Board of Directors

Mel Kramer

Chair

Mel is a journalist and librarian who focuses on organizing information and processes to help people do meaningful, impactful work. She has led teams and projects in the federal government, at global non-profits, and for local and national media organizations. She lives in Carrboro with her family.

Kyle Onda

Vice Chair

Kyle joined the OWASA board in July of 2023 as an appointee of Chapel Hill.

He is the Associate Director of the Internet of Water Initiative at the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, where he leads technology development and technical assistance projects designed to modernize water data management and publication by public agencies and NGOs. Kyle has training and experience as an environmental engineer, urban planner, environmental public health professional, geospatial technologist, and social scientist.

He has been lucky to pursue an academic and professional career addressing diverse and pressing policy questions about links between water, the natural and built environments, and people. He has sampled the physics, chemistry, and biology of surface waters for state regulatory agencies; managed survey fieldwork in low- and middle-income countries, collecting data about rural and urban drinking water systems and their customers; consulted on urbanization research projects associated with the World Bank and Asian Development Bank; provided research design and statistical analyses for studies of U.S. coastal hazards policies; and developed time series models to analyze customer water meter and billing data.

Kyle holds Ph.D. and Master’s degrees in City and Regional Planning, as well as a Master’s in Environmental Sciences and Engineering from UNC, and a B.S. in Environmental Engineering from Stanford.

Pedro Garcia

Secretary

Pedro Garcia was appointed to the OWASA Board of Directors by the Town of Chapel Hill. He was sworn in on June 27, 2022.

Todd BenDor

Todd BenDor is the Director of the Odum Institute at UNC-Chapel Hill. He is also the Distinguished Professor of Sustainable Community Design in the Department of City and Regional Planning and the UNC Institute for the Environment. Dr. BenDor’s research and teaching focus on improving our understanding of the impacts that human activities and development can have on sensitive ecological and environmental systems.

Bruce Boehm

Bruce Boehm began serving on the OWASA Board on July 2, 2018, as an appointee of the Town of Chapel Hill.

For more than 35 years, Bruce has led venture capital investments in technology and healthcare companies and served on diverse private and non-profit boards, supporting the growth of these industries in North Carolina, nationally, and globally.

Bruce has designed and taught technology commercialization courses at the University of North Carolina, Duke University, and North Carolina State University. Previously, he created and directed the Masters of Engineering Management Program at the University of Canterbury in Christchurch, New Zealand. Early in his career he was a design engineer at several small companies in Silicon Valley and Route 128.

Bruce has a Bachelor of Science from MIT and a Master of Science and Master of Business Administration from Stanford University. He has a special interest in infrastructure; he looks forward to engaging in OWASA’s planning process for water and wastewater infrastructure which he views as important investments in the local community.

Bruce has lived in Chapel Hill with his family since 1996 and can be spotted cycling in rural Orange County.

Susana Dancy

Susana was appointed by the Town of Chapel Hill and comes to the board with a wealth of experience in real estate investment, restoration and rehabilitation as well as public service on boards focused on community design and development.

Michael M. Hughes. P.E.

Michael is an appointee of Orange County and previously served on the Board between 2010-2015. He is a registered Professional Engineer in North Carolina and New York.

He is a graduate of Culver Military Academy, has a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Notre Dame and Master of Science in Environment Engineering (MSEE) from the Department of Public Health at UNC Chapel Hill.

After completing his MSEE, early his career he was a Senior Project Manager for a pre-eminent Environmental Engineering company, Malcolm Pirnie, Inc in New York. In that capacity he was responsible for water and wastewater projects, both in conveyance and treatment, for industrial and municipal clients across the United States and Egypt, Puerto Rico, and Antigua. One of his specialties is mathematical modeling of treatment processes and contaminant transport in natural systems.

Subsequently, in returned to Chapel Hill, to pursue advanced studies in Environmental Engineering at the University of North Carolina for a calendar year. That precipitated a change in direction, and he formed a civil engineering company. He designed and built many of the new residential subdivisions in Carrboro during the 1990’s including Wexford, Sunset Creek, Cates Farm. He worked closely with OWASA staff in the design of the water and sewer extensions for these projects.

Prior to his current engagement, he was the Engineering Manager in the Department of Public Works, City of Durham. He was responsible for the operations of the Engineering Division which is comprised of the Survey, Design, Contracting and Construction Inspections groups. All totaled there are about 36 full-time staff which designed and contracted Public Works resurfacing and construction projects, as well as provided inspection services for City and commercial projects from the development community.

Michael is currently a Senior Product Specialist with CDP, Inc. In this capacity he has responsibility for training, support and deployment services associated with CDP’s partnerships with Oracle Primavera applications for project management and scheduling, as well as the InEight Application Suite which has an array of applications used across a wide spectrum of the construction industry for cost estimating and control, document management and other functions.

Elmira Mangum

Dr. Mangum, a North Carolina native, served at the executive level of nationally recognized organizations of higher learning for more than 30 years as a change agent and has been honored nationally and internationally for her service. Dr. Mangum served as vice president for planning and budget at Cornell University, distinguished scholar in residence at Washington University in St. Louis, senior associate provost at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, vice provost at the University of Buffalo and operations specialist at the University of Wisconsin Geological & Natural History Survey in Madison. She was also the first female president of Florida A&M University where she retired from in 2019. She also held faculty appointments at these universities.

Dr. Mangum received her Ph.D. in educational leadership and policy from the University of Buffalo and graduated with honors from the University of Wisconsin – Madison with two master’s degrees: one in public policy and public administration and another in urban and regional planning. She received her undergraduate degree magna cum laude from North Carolina Central University.

Dr. Mangum’s commitment to public service is exemplified by past and current participation with numerous boards and organizations, including but not limited to an appointment by U.S. Secretary of Agriculture to serve on the U.S. Agricultural Policy Advisory Committee for Trade. She also has served on the National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering, Inc., the United Way Board of Directors, Town of Carrboro Planning Board, EMPOWERment, Inc., Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public School Foundation, and is a member of Zeta Phi Beta, Inc.