Heather Syverson is North Dakota Professional Communicators’ 2024 Communicator of Achievement. Syverson has enjoyed more than 20 years in the communications industry, moving from traditional journalism to communications consulting over the course of her career.

She had her first taste of press life as an award-winning reporter and news editor at the North Dakota State University student newspaper, The Spectrum. After graduating from NDSU with a Bachelor of Science degree in mass communication, Syverson became a news producer at KXJB TV, just before the station merged with KVLY TV. She was promoted to executive producer at Valley News Live, the combined KXJB and KVLY news stations. Working in local news provided a front row seat to the biggest news stories of the time, including catastrophic flooding on the Red River in 2009.

The experience of helping manage the coverage of the historic flood piqued her interest in the infrastructure that keeps communities safe. In 2011, Syverson began working for AE2S, a civil engineering consulting firm that specializes in water projects. Over the past 13 years at AE2S, Syverson has provided communication consulting services for multi-billion-dollar water supply projects, as well as flood and drought mitigation infrastructure projects in North Dakota, South Dakota, and Minnesota. Noteworthy projects include the Red River Valley Water Supply, Western Area Water Supply, Western Dakota Regional Water System, and the FM Area Flood Diversion.

Currently, Syverson is overseeing communication initiatives for more than 50 AE2S clients in North Dakota, Minnesota, Colorado, and Utah related to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Lead and Copper Rule. In addition to her work as a communication strategist, Syverson serves as AE2S media manager overseeing the firm’s media relations and newsletter publications.

Syverson has been a member of the National Federation of Press Women and its North Dakota affiliate since 2013. She has received multiple communications contest awards from NDPC and NFPW as an individual and alongside her AE2S colleagues over the years.

Communicator of Achievement is the highest honor NDPC can bestow upon one of its members. It is presented annually to a member of NDPC and NFPW who has distinguished themselves within and beyond their profession. As NDPC’s honoree, Syverson advanced to NFPW’s national competition, which will be held June 20-22 in St. Louis, Missouri.