West Virginia native honored as Modern-Day Technology Leader at a STEM conference

Jessica Phillips
·2 min read
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SAVANNAH, GA (WVNS) — A West Virginia native was honored as a Modern-Day Technology Leader at a conference in Maryland.

At the Black Engineer of the Year Award (BEYA) STEM Annual Conference in Baltimore, Maryland, Richard Thomas, a Huntington, West Virginia native, was honored as a Modern-Day Technology Leader. Although the winners were announced in December 2023, the conference where the winners were officially recognized was on February 16, 2024.

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Thomas is an area engineer for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Savannah District’s, Robins Area Office in Warner Robins, Georgia. He graduated from the West Virginia University Institute of Technology in 2003 with a civil engineering degree, and is also a Registered Professional Engineer in the State of Kentucky, and a warranted Contracting Officer.

Richard is well-deserving of this award from BEYA, as he epitomizes the type of leadership we seek in Construction Division. He has the technical knowledge and passion for working in the construction field. More importantly, he has a desire to share that information with and mentor the next generation of construction personnel.

Troy Funk | Chief of Construction Division, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Savannah District

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Thomas’ career with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began when he was a Cooperative Education Student with the Huntington District in Huntington, West Virginia. This brought him to where he is now as the Area Engineer at Robins Air Force Base.

Not only does he supervise construction in the Atlanta-metro area and at the Robins and Moody Air Force Bases, he also oversaw more then $400 million in construction during one-year deployments in Bulgaria and Afghanistan.

The awards acknowledge African American engineers and scientists from across the nation who encourage inclusion and diversity in the STEM pipeline, as well as influencing the future of STEM technology.

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