Ambassador Program

At MMX 2017, America Makes announced the launch of a new initiative, the Ambassador Program, to show recognition and appreciation to those individuals who continually champion and demonstrate outstanding dedication to the Institute and its mission.

Program Symbolism

The theme for the Ambassador medal is based on an oak tree with the strength and size of the tree symbolizing the spirit of the recognition. The oak leaves and acorns represent the ever-growing reach of the mission of America Makes and the notion that something large can grow from something modest.

Recognized Ambassadors

2023

The class of 2023 Ambassadors:

2022

The class of 2022 Ambassadors:

2020

The class of 2020 Ambassadors:

  • Bill Carter, GE
  • Mark Lamoncha, Humtown Products
  • Brett Conner, Department of Energy’s Kansas City National Security Campus, Managed by Honeywell
  • Ed Herderick, The Ohio State University
  • Mara Hitner, MatterHackers
  • Meghan McCarthy, National Institutes of Health (NIH)
  • Janet Kar, Link3D
  • Kevin Slattery, The Barnes Global Advisors
  • Kimberly Gibson, IC3D
  • Kelly Visconti, PM2 Strategies

2019

The class of 2019 Ambassadors:

  • John E. Barnes, Founder and Managing Director, The Barnes Global Advisors, LLC (TBGA)
  • Stephanie Gaffney, Director of Advanced Manufacturing Programs, Youngstown Business Incubator (YBI)
  • Chris Holshouser, Technical Director, Advanced Manufacturing Development, Wichita State University — the National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR)
  • Debbie Holton, Managing Director of Industry Events, American Society for Mechanical Engineers (ASME)
  • Richard J. Lonardo, Principle Consultant, Defense and Energy Systems LLC
  • Petra Mitchell, President and CEO, Catalyst Connection
  • Diana Natalicio, Ph.D., retired President of the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP)
  • Col. Jeffrey Shaffer, Ops Group CC, 910th Airlift Wing, U.S. Air Force Reserve Command, Youngstown Air Reserve Station (YARS), Ohio
  • Ryan Wicker, Ph.D., P.E., Director of the Keck Center, UTEP

2018

The class of 2018 Ambassadors:

  • Eric Barnes, Manager of Manufacturing Technology, Northrop Grumman
  • Rick Billo, Associate Vice President for Research, Professor of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Notre Dame
  • Sarah Boisvert, MBA, Founder, Fab Lab Hub, LLC
  • Jesse Boyer, Fellow – Additive Manufacturing, Pratt & Whitney
  • Lauralyn McDaniel, Industry Manager – Medical and Manager, Innovation Watch, SME
  • Neal Orringer, Vice President – Defense R&D, 3D Systems Corporation
  • Brandon Ribic, Ph.D., Joining Specialist, Rolls-Royce Corporation
  • Tim Shinbara, Vice President of Manufacturing Technology, AMT—The Association For Manufacturing Technology
  • Andy Snow, Sr. Vice President, Electro Optical Systems (EOS) North America
  • Jim Tressel, President, Youngstown State University (YSU)
2018 America Makes Ambassadors

2017

The 2017 inaugural class of Ambassadors:

  • Teresa Clement, Ph.D., Strategic Technology Manager for Technology Development – Missile Systems, Raytheon
  • Anthony Hughes, President, The Lanterman Group
  • Terry Wohlers, President, Wohlers Associates
  • Marilyn Gaska, Ph.D., ‎Chief Engineer, Logistics and Sustainment, Lockheed Martin
  • Mike Garvey, President and CEO, M-7 Technologies
  • Lisa Camp, Associate Dean for Strategic Initiatives, Case School of Engineering, Case Western Reserve University
  • Mark Cotteleer, Research Director, Deloitte Services LP
  • Ashley Martof, Industry Liaison, Youngstown Business Incubator