After graduating from Virginia Tech with a bachelor's degree in civil engineering in 1967, Hank Gordon demonstrated his leadership skills in Vietnam as an Airborne Ranger with the First Air Cavalry Division. He was decorated five times for heroism in ground combat and was awarded the Purple Heart for wounds received in action. In addition, his unit received the coveted Itschner Award as the best engineering unit in the U.S. Army.



Back in the states after his tour of duty, Hank became a registered professional engineer in Virginia in 1972 and began his career, working as a project engineer for a wide variety of urban and residential developments. Just four years later he founded his own firm, William H. Gordon Associates (WHGA) in Reston, Virginia.



During the past 26 years, WHGA has provided more than $10 billion worth of engineering management services for private, commercial, industrial, public and residential developments. Mr. Gordon has acted as principal-in-charge of engineering construction plans for the Fairfax County and Arlington County governmental centers and for a number of other notable projects, including Plaza America, the Trinity Center, Electronic Data Systems headquarters, worldwide facilities for the U.S. Army Security Agency, and the relocation of the National Institutes of Health cyclotron facility.



Mr. Gordon also has managed the civil and site engineering of a number of educational and institutional projects in Northern Virginia and Maryland.



Since the early 1990s, Mr. Gordon has been involved in the design and construction of championship golf courses. He was the golf course designer for the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority's course at Brambleton in Loudoun County, an 18-hole facility designed to U.S. Golf Association standards. He also has participated in various aspects of the design for 16 other golf course projects in Virginia and Maryland.



Mr. Gordon's career has been marked by service to his profession and recognition of his contributions as an engineer and professional leader. In 1987 the Fairfax County Chamber of Commerce selected WHGA as the Small Business of the Year. Under appointments from both Gov. Douglas Wilder and Gov. George Allen, Mr. Gordon served on the Commonwealth of Virginia's Board for Architects, Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors and Landscape Architects. He is a life member of the Board of Directors for the Northern Virginia Building Industry Association and served as vice-chairman of the Route 28 Improvement District Advisory Board. He also served on the Board of Directors of George Mason Bank and United Bank.



Mr. Gordon is a past president of the Engineers and Surveyors Institute (ESI), a regional group of civil engineers and land surveyors who serve as advisors to local and state government agencies on matters of development, planning and design. During Mr. Gordon's tenure as president, ESI was selected by the U.S. Senate to receive the prestigious Gold Medallion Award for Productivity in the State of Virginia.



Among Hank's numerous other affiliations is service as a past member of CEE's Alumni Board.



Hank has three children-Bud Gordon, Sharon Gordon, and Anne Gordon Tirona, who also is a Virginia Tech graduate. In addition, he is the proud grandfather of nine-month-old Tyler Gordon Tirona. When he finds spare time, Hank is an avid golfer and bow hunter.