At a recent BEYA Conference, the President and CEO of Exelon Corporation, Calvin G. Butler, presented an award to Justin Simpson, a Walmart data security expert.

Simpson received the Black Engineer of the Year Chairman’s Award for his work mentoring students at historically Black colleges and universities, as well as for his efforts through a non-profit he founded called A Little Bit of Hope.

Simpson emphasized his passion for leaving a legacy during his acceptance speech, inspired by the achievements of those who came before him, including civil rights leaders like Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr., former President Barack Obama, and others.

The Legacy Awards, presented at the BEYA STEM Conference, honor individuals who have volunteered in the STEM community and have made outstanding contributions to the STEM workforce.

These awards have been given to men and women who have won the Black Engineer of the Year Award (BEYA) since 1987. The Special Recognition honors were renamed in 2016 to honor the legacy of BEYA. The Engineering Deans Breakfast at BEYA has been the venue for special recognition honorees to receive Legacy Awards for over five years.

Sunita Benson-Agwu, a young executive at Pepco, a unit of Exelon Corporation, will receive the 2024 Calvin G. Butler Legacy Award at the 38th annual BEYA STEM Conference in February.

Pepco provides safe and reliable energy service to approximately 894,000 customers in the District of Columbia and Maryland.

Sunita has made a positive impact on the organization since beginning her career as an intern in transmission and substation engineering.

She has held various positions over the years, including project manager, supervisor in construction & maintenance, and her current role as the manager of Smart Grid Project Execution.

Some of Sunita’s notable achievements include her work on large new substation construction projects, such as being the civil lead responsible engineer for the Mt. Vernon New Build substation.

Her efforts led to the project receiving board of zoning approvals while working closely with the community on the building design. Sunita attended community meetings to share the technical details of the planned project, discuss the potential impacts on residents, and provide the mitigation strategy.

Sunita is committed to upholding Exelon’s values and promoting employee engagement. She was a 2021 Leadership Greater Washington rising leader fellow and serves as a program manager for Exelon’s EDGE leadership development program.

Additionally, Sunita is a member of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Council for PHI and is the team lead for the Inclusive Workplace subcommittee. She also leads the ‘Learn, Share & Grow (LSG)’ series, which fosters alignment with other departments.