Someone who stands out among the rest. Nominees should have achieved personal and professional success, have a record of community service and have given back to others through their time, talents and donations. A Top 20 Under 40 Award recipient is someone who deserves recognition in the community. Nominees must be 39 years or younger by April 30th, 2019. Nominees must spend the majority of their time working in South Carolina. Please take this opportunity to nominate an overachiever who deserves this tremendous honor! South Carolina Black Pages and Black Expo South presents the 2019 Top 20 Under 40 Awards, saluting the best and brightest men and women under the age of 40 in South Carolina. We embarked on this challenge because we understand the impact this hardworking group has on the future of our community. It is important for The South Carolina Black Pages to help in this charge because we identify and work with these future leaders every day. Recipients of the Top 20 under 40 Award will be profiled in the 2019– 2020 South Carolina Black Pages, at the Top 20 under 40 Awards Reception, and throughout the 2018 Black Expo Tour. Nominations are officially open. Nominate an overachiever no later than March 20, 2019 at 5:00pm. Meet our honorees below. How can someone be considered?

Nominees must be 39 years or younger as of April 30, 2019. Nominees must spend the majority of their time working in the State of South Carolina.

Current Leadership/ Contributions to the community where you live or work Noteworthy Achievements/ Professional Career Advancements Current efforts to Advanced the Community Completed Application Professional Social Media (i.e. Website, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn) Employees and Affiliates or family members of Thomas Media Group, LLC are NOT to be nominated or accepted.

The 2019 nomination period will open January 15th, 2018, and close March 20th, 2019 at 5:00 pm.

Nominations will only be accepted through our online submission process.

You can nominate yourself, a client, a friend, a peer, your boss; anyone who meets the criteria..

Yes. Self-nomination is acceptable.

Yes, you can nominate as many people as you like. *Exception: Employees and Affiliates of Thomas Media Group, LLC. must limit their nomination to ONE person.

Absolutely! We encourage the nomination of our military leaders.

Yes. However, only one recipient from a company will be chosen.

Yes.

No. Only individuals can receive The South Carolina Black Pages’ Top 20 Under 40 Award. Please enter one name per application. (If two names appear on an application, it will be disqualified.)

No. We ask that nominations are true nominations and not an organized campaign. Thomas Media Group judges will make the final decision.

We expect to receive more than 300 nominations. But don’t get discouraged! If you do not receive the award this year, we encourage you to apply again.

A panel of independent judges scores all nominations individually.

The South Carolina Black Pages’ Top 20 Under 40 nominees are judged on their business success and their achievements as an active member of our community. A selection panel is put together by Community Leaders, Business Owners, and Corporate Executives to select those who meet the Qualifications and Criteria. The Panel bases their decisions on a scoring sheet designed specifically with the Qualifications and Criteria listed above.

Judges are looking to assess whether the nominee is outstanding in their field of expertise, educational credentials, awards and distinctions, and community involvement. Judges look for people who actively participate and take leadership roles in the community over those who simply hold membership in various groups. Be sure to include detailed information about the results of the volunteerism.

No, your references will only be contacted if a judge requires more detailed information on a specific item.

Recipients will be notified via email no than on or before April 30th of their award. The names of The South Carolina Black Pages’ 20 Under 40 Award Recipients will also be announced in the South Carolina Black Pages.

Only winners are notified.

We receive many outstanding applications each year. The selection process is quantitative confidential. If your nominee is not selected, we encourage you to nominate them again next year.

Those that are selected must make themselves available for an interview and photo shoot as a group. Attending the South Carolina Black Pages’ Top 20 Under 40 Reception is not required but highly encouraged.

We know that you’re excited and we don’t expect you to keep your selection as a complete secret, but we want the announcement of the list to be a surprise, so please refrain from advertising your selection to The South Carolina Black Pages’ Top 20 Under 40 in any form, including Facebook, Twitter etc until it’s officially announced. Failure to abide by this rule may result in your removal from the list. If selected as a Top 20 Under 40 Recipient please note that in order to keep your reveal a surprise we would like you to refrain from making a public announcement that you have been selected as such. Also please note that all information turned in during the Application process is keep strictly confidential.

Please note that the names and company names of the 20 selected recipients will be published in South Carolina Black Pages and online at blackpagessouth.com. Honorees will be required to provide a short biography to be used for publishing. Names and company names of non-recipients will not be published unless notified. No other information provided in the nomination will be published or sold. Contact information will be used to update recipients about the next steps in the awards process.

If you have further questions regarding The South Carolina Black Pages’ Top 20 Under 40, please contact Thomas Media Group, LLC at 803-254- 6404 so that we can better assist you.