Morgan State University's Mitchell School of Engineering has appointed a highly respected technology executive as the chair of its Electrical & Computer Department.
Dr. Charles Johnson-Bey, who is a multi-award-winning BEYA recipient and a member of the National Academy of Engineering, will be joining Morgan's School of Engineering this fall following a career in which he has held senior positions at Lockheed Martin, Booz Allen Hamilton, Motorola, and Corning.
He obtained his bachelor's degree in electrical and computer engineering from Johns Hopkins University and a doctorate in electrical engineering from the University of Delaware.
Dr. Johnson-Bey serves on the board of Project Led the Way.
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Six years ago, the pioneering engineer, who was born in East Baltimore, made a service call on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
At that time, he explained the reasons for him representing his employer at groups which work with children throughout the country.
He pointed out that people usually assume that areas with limited resources have nothing valuable.
That's where the BEYA STEM Conference has a positive impact, he said, since it brings to light able-minded children from loving families who have the potential to succeed.
The BEYA STEM Conference assists people in finding scientists, technologists, and engineers. BEYA is an environment in which children can see people who resemble them and feel that they are being represented.
Dr. Johnson-Bey has gone to schools and has mentored young people who are interested in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).
Having been a professor at Morgan State University in Baltimore, he urged the students to consider what they could achieve and reminded them that their dreams were possible, as he did on the Larry Young Show.
He tells them that they can use their education and skills to reach their goals and to improve both their own lives and those of their families.
At Baltimore Polytechnic, he encouraged the students to study math through the medium of music in class.
The Baltimore Polytechnic Institute, which is known as Poly, is one of the city's oldest high schools.
"We talk about the mathematical basis of music and how all the elements fit together," he explained. "We also look at what can be done with sound, how it can be created, and how music can be used to help people feel better in crowded areas. In this way we are investing in our children and in ideas as a community, and it helps the students to see the value in what they can do."
Johnson-Bey received a career achievement award at BEYA.
He was described as one of the most outstanding STEM mentors and volunteers by a leading defense contractor.
"It was a big gala," Johnson-Bey said about the BEYA STEM event. "My whole family was there—three children and my wife of 27 years. When I walked out on to the stage and heard all the affection from the audience, including former students from Morgan and long-time colleagues, I thought about all the hard work that is involved in being committed to one's profession and in helping young people."
At the 2020 BEYA STEM Conference he gave seminars on Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math for pre-college students.
"Often people think, 'I don't look like that, or I don't like math that way.' But if you tell someone that you'll give them five dollars from their paycheck and then give them four, they can add very quickly. We want people to realize that math is present in finance, dance, art, and video games," he said. Nowadays many video games make use of augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR). A great many of our children play these games, and we want them to know that they have a place where they can develop their ideas and dreams.
He urged parents in Baltimore, in Washington, D.C., in Maryland and in Virginia to take their children with them to the BEYA STEM Conference.
"The BEYA Conference enables us and our community to grow and to connect," he stated.
For 40 years the BEYA STEM Conference has encouraged young people to achieve their aims and careers by means of their passion, education and hard work. Every year, leaders and professionals in the field of STEM come together in order to inspire and motivate a new generation of university graduates who will contribute to the 21st-century economy.
As a member of the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and as co-principal investigator of the Engineering Research Visioning Alliance, he gave the first presentation at the NAE National Meeting on the Frontiers of Engineering-ERVA Idea Awards. Throughout his career Johnson-Bey has worked on solving complicated engineering and technology problems. He has held the position of professor and researcher, obtained a doctorate in electrical engineering and has worked at the Motorola research labs and at Corning’s Research and Development Center.