On Thursday, January 26, 2023, the Department of Transportation held its 55th Annual Secretary’s Awards Ceremony. The event was hosted via live broadcast from Washington D.C. with Secretary Pete Buttigieg providing opening remarks.
Many of the awardees who did not travel to D.C. gathered together in the Aeronautical Center’s Headquarters building to watch the awards ceremony followed by a brief reception. It was exciting to see so many Aeronautical Center employees representing different lines of business, being recognized for their outstanding efforts in public service! The contributions reinforced the Department’s core values of excellence, trust, fairness, empathy, and imagination. These are the guiding principles of who we are and how we approach our work as public servants. They guide how we work with partners, how we treat each other, and how we strive to live up to these values in everything we do.
55th Secretary’s Awards Program
Congratulations to all of the Award Winners from the Aeronautical Center and from across the entire Department of Transportation. These awards are prestigious and everyone’s contributions towards the mission and the goals of the Department is greatly appreciated.
MERITORIOUS – SILVER MEDAL
Kevin Coker – For exemplary management of the Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center’s Energy Program
CREATIVITY AND INNOVATION AWARD – TEAM
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) Innovation Team – For outstanding efforts and contributions toward the successful implementation of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for Fiscal Year 2022.
Rodney Joel
Catherine Nelmes
Janel Showalter
Eric Trinklein
Robotic Process Automation Team – For utilizing intelligent automation technology to improve services, organizational effectiveness, and mission capabilities.
Steve Aube
Christopher Brimage
Misha Carlisle
Christopher Davis
Patrick McIntyre
Simon Moore
Jo-ann Napolitano
Linda Pahdoco
Dedrian Parmer
Vincent Pham
Derrick Rollins
Teresa Ryser
Rodney Sloan
Angela Sterling
Alan Thompson
TRANSPORTATION SAFETY AWARD – TEAM
Voluntary Safety Reporting Program Team – For creating and fielding a system for voluntary and confidential reporting of aviation safety issues.
Cynthia Ashforth
David Ayars
Aleta Best
Michael Bloom
Tami Davis
Steven D’Urso
Michael Dostert
Veronica Gardner
Dara Gibson
Aiesha Harvey
Ricardo Hidalgo
Brenda Hooper
Robert Huber
James Humphries
Jamil Kabbara
Ingrid Knox
Paula Martinez
Danae Morales
Raymond Morgan
Carl Newton
Steven Ramdeen
Ann Reda
Michael Reinert
Chelsea Rowe
John Stuber
Loretta Summers
Matthew Todd
Andrew Turner
Thomas Van Dillen
Chad Walker
LEADERSHIP IN SUSTAINABILITY AND CLIMATE AWARD
Aviation Climate Action Team – For developing the aviation sector’s vision and plan to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
Nathan Brown
James Hileman
Rudramuni Majjigi
Anna Oldani
Arthur Orton
Daniel Williams
PARTNERING FOR EXCELLENCE – TEAM AWARD
Aviation Manufacturing Jobs Protection Program Team – For swift and successful implementation of the Aviation Manufacturing Jobs Protection Program
Steve Aube
Julia Conner Ewert
Rigo Driscoll
Cynthia Drummond
Karen Feland
Kathy Ha
Kiera King
Angela Lee
Jamie Lewis
Sabrina Miller
Eva Ngai
Roger Schaufele, Jr.
Heather Scott
Todd Steiner
Lavada Strickland
Peter Toman
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT – GOLD MEDAL AWARD
This award recognizes exceptionally outstanding leadership and service distinguished by achievements of marked national or international significance.
The Future of Work Team – This award was granted to over a hundred employees working across the entire DOT helping the workforce to get back together after the global health crisis and subsequent variants. This team helped in contributing to new policies, telework initiatives and remote work programs.
