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College of Natural Resources
Forest Biomaterials

Alumni Spotlight: Tonya Honeycutt Elium- Class of 95

February 19, 2021
Family Photo - Alumni Spotlight: Tonya Honeycutt Elium - Class of 95 - Forest Biomaterials NC State University

Tonya Honeycutt Elium graduated from NC State in 1995 with dual degrees in Pulp and Paper Science and Technology and Chemical Engineering.  We reached out to Tonya to find out about her experiences since graduating from NC State, and what advice she would pass on to current students.  Thanks for your time Tonya.

Experience at NC State

  •  Internship/co-op experience: National Starch and Chemical Company in Salisbury, NC – Summer 1994
  • Favorite class: Every class taught by Dr. Jameel and Papermaking (of course). I also enjoyed Wood Chemistry with Dr. Gratzl.
  • Best memory at State: Graduating with two degrees in four years was the best, but there were many great memories made in the process. I spent five weeks in summer school rooming with one of my best friends to make it possible to finish in four years. That still seems like the fastest five weeks of my life. Going out to dinner with a group of Paper Science friends after we presented our Senior projects was another highlight.
  • Worst memory at State: My roommate and I decided to be adventurous our Freshman year and take the bus to the mall. Being from a small town, this was a new experience. We boarded the bus and rode around all over Raleigh. Finally, the bus driver stopped and walked to where we were sitting and asked us where we were going as we had been riding for hours and never got off. He explained that we had gotten on the bus on the wrong side of the street to go to the mall, but he was going there next. Once we got back to Hillsborough St, we “snuck” off the back of the bus and ate dinner at Hardee’s. It wasn’t all bad, but needless to say we never tried public transportation again in Raleigh after that.
  • Clubs/Hobbies: TAPPI, AIChE
  • Favorite part of PSE program: My favorite part of the program was having a close knit group of friends and the family atmosphere provided by the staff. My friend group for the entire four years started from us sitting at the same table at Freshman orientation.
  • Most important thing PSE taught me: PSE has taught me how to learn and grow in my career. It taught me about an industry that is sustainable, essential and highly technical. The possibilities are endless of what you can make out of a tree. Our TAPPI student chapter T-shirt said it best, “We bust ours so you can wipe yours”. This statement was definitely the theme of 2020. We provide essential products to consumers using a renewable resource.

Current Career Information

  • Company/job position: Rayonier Advanced Materials, Technical Manager, Jesup Plant in Georgia
  • Years at current job: January 2015
  • Favorite part of the job: My favorite part of my job is working with a great group of people not only in Jesup but all over the world. Being able to travel to many different countries to meet customers and see their operations is something I never expected when I chose my career path. I have been to Japan, China, France, Spain, Germany, Austria, Ireland and Canada on business travel.
  • Biggest accomplishment in career: Working on a team with scientists from our company, our customer and the customer’s customer to solve a highly technical issue. The team was rewarded with dinner with our CEO and our customer’s CEO after the project exceeded expectations by more than three times the goal.
  • What other positions have you had: I have worked my entire 25 year career with the same company. I spent the first 17 years at our Fernandina Beach, FL location serving as a process engineer, shift supervisor, unbleached area manager and process engineering group leader before transferring to the Jesup, GA location to serve as quality manager before being promoted to my current position.
  • Advise for current students: First, enjoy every minute you spend in college. Don’t think you’ll have it made as as soon as you graduate like I did. I miss afternoon naps, talk shows, soap operas, time off for all the holidays, and boredom. I also thought that there wouldn’t be any “homework”. Now it’s just a different kind of homework and a lot more of it. Secondly, start saving for retirement as soon as you get your first job and save a lot! Finally, my mentor who trained me for shift supervisor back when I was 23 years old told me that if you TRY to know everything then you will HAVE to know everything. I thought he must know everything after 44 years with the company and the nickname “Ironman”. The point is to listen to the people on the floor doing the jobs every day. Having a degree doesn’t replace on the job knowledge. I took over his shift as the first female shift supervisor in company history and that advice helped me to be successful in that role.

Personal Information

  • Hometown: China Grove, NC
  • Tell us about your family: I married my high school sweetheart, DJ, four weeks after graduation. We have four children, Trey (20), Cole (17), Lane (15) and Taegan (13).
  • Current Hobbies: Most of my free time is spent tending to our animals. We have eight cats, six miniature donkeys, six chickens, five pigs, four rabbits, three horses, two ducks, two dogs, a camel and a turtle. I enjoy traveling, walking in the woods and shopping at thrift stores. We are active with our church, teaching Sunday school and working with the youth group. Our camel and donkey are the highlight of Christmas festivities in Jesup where our church presents a Living Nativity every year.