An entrepreneur and leader respected for her commitment to excellence and innovative engineering solutions, Mia Diya-Bernhard, PE, PMP, is the president and chief executive officer of Aeparmia Engineering, PLLC, in Austin, Texas. At the helm of the company since 2017, she oversees business development and marketing, manages client relations, and ensures efficient contract and operational management.
Ms. Diya-Bernhard’s years of professional prowess have garnered her deserved honors. She was named a Tory Burch Fellow in 2024 and an Austin Woman to Watch by Austin Woman Magazine in 2019 in addition to receiving The Entrepreneurial Engineer Award by the Tory Burch Foundation in 2018, among numerous other recognitions. Moreover, she is also a lifetime member of Chi Epsilon Honor Society and has received various public acknowledgements and certificates of appreciation for her presentations at educational institutions.
Before leading Aeparmia Engineering, Ms. Diya-Bernhard was a project manager at CobbFendley, an Austin-based engineering and surveying company, where she focused on utilities. Her career path also includes vital stints as a project manager specializing in land development at Bowman Consulting Group Ltd. and as a project manager for water and wastewater projects at Kleinfelder. Earlier in her career, Ms. Diya-Bernhard honed her expertise as a project manager and water and wastewater engineer for the City of Arlington. Proud of all her career opportunities, her foundational experience was as an engineer in training with Kimley-Horn in the Dallas-Fort Worth area for several years after her initial role as a student engineer with the City of Fort Worth.
Academically prepared and credentialled, Ms. Diya-Bernhard earned a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from The University of Texas at Arlington after completing an Associate of Science in general science from Tarrant County College. Just a sample of her numerous certifications include securing project management professional (PMP) certification from the Project Management Institute and her professional engineer (PE) license from the Texas Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors. Further, Ms. Diya-Bernhard holds several pre-certifications from the Texas Department of Transportation and business certifications from the City of Austin and the Comptroller State of Texas.
A dedicated professional who is also devoted to her community, Ms. Diya-Bernhard serves on the board of Austin Habitat for Humanity, having been involved with the organization for more than five years. She also is a water and wastewater commissioner for the City of Austin. Additionally, she serves as a board member and golf tournament committee chairperson with the American Society of Highway Engineers. Her past volunteer involvement has included chairing committees within the American Water Works Association (AWWA) and the National Association of Corrosion Engineers (NACE), now called the Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP).
Ms. Diya-Bernhard’s ongoing contributions and influence extend to publications and speaking engagements, having authored “M3 Safety Management for Utilities” for AWWA in 2022 and “Harwell Elevated Storage Tank: Short on Height, Long on History” in 2013. She has shared her insights at events like the Embrace Ambition Summit hosted by the Tory Burch Foundation in New York City in 2020 and SXSW’s “Pride in Interfaith Communities” session in 2018.
Married with two children and three cats, Ms. Diya-Bernhard credits her professional success to the unwavering support of her family and community, which has fueled her passion for advocacy and entrepreneurship. She is working to expand her business’s impact on utilities while continuing to champion community housing opportunities and empower women entrepreneurs to achieve financial independence. In her leisure time, Ms. Diya-Bernhard enjoys playing tennis and golf.