a broad swath of structures day to day, including seawalls, ferry landings, marinas and shoreline protection. Currently, I leverage my experience in both design and construction to guide our alternative delivery (i.e., design-build) pursuit efforts, while maintaining a design portfolio of smaller waterfront clients in the New York City harbor area and elsewhere.”

Dirscherl is a member of the Order of the Engineer, is certified by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for Construction Quality Management and is a certified U.S. Green Building Council TRUE Advisor.

“A Stevens degree carries weight in the working world, in particular with engineering and business consulting firms in the greater New York City metropolitan area,” he says. “The most valuable skill I developed at Stevens was a fearlessness to adapt, tinker and make judgement calls in pursuit of solutions. At a time when companies are leveraging AI in their work, established procedures are getting increasingly automated. Professionals who can think creatively and work comfortably on the edges of conventional practice will have the most fruitful careers.”

After graduation, Dirscherl identified opportunities to improve Stevens’ alumni infrastructure, as it pertained to his former classmates. “First, I started the local chapter alumni network for my social fraternity, Kappa Sigma,” he says. “Shortly after I did the same for my service fraternity, Alpha Phi Omega. Both networks have become conduits for alumni to financially support students, connect with the university and engage socially with each other several times per year.”

“In addition, I along with Dr. Leslie Brunell from the CEOE Department reactivated the university’s Order of the Engineer chapter and held its first induction in many years for the graduating class of 2016,” Dirscherl continues. “The event has since become a staple on the university’s annual calendar.”

Dirscherl continues to help recruit young alumni and match them with opportunities to stay involved with Stevens. “Alumni engagement is critical to the university’s ability to meet its networking and philanthropic goals,” he points out. “Alumni, particularly young alumni, show current and prospective students that by matriculating they’ve joined a community of peers that outlasts graduation.”

Dirscherl is excited — and extremely grateful — to be recognized by his peers for this award as he celebrates his 10th reunion. “Smash Mouth was on to something — the years truly don’t stop coming!” he says. “The work we do as alumni to stay connected with the university and facilitate opportunities for others in our networks is completely volunteer, done simply for the love of the game. As the next generation of young alumni leaders step forward to create pathways for their peers and the broader community, I hope that they recognize awards like these as the university’s appreciation for those efforts.”