East Tennessee State University’s College of Business and Technology inducted eight people into its Hall of Fame at an awards ceremony held earlier this month. The college awarded awards in four categories—Horizon, Excellence, Faculty Lifetime Achievement, and Lifetime Achievement Awards—to individuals who have achieved outstanding achievement in business, technology, and public or community service.
Jane Gaby, Brandon L. Milhorn and Jim L. Wilson received the Lifetime Achievement Award.
gaby has over 40 years of experience in computer science and software development, and earned a master’s degree in computer science with a concentration in software engineering from ETSU through a distance learning program.
At the time she graduated, she was employed at National Security Complex Y-12 as a software developer.
In 2004, after 31 years at Oak Ridge, she retired from National Security Complex Y-12. In 2005, she joined the University of Tennessee-Knoxville as a software developer. Gaby retired from full-time work at the end of 2020.
milhorn joined the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) in July 2018 as Chief of Staff to Chairman Jelena McWilliams. In January 2020, the Board of Directors confirmed his appointment as Deputy Chief Executive Officer. Throughout his tenure at the FDIC, Milhorn has focused on improving operational discipline and efficiency, updating legacy FDIC information technology, and supporting innovation. within the FDIC and the financial services industry. Milhorn managed the development and execution of the FDIC’s $2.2 billion annual budget, including initiating operational reviews for key divisions to measure performance and promote collaboration.
Milhorn also served in several positions in the U.S. Senate, including Director of Staff and Chief Counsel for Senator Susan Collins on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and General Counsel for the Select Committee on Intelligence. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics from ETSU and a Juris Doctor, cum laude, from Cornell Law School.
Wilson spent over 30 years in corporate America working for Fortune 500 companies. He is now a successful private business executive and entrepreneur in Johnson City. In 1991, while completing his MBA at ETSU, Wilson joined Eastman Chemical Company and held various engineering and project management positions during the first half of his service there.
He is currently Chief Project Engineer for their BoxDrop mattress and furniture company, as well as General Manager of their Tennessee Hills Distillery business. Wilson is the owner of national franchise company bioPURE™, owner of the BoxDrop Mattress & Furniture franchise in Johnson City with his son Kyle, and co-owner of the Tri-Cities franchise bioPURE™ with his son Tyler.
Wilson holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Tennessee and a master’s degree in business administration from ETSU, where he graduated summa cum laude.
Drs. Both Terry Countermine and Allan Spritzer received the Faculty Lifetime Achievement Award.
Countermine joined the faculty of ETSU in 1990. In 1995 he became head of the Department of Computer Science and held this position for 20 years. During this period, he oversaw the addition of the information technology and information systems concentrations. Under his leadership, both concentrations received ABET (Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology Inc.) accreditation.
Countermine was instrumental in launching the PASTA program at ETSU. PASTA (Providing Area Schools with Technical Assistance) was launched in 2003 and strives to provide local schools with refurbished computers for the classroom. Since its inception, the PASTA program has donated over 17,000 computers to local K-12 schools in need of up-to-date technology.
Due to his work and dedication to the PASTA program, Countermine received the Tech Star Award for Innovation in the Utilization of Technology in 2006. In 2008, he received the Howard Love Outstanding Community Involvement Award presented by the Tennessee Higher Education Commission . The award recognizes outstanding community service rendered at the campus level. Countermine earned his doctorate in computer education from Pennsylvania State University in 1973. He earned his bachelor of science degree in mathematics from Alliance College in 1965.
Countermine has also been a councilor for the town of Jonesborough since 2000.
Spritzer has served ETSU, the Northeast Tennessee area and beyond for over 40 years. He arrived at ETSU in August 1981 to become Dean and Professor of Management at the College of Business. In 1999, he was selected as the Allen and Ruth Harris Professor of Business Excellence, which he held until his retirement in 2020.
In 2012 Spritzer received an Outstanding Scholar Award and was elected a Fellow of the American Society of Business and Behavioral Sciences. In 2020, the university awarded him emeritus status for each of the three positions he held during his long career at ETSU. In November 2021, the ETSU National Alumni Association selected Spritzer as Honorary Alumnus of the Year.
Spritzer earned his Ph.D. from Cornell University, his master’s degree from the University of Illinois in the field of industrial and labor relations, and his bachelor’s degree in economics from the City College of New York.
William Henry Bailey and Dr. Robert A. (Bob) Justice each received the Lifetime Achievement Award, given to individuals whose work has brought distinction to the College of Business and Technology.
Bailey is the Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer of Utegration LLC. He has over 30 years of experience in the utility industry and in his current role, he manages a team of SAP experts across North America. Thanks to his experience in software development, Bailey was able to obtain two patents. The first was an air quality monitoring system and software process (#5,468,968), and the second was an example containment map for air monitoring stations (#5,635,403) .
Bailey received her Bachelor of Science in Computer Information Science from ETSU and an Associate of Science in Computer Technology from Walters State Community College.
Justice spent 32 years at the ETSU Tennessee Small Business Development Center – two years as an assistant director and 30 years as a director. During this time, he has helped hundreds of people start or grow business ventures.
Justice has served on the board of directors of the Tanasi Center of Northeast Tennessee in Unicoi County, as chair of the loans committee of the Northeast Tennessee Economic Development Corporation, and as a member of several Johnson City subcommittees. Development Authority. In 2012, he was elected to the Board of Examiners for the Tennessee Center for Performance Excellence.
Justice earned her doctorate in education from ETSU in 2006 and earned her masters of business administration and bachelor of business administration in accounting from Morehead State University in Kentucky. Justice resides in Johnson City with his wife, Susan.
The Horizon Award is given to graduates of the College of Business and Technology establishing outstanding careers in business. The 2022 recipient is Juan DeAngulo.
FromAngulo is a managing partner at Elion and a member of its management, asset management and investment committees.
DeAngulo earned the Owner/Presidential Management certificate from Harvard University’s Graduate Business School and a certificate from Harvard University’s School of Design Advanced Management Development Program. He earned his Masters of Business Administration from Regent University and his Bachelors of Business Administration with Honors in Economics from ETSU. He was also a member of the men’s varsity tennis team.
To learn more about the academic programs available at ETSU College of Business and Technology, visit etsu.edu/cbat.
