Washington, DC – National Nuclear Security Administration Administrator Thomas D’Agostino today announced the recipients of the second annual NNSA Security Professional of the Year Awards.  This Award recognizes one federal employee and one contractor employee whose contributions to the security programs within the NNSA enterprise exemplify the highest ideals of public service.  

In a note to NNSA and contractor employees, Administrator D’Agostino announced that Roxanne E. Steward from the Pantex Site Office and David M. Telles from Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) have been selected as the Security Professionals of the Year for 2008.

“Our security professionals dedicate themselves to protecting some of the nation’s most vital strategic assets, and in so doing, help advance broader U.S. national security goals,” said NNSA Administrator D’Agostino.  “We are committed to maintaining the highest levels of safety and security throughout the nuclear security enterprise.  I would like to thank Roxanne Steward and David Telles for all of their hard work and for their commitment to excellence.”
 
As the lead for the Safeguards and Security Team at the Pantex Site Office, Ms. Steward had oversight responsibilities for Safeguards and Security Program Management.  She established a collaborative environment within her team and with the contractor.  She continually held forth the Department of Energy (DOE) requirements as the standard of performance and always led by example.

Ms. Steward’s leadership and dedication were most evident when she served as the interim Assistant Manager for Safeguards and Security (AMSS) for the Los Alamos Site Office (LASO) in 2008.  While on detail at LASO, she ensured a high level of performance within the Site Office and maintained effective oversight of contractor programs.  Her assignment as interim AMSS came at a difficult time for LANL and LASO, as they were in the final stages of completing actions required by a DOE Compliance Order.  Ms. Steward managed this process in a highly effective manner.  In addition, she was instrumental in assisting NNSA management in defining scenarios required under the new Graded Security Protection Policy, and she led Pantex in the effective implementation of High Reliability Operations and Causal Factor Analysis.
 
As the leader of the Vulnerability Analysis (VA) Office for LANL, Mr. Telles managed a group of seven security professionals who were responsible for conducting vulnerability analyses, writing the LANL Site Safeguards and Security Plan (SSSP) and administering the Performance Assurance Program.  Under his leadership, the LANL Site Safeguards and Security Plan and Vulnerability Analysis teams were recognized among the most talented in the NNSA Enterprise.
 
As a recognized expert, David Telles applied his extensive knowledge to create and improve the most comprehensive Vulnerability Analysis program in the Enterprise and he has supported other sites with theirs.  Mr. Telles did such an outstanding job that the Office of Health, Safety and Security inspectors identified the LANL Vulnerability Analysis documentation as the best they have seen in the Enterprise.  Additionally, he incorporated new VA tools that more accurately portrayed facility conditions and enhanced and refined the modeling tool to provide a more realistic approach to developing protection strategies.

Established by Congress in 2000, NNSA is a semi-autonomous agency within the U.S. Department of Energy responsible for enhancing national security through the military application of nuclear science in the nation’s national security enterprise.  NNSA maintains and enhances the safety, security, reliability, and performance of the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile without nuclear testing; reduces the global danger from weapons of mass destruction; provides the U.S. Navy with safe and effective nuclear propulsion; and responds to nuclear and radiological emergencies in the U.S. and abroad. 

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