The Maryland Tech Council, the Frederick-based technology and life science trade association, announced the winners of its 2023 ICON Awards April 27 at the Bethesda North Marriott Hotel & Conference Center.
The award winners are:
Venture Mentoring Services Mentor of the Year: Barry Lipsy
Venture Mentoring Services Venture of the Year: TechSlice
Volunteer of the Year: Mike Buher, Maryland Tech Council Treasurer and Director, Assurance and Advisory Services, ClearView Group; Linda Segal, The McCormick Group (retired)
Advocate of the Year: Sen. Guy Guzzone,l D-Howard
ICON Award
MaxCyte
Alexandria Scholars Award Winners
Alphonse Alamo – Chemistry-Pre-Pharmacy, University of Maryland, College Park
Ashlynn Kidwell – Agriculture Science, University of Maryland, College Park
Daniel Chin – Biological Sciences, University of Maryland, College Park
Mia Meredith – Biocomputational Engineering, University of Maryland, College Park
Rina Dirickson – Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University
Shudan Jew – Biology and Forensic Studies, Loyola University
Tam-Anh Tran – Cell Biology and Genetics, University of Maryland, College Park
Benjamin Williamson – Computer Engineering, University of Maryland, College Park
STEM Educators of the Year
Michelle Hymowitz – STEM Educator – Earth Space Systems Lead, North County High School
Victoria Lee – Project Lead the Way – Engineering Teacher, Charles Herbert Flowers High School
CEO of the Year – Government Contracting
Rodney C. Williams Sr., JASINT Consulting and Technologies: Mr. Williams founded JASINT in 2007 after a career in the United States Air Force. Under Mr. Williams’s leadership, JASINT has grown to 80 employees holding prime contracts with numerous federal entities. Mr. Williams and the JASINT team are active in the community, supporting the Agape House Ministries Christmas Angel Program in Baltimore and the Lighthouse Shelter in Annapolis.
CEO of the Year – Life Sciences: Frank Amato, SYNAPS Dx. The firm is a privately held company focused on the research, development and commercialization of a diagnostic test for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Amato is a recognized thought leader in the AD community, educating patients, families, and payers on the importance of early detection and lifestyle strategies for preventing cognitive decline.
CEO of the Year – Technology: Mia Millette, Skyline Technology Solutions. Millette became CEO in 2021 after serving as COO. She has focused on employee satisfaction, and in 2022 the company was named one of Baltimore’s “Best Places to Work” by The Baltimore Sun. She is passionate about women’s equality in tech and serves on the board of ITS America.
Emerging Life Sciences Company of the Year
Theradaptive: The company is developing a therapeutic delivery platform for multiple clinical indications including immuno-oncology, orthopedics and soft tissue repair. The therapeutic delivery platform received 3 Breakthrough Designations from the FDA in 2022.
Emerging Technology Company of the Year: Channel Program. The company brings IT channel experts together in a collaborative platform to connect the best channel partners (MSPs, MSSPs, VARs, IT service providers, and consultants) with the best technology vendors. Since its founding in 2021, Channel Program has gained 6,500+ members and 2,000 IT product reviews.
Government Contracting Company of the Year (Up to $50 million): SIXGEN Inc.. The company provides world-class cybersecurity services and products to protect government organizations and commercial industries. In addition to enjoying substantial growth in 2022, SIXGEN provided cybersecurity opportunities to students at Maryland universities and also developed a Cyber PhD program for individuals looking to expand their career.
Government Contracting Company of the Year ($50 million and above): 22nd Century Technologies Inc. The company is a management and technology consulting firm, focused on providing IT managed services to Federal, State and Local governments. In addition to seeing rapid growth in 2022, the company completed two acquisitions and expanded its offerings from services only to a combination of products and services.
Life Science Company of the Year: Kite, a Gilead Company. The company is a global biopharmaceutical company focused on cell therapy to treat and potentially cure cancer. Kite recently announced the expansion of its global cell therapy supply chain operations in Frederick that will create 100 additional jobs in the area.
Technology Company of the Year: Alertus Technologies. In 2022, Alertus Technologies opened the state-of-the-art Center for Intelligent Buildings, an IoT Technology hub for the safety and security industry in Baltimore. The center serves as Alertus’ headquarters for its 100+ local and remote employees, bringing new jobs to the area and encouraging many existing employees to live and invest in and around downtown Baltimore.
Investor of the Year: JMI Equity. The company is a growth equity firm focused on investing in leading software companies. Founded in 1992, JMI has invested in over 175 businesses in its target markets, successfully completed more than 110 exits, and raised more than $7.5 billion of committed capital. Its portfolio companies in the Maryland-DC-Northern Virginia region employ more than 3,000 people.
C-Suite of the Year: Maurice A. Tyler, CIO, Bowie State University. Tyler has more than 20 years of experience managing large-scale data centers and diverse teams of IT specialists, with a focus on higher education. In 2022, he helped lead the university’s conversion of standard classrooms to hybrid flexible instructional spaces, and helped establish a program to provide students with computing devices and free internet service to help close the digital divide.
