One of the largest gathering committed to increasing the number of Americans from underrepresented communities in the STEM workforce will meet in Washington D.C. during Black History Month. 

Hosted by US Black Engineer & Information Technology magazine, Council of HBCU Engineering Deans, Lockheed Martin Corporation, and Aerotek, the 32nd BEYA STEM Global Competitiveness Conference will take place February 8-10, 2018, at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park in Washington, DC.

As the United States continues to graduate fewer engineers compared to countries like China, the BEYA STEM Global Competitiveness Conference aims to unite 10,000 U.S. students, professionals, and leaders in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) from industry, government, and the military, to address inequities, increase awareness, and expand opportunities for the current and future workforce.

Also included on the agenda of the three-day event in the nation’s capital is the BEYA Gala, where award recipients will be recognized for notable achievements and accomplishments in 2017. The photo above was taken in February this year at the BEYA Gala, where the iconic engineering educator and Morgan State University’s emeritus professor Eugene D. DeLoatch accepted his award as Black Engineer of the Year.

The 2018 Black Engineer of the Year Award (BEYA), the BEYA STEM Conference’s top award, will be presented to Alicia Boler Davis, Executive Vice President, Global Manufacturing, General Motors. A pioneering automotive executive, Boler Davis is being recognized for outstanding achievements in STEM.

The 2018 BEYA nominees are (listed alphabetically by award title):

Black Engineer of the Year

Mrs. Alicia Boler Davis
Executive Vice President, Global Manufacturing
General Motors

Dave Barclay Affirmative Action

Mr. Darryl Farrow
Director, Global Diversity & Inclusion
The Boeing Company

Dave Barclay Affirmative Action

Mr. Drew Valentine
Vice President, People & Culture
IBM

Career Achievement – Government

Mr. Timothy Bridges
Assistant Deputy Chief of Staff, Logistics, Engineering and Force Protection
U.S. Air Force

Career Achievement – Industry

Dr. Charles Johnson-Bey
Cyber Solutions Engineering and Technology Director
Lockheed Martin Corporation

Community Service – Industry

Mr. Steven Brown
President of Dreams, Imagination & Gift Development Program (DIG)
Gas Turbine Controls Engineer
General Electric

The Dean’s Award

Mr. Derek McGowan
Diversity Outreach Program Manager
Lockheed Martin Corporation

Education Leadership – K-12 Promotion of Education

Ms. Tokiwa Smith
Executive Director
Science, Education, Mathematics Link Inc.

Educational Leadership – College-Level Promotion of Education

Dr. Terri Norton
Associate Professor
University of Nebraska – Lincoln

Lifetime Achievement Award

Joseph B. Anderson Jr.
Chairman
TAG Holdings, LLC

Most Promising Engineer – Government

Captain Jason Fischbach
Lead Engineer – Power, Space, and Cooling
U.S. Air Force

Most Promising Engineer – Government

Ms. LaAndrea McDonald
BMDS Test Data Manager
Missile Defense Agency

Most Promising Engineer – Industry

Mr. Hamza Syed
Lead Multi-Discipline Systems Engineer
The MITRE Corporation

Most Promising Engineer – Industry

Ms. Chandria Poole
Deputy Program Manager
Northrop Grumman Corporation

Outstanding Technical Contribution – Government

Mr. Reginald Williams
THAAD Post-Production and Sustainment Lead
Missile Defense Agency

Outstanding Technical Contribution – Industry

Mr. Kent Etienne
Technical Lead Engineer, Senior Mechanical Design Engineer
The Boeing Company

Outstanding Technical Contribution – Industry

Mrs. Arissa Hodges
Group Leader/Lead Communications Engineer
The MITRE Corporation

Professional Achievement – Government

Mr. Byron Williams
Programs and Project management Branch Chief
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

Professional Achievement – Industry

Mrs. Kathryn Hamilton
Engineering Program Manager
Northrop Grumman Corporation

Professional Achievement – Industry

Mr. Eric Biribuze
Product Line Lead
Corning Incorporated

Research Leadership

Mr. Andrew Adams
Acting Assistant Section Supervisor
The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory

Senior Technology Fellow

Dr. Jon Goldsby
Materials Research Engineer
NASA Glenn Research Center

Senior Technology Fellow

Mr. Nathan Brooks
Associate Technical Fellow, Technical Lead Engineer
The Boeing Company

Student Leadership – Undergraduate Level

Mr. David Hill
Worldwide Sales Engineer Intern
Cisco Systems

Student Leadership – Undergraduate Level

Mr. Bright Tsagli
College Assistant
Bronx Community College

Technical Sales and Marketing

Mr. Karoom Brown
Senior Vice President, Business Development & Strategy
Leidos

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