Honoring
Calvin T. Ladner,
President of LJA
After a courageous and hard-fought battle with complications related to the coronavirus, Calvin T. Ladner, PE, President of LJA Engineering, Inc., passed away on August 18, 2020. As a constant presence in the life of LJA for over 33 years (23 as President), the loss of our founder and leader will be profoundly felt by all who knew him. He loved our company and its people – employees and clients – with everything he had. Calvin fostered a deeply rooted sense of family; he mentored a culture where we can all thrive and be the best of ourselves; and most importantly, he leaves a legacy of immeasurable strength and success that we can proudly carry on.
LJA in 1997, his first year as President.
Calvin, on the far right, has always stood to the side in every company photo, making sure his employees are front and center.
Native Texan Calvin T. Ladner, PE, was President, CEO, and Chairman of the Board of Directors of LJA Engineering, Inc.–one of the largest and most successful employee-owned, multi-discipline, civil engineering firms in the US.
Leading LJA recovery through Hurricane Ike in 2008.
Top far left, early in his career with the firm’s baseball team.
After graduating from Texas A&M University, Calvin started his engineering career as an intern for the Texas Department of Transportation, then went to the small firm Winslow & Associates after graduating. The year was 1982, and the first project Calvin worked on was a new master-planned community called The Woodlands.
Fast forward to 2020. After 23 years at the helm, Calvin led LJA to top 1,200+ employees in 40 offices in three states and to be the 65th largest engineering design firm in the United States.
LJA Houston-area company photo in 2019.
LJA is what it is because of Calvin. With a vision of employee-ownership from day one and an effort to diversify services to weather all economic and operational storms, Calvin’s leadership (his style, temperament, and courage) guided LJA to our current success and growth. It is absolutely impossible to separate our President from our firm’s legacy, stability, and integrity.
Donations in Calvin’s honor can be made to the scholarship we have established in his name at Texas A&M University: The LJA Engineering Calvin Ladner ‘80 Memorial Scholarship. Below is detailed information if you would like to make a contribution – any monetary amount will be accepted.
Mail a check payable to the Texas A&M Foundation to:
Texas A&M Foundation
401 George Bush Drive
College Station, TX 77840
Please include “04-37058 LJA/Ladner Scholarship” on the memo line
OR
Credit Card donations can be made via txamfoundation.com/give. On the first drop-down menu, select “An Unlisted Account (Enter Manually),” and enter 04-37058. Note: Visa/Mastercard will get a 3% fee for online transactions, so the university actually prefers checks.