Sarah Oral is an associate overseeing the Civil Engineering and Planning Groups at Cameron Engineering & Associates in Woodbury.
A professional engineer and LEED Accredited Professional in Building Design and Construction, Ms. Oral has over 18 years of experience encompassing the fields of transportation, planning and sustainability planning, design, and analysis.
Ms. Oral has managed several significant projects on Long Island including the analysis and design of a 2-mile section of roadway that incorporates drainage and Complete Streets elements to mitigate current flooding and convert a car-centric corridor to one that supports pedestrians and bicyclists.
She is currently serving as the Long Island regional coordinator for the Clean Energy Communities program for the New York State Research and Development Authority, in which she assists local governments in completing high-impact actions items that reduce energy reliance, save money, foster a vibrant economy and improve the environment.
Ms. Oral established an affinity group at Cameron Engineering for all technical staff members that do not identify as male. These monthly meetings provide an open forum to discuss various topics that are relevant to members in a male-dominated field, whether they are early in their career or more established.
She is a member of the 2021 Class of the Energeia Partnership, which brings together a diverse group of ethical leaders from Long Island’s public, private and not-for-profit sectors to help address Long Island’s most complex issues.
She actively participates with Girls Inc. to connect with junior high and high school aged girls to demonstrate how engineering applies to all aspects of life and may be a viable career to pursue.
Ms. Oral also currently serves on the Board of Directors of Vision Long Island, an organization that promotes more livable, economically sustainable and environmentally responsible growth on Long Island.
Other affiliations include the USGBC-LI Sustainable Transportation Committee, and the steering committees of the Drive Electric Long Island Coalition, the Long Island Solar Roadmap Consortium, and the Long Island Youth Summit.
Ms. Oral has proudly served her community as a Village of Roslyn trustee since she was first elected in 2013. She is also an appointee on the Civil Engineering Technology Department Advisory Committee at Farmingdale State College.
Ms. Oral graduated from Tulane University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering and completed Accident Reconstruction Training at the Traffic Institute of Northwestern University.
How do you define success? To me, success is a combination of attaining the goals that I set for myself and enjoying the journey to meet those goals, even if it’s a bumpy road along the way.
What is the best advice you have received that has made an impact on your business? The best advice I’ve received was to be myself and to trust my instincts.
Over the years I’ve learned that our life experiences help shape the way that we approach different situations. As an engineer, I’m a professional problem solver and my personal experiences often help me think “outside the box” to come up with creative solutions to the task at hand.
What drives you to succeed? In short, I’m motivated by personal growth and the desire to help others.
As a civil engineer working in the fields of transportation, sustainability, and planning, I know that when my projects succeed, they often result in the betterment of society at large. I’m lucky that I get to work in fields that overlap with my personal passions and feel a real sense of well-being when I see projects through to completion.
