Lauren January was named the Oklahoma Department of Transportation’s Roadway Design Engineer in Aug. 2025. In this leadership role, she is responsible for overseeing the design of highway projects across the state, ensuring they meet safety, efficiency and engineering standards.

Since 2022, January has served as ODOT’s State Traffic Engineer. Her previous roles include Assistant State Traffic Engineer and State Geometric Engineer, where she led efforts in geometric design and traffic analytics within the Roadway Design Division. She began her career at ODOT in 2013 as an intern and later advanced through roles as a professional engineer and manager in the Traffic Engineering Division. She also brings prior experience from the private consulting sector.

January earned her bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from the University of Oklahoma and became a licensed Professional Engineer in 2013. She has been active in many leadership roles within the Department, sitting on the Engineering Development Council as well as the ODOT TSMO group. She is also active in state and national organizations, such as the Oklahoma Traffic Engineering Association, WASHTO, AASHTO and the Safe Oklahoma Summit.