Posted on February 15, 2023
Finding success in any career can be challenging. Finding success in one of the most competitive careers in the United States can be even more burdensome, if not downright arduous.
Claudinette Purifoy-Fears not only found success as an engineer but was recognized for her contributions to the field. Purifoy-Fears is the most recent recipient of the Black Engineer of the Year STEM Career Achievement Award, awarded to her on Feb. 10, 2023 at the BEYA STEM Conference. The award is given annually to those who represent significant accomplishments in science, technology, engineering and mathematics careers.
Held annually in February, the BEYA STEM Conference brings awareness of STEM careers before a national audience, recognizes the work of engineers, promotes diversity and inclusion, and offers educational and developmental opportunities for STEM professionals.
“It is a tremendous honor,” Purifoy-Fears said. “I am proud and this award is the icing on the cake as I conclude my civilian service.”
Purifoy-Fears recently retired as a senior programmer for military construction after 36 years of civilian government service. She served the last 12 years of her career at the U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command at Redstone Arsenal, Alabama.
Part of her duties there included a major facility project to determine requirements, design supervision and oversight of construction management of a $35 million project to modernize the Army’s Primary Standards Lab, or APSL.
The APSL is a 77,000-square-foot laboratory built in 1966 that provides state-of-the-art metrology to the Army. It is the Army’s primary calibration lab that ensures Army systems drive, fly, hit the target and protect the Soldier.
Prior to AMCOM, she served as a project manager for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Mobile, Alabama. While at the USACE Mobile District she led multiple construction projects that impacted AMCOM, including the construction of the Sparkman Center, the current headquarters of AMCOM. Tthe project was so successful that it remains the design standard for all facilities on Redstone Arsenal.
Purifoy-Fears’ long and successful career may have come to a close, but her drive for success continues.
“My daily affirmation is to be better,” she said. “Whether it is to be a better leader, teacher, employee, friend, wife, sister, or engineer. My personal goal is growth and to make those that I touch better.”
