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Transportation Training Academy

Transportation Project Management Institute (TPMI) at the University of Virginia Center for Transportation Studies

The Transportation Project Management Institute (TPMI) is a 9-day intensive residential training program exclusively designed for managing the development phase of transportation projects. The program’s objective is to enhance the knowledge and skills of project managers in order to complete projects on-time and on-budget. The program has been developed specifically for project management practitioners from VDOT, local government, and private consulting firms. Participants will be able to directly apply their learning of project management principles, practices, and techniques to their day-to-day jobs. Instructional hours in this program may qualify for meeting Virginia professional engineer licensure (or other) continuing education requirements. Certificates of attendance will be awarded to all participants who successfully complete the program.

Given that a central component of TPMI is the cooperative learning that occurs among participants during discussions and in case study work, an application process has been established to ensure that an appropriate cohort of participants collaborate together in the Institute. 

To access and complete the application, please click here.

TOPICS

This comprehensive program is comprised of course modules covering a wide range of areas. The curriculum has been designed to provide participants with all the necessary tools needed to effectively manage projects through the development phase. Course modules include:

• Understanding Personality
• Leading the Project Team
• Communication Skills
• Project Development Process
• Project Planning
• Risk Management
• Project Scope Management
• Scheduling
• Estimating
• Ethics
• Effective Consultant Relationships
• Consultant Procurement Process
• Negotiation
• Effective Presentations

BENEFITS

• Identification of best project management practices
• Strengthened project management competencies
• Improved organizational effectiveness in managing project scopes, schedules, budgets
• Opportunity to impact project management policies, procedures, and practices
• Learning from real-life case study exercises with relevancy and applicability to everyday projects
• Establishing or enhancing valuable relationships and exchange of project management  experiences and lessons learned between VDOT and Industry
• Professional network development

In addition, participants will work collaboratively to complete an Institute project that will be presented to program faculty and key transportation leaders at the completion of the Institute.

TPMI Directors, Dr. Brian Smith of the University of Virginia, as well as Mr. John Simmers and Mr. Jeff Cutright of VDOT, will oversee the Institute.  For any program related questions, please contact:

Brian Smith – briansmith@virginia.edu
John Simmers - John.Simmers@VDOT.Virginia.gov
Jeff Cutright - Jeffrey.Cutright@VDOT.Virginia.gov

TESTIMONIALS

Here is a sample of what past participants have said about the TPMI program:

"As a consultant, it was a great chance to work with all these VDOT folks and folks from different localities in varying positions from all over the state and learn their perspective on these topics.... Although I have been working on VDOT projects in one aspect or another for the last 8 years, I learned a lot over the last 2 weeks."

"It was a privilege and an an honor to be selected for the course and I had an incredible time. The staff, the presenters, and my fellow students were all top caliber and I will cherish my experience for many years to come. One cannot attend this class and come away uninspired. Thank you."

"I wanted to let you know what a great job you folks did with the recent TPMI class. I can't think of another class that challenged and motivated me quite like this did."

"I expected to enhance my project management skills to better manage my projects. This program exceeded my expectations. All presentations were beneficial and useful to my present job."

FACULTY

The mix of instructors makes this program very unique. UVA faculty, renowned for their expertise in the field, as well as VDOT and industry experts in project management have been carefully selected for the program.

LOCATION

Classes, accommodations, and dining facilities are all located at the Darden Graduate School of Business Administration. The address is:

Darden Graduate School of Business Administration
100 Darden Boulevard, Charlottesville, Virginia 22903

Please visit the following website for Darden Map and Directions
http://www.darden.virginia.edu/web/About/Directions-Transportation/Home/

Upon arrival on Tuesday, May 8, participants will check in and pick up their information packets from the registration desk at 10:30 a.m. in the Darden Gate House building, located at the entrance of the Darden School of Business Administration.

ACCOMMODATIONS

Participants will enjoy seven nights of on-grounds accommodations at the Sponsors Executive Residence Center, beginning Tuesday, May 8. The facility is located on the North Grounds of the University of Virginia, adjacent to the Darden Graduate School of Business Administration. Sponsors Executive Residence Center is a full-service facility, complete with a recreation center, 24-hour service desk, and a world-class support staff. It includes 120 well-appointed air-conditioned guest rooms, each with a private bath and queen-size bed. The facility also offers 20 spacious conference rooms for meetings and lectures, a fully equipped fitness center, game room, and a guest lounge.

Parking is provided free of charge for all participants staying at the Sponsors Executive Residence Center.

GUEST ROOM FEATURES

Living accommodations at Sponsors Executive Residence Center are designed for comfort. Guest room amenities include: Private bath, Queen-size bed, Alarm clock/radio, Cable TV, Hairdryer, Coffeemaker, High-speed Internet, Voicemail, and In-room safe.

MEALS
 
While at Darden, participants dine at the Abbott Center Dining Room, adjacent to the classrooms and living quarters. The main dining room seats 160 people and is surrounded by six smaller, private dining rooms that can seat 20–50 guests. The Abbott Center features excellent food, service, and atmosphere. For the past several years the Darden School’s facilities have been ranked as one of the top five in the world with respect to food and accommodations.

FEE

TPMI is an all-inclusive program. The tuition fee is $4,000 per participant and covers all course materials, meals, accommodations, and a certificate of completion. Personal and company checks are accepted. Sorry, we cannot accept cash or credit card payments. Receipts are available upon request.

TPMI FINANCIAL AID

To encourage local government participation in the TPMI, VDOT is partnering with the UVA Center for Transportation Studies (CTS) to offer partial scholarships, up to $2,000 (half the cost of tuition) to eligible local government staff.  Local government staff must first apply to UVA CTS by March 5 for eligibility determination, and state on their application that they wish to be considered for the VDOT scholarship.  Applicants will be notified of scholarship awards the week of March 12.  Scholarship evaluation criteria include local government size, locality participation in VDOT-funded programs, and the applicant’s project management responsibilities.  Additional questions regarding VDOT Scholarships may be referred to Clark Woods at 804-692-0565.

Private sector employers who are members of the Virginia Transportation Construction Alliance may be eligible for a tuition rebate of $500 per participant. For details contact Tom Witt, Engineer Director, VTCA, (804) 330-3312, Tom@VTCA.org

ABOUT OUR CENTER

The Center for Transportation Studies is a joint partnership between the University of Virginia’s School of Engineering and Applied Science and the Virginia Center for Transportation Innovation and Research, the research branch of the Virginia Department of Transportation. With over six decades of technical innovation and experience in transportation research, today the Center oversees a comprehensive program that includes education, research, and public service.  The Center faculty, that span the departments of Civil & Environmental Engineering as well as Systems and Information Engineering, are highly regarded both as scholars and as researchers.  They have been the recipients of University teaching awards, including two faculty members who are members of the National Academy of Engineering. During the last several decades, the Center has held long-term research partnerships with state & federal transportation agencies as well as national transportation consortiums with other leading universities.

ABOUT UVA

The University of Virginia has been consistently ranked as the best public university in the country by U.S. News & World Report. It has also been ranked in the top 25 among 249 national universities, which includes public and private institutions.

For specific curriculum inquiries: Dr. Brian L. Smith
Email: bls2z@virginia.edu
Telephone: 434-243-8585

For general program inquiries: William Kelsh
Email: wek5k@virginia.edu
Phone: 434-982-2897

TRANSPORTATION PROJECT MANAGEMENT INSTITUTE
TPMI

MAY 8 – 17, 2012
CENTER FOR TRANSPORTATION STUDIES
UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA
CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA

CURRICULUM

The curriculum of the Fourth Annual Transportation Project Management Institute (TPMI) is designed to address the following objectives:

• Provide hands-on experience in relevant transportation project management issues/challenges through a series of case study exercises.
• Solidify fundamental project management knowledge and skills through lectures/discussions with experienced faculty from academia, government, and industry, as well as group interaction with other project management professionals.
• Build communities of project managers with extensive team-based work on case study exercises and numerous opportunities for small group discussions and interaction.

Based on these objectives, the curriculum was designed to center around a series of case study exercises that run the entire duration of the Institute – culminating with a final presentation and discussion session.  Students will work together in teams to complete the case studies.  In addition, lecture/discussion sessions are scheduled to support the progression of the case study, and to help solidify and extend participant project management knowledge and capabilities.  All faculty in the Institute are experts in their fields, and also have direct transportation experience.  Finally, the residential setting of the Institute, with numerous opportunities for student and faculty interaction, provides the ideal environment for community building. 

SCHEDULE
May 8 – May 17, 2012

Hospitality Suite – Darden’s Sponsors Executive Residence Center (Sponsors Hall)