On June 17, 2025, at the 100th anniversary conference of the Michigan Water Environment Association, Hart Bio-Pure Superintendent Paul Cutter was awarded the Doris Van Dam Operations Professional of the Year Award.
"We are happy to celebrate with Paul and honor his long-serving dedication to our community. Seeing his peers' respect for him across the region is quite a testament to his character and his history of inspiring others to be great," Hart City Manager Rob Splane said. "The City of Hart benefits from recruiting and retaining some of the most talented employees in the state. The Doris Van Dam Award is one of the highest honors in this industry."
Per the Michigan Water Environment Association (MWEA) website, details of the award are:
The Doris Van Dam Operations Professional Of The Year award was established in 2002 (originally titled “Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator of the Year,” then changed to “Operations Professional of the Year” and then named after Doris VanDam in 2022).
Doris Van Dam began her career on January 10, 1944, at the Grand Rapids Water Filtration Plant as a temporary employee. In 1970, she advanced to assistant superintendent of the city’s wastewater treatment plant. She was selected as the first superintendent of the new Grand Haven-Spring Lake Wastewater Treatment Plant when it went into service in 1973. In 1978, Doris served as president of the MWEA Board of Directors. She retired in 1987 after 44 years of service. In 1988, she was a member of the first group inducted into the MWEA 5S Society. Doris was the first woman to be certified as a Class A Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator in Michigan. She set a standard to which all can aspire but one that few will achieve.
A nominee for this award must meet all five of the following qualifications: an employee at a municipal water resource recovery facility (WRRF); a majority of their duties are dedicated to the operation of a municipal WRRF; a member of the MWEA at the time of nomination; have five years of experience in the operation of a municipal WRRF; and a State of Michigan certified Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator
This award will be given to a nominee who has displayed outstanding service to an employer and to MWEA, contributed to the professional growth of co-workers, consistently generated good-quality facility effluent, and publicly promoted the profession of the WRRF operator.
The following suggests just a few of the ways in which a nominee can demonstrate the outstanding performance that this award seeks to recognize: contributed to a facility safety program; contributed to facility efficiency or sustainability; shown courage in the face of danger to a facility or a co-worker; contributed to an MWEA committee, training program, or publication; contributed to an employee training program; maintained permit compliance under challenging conditions; provided service to the public that went “beyond the call of duty"; and/or participated in public events that showcase the WRRF.
