Twenty NWS Southern Region Employees to Recieve NOAA Administrator's Award

Twenty National Weather Service Southern Region employees will be among those recognized with 2006 NOAA Administrator's awards. Recipients from the Southern Region include:

• Lead Forecaster Robert J. Ricks, Jr., WFO Slidell, La.
  For accurate forecasting and public warnings issued during Hurricane Katrina and for leading local sheltering efforts for NOAA employees trapped by the storm.
  
  
• Forecaster Bruce Sherbon, WFO Tulsa
  For significant contributions to the development of the Radiosonde Replacement Systems (RRS) Operators Training Video.
  
  
• FAA Academy MIC Cynthia Abelman; Meteorology Instructors Michael Bender, John Jarboe, Marco Bohorquez, Robert Prentice, Douglas Streu and ASA Karen Lewis; and, SRH Systems Analyst Susan Beckwith
  For implementing new, secure, web-based testing for the NWS National Pilot Weather Briefing and Tower Visibility Certification examinations.
  
  
• WFO Huntsville MIC Mike Coyne, WFO Jacksonville SOO Peter L. Wolf and WFO Memphis WCM Richard Okulski
  For their contributions to a successful Polygon Warning Initiative which demonstrated the value of targeting the most specific area possible to receive severe weather warnings, thereby reducing the number of false alarms to the public.
  
  
• SRH Systems Integration Branch Chief Mario Valverde, Domain Administrator Jeffrey Williams and Computer Systems Analyst Don Pham; WFO San Angelo Information Technology Officer Curtis Kockx; and, WFO Austin/San Antonio Electronic Systems Analyst Brian Read
  For implementing enterprise architecture for information sharing which became the model for the architecture implemented throughout the NWS.
  
  
• Hydrologists Eric T. Jones and Amanda L. Roberts, Lower Mississippi River Forecast Center, Slidell, La.
  For developing a hydrologic forecast model simulator to enhance operational hydrologic training for National Weather Service forecasters.

The recipients will be honored at an awards ceremony on October 13 in Silver Spring, Maryland.