July 22, 2009
Heather D. Browning
Community Relations Manager
(540) 961-1199
hbrowning@blacksburg.gov
www.blacksburg.gov
Priscilla Morales Cygielnik has joined the town of Blacksburg as assistant director of public works following a competitive search and selection from a field of over 40 candidates.
Cygielnik has a B.S. degree in Civil Engineering from Virginia Tech, an M.B.A. from the University of Florida. She relocated to Blacksburg last year and worked for a local engineering and design firm after serving five years as a project manager for the Miami-Dade Public Works Department and four years as a project engineer with Burns & McDonnell Engineering in Coral Gables, Florida. She has extensive knowledge in planning, design, and construction administration of major infrastructure projects with expertise in community enhancement projects and bicycle and pedestrian safety improvements.
Cygielnik is a registered professional engineer in Virginia, Florida, and Illinois. She was born in the Panama Canal Zone to a Brazilian mother, Penelope Morales, and a Puerto Rican father, Lieutenant Colonel Mario Morales Jr. She speaks Spanish and Portuguese, and spent the first thirteen years of her life living overseas in Panama, Brazil, Spain, and Puerto Rico as an Air Force "brat."
She will be assisting the public works department with a variety of responsibilities, to include managing the department’s input into the design review process, labor and equipment resource allocation, performance measurement, and project management.
“Priscilla brings to the town a high level of technical expertise and professionalism,” said Director of Public Works Kelly Mattingly. “We are confident that her knowledge and experience will enable the Public Works department to better meet the challenges of the future.”