Ron Williams is the senior vice president and general manager at Jacobs. He won the 2024 Gerald Johnson Legacy Award, and his career at Jacobs spans over 34 years.

Williams is known for his dedication to building infrastructures that support and enhance communities for generations to come. His leadership has led Jacobs’ 18,000-strong team to pioneer new approaches to connected, sustainable communities, focusing on innovations like electric vehicles and green transit.

Williams’ vision is particularly evident in his push for digital solutions and data analytics to inform infrastructure decisions and investments. His strategic approach has led to more informed, efficient, and effective outcomes for Jacobs’ clients.

Williams joined CH2M HILL, Inc. (now part of Jacobs) in 1995 and quickly rose to lead sales for various regions and sectors. At Jacobs, he has been a crucial part of numerous significant projects, including the City of Goodyear’s New Surface Water Treatment Plant and the City of San Luis Obispo Water Resource Recovery Facility Upgrade Project.

Tanya Foutch, a quality engineering supervisor at FCA US LLC, won the 2019 Black Engineer of the Year Award (BEYA) in the Gerald Johnson Legacy category.

The award was presented at BEYA’s annual Historically Black College and University (HBCU) Engineering Deans Breakfast by Gerald Johnson. He received a BEYA for Career Achievement in 2014 and is the 2020 Black Engineer of the Year.

The Gerald Johnson Legacy Award honors BEYA winners in the automobile industry with a track record for operational excellence and leadership in training and mentoring.

“It’s my pleasure to introduce to you Tanya Foutch, who joined Chrysler over 22 years ago as a tool engineer helping to launch the 5-speed automatic transmission,” said Johnson. Tanya has worked on launch activities of new transmission and engineering changes, identifying causes for plant failures and supporting daily manufacturing operations for the Indiana Transmission Plant 1 or ITP1.

In 2016, Tanya was promoted to engineering supervisor, which brought her responsibilities to include the six-speed, nine-speed, and the launch of the new SiEVT transmission.

The single-input electrically variable transmission (SiEVT) is used for front-wheel drive applications. Tanya was named resident engineering supervisor at FCA US transmission plants in Kokomo and Tipton, Indiana. In this role, she leads a team focused on identifying quality issues for the company’s current and future portfolio of products.

Tanya is deeply committed to the advancement of engineering opportunities for women and minorities in the Kokomo community. Since 2017, she has been the energy and passion behind the successful STEM camp for girls in the Kokomo area.

During her acceptance speech at the HBCU Engineering Deans Breakfast, Tanya thanked God for her parents’ support, who pushed her to do her best. She urged young people in the audience to keep being the best they could be and not let others put limitations on the desires that God has put inside of them.

Tanya graduated from the Illinois Institute of Technology in 1995 with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering and earned a master’s degree in business administration in 2000 from Anderson University in Indiana.