Nov. 3 - Nov. 7, 2008
Margo Phillips, Southwest Florida International Airport, with her Diversity Day inspired art. Phillips paints as a hobby and on commission to paint murals and special works. Because TSA is diverse, she says, we can better understand the public we serve. Read more about Diversity Day celebrations across the country.Photo by Ken Teske |
News The TSA Experience |
Understanding the Threat
Key Messages From the ENGAGE! Training ManualTerrorists will go to any extreme. They are extremely patient, waiting for us to let our guard down.
It is bad security to assume terrorists will look a certain way or attack in a certain way. They are unpredictable; their attacks may appear random; and they are constantly thinking of new ways to carry out attacks. They test our security. They conduct dry runs.
Terrorists know our technology and are looking for ways to get around our SOP. Examples: 9/11 terrorists used box cutters, which were not prohibited at the time; terrorists have looked at non-prohibited remote-controlled toys to carry IEDs onboard planes; and the London liquids bomb-plot terrorists were going to use what appeared to be non-prohibited liquids to bring down planes.
The mastermind of the London plot was arrested in Pakistan but escaped last December. He is out there – along with other terrorists.
You and your teammates have seen more than 3 billion passengers. By engaging that experience, teaching you about IEDs and giving you information about the enemy, Evolution helps you understand the terrorist threat.
Evolution: In the FSD's Own Words
I recently underwent ENGAGE! WOW! What an experience! We've seen great class participation and there is a renewed sense of purpose with our team. Many people, including me, are closing out their final day with a personal pledge to the team to renew our level of commitment. I believe TSA got this one right!
- Federal Security Director Jay Brainard, Iowa
Engage the Evolution team with your questions and suggestions at ENGAGEevolution@dhs.gov.
Evolution: Kip Answers Your Questions
Editor's Note: The following is the third in a series of four segments that detail Administrator Kip Hawley's responses to questions from officers at an ENGAGE! graduation ceremony.
Why do people in checked baggage have to take this training?
ENGAGE! is about finding and resolving the next threat. How the enemy will launch the next attack, what weapons they will use, and where in the system they will attempt to beat us are all unknowns. Most importantly, you are an officer, and part of being an officer is to know the threat and our latest info on our environment and security measures. These are all thinking risk management jobs, and we want everybody wearing a TSA uniform to be ready for anything.
It would be easy to rely on technology to solve our checked baggage security challenge, but our enemy knows what our technology can do and what it can't do. It is naïve to believe that they won't find and attempt to exploit weaknesses in our baggage technology, just as it is naïve to believe that they are not searching for ways to beat our checkpoint security. As good as our EDS and EDT equipment is, there's no substitute for the human brain – what you see, sense and feel about a bag or an image may not fit what is defined in the SOP or what is pre-set into an EDS algorithm. Acting on ENGAGE! principles in checked baggage security is critically important.
More broadly, seeing and sensing something out of place can't take place only at the checkpoint or in the baggage room. Every day, we have a team of 45,000 TSOs walking through the airport, going through parking lots, driving on access roads, and working in secure areas. Engaging in what's happening in those spaces – above and beyond official work assignments – is in the spirit of our mission and is the hallmark of a professional. Nobody can force you to take that responsibility. It is up to you.
PS: It is important to remember that the objective of ENGAGE! is not to do away with the SOP but to use it as a guide in a world where terrorists seek to find the gray areas not covered by the terms of the SOP.
News
TSA Launches Combined Federal Campaign
By Ronald Eschmann, management and program analyst, Office of Security Technology
Honorary campaign chairman Michael P. Golden,
assistant administrator for Operational Process and
Technology/Chief Technology Officer, shakes hands
with Diane Cole, DHS survey manager.
Photo by Brigitte Dittberner
TSA kicked off the National Capital Area's 2008 Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) at headquarters Monday with more than 60 employees and senior leadership. The campaign will run through January.
The CFC is the nation's leading workplace giving program, raising millions of dollars every year that benefits thousands of non-profit charities. The campaign's theme is Be a Star in Someone's Life and is currently ongoing at TSA locations across the country.
Michael P. Golden, assistant administrator for Operational Process and Technology/Chief Technology Officer, is this year's honorary campaign chairman and opened the event.
He said the goal for TSA employees in the National Capital Area is $595,734, with a participation rate of 40 percent. Last year, Department of Homeland Security employees contributed more than $3 million.
Diane Cole, Department of Homeland Security survey manager at the headquarters-based Office of Human Capital, shared her personal story about being a two-time breast cancer survivor. After being diagnosed twice since 2000, she credited her will to survive to the courage displayed by other women she met and who were also fighting the disease.
"With the generosity of people like you and the support of cancer organizations under CFC, I believe that my dream will come true," she said.
Additional information for headquarters employees is available at http://www.cfcnca.org. CFC is open to all TSA employees.
Watch a video of the event.
Diversity Day Inspires Art, Dance, Teamwork
From the Office of Strategic Communications/Public AffairsDiversity Day, the brain child of Houston Behavior Detection Officer Jesse Santiago, helps create and sustain a diverse and inclusive workplace. And on Oct. 29, TSA employees across the country celebrated that goal.
Photo courtesy of Robert E.
White
At Ohio's Port Columbus International Airport, Diversity Day ran nearly 12 hours to give everyone – including airport employees – a chance to enjoy the fellowship and food, which included pot luck dishes ranging from American Indian to European to Asian to Mediterranean. There was also a small display of clothes from different countries (photo).
Pictured (center) is TSO
Melinda Quichcho
Photo by Nestor Licanto
Guam, a Pacific crossroad situated in the heart of Micronesia and at the doorstep of Asia, has a long tradition of multi-cultural influences dating back thousands of years, long before Magellan came ashore in the 15th century. Guam is "where America's day begins," said Finance Specialist Joanne San Agustin.
Because of its unique history and location, Guam is a melting pot of many cultures. So, the officers hosted a get-together at a local establishment to celebrate Diversity Day by sharing their cultural food, dance and song. "We were all raised to recognize the importance of cultural diversity and a genuine respect for all people and their beliefs," said Federal Security Director Dan Astorga.
Photo by Nancy Mello
Lead TSO Liisa Prine entertains the TSA and airport employees at the Dane County Regional Airport (Madison, Wis.) Multicultural Pot Luck Luncheon.
Photo by Kim Wagner
This banner celebrates the diversity of the Oklahoma City (OKC) workforce in honor of the first TSA Diversity Day. OKC employees are also collecting recipes to create a cookbook.
Photo by Lara Uselding
The Yiao Gyu Chinese dance troupe performs at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport on Diversity Day.
In Tribute
(Names of TSA employees and dates of death provided by the Office of Human Capital.)Cheryl Martellacci, TSO, Lihue (Hawaii) Airport, Oct. 11, 2008
Ephraim Honeysucker, TSO, Memphis (Tenn.) International Airport, Oct. 10
Tommy Nix, Lead TSO, Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, Oct. 6
Mark Leibold, TSO, Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport, Sept. 29
Rita Dangerfield, Supervisory TSO, Salt Lake City International Airport, Sept. 22, 2008
Edward Sciarini, TSO, Orlando (Fla.) International Airport, Sept. 21
TSA Agents Compassionate in Death of One of Their Own
TSA Takes Care of its OwnEditor's Note: The following letter appeared in the Dallas Morning News on Oct. 22. Lead TSO Tommy Nix worked at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.
Photo courtesy of TSA Dallas/Fort
Worth International Airport
I want to tell you about the compassionate, caring people of the Transportation Security Administration at D/FW International Airport.
On Oct. 6, my son-in-law, Tommy Nix, was on his way to work at TSA when he passed away and then hit a guardrail.
Immediately, the TSA people were with my daughter and granddaughters bringing wonderful food every day from some of the best restaurants.
It was unbelievable the numerous times we opened the door to people wearing the blue uniforms, with their arms loaded, always so compassionate. I can't begin to describe all the wonderful things they have done. Their kindness went beyond the call of duty.
The next time you go through security at the airport, please let them know what a great job they are doing.
They care about your safety and will be there if you need them.
Bobbie Mills
Mount Vernon, Texas
Kudos & Clips
Going Green Through Procurement
By Donna Quesinberry, Examiner.com, Nov. 2, 2008
Executive Order 13101, Greening the Government through Waste Prevention, Recycling, and Federal Acquisition - 16 September 1998, instructs Agencies to ensure that preparation, implementation and monitoring of affirmative procurement programs are shared between program and acquisition and procurement personnel. Executive Order 13101 also instructs that "all purchases made pursuant to this order … shall adjust solicitation guidelines as necessary in order to accomplish this goal." An executive order advising 'all solicitation guidelines' reflect green initiative practices is a serious consideration, so how are we shoring up to this executive command? Read more.
U.S.-EU Strike Accord on Air Cargo Screening
By Jonah Czerwinski, Homeland Security Watch, Nov. 1, 2008
There are about 300 flights a day to the U.S. that originate from the 27 EU countries. How the cargo on those planes is screened has been an issue over which the U.S. and EU have negotiated for years. DHS wants our European counterparts to apply the same security standards we do on flights from the U.S. across the Atlantic. With a little help from a Congressional deadline, the European Commission and TSA struck an agreement yesterday to apply U.S. standards for air cargo screening for half of the cargo on U.S.-bound passenger flights by February 2009 and all cargo on all flights by 2010. Read more.
The TSA Experience
Albany Officers Donate Clothing for Area Veterans
By Ray Stevens, administrative officer, TSA Albany International Airport
TSO Kim Herrera shows the boxes
packed with this year's uniform donations.
Photo by Joseph Newfrock
For the third consecutive year, officers at TSA Albany International Airport in Upstate New York organized the donation of old uniforms to a local Veteran's Affairs hospital that distributes the jackets and sweaters to veterans.
The VA program, Because We Care, supports more than 600 area veterans. Rather than throwing out the clothes, officers carefully remove TSA patches and badges and deliver the clothing.
Karen Covey, volunteer manager, VA Medical Center, thanked the officers. "It's wonderful people like you that help us to help veterans in need," she said.
The effort was coordinated by Albany TSOs Kim Herrera and Peter Schoonmaker.
TSA Employees Tour the National Archives
Photo by Anthony Ferguson
TSA collateral-duty records liaisons recently attended a private behind-the-scenes tour of the National Archives and Record Administration (NARA) facility in College Park, Md. TSA has a number of qualifying permanent records, including official record copies of select correspondence from the Office of the Administrator, select regulations and rule making decisions, TSA management directives, and record copies of aviation security standard operating procedures. The tour provided a better understanding and appreciation of the need for effective record-keeping practices. For more information about TSA's Records Management Program, visit the Intranet. Pictured (from left) are an unidentified NARA researcher; Maxie Phillips, tour guide, NARA; Florita Bynum, records liaison, TSA; Lawan Jackson, records management officer, TSA; Tiffany McKnight, Lauren Dang and Dusty Schlee, records liaisons, TSA; and Ivan King, archives specialist, NARA.
Workforce
Officers Discover Concealed Drugs in Passenger's Bag
From TSA Miami International Airport
From left, Supervisory TSO Frances Miranda; TSOs
Juan Altamira and Carmen Valverde; Transportation
Security Manager Carmen Goldhammer; and TSOs
Jason VanDiest and Leopoldo Justo.
Photo courtesy of Frances Miranda
As TSO Carmen Valverde operated an explosive detection system at Miami International Airport recently, three bags alarmed. Inside the bags, officers found evidence of tampering. Taped along the inside liner of each bag were thin-layered pouches filled with a white, powdery substance – five in all.
Customs and Border Protection confirmed that the pouches contained narcotics and arrested a man on charges of smuggling, possession of narcotics and failure to declare.
Along with Valverde, TSOs Leopoldo Justo, Jason VanDiest and Juan Altamira were presented an Eagle Eye pin, letter and certificate for achieving "an extraordinary level of accomplishment."
"When confronted with major responsibilities, these officers demonstrated outstanding teamwork and responded swiftly," said Transportation Security Manager Carmen Goldhammer.
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