From a structural firm to independent consulting and peer review
Elena's scope on this site mirrors the narrow, load-path focus she's built her career around.
Elena earned her BS in Civil Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin in 2012, and her Texas Professional Engineer (PE) license in 2017. Her early career was spent at a mid-size structural firm doing residential and light-commercial work — wood-framed multifamily buildings, custom homes, and a substantial volume of deck and stair packages.
She spent several years specifically reviewing and detailing stringer systems, ledger connections, and load paths — the structural elements that decide whether a stair holds up under real use, not just under a code minimum. She later moved into independent consulting and peer review, which is the work she still does today.
BS Civil Engineering, University of Texas at Austin
Foundation for a career centered on structural design and review.
Structural firm, residential & light-commercial work
Wood-framed multifamily, custom homes, and deck/stair packages, including detailed review of stringer systems and ledger connections.
Earns Texas PE license
Licensed to independently stamp and review structural work in Texas.
Joins mystaircalculator.com as Structural Consultant
Began reviewing the site's structural and material-specific calculators, and pulled in Jordan Okonkwo — a past collaborator — to build them.
A deliberately narrow scope
Elena reviews the logic behind the numbers — she does not sign off on any individual project.
What Elena's review scope covers — and doesn't
In scope
Stringer spacing, beam-span checks, footing sizing, and how those calculations differ across wood, steel, and concrete stair systems.
Explicitly out of scope
She does not approve any individual project for construction. Each calculator remains a planning and estimation aid, not a substitute for a stamped engineering review on an actual job.
That narrow scope is intentional — a general-purpose calculator can't account for site-specific soil conditions, load combinations, or local amendments, and pretending otherwise would be worse than being upfront about the limit.
Licenses and verifiable experience
Review scope: two categories
Elena's sign-off applies specifically to these categories — not the full 93-tool library. Geometry, stair types, and code compliance are Marcus Hale's scope; site implementation is Jordan Okonkwo's.
Structural & Load Engineering
7 toolsStringer spacing, beam-span, landing framing, footing size, ledger attachment, joist hanger count, and load/weight capacity calculators.
Material-Specific Structural
11 toolsThe same structural math split by material — concrete, wood, steel, and other build-material stair calculators.
| What's checked | Applies to |
|---|---|
| Stringer spacing & sizing | Structural & Load Engineering |
| Beam-span & footing calculations | Structural & Load Engineering |
| Material-specific load differences (wood/steel/concrete) | Material-Specific Structural |
Beyond the calculators
Elena lives in East Austin with her partner and a rescue dog who has claimed her drafting table as his own. She continues independent structural consulting and peer review alongside her work reviewing this site's calculators.
These calculators are planning and estimation aids, not stamped engineering documents. They don't replace a licensed structural engineer or a stamped review on an actual project. Always confirm final load-bearing dimensions with a licensed engineer before construction.
Who else reviews this site
Marcus Hale
Lead Content & Code Reviewer · Portland, ORLicensed Oregon GC reviewing the Core Geometry, Stair Types, and Code Compliance calculators against IRC text and job-site buildability.
Full bio & credentials →
Jordan Okonkwo
Site Editor & Developer · Chicago, ILBuilds and maintains all 93 calculators and re-checks live output against the source Marcus or Elena approved before anything ships.
Full bio & credentials →