Category: Press

2025 PSO Scholarship Winners

Carissa Ashman
Ava Aube

MWWA and Tata & Howard are pleased to announce that Carissa Ashman and Ava Aube were awarded the Patrick S. O’Neale Engineering Scholarship Awards.

Carissa is pursuing an Environmental Engineering/Water Science degree at University of Wisconsin, and Ava is pursuing a degree in Civil Engineering/Environmental from Hofstra University.

Congratulations to both Carissa and Ava on their incredible achievements, and we wish them continued success!

About the Scholarship

Tata & Howard, Inc. is pleased to co-sponsor the Patrick S. O’Neale, P.E. Engineering Scholarship Award through the Massachusetts Water Works Association (MWWA). This award is open to students pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil or Environmental Engineering at an accredited academic institution in the United States, with preference given to those candidates whose programs of study are related to waterworks practice. 

2025 DJT Scholarship Winner

Please join us in congratulating Marlborough High School graduate Dong Ton for being awarded the 2025 Donald J. Tata Engineering Scholarship. Dong will be pursuing a degree in Mechanical Engineering from Brown University in the fall. Congratulations, Dong! 

The Donald J. Tata Engineering Scholarship is an annual scholarship given in honor of Tata & Howard co-founder Don Tata to a deserving senior from Marlborough High School who will be pursuing an engineering degree in college. 

2024 DJT Scholarship Winners

Alexis Ott
Katherine Fuller

Marlborough High School graduate Alexis Ott and Natick High School graduate Katherine Fuller were selected as the recipients of the 2024 Donald J. Tata Engineering Scholarships. Alexis will be attending the University of Connecticut and Katherine will be attending the University of Michigan in the fall. Congratulations, Alexis and Katherine! 

The Donald J. Tata Engineering Scholarship Awards are annual scholarships given in honor of Tata & Howard co-founder Don Tata to deserving seniors from Natick and Marlborough High Schools who will be pursuing engineering degrees in college. 

2024 PSO Scholarship Winners

MWWA and Tata & Howard are pleased to announce that Ryan Christensen (left) and Matthew Griffiths (right) are the winners of the Patrick S. O’Neale Engineering Scholarship Awards.

Ryan is pursuing a degree in Chemical and Environmental Engineering from Northeastern University, while Matthew is pursuing a degree in Civil Engineering and Construction Engineering Management from Penn State.

Congratulations to both Ryan and Matthew for their well-deserved awards!

About the Scholarship

Tata & Howard, Inc. is pleased to co-sponsor the Patrick S. O’Neale, P.E. Engineering Scholarship Award through the Massachusetts Water Works Association (MWWA). This award is open to students pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil or Environmental Engineering at an accredited academic institution in the United States, with preference given to those candidates whose programs of study are related to waterworks practice. 

2023 PSO Scholarship Winners

MWWA and Tata & Howard are pleased to announce that Pierre Mbala and Clayton Linneman are the winners of the Patrick S. O’Neale Engineering Scholarship Awards.

Pierre is pursuing a degree in Water Resource Engineering from James Madison University, while Clayton is pursuing a degree in Water Resources from Texas A&M University.

Congratulations to both Pierre and Clayton for their well-deserved awards!

Scholarships by Nick Youngson CC BY-SA 3.0 Pix4free

About the Scholarship

Tata & Howard, Inc. is pleased to co-sponsor the Patrick S. O’Neale, P.E. Engineering Scholarship Award through the Massachusetts Water Works Association (MWWA). This award is open to students pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil or Environmental Engineering at an accredited academic institution in the United States, with preference given to those candidates whose programs of study are related to waterworks practice. 

Tata & Howard Announces Co-Founder’s Retirement

Paul Howard set to retire from the Massachusetts-based environmental engineering firm at the end of the year

Tata & Howard, Inc. has announced the retirement of Tata & Howard Co-Founder and Senior Vice President Paul Howard as of December 31, 2022. While he is stepping down from day-to-day operations, Mr. Howard will remain on the Board of Directors and serve as a technical advisor to the current leadership team led by Karen Gracey, P.E. and Jenna Rzasa, P.E., who were named Co-Presidents in 2017.

“Tata & Howard’s succession plan was underway when the company became a 100% ESOP in 2014,” commented Ms. Rzasa. “While Paul was originally planning to retire years ago, he graciously remained on the team to assist during the leadership transition that was expedited due to the untimely death of our firm’s President Don Tata.”

Donald Tata and Paul Howard co-founded Tata & Howard in 1992 and grew the firm from a two-person start-up to a highly successful engineering firm with multiple offices throughout New England and Arizona. In 2014, Mr. Tata and Mr. Howard created a 100% ESOP for Tata & Howard and lined up Ms. Gracey and Ms. Rzasa to assume leadership while they transitioned to retirement. However, in 2017, Mr. Tata passed away after a short illness. At that time, Mr. Howard resumed a full-time role with the company to assist the newly appointed Co-Presidents with the transition. Now five years later, Mr. Howard is looking forward to retirement.

Gracey and Rzasa have been with the firm since 1998 and 1997, respectively, and were named to the Board of Directors in 2013. As Co-Presidents, they have focused on Tata & Howard’s strategic plan while adhering to the firm’s core values and mission of providing unsurpassed solutions in the water environment. Vice Presidents Justine Carroll, P.E., Ryan Neyland, P.E., and Jon Gregory, P.E., who have a combined 50 years of experience with the firm, will continue to provide strategic and operational support to Gracey and Rzasa.

“Since the firm’s inception, Paul has served as a pillar of innovation, integrity, and technical excellence to Tata & Howard,” added Ms. Gracey. “While we will miss him in the daily operations of the firm, we are grateful for his unwavering support over the past five years and are looking forward to his continued thought leadership as part of the Board.”

Mr. Howard received his B.S. in Engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute where he met Mr. Tata. Mr. Howard’s career has included numerous success stories including the design and construction of the Shrewsbury, MA Home Farm Water Treatment Facility, which at time of construction was the second largest biological treatment facility in the country, and which received the prestigious 2020 Bronze Award for Engineering Excellence through ACEC. Additionally, Mr. Howard served as Project Manager for the design and construction of the Town of Natick’s water treatment facility, which was the first to recycle backwash water in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. He has served as President of the Massachusetts Water Works Association and has been involved in many trade committees including legislative, technical, awards, finance, and nominating. Mr. Howard was the recipient of the 2009 Past President’s Award, 2011 William H. McGinness Award, 2016 Water Works State Leadership Award, and the 2018 Executive Director Award. He is also a lifetime member of the American Water Works Association.

See photos from his retirement party here.

2022 DJT Scholarship Winners

Tata & Howard is pleased to announce the Donald J. Tata Engineering Scholarship Award to two deserving high school seniors: Cheryl Seiger from Natick High School and Christopher King Jr. (pictured) from Marlborough High School.

Cheryl is pursuing an Engineering Management degree from Arizona State University, while Christopher is pursuing a Computer Science Engineering degree at St. Anselm’s. We wish both of these very deserving students continued success on their educational journey!

About the Scholarship

The Donald J. Tata Engineering Scholarship Awards are annual scholarships given in honor of Tata & Howard co-founder Don Tata to deserving seniors from Natick and Marlborough High Schools who will be pursuing engineering degrees in college. 

T&H Flushing Plan Showcased in Municipal Water & Sewer Magazine

Daniel Rowley, Water and Sewer SuperintendentShrewsbury MA utility boosts water quality with a carefully executed treatment and flushing plan

To combat a long-standing water-quality problem, the Town of Shrewsbury Water and Sewer Division in Massachusetts recently completed a comprehensive unidirectional flushing project aimed at removing manganese from its water mains.

A local contractor performed the flushing using a plan developed by Tata & Howard, a firm that’s been the utility’s consultant since the 1990s. The water system features about 207 miles of mains, mostly made of asbestos cement, ductile iron and PVC pipes. It includes more than 11,000 service connections and serves about 38,000 people. Read more

2022 PSO Scholarship Winner

The Massachusetts Water Works Association (MWWA), jointly with Tata & Howard, Inc., (TH) announced Joseph Diaz (JD) as the first recipient of the co-sponsored Patrick S. O’Neale P.E. Scholarship. 

In May 2022, Joseph Diaz will graduate from Merrimack College, embark on a full-time job, and after graduation,  pursue his Master of Science in Engineering Management degree in the evening. His favorite person in the Engineering field, Arthur Casagrande (1902 – 1981); per Joseph, “without him, our understanding of the liquid limit test of knowing the soil’s strength, consistency, and behavior would be limited.” We asked Joseph to share his “Greatest of All Time” experience, sparking his interest in engineering. His response was “a 7th-grade city-wide challenge to repurpose open spaces. My assignment; was to create a self-watering community garden. With a flip of a switch, the garden was self-watered, and so was my curiosity about how things work.” Our interview wouldn’t be complete without asking this last question, “What would you like to accomplish in the next ten years?” His answer: to complete my master’s degree; become a mentor to youth interested in S.T.E.M., and fulfill my dream of returning to my homeland, the Dominican Republic, to assist provinces with my engineering skills.

Joseph, the Tata & Howard and MWWA teams congratulate you and wish you much success!

2021 DJT Scholarship Winners

Donald-tata-scholarshipTata & Howard is pleased to announce that Ryan Pearl and Jacob Byron from Marlborough High School are the winners of the 2021 Donald J. Tata Engineering Scholarship Awards.

Ryan Pearl plan to pursue a Civil Engineering degree from Northeastern University, while Jacob Byron plans to pursue a degree in Computer Science Engineering from the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth. Congratulations to both of these very deserving graduating seniors!

The Donald J. Tata Engineering Scholarship Awards are annual scholarships given in honor of Tata & Howard co-founder Don Tata to deserving seniors from Marlborough High School who will be pursuing engineering degrees in college.