IDOT Names Today’s Challenge, Tomorrow’s Reward Award Winners

SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Department of Transportation announced today the winners from the recent 30th annual Today’s Challenge, Tomorrow’s Reward awards, recognizing the achievements and efforts that helped to grow and support minority- and female-owned businesses in 2019.

The awards and recipients are:

• Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) of the Year – Taylor Electric, Chicago.
• New DBE of the Year – VMR Contractors, Hazel Crest.
• Engineering Firm of the Year – TECMA Associates, Inc., Chicago.
• Prime of the Primes – DePew & Owen Builders, Inc., Centralia.
• 2019 Roberto Orozco Memorial Award – Debra Clark, IDOT Bureau Chief of Small Business Enterprises.

Today’s Challenge, Tomorrow’s Reward is a two-day conference sponsored by IDOT’s Office of Business and Workforce Diversity to provide the tools and resources that help firms participate on state projects through the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise program.

Held Feb. 10 and 11, this year’s conference drew almost 400 participants, representing a variety of prime contractors and subcontractors. It was the largest crowd ever in the history of the conference.

Watch for details for registration to next year’s Today’s Challenge, Tomorrow’s Rewards conference at www.idot.illinois.gov

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