Leadership

Myrissa Welch
Chair, SSSBA
Steel Applications Engineer, SSAB

Myrissa Welch brings a strong technical background and extensive industry experience to her role as Chair of the Short Span Steel Bridge Alliance (SSSBA). She earned her BS in Materials Science and Engineering from Virginia Tech and an MBA in Organizational Leadership from the University of Iowa. A skilled metallurgist with hands-on experience in steel applications, Welch is well-positioned to advance the SSSBA’s mission of promoting cost-effective, resilient and accelerated solutions for short span steel bridge projects.
Email: myrissa.welch@ssab.com

Michael G. Barker, Ph.D.
Director, SSSBA Bridge Education Center
Professor, Civil & Architectural Engineering, University of Wyoming

Dr. Michael Barker received his BS and MS in Civil Engineering from Purdue University and his PhD from the University of Minnesota. He was a Civil Engineering faculty at the University of Missouri-Columbia for 13 years before joining Civil & Architectural Engineering at the University of Wyoming in 2003. Dr. Barker is a participating member of the AISI Bridge Task Force and is a Bridge Technology Center representative to the Short Span Steel Bridge Alliance. His primary research pertains to steel bridges, experimental testing, bridge design specifications, bridge field testing, high performance steel and reliability analyses of structures.
Email: barker@uwyo.edu

Karl E. Barth, Ph.D.
Co-Director, SSSBA Bridge Technology Center
Jack H. Samples Distinguished Professor at West Virginia University

Dr. Karl Barth is the Jack H. Samples Distinguished Professor of structural engineering at West Virginia University.  Prior to his appointment at WVU, he completed his doctorate degree at Purdue University and served as a bridge engineer for CH2M Hill.  His primary research interest is in the area of steel bridge design, rating, behavior and analysis.  Much of Dr. Barth’s work is in codes and standards development where he was a contributing author to major revisions to the AASHTO LRFD Bridge code provisions for steel girder bridges.  Dr. Barth is currently one of the leaders of the Short Span Steel Bridge Alliance’s Bridge Technology Center – and is a nationally known expert on the design and construction of press brake tub girders for short span application.
Email: Karl.Barth@mail.wvu.edu

Gregory K. Michaelson, Ph.D., P.E.
Co-Director, SSSBA Bridge Technology Center
Associate Professor, Department of Civil Engineering at Marshall University

Dr. Greg Michaelson is an associate professor in the Department of Civil Engineering at Marshall University and a member of the Short Span Steel Bridge Alliance’s Bridge Technology Center.  He completed his Ph.D. at West Virginia University in 2014 and is a registered professional engineer in West Virginia.  Dr. Michaelson’s research interests are focused in the area of structural engineering and include efficiency & economics of steel bridge design, modular/accelerated bridge construction, and experimental investigation of structural systems.
Email: michaelson@marshall.edu

Dan Snyder
Director, SSSBA
Vice President of Construction, American Iron and Steel Institute

Dan Snyder is the director of business development for the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI). Dan graduated with a bachelor’s degree from the Pennsylvania State University and obtained a master’s degree in business administration from Johns Hopkins University. He has been employed with AISI for 25 years, managing the commercial construction and transportation & infrastructure markets—including steel bridges, cold-formed steel framing, and steel utility poles.  Dan helped to establish the Short Span Steel Bridge Alliance in 2007, and served as the director from 2007-2015, and returned as the director in 2019.
Email: dsnyder@steel.org