Army well-represented in Workforce Achievement Awards

By Susan L. Follett

WASHINGTON (Oct. 7, 2019)—Hon. Ellen M. Lord, undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, has announced the winners of the 2019 Defense Acquisition Workforce Achievement Awards, with the Army taking home honors in nine categories.

“It is important that we continue to recognize the outstanding contributions of our defense acquisition professionals who are critical in supporting our warfighter and the defense mission,” Lord said in announcing the winners.

The U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command (CCDC) Ground Vehicle Systems Center in Warren, Michigan, took home the Workforce Development Innovation Award (Large Organization), and eight Army personnel received individual awards.

Maj. Eugene Choi, with the Army Contracting Command, received the award for Acquisition in an Expeditionary Environment; and Nicole Gulla, Joint Program Executive Office (JPEO) for Armaments and Ammunition, received the award for Individual Achievement Award for Cost Estimating. The Individual Achievement Award for Facilities Engineering went to Laureen Borochaner, with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The Production, Quality and Manufacturing Award went to CCDC’s James G. Clark, and the award for Individual Achievement in Program Management Award was given to Col. David Warnick, with the Program Executive Office (PEO) for Missiles and Space.

Col. Sean McMurry, JPEO for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense, received the Individual Achievement Award for Requirements Management; and Lt. Col. Mara Kreishman-Deitrick, U.S. Army Futures Command, received the Science and Technology Manager Award. The newest award, for Individual Achievement in Software, went to George Senger with the PEO for Command, Control and Communications – Tactical.

The award ceremony will be held Oct. 29 at the Pentagon Hall of Heroes. The full list of winners follows:

Individual Achievement Awards:
Acquisition in an Expeditionary Environment: Maj. Eugene Choi, Army Contracting Command
Auditing: Jessica Oliver, Defense Contract Audit Agency
Contracting and Procurement: Simon Klink, F-35 Lightning II Joint Program Office (JPO), U.S. Navy
Cost Estimating: Nicole E. Gulla, JPEO Armaments and Ammunition
Earned Value Management: Melissa Ransom, PEO Land Systems, U.S. Marine Corps
Engineering: Joseph Krumenacker, F-35 Lightning II JPO
Facilities Engineering: Laureen A. Borochaner, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Financial Management: Julie Blankenbaker, Naval Air Systems Command
Information Technology: Capt. Yazmin H. Garcia Smith, U.S. Air Force Materiel Command
International Partnership: Jean-Anne A. Butler, Air Force Materiel Command
Life Cycle Logistics: Chief Warrant Officer 4 Martin A. Lopez Beltran, Marine Corps Systems Command
Production, Quality and Manufacturing: James G. Clark, Army Combat Capabilities Development Command (CCDC)
Program Management: Col. David A. Warnick, PEO Missiles and Space
Requirements Management: Col. Sean A. McMurry, JPEO Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense
Science and Technology Manager: Lt. Col. Mara Kreishman-Deitrick, Army Futures Command
Services Acquisition: Alicia Spurling, U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM)
Small Business: Paul D. Ward, SOCOM
Software: George Senger, PEO Command, Control and Communications – Tactical
Test and Evaluation: Col. Varun Pari, F-35 Lightning II JPO

Team Awards:
Software Innovation: U.S. Air Force Kessel Run – Boston
Flexibility in Contracting: National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency JANUS Team – Springfield, Virginia
Workforce Development Innovation (Large Organization): CCDC Ground Vehicle Systems Center – Warren, Michigan
Workforce Development Innovation (Small Organization): SOCOM Special Operations Forces Acquisition, Technology and Logistics – MacDill Air Force Base, Florida