Alyssa McNamara is a Research and Development Associate at Spoonflower; she has been with Spoonflower since 2013. As an undergraduate at NC State University, Alyssa was an Anni Albers Scholar, who double majored, graduating in 2011 with a B.S. in Textile Technology and a B.S. in Art and Design. She is currently pursuing a Masters in Textiles Sustainability at N.C. State University and, this fall, will participate in an Executive Education for Sustainable Leadership certification program from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Alyssa joined AATCC as a senior member in 2011. She is currently a member of the Young Professional Committee and is chair of the Printing Technology Research Committee.

Chandler Maness is Senior Laboratory Specialist in Advanced Creations and Testing at Adidas in Portland, OR. In 2014, he earned his B.S. in Polymer and Color Chemistry, and in 2017, his M.S in Textile Chemistry from, N.C. State University. While an undergraduate student, he and two other authors published a paper in the International Journal of Polymeric Materials and Polymeric Biomaterials. He won first place in the 2017 AATCC Herman and Myrtle Goldstein Student Paper Competition. He was one of seven inventors who received a patent on creating a “Particulate Resistant Garment.” He joined AATCC in 2016 and attends AATCC committee meetings, conferences and participates in the Materials Interest Group.

Brian Shiels is a Serive Line Manager at ArcWear, a Division of Kinectircs in Louisville, KY. Prior to this, he worked with PBI Performance Products, Inc. first, as Senior Development Engineer/Group Leader, and then as Director of Quality Assurance. He also worked as a Research Assistant in the Textile Protection and Comfort Center at NC State University. Brian earned his B.S. in Chemistry from the University of South Carolina in 2003 and M.S. in Textile Chemistry from N.C. State University in 2005. He became a member of AATCC in 2010. His professional experience includes the development and testing of flame and thermal protective clothing and equipment, as well as quality management. He holds several patents for FR fabrics and PPE. In 2013, he joined and continues to participate in several AATCC test method research and administrative committees. He is recognized not only as a future leader, but also as a current leader because he has served in key roles with AATCC, ASTM D13 and F23, NFPA, and others. He is respected for his technical knowledge.

The Future Leaders Award

Nominees for the AATCC Future Leaders Award must be AATCC members who are 39 years old or younger and actively engaged in the greater textile or related industries. They must display leadership skills and have a history of service to AATCC or the greater textile and related industries. A key quality of successful candidates is a desire to become more involved with the objectives of AATCC: to increase expertise, encourage research, and establish channels for the interchange of professional knowledge. Nominees must agree to join the AATCC Young Professionals Committee and must participate, as their professional commitments allow, in the work of the committee.

The award includes a framed certificate signed by the AATCC president and the Interest Group (IG) chairs and a special pin. The award was presented at the Awards Luncheon during AATCC’s Textile Discovery Summit at the Sheraton Imperial Hotel, Durham, NC USA on November 18, 2021.