TSA Employees Receive Awards at Disability Coalition Event
May 15, 2007
TSO Paul Sickles (left) receives an
award from General Manager for Field
Operations Mel Carraway, Office of
Security Operations.
Transportation Security Officer Paul Sickles of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and Western Area Director Dave Beecroft were among the TSA employees recognized Monday for their efforts in support of the agency's Screening of Persons with Disabilities Program.
The awards were presented at the 5th annual TSA Disability Coalition meeting in Washington, D.C., sponsored by the Office of the Special Counselor and the Office of Civil Rights and Liberties, which includes the Screening of Persons with Disabilities Program. Attending were more than 100 coalition members from a cross-section of organizations representing persons with disabilities.
Sickles was recognized for going "above and beyond the call of duty" to ensure that severely injured soldiers have a "smooth and uneventful screening experience at TSA security checkpoints nationwide." He has played an important role in the TSA-Defense Department's Military Severely Injured Center since its start. The center coordinates and assists severely injured soldiers and their families traveling through checkpoints.
Beecroft was cited for work when he was a federal security director at Nashville (Tenn.) International Airport on pre-operational testing of CastScope. The CastScope technology creates a detailed X-ray image that allows security officers to quickly and non-invasively distinguish the metallic parts of a brace, cast or prosthetic device from images that could constitute a potential security threat.
Other TSA award recipients included:
- Toby Bishop, assistant chief counsel for employment and civil rights, Office of Chief Counsel, for her "dedication, steadfast commitment and support" of the program;
- Kevin Donovan, manager, screening procedures branch division, Office of Security Operations, for his "efforts and steadfast commitment" to integrating the needs of persons with disabilities into standard operating procedures of security checkpoints; and
- Acting Deputy Administrator Gale Rossides for her "leadership, vision and unwavering support" in establishing the program.
The conference featured briefings on screening technology that relates to air travelers with disabilities, like CastScope and Whole Body Imager, as well as assistance dogs partnering and other projects.
Sandra Cammaroto is the division manager of the Screening Persons with Disabilities Program. TSA established the program and the Disability Coalition in 2002.
