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Construction Management Hosts its 10th Annual Recognition Banquet

Banquet table with programs

EKU Construction Management faculty and staff hosted the 10th Annual Recognition Banquet on April 2, 2016, to honor outstanding students, as well as those individuals and companies who have demonstrated exemplary service. This year’s reception and dinner was held in Arlington's Mule Barn. EKU President Michael Benson was on hand to greet guests and make opening remarks.

Dr. Arias recognized graduating students and presented the Distinguished Senior award to Kenneth Hostrander. The Outstanding Graduate Student, David Curtis, was also recognized. After a review of program achievements, this year's Distinguished Alum, Zack Bloomfield, was introduced.

Keynote Speaker: Zack Bloomfield

With more than 15 years of experience in construction, Project Manager Zack Bloomfield oversees several of Garney Construction’s landmark projects. After receiving a bachelor’s degree in Construction Management from Eastern Kentucky University in 2009, Zack began his career at Garney in June 2009. Zack has since completed more than a dozen large-scale projects ranging from $125K to $10M across primarily the east TN region. His project experience includes work with leading customers such as DOE/NNSA and Eastman Chemical. As a project manager, he is responsible for the development and coordination of his team’s project managers and participants, human resourcing, preparing annual budgets, providing action plans and troubleshooting and resolving problems. Additionally, Zack stays on top of the latest industry trends and educational opportunities through his affiliation with a number of professional organizations.

Following Bloomfield's remarks, scholarship winners from the Construction Management program were recognized amidst their peers.

More photos on the CM Facebook page...

Awards

Distinguished Senior and Graduate Student

Special awards and presentations were made to the program's graduating seniors, including outstanding senior. The distinguished senior for 2015-16 is Kenneth Hostrander. The outstanding grad student is David Curtis.

Distinguished Alum

Each year, CM faculty selects s distinguished alum that has made outstanding contributions to the program and industry. This year's award was presented to Zack Bloomfield.

Hall of Fame Constructor

The Hall of Fame Award is given to recognize a contractor that is highly respected, has a successful business model and is an advocate for the EKU CM program. Based on these three factors, Messer Construction was selected as this year's Hall of Fame Constructor.

Coop of the Year

The Coop of the Year is presented to a student who has shown exemplary service to a company during their coop experience. This award recognizes that success is not just based on academic performance but in putting their skills to work. This year the recipient is Kyle Thacker who worked for Churchill-McGee.

Brooker, AGC-KY Scholarship

This scholarship recognizes the excellence and dedication of students enrolled in the Construction Management Program in the Department of Applied Engineering and Technology. It is named in honor of Dr. Richard A. Brooker, who in 1977, along with the AGC of Kentucky, helped to establish the Bachelor of Science degree program initially titled Construction Technology. Receiving the scholarship this year is Clayton McAlmond.

Murray S. Riffe Scholarship, HBA-KY

The Murray S. Riffe / Home Builders Association of Kentucky Scholarship is given in the memory of Mr. Riffee, a Georgetown, Ky., builder who was dedicated to the advancement of young people in the Kentucky construction industry. Murray Riffee served as the President of the Home Builders Association of Kentucky in 1997. During his tenure he established the Association's Workforce Development Task Force, which eventually became the Kentucky Construction Career Choice Council, made up of seven different construction associations. Riffee was named to the Kentucky Housing Hall of Fame in 2000. Receiving the scholarship this year is Spencer Karrick.

R.L. "Bob" Erekson CM Scholarship

The Bob Erekson Scholarship was created by College of Business and Technology Dean Tom Erekson to honor a student who manages work, school and family expectations. With the unique challenges of juggling these three pieces of life the married student selected has to achieve academic success, while funding his own education. This year's recipient is Matthew Rose.

Published on April 02, 2016

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