Malika Grayson-Duncan, PhD, co-founder of Career Factory 360, shared on social media her excitement to attend the BEYA STEM Conference in Baltimore, MD, February 12-14.
She was also pleased that Career Factory 360 would have a booth at BEYA40, a goal the organization set in 2025 and achieved.
Kerron Duncan, another co-founder of Career Factory 360, shared that on February 13, 2001, he fulfilled a childhood dream and began his professional career as an engineer.
Kerron grew up in Trinidad and Tobago, where science fiction novels, shows, and World Book Encyclopedia books filled his mind with possibilities and adventure. His parents immigrated to America in 1989. Throughout middle and high school, Kerron wrote that his science teacher urged him to consider engineering in college.
At Morgan State University, where the BEYA STEM Conference held its first annual event 40 years ago, Kerron discovered what it meant to be an engineer. He spent hours in the engineering building tinkering, coding, and pushing himself to understand not just how things worked, but why.
During his senior year, Kerron worked on a capstone project through a partnership between Northrop Grumman and Morgan State’s Clarence M. Mitchell, Jr., School of Engineering. That opportunity led him to present his work at a Northrop Grumman facility in Baltimore, MD. In 2017,
Kerron received the Industry Professional Achievement Award at the BEYA STEM Conference.
During his career, Kerron served as a judge for competitions for the VEX Robotics World Championship, sponsored by the Northrop Grumman Foundation. He was also an instructor for a hands-on biology outreach and teacher-training program at the Carnegie Institution for Science in Baltimore. Another program he took part in was the Johns Hopkins Engineering Innovation Summer Program. The program helps high school students with an aptitude for math and science and an interest in engineering.
Other awards presented at the conference include the Trailblazer Award, given to professionals who make significant discoveries. Ali Duale, a senior technical staff member at IBM specializing in enterprise systems architecture, was among the scientists and engineers recognized with the Modern-Day Technology Trailblazer Award at the 2026 BEYA STEM Conference.
Jeneel Farrell, a computer science major at Howard University, shared on social media as a former Amazon Intern exploring AI-Driven Health Systems and Human-Centered Computing.
Last month, she represented Howard University at AbbVie's IP Academy, hosted by Southern University Law Center, in preparation for the AMIE Design Challenge at the BEYA STEM Conference, taking place February 12-14 in Baltimore, MD.
Farrell wrote how grateful she was to AMIE (Advancing Minorities In Engineering) and General Motors for providing this opportunity, and to AbbVie for investing in students by equipping them with real-world knowledge in intellectual property. Through this academy, she gained hands-on experience in intellectual property law, focusing on patent law.
Through interactive workshops, she learned to draft patent applications, analyze patent enforcement and infringement, and gained insights into trademarks, copyrights, inventorship, biopharmaceutical patent law, and the growing impact of AI on intellectual property. Farrell earned the IP Academy Badge of Completion, issued by Southern University Law Center.
Dr. S. Bianca Bailey, National GEM Consortium Fellow, shared that her employer, Agriwater, was at the Career Fair from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Agriwater turns manure into clean water.
Bailey also showcased her new children’s book, The Little Engineer That Could, a story designed to inspire the next generation of innovators, problem-solvers, and future engineers.