Meet Caitlin Link

March 29th, 2024

Initially drawn to engineering due to her aptitude in mathematics and science, Caitlin contemplated various branches within the field. Structural engineering was intriguing with its focus on building bridges, while transportation engineering aligned with her passion for bus driving. She had obtained her commercial driver’s license and worked as a public transportation bus driver during her college years. However, during her junior year at the University of Massachusetts, Caitlin attended a free seminar on fish passage engineering, which opened her eyes to a field where she felt she could truly enact change.

Fish passage engineering, she discovered, addresses the challenges posed by hydroelectric dams on diadromous fish migration paths – an issue crucial for the survival of these species. This newfound passion propelled her towards specializing in water resources engineering.

After completing her bachelor’s degree in civil and environmental engineering and a master’s in environmental engineering, Caitlin relocated to Colorado, where she worked as a school bus driver and met her now-husband. Two years later, she moved to New York and began her engineering career at a small firm in Albany, focusing on fish passage studies for hydropower licensing and relicensing.

After five years, Caitlin and her husband wanted to relocate back to Colorado, and she yearned for a shift toward more hands-on projects that would shape the physical world. This led her to Galloway, where she was drawn to the broader range of water resources services, including floodplain modeling, which she particularly enjoys.

Joining Galloway in 2020 amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, Caitlin embraced new challenges despite initially lacking experience in land development. Under the guidance of mentors Chris Pauley, water resources team manager, and Suleyman Akalin, water resources project manager, she took on various projects, from rerouting the John Law Ditch for Future Legends in Windsor, CO, to hydraulic design endeavors.

While her professional life revolves around engineering, Caitlin enjoys quilting – a hobby she adopted just two years ago. Inspired by her great aunt’s craftsmanship and the parallels of the precision and detail in her engineering work, she has created five quilts in just two years. Her favorite one is inspired by the reddish-brown colors of her rescue dog.