2023 Bill Neese—Bill Tangye–Ralph W. Jones, Jr.Memorial Scholarship Awards Program

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATION 

Scholarship submittal deadline is February 20, 2023.  Scholarshp(s) will be awarded at the chapter picnic on Saturday, April 1, 2023

Familiar with the names Bill Neese, Bill Tangye, and Ralph Jones but don’t know their contribution to the industry? Read about their contribution on this page.

PURPOSE

The Central Florida Chapter of the Building Officials Association of Florida/International Code Council (hereafter called “the Central Florida Chapter”, “the CF Chapter” or “the Chapter”) has established a scholarship fund in memory of three of its founders and lifelong contributors to honor and to further the education of persons selected by the scholarship selection committee pursuant to the criteria below. The contributions of these men to the organization and industry may be viewed at by clicking here.
The award(s) will be known as the Bill Neese—Bill Tangye–Ralph W. Jones, Jr. Memorial Scholarship Award(s) and shall be in the amount of no less than one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) awarded to as many as two (2) recipients annually. In addition, one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) will be contributed to the Building Official’s Association of Florida BOAF Scholarship Program

ELIGIBILITY

Residency

To be eligible for this award, the applicant must be a member, dependent son or daughter or dependent
stepson or stepdaughter of a member, or grandchild of a member of the Central Florida Chapter. The applicant must be sponsored by that member.

Scholastic Standing

Applicants applying as an entering freshmen must have been accepted as a full-time student, as defined by that institution, at an accredited college or community college and must have maintained a scholastic grade point average of “B” or better as defined by that institution for the two (2) years of high school study preceding their application; or if applicants are currently enrolled in an accredited college or community college, they must have carried a minimum of ten (10) hours credit or equivalent and have maintained a cumulative “B” scholastic average as defined by that institution.
Applicants shall provide documentation of the institution’s letter grade equivalency for any grade point
averages submitted.

Letters of Recommendation

Applicants making their initial application must furnish three (3) letters of recommendation, including one (1) from his or her CF Chapter sponsor attesting to the student’s scholastic ability, character and worthiness to receive a merit award to further his or her education. Previous scholarship recipients are required to submit one (1) new letter of recommendation each year.

APPLICATIONS

All applications and other required materials must be received by the CF Chapter Merit Scholarship Awards
Committee by the close of business on March 20, 2022 in order to be considered for this calendar year. Awards will
be announced/presented at the Chapter’s Annual Spring Meeting. Recipient(s) of the award will be contacted
ahead of time and should make every effort to be at the event for the presentation.

Completed applications must be submitted by mailing to:
Central Florida Chapter BOAF
Attn: Scholarship Awards Committee
PO Box 1762
Orlando, FL 32802

Letters of recommendation
– New applicants – Three (3) letters required. One must be from the Chapter sponsor who shall be a member in good standing.
– Previous recipients – One (1) new letter of recommendation.

Transcripts and Test Scores
– High School Seniors: A certified copy of the student’s transcript for the preceding two (2) years
must be included and copies of the student’s SAT/ACT or other generally accepted testing service
scores.
– College freshmen: A certified copy of the college fall semester grades if you have carried a
minimum of ten (10) credit hours. If you are not a previous recipient of this scholarship include a
certified copy of the high school transcript and copies of the student’s SAT/ACT or other generally
accepted testing services scores.
– All others: A certified copy of your college transcript(s), including all semester grades.
Please make a request with your institution to have an official transcript mailed directly to the Awards
Chairman once fall grades have been processed.

A research paper from the approved topic list (attached- click on link– Scholarship Application) must be submitted in typed form and double spaced. Electronic submittal in Word format is preferred. See additional requirements on topic list.

AWARDS

The Scholarship Selection Committee shall base its awards upon
a) scholastic achievement
b) character
c) worthiness
d) quality of research paper
Awards shall be transmitted to the academic institution or the recipient for the Fall semester of study. Failure to
request the funds within 180 days of the announcement of the awards may be grounds for forfeiture of the
award. Any excess award funds are required to be returned to the Central Florida Chapter within the year
received.
Award recipients will be announced and introduced to the Chapter members at the annual Chapter picnic
which will be held on April 1, 2023, at the Ocoee Women’s Club located at 4 N. Lakewood Avenue, Ocoee,
FL 32761. Recipients are asked to attend the picnic if at all possible. Lunch will begin between 11:30 and 12 noon.

Central Florida Chapter

The Bill Neese/ Bill Tangye/ Ralph Jones Golf Tournament for 2022 is December 2nd.  You may not be familiar with these men and their contributions to the industry.  See below.

 

The Contributions of Bill Neese, Bill Tangye, and Ralph Jones

Bill Neese

JAMES WILLIAM NEESE retired from the City of Orlando in 1992 after a 26-year career.  As Orlando’s Building Official, Bill oversaw much of the city’s explosive growth, including downtown, the International Drive tourist corridor and Universal Studios.  Born in Graham, N.C., he moved to Central Florida in 1959.  Always active in the Central Florida BOAF Chapter, and former President of the Building Officials Association of Florida (BOAF), he was elected President of the Southern Building Code Congress International (SBCCI) in 1985 and to a three year term on the Board of Directors of the World Organization of Building Officials (WOBO) in London in 1987. Bill was instrumental in hiring Bill Tangye as the CEO of SBCCI heralding a period of significant membership access, code development, and growth which ultimately resulted in merging the three national model code groups and forming the International Code Council (ICC).  Bill Neese passed away at the age of 60 in 1994.  He was inducted posthumously into the Florida Home Builders Association (FHBA) Housing Hall of Fame  in 1999 as a result of his long-term commitment to affordable housing and the building industry.    (Source:  Bob McCormick)

Bill Tangye

William Jefferson Tangye was, perhaps, known best for his positon as the chief executive officer of SBCCI from 1982 to 2002 and as the first CEO of ICC starting in 2002.
Mr. Tangye had joined Southern Building Code Congress International, Inc. in 1975 as the director of engineering services and chief engineer. Prior to joining SBCCI, Mr. Tangye was director of field engineering for BOCA International. On September 19, 2001, the International Code Council Board of Directors, meeting in Cincinnati, Ohio, named him ICC’s first Chief Executive Officer.
“Bill was always the calming factor in the storm. Whenever he was in a meeting, he would let everyone have an opportunity to speak his piece. Anyone who didn’t know him would think he wasn’t paying attention but what he was really doing was absorbing all that was being said and how everyone was feeling. Then, when everyone was done, he would offer a solution that everyone was happy with. Most of the time the rest of us would say, ‘Now why didn’t we think of that’.”
Mr. Tangye was a registered professional engineer in several states, as well as a registered fire protection engineer in California. He held an undergraduate degree from California State Polytechnic University at Pomona as well as graduate degrees from the University of Southern California and California State University at Long Beach. (Source: North Carolina Building Inspector Association William J. Tangye Scholarship webpage  http://ncbia.org/)

 

Ralph Jones, Jr.

Ralph Winter Jones, Jr., was born in 1925 in South Carolina. He served the Country in World War II in the Army Air Corps.  He graduated from Clemson in 1950 with a degree in Architectural Engineering.
After serving the City of Spartanburg, South Carolina as their Building Official, Ralph moved to Orlando, Florida and became their Building Official in 1956. At that time, there was no State requirement for professional licensure. Ralph sought out the other Building Officials in the area and developed a standardized test for competency for contractors in the Central Florida area. Ralph enjoyed networking with other individuals involved in building code enforcement and was influential in the formulation of the Building Officials Association of Florida (BOAF). Ralph was always very active in the association. He served as President of the organization as well as many other committees including the Inspector Certification Committee which eventually became the mandatory licensure of Inspection Professionals. Ralph was also heavily involved in the Southern Building Code Congress (SBCCI).  He served on numerous committees and was elected to serve on the Board of Directors. Ralph W. Jones Jr. passed away at the age of 74 in 1998.  (Source- Ralph W. Jones III)

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