Women of Color in STEM corporate responsibility awards are presented to executives whose efforts support and leverage assistance to under-represented communities and provide technology tools and education services for minority youth and adults. Learn more about the 2022 honorees below:
Bernice Billups is director for global management at The Boeing Company. She joined Boeing as an office administrator in 2001, becoming the first woman of color to manage the chairman's office in 2008.
As senior manager of global corporate citizenship in 2015, she increased support for communities of color by 85 percent and doubled the number of grant partners led by people of color.
Appointed director of company contributions and Boeing Global Engagement Central Region in 2020, she oversaw six states and an $8.5 million budget, helping Boeing increase opportunities for students of color in STEM.
Her department hosts a yearly STEM Signing Day for Chicago Public Schools, honoring 50 graduating seniors committing to postsecondary STEM studies.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Billups led a Boeing/United Airlines partnership to renovate the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry Take Flight Exhibit. She helped develop resources that took students on a digital tour. Billups also led Boeing’s participation in Northwestern University’s FUSE program that challenged more than 22,000 students in 187 schools in the United States, Finland, and Israel.
Judy Johnson is a client account manager at Jacobs in Los Angeles, California. She was an early champion of the firm’s Global Action Plan for Advancing Justice and Equality.
Johnson is also an active member of the Black employee network group, Harambee, and mentors women of color in Jacobs’ Mentor/Protégé program.
She has prioritized connecting Jacobs with the community by organizing an engineering movie event and discussion for more than 100 elementary and high school female students to foster their interest in science, technology, engineering, the arts, and math (STEAM) careers.
She also advocated for Jacobs to support a boarding school managed by LA Metro and the County of Los Angeles. The school's mission is to provide a 24-hour STEAM-based education for 400 students in grades 9 to 12.
When the school opens in 2023, Johnson will lead Jacobs' engagement in learning opportunities for the students. The development will also provide 180 units of affordable housing, community-serving retail, a transportation-focused job training center, and a mobility hub.
