Elizabeth Gao, a materials engineer at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) in Champaign, Illinois, was one of five ERDC employees recognized as 2023 Women of Color STEM award winners.
The other awardees include Pat Sullivan, the deputy director of ERDC; Brandy Diggs-McGee, a mechanical engineer from ERDC's Construction Engineering Research Laboratory (CERL); Jessica Frierson, the ERDC training and program manager, and Dr. Catherine Thomas, a research biologist from ERDC's Environmental Laboratory.
Gao, Diggs-McGee, Frierson, and Thomas were all awarded the Technology Rising Star Awards. This award is given to women with less than 15 years of experience in the workforce, who actively contribute to shaping the future of technology.
Elizabeth Gao has dedicated 12 years of her career to the ERDC, where she started as a government contractor after completing her Master's in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
She has served as the acting chief of the Energy Branch at CERL and currently serves as acting branch chief for the laboratory's Warfighter Branch.
In her role, she leads research teams, supporting the R&D lifecycle from basic research through Army implementation to ensure effective adoption and utilization of products from R&D investments.
Gao's work as a materials engineer focuses on developing new approaches to detecting and addressing air and water-borne pollutants and finding solutions to energy and water challenges facing the Army and the nation.
Gao's expertise was put to use in 2020 when she executed a multi-year project to demonstrate and validate light-based technologies to mitigate harmful algal blooms (HABs) - a persistent and visible problem in many of the nation's water resources.
She also led two major research projects in next-generation batteries for more efficient energy storage.
In addition, Gao's impact has been recognized through numerous awards, including the 2023 Federal Laboratory Consortium for Technology Transfer Impact Award, the 2020 Technology Merit Algae Harvesting Award from the Environmental Business Journal, and two Engineering Research and Development Center Awards.
Sullivan, who has been a part of the organization for almost 39 years, was recently honored with the Career Achievement in Government Award for her outstanding contributions.
The award recognizes women who have worked for more than 15 years and displayed exceptional leadership qualities, including sensitivity in managing others and strategic insight.
The recipient of this award is considered a role model for female leaders in the workforce.
As the ERDC deputy director, Sullivan manages seven laboratories in four states with more than 2,500 employees, $1.2 billion in facilities, and an annual research program exceeding $1.8 billion.
Throughout her career, she has worked as a civil engineer in the Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory (GSL) and held several roles such as assistant technical director for the ERDC Military Engineer Research and Development Division, strategic assistant to the ERDC GSL lab director, ERDC executive staff officer, and ERDC associate director.
Sullivan holds a bachelor's degree in civil engineering from Tulane University and a master's degree from Mississippi State University. She has also completed postgraduate studies in geotechnical engineering at Louisiana State University.
Diggs-McGee works as a mechanical engineer in the Warfighter Engineering Branch of ERDC-CERL.
Her contributions to the defense department, construction industry, and research community have significantly advanced the field of additive construction towards a more efficient process for energy and operations.
Diggs-McGee earned her master's degree in civil engineering and bachelor's degree in architectural engineering from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University in Greensboro, North Carolina.
Frierson currently serves as the ERDC training & development program manager.
She began her federal career with the ERDC in the Information Technology Laboratory, where she held several roles such as branch and division administrative assistant, program specialist, training coordinator, and staff management specialist.
She received her bachelor's degree in pre-law with a minor in finance management from Alcorn State University and her Master's in human resource organizational and leadership development from Louisiana State University.
She also holds a corporate behavior certification from Harvard University.
Thomas, a research biologist in the ERDC-EL, is an expert in plant interactions.
She is focused on studying the physiological responses of riparian and aquatic plants to environmental changes.
Her work includes conducting vegetation surveys, analyzing plant communities, and designing natural planting schemes to stabilize contaminants and prevent erosion at Army installations.
In addition to her research, Thomas is an adjunct instructor at Lamar University, where she teaches an advanced ecology course in the Civil Engineering Department that integrates her experience with Engineering with Nature projects.
She also has expertise in evaluating plant nutrient uptake pathways and adaptive plasticity.
