By Sherry DiBari
For Agnes Sullivan, ’94 (M.S. ’09), respect for the mission is paramount.
As Deputy Director of Engineering at Arlington National Cemetery, Sullivan manages the daily operations of the nation's most hallowed grounds, balancing a demanding schedule that includes overseeing four divisions and managing an over $500 million expansion project—all while the cemetery hosts 27-30 funerals Monday through Friday, another 7-10 on Saturdays and 3 million visitors annually.
“We need to make sure each funeral is dignified and special for all the families,” Sullivan said.
Sullivan oversees the supervisors of four divisions in the Cemetery’s Engineering Directorate: Facilities and Maintenance, Planning and Resources, Horticulture, and Design and Construction.
Collectively, they are responsible for all facilities and infrastructure—horizontal and vertical. Their duties include facility maintenance, capital improvements, real property management, environmental planning and grounds.
“Most of my job is problem solving, relationship building, mentoring and ensuring that things get done,” Sullivan said.
Sullivan’s journey to Arlington National Cemetery began as an undergraduate in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Old Dominion University.
She feels strongly that ODU was the right choice.
“I had some tough classes that I didn’t do well in,” she said. “I received so much support from my professors, advisors, fellow students/friends and the department.”
“I am convinced I would not be an engineer if I had gone to any other school.”
It was at ODU that Sullivan met Ellen Lundevall, her best friend and classmate.
Lundevall, who passed away from cancer 10 years ago, was a huge influence in Sullivan’s life, even helping Sullivan obtain her first engineering job with Parsons Brinckerhoff (now WSP USA).
Sullivan worked with the Department of the Navy in Hampton Roads for nearly a dozen years before taking a position with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in 2016.
In 2020, she joined Arlington National Cemetery as an Army civilian employee.
In the time from graduation to her current position, she married Matt Sullivan—also an ODU engineering graduate, had two children, became a licensed Professional Engineer (PE) and earned a master’s degree in environmental engineering.
For Sullivan, her career has served as an important example for her two daughters, both pursuing degrees in engineering.
“I used to have a lot of guilt about choosing to work instead of spending as much time with my kids as possible,” she said. “But it’s not just about spending time, it's also about showing them that it’s important as young ladies to be successful and to strive for success in their lives.”
Outside of work and home, Sullivan actively pursues numerous interests, including travel.
Just in the past year, she visited a friend in Singapore, hiked the Inca trail in Peru and volunteered on a week-long dental service trip to Cambodia.
Later this summer, the whole family will travel to Paris for the Olympics.
She also serves as assistant treasurer of the Northern Virginia Society of Military Engineers.
Lately, Sullivan has been focused on the 50-acre expansion project, which will add an additional 80,000 interment spaces. The project includes the relocation of a public road.
The process is time-consuming. Federal budget requests are submitted two years in advance and due to the cemetery’s historic status, the project requires collaboration with numerous regulatory bodies.
“If you work for the federal government, you have to have patience,” she said.
Sullivan doesn’t mind the wait; she recognizes the lasting significance and value of the cemetery projects, as well as their long-term operation.
“I feel like the projects we create and manage here are making history,” she said. “There is not a day that goes by that I’m not heartened by our mission.”