The Chattahoochee Tech Foundation honored the college’s top alumni, industry partner, and benefactor with the 2024 SPARK Workforce awards in a ceremony held at the Marietta Campus on Thursday, May 2.
The 2024 SPARK Workforce Alumni of the Year award was presented to Paul Hardie, who serves as the water reclamation supervisor for the Noonday Water Reclamation Facility in Cobb County. Yancey Brothers, which is based in Cobb county, was recognized as the SPARK Workforce Industry Partner of the year. Dr. Anil Yadav of Prestige Medical Group received the SPARK Workforce Benefactor of the Year award.
The Chattahoochee Tech Foundation initiated the SPARK Workforce Awards in 2019 to honor those who have supported Chattahoochee Tech students and college programs through significant and meaningful contributions that change lives and support workforce development. The SPARK Workforce awards also honor the significant impact that Chattahoochee Tech graduates have in serving local workforce development needs. This year’s SPARK Workforce Awards event was sponsored by Atlanta Gas Light.
Award winner Paul Hardie was one of the first graduates of the college’s Environmental Technology program in 2016. As a county water reclamation supervisor, he is now responsible for the purification of wastewater being returned to the water cycle. Wastewater facilities were determined to be useful during the recent pandemic in monitoring, tracking, and predicting potential outbreaks for Covid-19. Hardie was nominated for this year’s award by Stephen Anderson, the program’s lead instructor.
Accepting the SPARK Workforce Industry Partner the Year award on behalf of Yancey Brothers was Jim Larson. Since 2014, Yancey Brothers has contributed to the college’s Diesel Equipment Technology program, and in 2018 began sponsoring annual scholarships. Larson, who is the Director of Learning and Development at Yancey Brothers, has served on the college’s board of directors and has facilitated workshops for the Student Leadership Academy. He also has been the catalyst for much of the financial support the Foundation and college have received from Yancey Brothers, which included matching grants from Caterpillar.
“We’ve been very proud to work with Chattahoochee Tech,” said Larson. “We hire graduates and we’re also looking for ways to make the community better. If you’re an industry partner, its not always about what they can do for us. But it’s also about what we can do and share for them, because that make the whole community better.”
In presenting Dr. Anil Yadav with the 2024 SPARK Workforce Benefactor of the Year award, Nelson noted that benefactors are those who do good and give gifts without expectation of return. Dr. Yadav opened the first office of Prestige Medical Group in 2004 near the college’s Appalachian Campus in Jasper, and just opened the fourth medical office in Roswell. For well over a decade, Dr. Yadav has provided the financial support needed by Chattahoochee Tech students in obtaining a workforce education. This financial support represents health care scholarships for students initially in Pickens county and now throughout the college’s six-county service area.
“Our investment in Chatt Tech is investing in our own community,” said Dr. Yadav, who recently awarded six scholarships to students enrolled in assorted healthcare programs at the college. “We were so proud and excited to see these wonderful students who will be getting out there taking care of our future.”
In addition to award winner Paul Hardie, included among the finalists nominated for the 2024 SPARK Workforce Alumni of the Year award and their Chattahoochee Tech programs of study were: Dan’elle Buchmueller, Physical Therapy Assistant, nominated by Dr. Stephanie Puffer, Dean of Health Sciences; Marriah Harris, Early Childhood Education and Care, nominated by lead instructor Lourdes Dumke; Ashley Heger, Accounting, nominated by instructor Mark Riddick; and Johnathan Tucker, Commercial Truck Driving, nominated by instructor Sheldon George.
Each of these graduates stepped right into great careers available for them in the local workforce. “Our highly-skilled graduates are everywhere helping to build a thriving local workforce,” said Nelson. “All those who so generously help our students complete their education are providing support that fills the gap and ignites the spark that empowers them to success.”
For more information, visit www.ChattahoocheeTech.edu.
