Honoring Industry Leaders who Helped Shape the Past, Present, and Future of Waterborne Coatings

Celebrate the careers of waterborne coatings industry leaders who have been long-time supporters of the Waterborne Symposium. Learn about their impact, leadership, and legacy in coatings innovation.

Celebrating a Legacy of Leadership and Innovation

For decades, the Waterborne Symposium has been supported by exceptional professionals whose leadership, mentorship, and technical expertise helped advance waterborne coatings technologies. This page recognizes recent retirees whose careers left a lasting impact on our industry and our program. Our honorees represent leaders from industry, academia, and research organizations who consistently supported the Waterborne Symposium through participation, sponsorship, technical contributions, and mentorship.

A Lasting Impact on the Waterborne Coatings Community

The Waterborne Symposium is stronger because of the dedication and service of these professionals. Their influence continues through the technologies they helped develop, the professionals they mentored, and the collaborations they inspired.

Join Us in Recognizing Industry Excellence

We invite our community to celebrate these individuals and reflect on the progress made possible by their leadership. Their legacy continues to shape the future of waterborne coatings innovation.

Honorees

Dale Pritchett, Group Publisher, Rodman Media

40 Years of Industry Service | 15 Years Supporting the Waterborne Symposium

Following ten years at McNair Publishing running American Ink Maker and Soap Cosmetics Chemical Specialties, Dale joined Rodman Media as publisher of Ink World in 1996 and founded Coatings World that same year. He has served both the coatings and ink industries with distinction, serving on numerous industry boards in official or unofficial capacities.

Dale is an avid supporter of the School of Polymer Science at The University of Southern Mississippi and of the Waterborne Symposium.

Jim Reader | Senior Technical Manager, Evonik Corporation

38 Years of Industry Service | Years Supporting the Waterborne Symposium

Jim Reader graduated from Warwick University (UK) in 1988 with a Ph.D. in Chemistry. He joined Air Products in 1988 in Manchester as an Application Development Chemist for Epoxy hardeners. He became Technical Manager for the Specialty Additives business in 1996 and worked in Europe and Asia before moving to Allentown in 2008. He joined Evonik Corporation as a Senior Technical Manager in January 2017. He has extensive experience in both the development and application of surfactants and defoamers for coatings, inks, and other applications. He is the inventor of one patent and has written over 25 technical papers.

Tom Fowler | Group Publisher, BNP Media

10 Years of Industry Service | 10 Years Supporting the Waterborne Symposium

After nearly a decade of guiding the Paint & Coatings Industry (PCI) and Adhesives & Sealants Industry (ASI), Tom Fowler is retiring from his role as Group Publisher. His steady leadership and deep respect for both industries have helped PCI and ASI navigate rapid change, from digital transformation and new manufacturing technologies to global disruptions and consolidation across the coatings and adhesives markets.

Michael Praw | Technical Service and Development Manager for Indorama Ventures

38 Years of Industry Service | Years Supporting the Waterborne Symposium

He has 38 years of coatings formulation experience, 20 years with coatings companies, and 20 years with raw material suppliers. He is currently the Technical Service and Development Manager for Indorama Ventures: Integrated Oxides and Derivatives. He has degrees in Analytical Chemistry and Environmental Sciences, as well as an MBA. Mike is the Past President of The Detroit Society for Coatings Technology and the Piedmont Society for Coatings Technology, and served on the board of The Chicago Society for Coatings Technology. He writes the “Formulating with Mike” column each month in PCI Magazine. He is also a 15-year veteran of the Canadian Armed Forces.

Keith Moody | Senior Technical Service Associate, Eastman Chemical

37 Years of Industry Service | Years Supporting the Waterborne Symposium

Keith received his BS in Chemistry from Kentucky Wesleyan College and his MS in Polymer Chemistry from the University of Cincinnati. He has worked in the coatings industry since 1980. He is the author of both patents and technical articles on waterborne coatings. Before retiring from Eastman Chemical Company in 2017 after 30 years, he held leadership positions as Vice President, R+D Americas, for Lawter International and R+D Technical Manager, Coatings Resins, for McWhorter Technologies, both subsidiaries of Eastman Chemical Company. He has presented seminars on solvent technology to research groups at Akzo, Sherwin-Williams, BASF, PPG, and many other coating manufacturers. For the last several years, he has written the column “Moody’s Coatings Conundrums” in PCI magazine.

Don Liles | Scientist Emeritus at Dow Corning

50+ Years of Industry Service | 30+ Years Supporting the Waterborne Symposium

Don joined Dow Corning Corporation as a chemist in 1974, after completing an MS in organic chemistry from Georgia Tech and a BS in chemistry from the University of North Georgia.

Don spent his entire 41+ year career at Dow Corning in R&D, where he worked on silicone resins, silicone elastomers, organosilicon intermediates, silicones in personal care, silicone emulsions, and silicone coatings.

Don retired from Dow Corning as a Scientist in 2015 and was subsequently elected Scientist Emeritus. In 2016, he left his Scientist Emeritus position at Dow Corning and formed his consulting company: Si-Aqua Consulting, LLC. Don regularly consults with clients on silicones, silicone emulsions, silicone elastomers, silicones in personal care, silicones in coatings, and silicone coatings.

Don has published 14 technical papers, four book chapters, and has been granted 63 US patents. He has lectured in a Waterborne short course annually since 1996.

Victoria Scarborough | Vice President Collaborative Innovation at chemquest

41+ Years of Industry Service | 30+ Years Supporting the Waterborne Symposium

Dr. Victoria Scarborough is a well-known R&D leader and subject matter expert for the commercialization of in-demand new technology that leverages open innovation. She spent 35 years with the Sherwin-Williams Co where her many roles included managing the global external technology team to identify transformative technologies from universities, the technical marketplace, government & military technology sources, venture capital firms, & parallel consumer product industries. She draws on this experience to serve as vice president of collaborative innovation for The ChemQuest Group, a global specialty chemicals and materials consulting firm, where she advises clients about new and emerging technologies that address market needs.
Dr. Scarborough holds multiple national and international patents and has published numerous articles on innovation, product development, and commercialization. She also frequently participates as a National Science Foundation panel reviewer for funding research grants and serves on the technical advisory board of multiple startup companies.
Dr. Scarborough earned a BS degree in biology from the University of Mary Washington and received her doctorate in biochemistry from the University of Tennessee Health Science Center where she did her doctoral and postdoctoral work at St Jude Children’s Research Hospital While at Sherwin-Williams, she completed the SW Leadership Excellence Program at the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western University.