NAVAL AIR WARFARE CENTER WEAPONS DIVISION, POINT MUGU, Calif. - Naval Air Systems Command named its 2017 Mentors of the Year as part of its National Mentoring Month observance Jan. 30 in Patuxent River, Maryland.

Toufue Chang and Lee Hardt were Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division’s winners; David Gleeson was also nominated. Chang and Gleeson participated in the ceremony via video teleconference in Point Mugu, California. Hardt could not attend and will be presented with his award at a later date.

“Having an award focused on mentoring is one of the best things we do here at NAVAIR,” said Dr. Ron Smiley, NAVAIR’s national director for Avionics, Sensors and E*Warfare, “because it shows the value we place on mentoring. These men and women put their heart and soul and time into supporting and growing the next generation of leaders.”

Chang, associate director of the Avionics, Sensors and E*Warfare Department , has 27 years of federal service under his belt. In addition to formally and informally mentoring several junior engineers, Chang founded a bimonthly Personal Leadership Brown Bag event that covers a range of topics gives people the “opportunity to own a part of the journey” to reach their life and career goals.

“Toufue is one of the best in career planning and understanding one’s strengths and weaknesses,” wrote Dr. Melissa Midzor, who nominated Chang for the award. “He provides concrete, evidence-based feedback that is actionable as well as ideas and opportunities for professional development.”

Midzor went on to praise Chang’s focus on the “big picture” rather than just the everyday working level of understanding, but also his dedication to his employees and coworkers.

“Taking care of your people is a high priority for Toufue,” she said, “and that has left its mark on all of us.”

Hardt, a 32-year NAWCWD veteran who mentors more than 10 individuals in addition to his day job as a subject matter expert in warheads and fuzing, challenges his mentees and junior engineers and making them “step up” to complex taskings.

“His technical rigor enables him to drive his mentees to develop the best possible solutions,” wrote John Rettig, Hardt’s supervisor and nominator. “If a junior engineer has an idea for how to solve a problem or develop an improved capability for our warfighters, they always take the idea to Lee.”

Mentoring is also about inspiring others, and Hardt fits the bill, according to Rettig.

“Most individuals who have ever had Lee as a mentor attribute much of their success to his guidance and simply trying to follow the example he has set.”