The Middle Georgia State University (MGA) Foundation honored John and Grace Phillips with the Legacy of Leadership award, recognizing their longstanding service to education and the community, and named Dr. Andrew Ollikainen, an aerospace engineer who credits his time at the school with helping launch his career, as Outstanding Alumnus. 

The awards were presented at the MGA Foundation’s annual President’s Gala, a fundraising event held each fall. 

The Legacy of Leadership award, the highest honor bestowed by the MGA Foundation, recognizes individuals or groups whose service has made a lasting impact on the University and the Foundation. The Outstanding Alumnus award celebrates graduates who have distinguished themselves through academic, professional, or community achievements. 

“These honorees demonstrate how education, service, and a commitment to others can shape lives and strengthen communities,” said Nancy White, vice president for University Advancement and executive director of the MGA Foundation. “John and Grace Phillips have built a remarkable legacy of civic and educational leadership, while Dr. Ollikainen has turned the opportunity he found at MGA into an accomplished career and a commitment to helping others follow a similar path.” 

John and Grace Phillips have spent decades supporting their community, church, and higher education, building a legacy of leadership and service that extends throughout Bleckley County and beyond. 

Grace Phillips, a University of Georgia graduate who also attended Middle Georgia College (now MGA) and Mercer University, has devoted much of her life to civic and community service. Her involvement has included the Macon Junior League, Cochran Junior Woman’s Club, Cochran Garden Club, Bleckley County Library Board, Bleckley Memorial Hospital, and First Baptist Church of Cochran. 

John Phillips graduated from Cochran High School and Middle Georgia College (now MGA) before earning a Bachelor of Business Administration in finance from the University of Georgia and a Juris Doctor degree from Mercer University’s School of Law. 

His professional leadership has included serving as a partner in the law firm Phillips & Phillips, president of Cochran Oil Mill and Ginnery Inc., chair of the State Bank of Cochran, and a director of Bank South. He also served on the Bleckley County Hospital Board and held leadership and trustee roles with both the Middle Georgia College Foundation and the MGA Foundation.  

Dr. Andrew Ollikainen’s career in aerospace engineering began with a two-year degree from Macon State College, now MGA. That early educational experience opened the door to the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering. 

Ollikainen went on to earn a Master of Mechanical Engineering from Mercer University, a Master of Military Operational Art and Science from the Air Command and Staff College, and a Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering from the Florida Institute of Technology. 

Following his studies at Georgia Tech, Ollikainen served with the Air Force Civilian Service at Robins Air Force Base, working in aircraft structural integrity. In recognition of his service and support during the Global War on Terror, he received the Air Force Command Civilian Award for Valor and the Air Force Civilian Achievement Award. 

Today, he is a staff engineer with Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems in Melbourne, Florida, where he develops probabilistic reliability and risk models to support aerospace system safety and airworthiness. 

Ollikainen has also contributed to the engineering profession through leadership and service. From 2023 to 2025, he chaired the Nondeterministic Approaches Technical Committee of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. He is a member of the Georgia Institute of Technology Academy of Distinguished Engineering Alumni and serves on the Florida Institute of Technology Aerospace Engineering Advisory Board. 

Ollikainen and his wife, Stephanie, established the Dr. and Mrs. Andrew C. Ollikainen Engineering Pathways Scholarship at MGA in 2021. The scholarship helps nontraditional engineering students pursue their educational and professional goals.