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GM’s Gerald Johnson recognized as 2021’s Black Engineer of the Year

By : Lango Deen

DETROIT, MI (U.S. Black Engineer) — The 2021 Black Engineer of the Year Awards (BEYA), held Thursday, Feb. 11 through Saturday, Feb. 13, was an all-digital event. The year’s conference theme was “Stand Up. Step Up. Make a Change,” a call to social justice action. Participants in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields had access to 24 hours of events, award shows, and entertainment.

An iconic line up of stars, including jazz saxophonist Gerald Albright, singer Parris Lane, and Detroit’s DJ Smooth, headlined performances featuring music that celebrated 500 years of African American culture, the contributions of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), and Blacks in the U.S. military and federal service.

BEYA’s 35th annual STEM conference offered career development seminars, presentations, and workshops led by 150 influential speakers, managers, directors, recruiters, decision-makers, and college administrators. Discussions focused on navigating health care during COVID-19, the economy, diversity, equity, and inclusion in workplaces.

High-profile companies at the Technology Recognition event feat. Modern-Day Leaders and Science Spectrum Trailblazers event included Amazon, The Boeing Company, Lockheed Martin Corporation, Northrop Grumman Corporation, Raytheon Technologies, and Walmart Global Tech.

During the specially produced 35^th Annual BEYA Gala, the 2021 Black Engineer of the Year Award went to Gerald Johnson, executive vice president, Global Manufacturing. He was recognized for his commitment to mentoring, promoting diversity, equity, inclusion, and leading General Motors’ (GM) efforts to support the United States during the pandemic.

**Gerald Johnson**, executive vice president, Global Manufacturing

Johnson, the first African American to lead manufacturing at General Motors, heads GM’s global manufacturing operations, manufacturing engineering, and labor relations organizations. He is a member of the GM Senior Leadership Team and reports to Mary Barra, chairman, and CEO of General Motors Company. “Gerald’s passion for the business, strong leadership skills, and extensive manufacturing and labor experience will help in our efforts to continue to transform the company, supporting both the core business and future of mobility,” said Barra. Johnson is the third GM employee to be named Black Engineer of the Year after Alicia Boler Davis in 2018 and Ed Welburn, the sixth design chief in GM’s history, in 2015. Boler Davis and Welburn both made comments during the live-streamed ceremony.

One of the BEYA gala highlights included Mrs. Lynn Gerald Johnson serenading her husband with a song that the family holds dear. During his acceptance speech. Johnson stressed the importance of hard work, family, faith, and community.

Bruce T Crawford, retired Lieutenant General Bruce T. Crawford, 2020 Black Engineer of the Year, and former chief information officer, United States Army, beamed in for the prestigious black-tie “Passing the Torch” ceremony with his wife to congratulate the 2021 winner of the award.

Visit Career Communications Group’s YouTube channel to view.

In addition to General Motors, there were award ceremony remarks from captains of industry, head of federal agencies and military commanders from the Air Force Research Laboratory, Army Engineer Research and Development Center, AT&T, Bell Textron Inc., The Boeing Company, Clemson University, Collins Aerospace, Corning Incorporated, Corteva Agriscience, Exelon Utilities, Ford Motor Company, General Dynamics Information Technology, Idaho National Laboratory, Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab, Leidos, Lockheed Martin Corporation, The MITRE Corporation, NASA Langley Research Center, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Science Foundation, Naval Research Laboratory, U.S. Navy, Northrop Grumman Corporation, Office of Naval Research, Raytheon Technologies, Sandia National Laboratories, Spirit AeroSystems, U.S. Army, United States Air Force, University of the District of Columbia, University of Houston, Mission and Installation Contracting Command, and Walmart.

Read the 2021 winner profiles in US Black Engineer‘s digital magazine.

At this year’s 16th annual Stars and Stripes Recognition event, part of the 2021 Black Engineer of the Year STEM conference, members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff served as keynote speakers and presenters for awards uniformed and federal Black scientists and engineers. Top brass at Stars and Stripes included General Mark A. Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General James C. McConville, Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. David H. Berger, and Chief of Staff of the Air Force Gen. Charles Q. Brown, Jr. The Military Tribute Hall compiled memorable Black achievements in the United States military.

The BEYA World Digital Platform showcased the Historically Black College and University (HBCU) Village, which featured the all-digital HBCU Engineering Deans Recognition program, the HBCU Homecoming event, and interactions with engineering deans from ABET-accredited schools at 15 HBCUs. They graduate most of America’s Black engineers.

The digital platform was also a place for job seekers. More than 100 booths were staffed by staffing specialists, corporate recruiters, and talent management professionals offering job interviews, internships, co-ops, and other positions.

The BEYA Pre-College Program featured young people’s activities to diverse STEM opportunities. Students, alumni, parents, and supporters of K-12 organizations focused on STEM.

Career Communications Group (CCG) holds its annual Black Engineer of the Year Awards (BEYA) Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) Conference during Black History Month. The annual observance, which begins each year on Feb.1 and ends on the last day of February, celebrates 500 years of African American history culture and their history. Each year, the BEYA STEM Conference coincides with the national celebration of inspiration.

The 2022 BEYA STEM Conference will be hosted in Washington D.C. Information can be found at http://www.beya.org.

National BDPA’s Greater Washington D.C. and Baltimore chapters are co-hosts for BDPA Members attending annual BEYA events. Join, renew, or update membership profiles at BDPA.org for special VIP or all-access invitations.

_{— Photo credits: GM, CCG, and U.S. Black Engineer Magazine}

STEM Conference honors Army CIO as 2020 Black Engineer of the Year

WASHINGTON — Lieutenant General Bruce T. Crawford, U.S. Army, who was sworn in as the Army Chief Information Officer (CIO) on Aug. 1. 2017, was awarded the Black Engineer of the Year Award (BEYA) for his outstanding efforts to mentor the next generation of American scientists, technologists, and engineers.

As the Army’s chief information officer and G-6, Lt. Gen. Crawford reports both to the secretary of the Army as CIO, and also to the chief of staff of the Army as G-6.

He sets the strategic direction of the Army network and supervises all command, control, communications, and computers (C4) and Information Technology (IT) functions. He also oversees the Army’s $12.2 billion IT programs, manages enterprise IT architecture, establishes and enforces IT policies, and directs the delivery of C4IT capabilities to support war-fighters and business users.

As the G-6, he advises the Chief of Staff of the Army on the network, communications, signal operations, information security, force structure, and equipping.

JROTC photo at BEYA2020 courtesy Neal Daniels, Dunbar High School, Washington, D.C.

A native of Columbia, South Carolina, he was commissioned through South Carolina State University’s Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) program on May 28, 1986, after graduating as a Distinguished Military Graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering. He also holds a Master of Science in Administration from Central Michigan University and a Master of Science in National Resource Strategy from the Industrial College of the Armed Forces.

During his 33 years of service, LTG Crawford served in leadership positions at the tactical, operational, and strategic levels. In previous assignments, he served as commanding general, U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command (CECOM), director of C4/Cyber and Chief Information Officer, U.S. European Command (EUCOM), commanding general, 5th Signal Command (Theater); and G-6, U.S. Army Europe in Wiesbaden, Germany.

Each year, the annual BEYA Conference hosts award ceremonies for people who create innovation and inspiration, opening up opportunities for careers in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields. Black Engineer of the Year awards are made based upon peer-reviews of hundreds of nominations submitted by organizations and employers across the country.

— Sources, photos, and original articles: blackengineer.com and bdpatoday

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

2019 Black Engineer of the Year Awards and Conference

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Career Communications Group (CCG), producer of the BEYA STEM Conference, an annual event hosted by CCG’s Black Engineer magazine, announced Anthony “Tony” Mitchell (right) as the 33rd Black Engineer of the Year. He was presented their award on Saturday, February 9, 2019, at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park.

Mitchell leads strategic development and execution of the management consulting firm’s Justice, Homeland Security, and Transportation business. Recently, Mitchell served as deputy lead for defense and intelligence business, where he executed strategic initiatives to drive growth and financial performance.

In the community, Mitchell serves as a board member and chair of the Audit Committee of United Through Reading, an organization dedicated to uniting U.S. military families through the gift of reading. He holds a B.S. in electrical engineering from the General Motors Institute (now known as Kettering University) and an M.S. in information systems management from The George Washington University.

“When Michael McCullough, former CEO of Booz Allen, led the firm to join BEYA in building the STEM talent pipeline, less than two percent of engineers in the United States were African American, and only 5 historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) had ABET-accredited engineering programs,” said Dr. Tyrone Taborn, CCG CEO and co-founder of the BEYA STEM Conference.

“Many of those students couldn’t get internships in industry or government,” Taborn continued. “Most had never met an engineer who looked like them until they got to college. Engineering deans of Morgan State, Howard University, and I decided to change the narrative. Black Engineer of the Year was created.”

Over 33 years, the Black Engineer of the Year Award (BEYA) Conference has exposed more than 100,000 students to role models in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) careers. More than 10,000 men and women have been nominated for Black Engineer of the Year Awards; 957 have received category awards, and 32 have been selected as Black Engineer of the Year.

Horacio Rozanski, president and chief executive officer of Booz Allen Hamilton Inc. said the firm was proud to be a longtime partner of the BEYA Conference and to have someone of such stature within their ranks identify and develop future Black talent.

Staffed by BDPA Baltimore and BDPA DC, National BDPA’s Washington D.C. Chapter served as this year’s Host BDPA Chapter. Several of BDPA’s mission-partners, including the United States Air Force, Deloitte, and GDIT who participated in this year’s annual BEYA Career Fair, continue to seek top candidates interested in computing, cybersecurity, application development, tech support, and program management.

Visiting BDPA student members and professional candidates met with recruiters, hiring managers, and company leaders during this past weekend’s events. BDPA Members and BDPA Student Members may still submit resumes directly to: resumes@bdpadc.org.

— Source: CCG and BDPADC

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A D V E R T I S E M E N T

BEYA and HSCC Celebrate 30-Year Milestones

PHILADELPHIA, PA—During this special week of February 15th through 21st 2016, America celebrates Career Communications Group’s (CCG) anniversary and milestone honoring their 30th annual Black Engineer of the Year Awards (BEYA) Gala at the Philadelphia Marriott.

Launched in 1986 by Dr. Jesse L. Bemley (right), National BDPA also marks its 30th year of advancing young men and women ‘From the Classroom to the Boardroom‘ through its coveted National High School Computer Competition (HSCC).