For 35 years, the Black Engineer of the Year Awards (BEYA) conference has been held during Black History Month. The three-day event is the place to celebrate the achievements of Blacks in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields and learn about the future of the workforce. Thursday, February 11 kicks off the 2021 BEYA weekend which has lined up industry speakers, award shows, and a career fair.
The virtual job fair will feature Fortune 100 employers and attract students, educators, professionals, corporate executives, military leaders, veterans, and more. Click here to register.
Your registration will give you full access to events and activities on the BEYA World II Digital Platform. This includes the Exhibit Hall, the HBCU Village, which features a homecoming event; access to the 15 ABET-accredited Engineering Schools Suites, the Friday BEYA Pre-College Program, K-12 exhibits, and Interview Suites. See the full schedule here and don’t forget to register now.
This year’s conference is focused on the theme “Stand up! Step up! Make the Change” and Gerald Johnson, executive vice president of global manufacturing at General Motors, will receive top honors as 2021 Black Engineer of the Year. He is being recognized for accomplishments in STEM and helping to lead GM’s diversity and inclusion programs and COVID-19 response.
Other awards recognize exceptional careers in government and industry, and actions that have energized both corporations and communities alike prior to and throughout the global pandemic. Below is the full award winner list.
Black Engineer of the Year
Gerald Johnson
Executive Vice President, Global Manufacturing
General Motors
Career Achievement in Government
Commander Michael Paisant
Commanding Officer
U.S. Navy
Zachary Tudor
Associate Lab Director, National & Homeland Security Science and Technology
Idaho National Laboratory
Career Achievement in Industry
Frederiek Toney
President, Global Customer Service
Ford Motor Company
Bryan Scott
Vice President, Enterprise Services
The Boeing Company
Chairman’s Award
Calvin Butler Jr.
Senior Executive Vice President, Exelon
CEO, Exelon Utilities
Community Service
Demetria Hall
Systems Engineer Staff
Lockheed Martin Corporation
Karen “Lori” Hickman
Program Cost Schedule & Control Analyst
Northrop Grumman Corporation
Cyber Leadership Award
Fernando Martinez
Director
Walmart
Thomas Warner
Vice President, Cyber & Intelligence
Lockheed Martin Corporation
Dave Barclay Affirmative Action in Government
Quincy Alexander
Supervisory Research Engineer
U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center
Kenneth Bailey
Director, NOAA Office of Inclusion and Civil Rights
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Dave Barclay Affirmative Action in Industry
Craig Reed
Chief Procurement Officer
Corteva Agriscience
Brittany Wheeler, D. Eng.
Work Transfer Manager
Collins Aerospace
Educational Leadership – College-Level Promotion of Education
Jerrod Henderson, Ph.D.
Instructional Associate Professor of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering
University of Houston
Educational Leadership – Corporate Promotion of Education
Anthony Smith Sr.
Director
Dept of Navy, Office of Naval Research
Engineering Deans Legacy Award
Claudia Rankins, Ph.D.
Program Director
National Science Foundation
Entrepreneurial Fellow
Israel Smallwood
Sr. Project Program Manager (IOT)
AT&T
Most Promising Engineer in Government
Brandy Diggs-McGee
Research Mechanical Engineer
U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center
1st Lt. Samuel Nyamekye
Deputy Chief, Propulsion Technology Branch
Aerospace Systems Directorate, Air Force Research Laboratory
Most Promising Engineer in Industry
Kadon Kyte
Human Factors & Ergonomics Engineer
The Boeing Company
Charles Muse
Assistant Program Engineering Manager- Autonomous, SAV Production
General Motors
Most Promising Scientist in Government
Candice Hatcher-Solis, Ph.D.
Team Lead, Neurobiology of Cognitive Performance
711 HPW, United States Air Force
Larico Treadwell, Ph.D.
R&D Chemistry, Advanced Materials Laboratory
Sandia National Laboratories
Most promising Scientist in Industry
Nyaradzo Longinaker
Statistician Advisor
General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT)
Outstanding technical contribution in Industry
Obiefuna Okafor, Ph.D.
Senior Project Leader, Capital Management
Corning Incorporated
Alain Adjorlolo
Project Engineer Lead
The Boeing company
Outstanding Technical Contribution in Nonprofit
Adam Freeman, Ph.D.
Senior Materials Chemist
Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab
Yuan-jun Wei, Ph.D.
Computer Science Lead
The MITRE Corporation
President’s Award
Devdas Shetty, Ph.D., P.E.
Dean & Professor, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences
University of the District of Columbia
Professional Achievement in Government
Phillip Williams, Ph.D.
Deputy Center Chief Technologist
NASA Langley Research Center
Nydeia Bolden-Frazier, Ph.D.
Technical Advisor, Sub-core Technical Competency Warhead Lead
Air Force Laboratory Munitions Directorate, Ordnance Division, Damage Mechanisms Branch
Professional Achievement in Industry
Veronica Wesley
Principal Systems Engineer
Raytheon Technologies
Research Leadership
Cassandra Okechukwu
Principal Health and Life Scientist
The MITRE Corporation
Brannon Sam, Ph.D.
Research Investigator
Corteva Agriscience
Senior Investigator
Norbert Satchivi, Ph.D.
Principal Investigator
Corteva Agriscience
Senior Technology Fellow
Byron Sleugh, Ph.D.
Global Biology Leader
Corteva Agriscience
Student Leadership – Graduate Level
SFC Robert Nicholson
Operations and Plans NCO
U.S. Army, Mission and Installation Contracting Command (MICC), 923rd Contracting Battalion
Student Leadership – Undergraduate Level
Wesley Combs
University of Houston
Technical Sales and Marketing
Eric Cunningham
North American Executive Director Sales & Marketing
General Motors
My Ha
Director
Walmart
Keith Hamilton
Sr. Director of Programs & Business Development
Spirit Aerosystems
Admiral Michelle Howard Legacy Award
Darryl Boyd, Ph.D.
Research Scientist
Dept. of Navy, Naval Research Laboratory
Arlington W. Carter Legacy Award
Sydney Hamilton
Mechanical Design Engineer
The Boeing Company
Dr. Eugene Deloatch Legacy Award
Oliver Myers, Ph.D.
Associate Professor/Associate Dean for Inclusive Excellence for Undergraduate Studies
Clemson University – College of Engineering, Computing, and Applied Sciences
Dr. John Slaughter Legacy Award
Olie Burton
Director, Enterprise Technology Services & Support
General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT)
Dr. Sandra Johnson Legacy Award
Makita Phillips, Ph.D.
Structural Analyst
Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab
Dr. Wanda M. Austin Legacy Award
Krystal Porter
Lead Engineer
Leidos
John D. Harris II Legacy Award
Keith Burrell
Engineering Fellow
Raytheon Technologies
Rodney Adkins Legacy Award
David Williams
Director – Program/Project Management
AT&T
Stephanie C. Hill Legacy Award
Wilma Davis
Principal Engineer
Bell Textron Inc.
The BEYA STEM Conference is produced by Career Communications Group, Inc. (CCG), the leader in workforce diversity, working with all types of companies to help support them in promoting multiculturalism and gender equity in STEM fields. For more information about the 2021 BEYA STEM Conference, visit www.BEYA.org.
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