ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. -- The U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command's commanding general, Maj. Gen. Cedric T. Wins, was recently honored in Washington, D.C, at an awards conference to honor minority leaders throughout the military and civilian services.
Wins received the Army Stars and Stripes Award during the 31st annual Black Engineer of the Year Awards Global Competitiveness Conference, held Feb. 8-10.
"I'm honored to have been selected as this year's Army recipient of the Stars and Stripes Award," said Wins, who has more than 25 years of service.
The award recognized Wins, from Virginia, as an officer who made a distinguished contribution to the scientific and research development mission. The conference selects an award winner from each military branch each year.
The BEYA conference is one of the nation's largest gatherings of professionals committed to increasing minority participation in science, technology, engineering and mathematics--also referred to as STEM.
Wins and dozens of other high-ranking military officers and civilians, also had the opportunity to spend time talking to approximately 200 pre-college, minority youths about choosing education paths in STEM areas.
This mentoring session was one of the highlights of the whole event, according to Wins.
"It's a great opportunity to spend some time talking to our youth, primarily our minority youth in the D.C. area," he explained.
Wins' message to the youngsters is that opportunities are at hand.
"STEM areas of study are not the easiest topics in the world in which to major, but they are hugely important," said Wins, who graduated from the Virginia Military Institute. "They teach you how to think logically; how to problem solve. And with some hard work, and the right study skills and habits, you can make it through."
The 11th annual Stars and Stripes Dinner was held to recognize individual achievements for members of each service branch. Many of the military's top leaders attend the dinner. Also a large veteran community, chairmen, secretaries and members of the defense industry, attend each year.
Deputy to the Commanding General, John S. Willison, helped nominate Wins for the award. "MG Wins is an exceptional leader who has served with the utmost distinction, providing mentorship, diversity, and value based service to the nation. Through his efforts, MG Wins has shown that he is an advocate for advances in STEM and STEM education while also ensuring the procurement, development, and employment of new technologies and systems within RDECOM."
"I'm looking forward to seeing some old mentors; some people who have paved the way throughout the years coming up," Wins stated. "I'm extremely honored to represent the Army."
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The U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command has the mission to provide innovative research, development and engineering to produce capabilities for decisive overmatch to the Army against the complexities of the current and future operating environments in support of the Joint Warfighter and the Nation. RDECOM is a major subordinate command of the U.S. Army Materiel Command.
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