ARTESIA, Calif. — The DIG Award committee of the Engineering Contractors' Association (ECA) has chosen John Hakel of the Southern California Partnership for Jobs (SCPFJ) as its 32^nd annual award recipient. The DIG Award is specific to the construction industry and the acronym stands for Dignity, Integrity, and Generosity.

Hakel serves as the executive director at SCPFJ a group whose mission is to engage elected officials and educate the public on the need for continued infrastructure funding that creates thousands of jobs in construction within the region.

"I am beyond humbled to receive such a prestigious award," said Hakel. "To be honored alongside the very best in our industry is truly an honor."

Hakel is a member of the Southern California Association of Governments, Inland Empire Economic Partnership, Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce, Orange County Business Council, Advisory Board Member of Mobility 21, and is currently serving on the Los Angeles Community College District Oversight Committee.

In addition, Hakel has established personal working relationships with organizations such as the California Transportation Commission, Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board, and the Riverside County Transportation Commission.

Hakel was instrumental in the passage of local Measure M (LA County) that helped create 485,000 jobs and decades of work for the construction industry. His tireless work on behalf of the passage of the SB1 Statewide transportation initiative resulted in the creation of $5.2 billion in infrastructure improvements, which will provide construction careers throughout Southern California for more than 10 years.

As in year's past, the ECA DIG Awards will continue its long-standing tradition of honoring individuals who have laid the foundations upon which this industry is built. As they have done since 1988, ECA will again recognize the dedicated work of those who have advanced the stature of the construction industry.

Proceeds from the DIG Award benefit the ECA Scholarship fund. Since its inception in 1990 by late ECA president Les Weed, the ECA Scholarship Committee has awarded $245,000 to 122 recipients to further academic careers in a variety of disciplines.

The 32^nd Annual ECA DIG Awards will be held Oct. 24 beginning with a hosted reception at 6 p.m. and followed by dinner and ceremony at 7:30 p.m. at the Los Angeles Millennium Biltmore Hotel, which is located at 506 S. Grand Avenue, Los Angeles. For more information, visit www.ecasocal.org.