Speaking at the 18th annual Stars and Stripes Dinner, which takes place on Friday during BEYA Week, the 2022 Black Engineer of the Year Ted Colbert, executive vice president of The Boeing Company and president and chief executive officer of Boeing Defense, Space & Security (seen at the podium in 2022), congratulated this year’s BEYA winners.

“I’ve long said diversity is a force multiplier,” Colbert said. “Growth and innovation are possible by challenging our assumptions and learning from the experiences and perspectives of others,” he added. “All industries are facing pressure to find a more diverse pipeline. It is a challenge that no industry can solve alone, which is why I’m proud that Boeing has partnered with BEYA and other organizations to diversify and strengthen our talent pipeline.”

Tonight, Colbert will pass the torch to the 37th Black Engineer of the Year at the annual BEYA Gala, the grand finale of the science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) festival that takes place during Black History Month.

Hosted by Career Communications Group’s US Black Engineer magazine, the 15-member Council of Historically Black College and University (HBCU) Engineering Deans, and Lockheed Martin Corporation, more than 30 category winners will be honored during the BEYA Gala on Saturday.

Colin Parris, Ph.D. will receive the top award as the 37th Black Engineer of the Year. Dr. Parris is the senior vice president and chief technology officer of GE Digital. He is recognized for his notable achievements and accomplishments in STEM.

Over his 35-year career, Dr. Parris has contributed significantly to the fields of science and engineering with his groundbreaking work in digital transformation across multiple industries, including banking, retail, high-performance computing, manufacturing, healthcare, aviation, and energy.

Today at GE, he is applying digital innovation in partnership with some of the largest energy producers and utilities to accelerate the world’s transition to a cleaner and more secure energy future.

In a press release, Chairman and CEO of General Electric and CEO of GE Aerospace H. Lawrence Culp, said, “Colin’s extensive knowledge across multiple industries—software, energy, aviation, healthcare, banking, and manufacturing—has been invaluable to GE. In addition to his many contributions to the industry, Colin is also a very committed mentor and sponsor of STEM talent, making him an ideal candidate for the Black Engineer of the Year Award.”

Last fall, the BEYA Selection Committee announced the winners of the science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) awards for the 37th annual Black Engineer of the Year Awards. The peer review committee is made up of a diverse group of scientific and technical leaders and supporters of the 15 ABET-accredited historically Black colleges. Each year, the career recognition program attracts nominations from employers in government, industry,  business, academia, and the nonprofit world.

CAREER ACHIEVEMENT IN GOVERNMENT
Lamar Garrett
Chief, Chemical Biological Center Field Element
U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Analysis Center

Capt. Kimberly Jones, U.S. Navy
Reactor Officer
USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69)

CAREER ACHIEVEMENT IN INDUSTRY
Wole Akinyemi, Ph.D.
Executive Director, Research and Technology
Cummins Inc.

Cleophus Thomas Jr.
VP, Director of Operations, Global Digital Center of Excellence
Jacobs

THE CHAIRMAN’S AWARD
Justin Simpson
Director, Data Security
Walmart Global Tech

COMMUNITY SERVICE
Dr. Lewis Pate, Jr.
Enterprise Solutions Architect
CACI International, Inc.

Anike L. Sakariyawo
Founding Executive Director
S.E.E.K. Foundation

DAVE BARCLAY AFFIRMATIVE ACTION
Scott Drach
Vice President of Human Resources for Corporate and International
The Boeing Company

Odetta Scott
Indirect Procurement—Associate Director
Raytheon Technologies

DEANS’ AWARD
Larry O. Harris
PEO-C4I/PMW-120, Assistant Program Manager-Test & Evaluation
Naval Information Warfare Center—Pacific (NIWC—PAC)

EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP—CORPORATE PROMOTION OF EDUCATION
Nathaniel Price
Environmental Engineer/Project Manager
Jacobs

ENTREPRENEURIAL FELLOW
Stella McDonald
Project Engineer
Jacobs

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Capt. Melvin Ronald Smith
Executive Assistant to the Commander, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command
U.S. Navy

MOST PROMISING ENGINEER IN GOVERNMENT
Kelan Berry
Aerospace Engineer (Propulsions Systems)
Air Force Civilian Services—AFLCMC/LPS

Lt. Timothy C. Horton
Assistant Public Works Officer
U.S. Navy, Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command—Washington, D.C.

MOST PROMISING ENGINEER IN INDUSTRY
Kendric Garmon
Software Engineer
Leidos

Zephaniah Horton
Systems Engineer, Sr.
Lockheed Martin

MOST PROMISING SCIENTIST IN GOVERNMENT
Lyndsey McMillon-Brown, Ph.D.
Research Electrical Engineer
National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Jamesa Stokes, Ph.D.
Aerospace Materials Research Engineer
National Aeronautics and Space Administration

MOST PROMISING SCIENTIST IN INDUSTRY
Houda Kerkoub
Senior Aviation Data Scientist
The MITRE Corporation

OUTSTANDING TECHNICAL CONTRIBUTION IN GOVERNMENT
Kelly Thomas Davis, Sr.
Lead Information Technology Specialist
The U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command Software Engineering Center

Crystal Hayden
Deputy Chief, Contract and Program Management Oversight Office
National Security Agency

OUTSTANDING TECHNICAL CONTRIBUTION IN INDUSTRY
Nalini Ambrose
VA Health Systems and Strategy Department
The MITRE Corporation

Bridget Beamon
Principal Systems Engineer
Raytheon Technologies

Siraaj M. Hasan
Director/Principal—National Cyber Market Lead
Booz Allen Hamilton

OUTSTANDING METAVERSE CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER
Ernest L. Smiley
Chief Data Scientist and CISO
Kingdom Capitol

PIONEER AWARD
Wendell Foster
Executive Director/
Joint Force Headquarters Department of Defense Information Networks (JFHQ-DoDIN)

PRESIDENT’s AWARD
Chauncey McIntosh
Vice President and General Manager, Training and Logistics Solutions
Lockheed Martin

PROFESSIONAL ACHIEVEMENT IN GOVERNMENT

Dr. Paige Brown
Expert Electrical Engineer and Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging Program Manager
United States Food and Drug Administration

Patrick G. Taylor, Ph.D.
Chief, Propulsion Test Branch
U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command—Aviation and Missile Center

PROFESSIONAL ACHIEVEMENT IN INDUSTRY
Sean Bradshaw, Ph.D.
Fellow, Sustainable Propulsion
Raytheon Technologies

Candice M. Smith, PMP
Director, Engineering Strategy & Operations  
The Boeing Company

RESEARCH LEADERSHIP
Bianica Pires, Ph.D.
Lead Modeling and Simulation Engineer
The MITRE Corporation

SENIOR TECHNOLOGY FELLOW
Cedric Mann
Consulting Engineer Systems Architect—Tech Fellow
Northrop Grumman Corporation

Mrs. Danielle Stephenson
Principal R&D Systems Engineer
Sandia National Laboratories

STUDENT LEADERSHIP—UNDERGRADUATE LEVEL
Erron Williams
Undergraduate Student
Prairie View A&M University

TECHNICAL SALES AND MARKETING
Everton Swearing
Global Head of Sales, 2-Wheeler & Powersports Customer Group
Vitesco Technologies USA, LLC