2025 Honoree Kyle Randall Knipper, Ph.D. Kyle Randall Knipper, Ph.D. Developed satellite-based models for transforming traditional irrigation practices, providing growers with detailed, near real-time information about how much water their crops use and enabling better irrigation scheduling and crop health.
2025 Honoree Alexander Maranghides Alexander Maranghides Conducted decades of important research into how fires that occur in communities adjacent to wildlands spread, what can be done to prevent them and how to protect life and property.
2025 Honoree Kathleen Kirsch Kathleen Kirsch Guided critical U.S. efforts to defend and rebuild Ukraine’s energy infrastructure in the face of devastating Russian attacks, keeping the lights and heat on for millions of Ukrainians and helping to maintain the country’s energy independence.
2025 Honoree Laura W. Cheever, M.D. Laura W. Cheever, M.D. Successfully managed a major federal program for more than two decades that has provided lifesaving care and treatment for millions of low-income, uninsured and underinsured Americans suffering from HIV/AIDS.
2024 Winner Shannon Rebolledo, Justin Uphold, Nancy Alcantara and the Packers Sanitation Investigation Leads Team Federal Employees of the Year Shannon Rebolledo, Justin Uphold, Nancy Alcantara and the Packers Sanitation Investigation Leads Team Discovered more than 100 children ages 13 to 17 illegally working on dangerous machinery in 13 meat slaughterhouses across eight states, leading to a large civil penalty and a new approach to child labor law enforcement.
2024 Winner Christopher Mark Paul A. Volcker Career Achievement Christopher Mark Devoted a lengthy federal career to preventing fatalities from roof falls and other underground mining disasters, saving countless lives.
2024 Winner Pete Guria, Steve Calanog, Tara Fitzgerald and the 2023 Maui Wildfires Emergency Response Team Safety, Security and International Affairs Pete Guria, Steve Calanog, Tara Fitzgerald and the 2023 Maui Wildfires Emergency Response Team Directed more than 300 Environmental Protection Agency personnel to remove tons of hazardous materials from the Maui wildfires while respecting local cultural norms and setting standards for federal response teams that followed.
2024 Winner Jerry Ma Emerging Leaders Jerry Ma Developed new technology tools for Patent and Trademark Office personnel and the public, and led efforts to establish the agency’s approach toward the use of artificial intelligence for inventions seeking patents.
2024 Winner Amira Choueiki Boland Management Excellence Amira Choueiki Boland Pioneered policies to improve government services and the customer experience in areas ranging from newborn care and disaster assistance to renewing passports online.
2024 Finalist Sammie Tafoya Emerging Leaders Sammie Tafoya Led the drafting of a visa revocation policy for Haitians involved in criminal activity and human rights abuses while contributing to sanctions packages and a U.N. resolution that impose penalties against those undermining peace and stability in the Caribbean nation.
2024 Winner Marc Levitan, Long Phan and the Tornado Wind Loads Team Science, Technology and Environment Marc Levitan, Long Phan and the Tornado Wind Loads Team Created the world’s first tornado-resistant building codes, conducting groundbreaking research that will save lives and protect critical facilities like schools, hospitals and emergency centers from extensive property damage.
2024 Finalist Christopher Johnston, Rachel Han, Ryan Thurlwell and the VA Mobile App Team Management Excellence Christopher Johnston, Rachel Han, Ryan Thurlwell and the VA Mobile App Team Developed an app that enables veterans to use their mobile phones or tablets to view and cancel health care appointments, manage claims, upload documentation, obtain vaccine records, message their doctor, locate Department of Veterans Affairs facilities and more.
2024 Finalist Andrea Fletcher Emerging Leaders Andrea Fletcher Led teams at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to create online services that help patients dispute unexpected medical bills and hospitals make their prices transparent to the public.
2024 Winner Yan Ping (Judy) Chen, Jay D. Evans People's Choice Award Yan Ping (Judy) Chen, Jay D. Evans Revolutionized bee disease diagnosis and treatment, introducing cutting-edge technologies to detect virus pathogens and developing novel medicines to enhance bee health and prevent colony collapse.
2024 Finalist Elizabeth (Biza) Repko Management Excellence Elizabeth (Biza) Repko Led critical research projects that exposed gaps in vehicle safety features, and uncovered shortcomings in the reliability of the U.S. rail and highway systems.
2024 Winner Chris Evans, Mark Kassen, Joe Kiani Spirit of Service Award Chris Evans, Mark Kassen, Joe Kiani Built an online platform containing video interviews and discussions with current and former members of Congress, government officials and subject matter experts to create a more informed electorate and greater civic engagement.
2024 Finalist Neil Cheatwood, Stephen Hughes Science, Technology and Environment Neil Cheatwood, Stephen Hughes Envisioned and led the development of a new inflatable heat shield for planetary entry, descent and landing that will enable spacecraft to deliver bigger payloads to distant planets, including during a future human mission to Mars.
2024 Finalist Darnita S. Trower, Wanda J. Brown, Gerald D. Johnson and the Paperless Processing Initiative Team Management Excellence Darnita S. Trower, Wanda J. Brown, Gerald D. Johnson and the Paperless Processing Initiative Team Developed a new system that will enable taxpayers to electronically submit all correspondence and non-tax forms to the IRS for the 2024 filing season, laying the groundwork for future advancements in paperless processing.
2024 Finalist Robert J. McGaughey Paul A. Volcker Career Achievement Robert J. McGaughey Developed open-source software that converts voluminous aerial data into detailed information that enables better management of forestlands.
2024 Finalist Kaitlin Sahni, Kate Naseef, Nhan Nguyen and the Chemical Prosecutions Team Safety, Security and International Affairs Kaitlin Sahni, Kate Naseef, Nhan Nguyen and the Chemical Prosecutions Team Investigated and prosecuted the first case against individuals supplying precursor chemicals to a Mexican drug cartel, disrupting methamphetamine and fentanyl production in Mexico and establishing a framework to build similar cases in the future.
2024 Finalist Janet Woodcock Paul A. Volcker Career Achievement Janet Woodcock Transformed the Food and Drug Administration’s drug review process to expand access to generic medicines and promising medications to treat severe, life-threatening diseases.
2024 Finalist Tara McHugh Science, Technology and Environment Tara McHugh Partnered with innovators to develop novel healthy processed food products that have reduced food waste and created jobs in high-unemployment areas, and now leads more than 1,400 employees in eight Western states.
2024 Finalist Thaddeus A. Ryba Jr. Paul A. Volcker Career Achievement Thaddeus A. Ryba Jr. Played a critical diplomatic and scientific role in international negotiations that led to the elimination of chemical weapons in Syria and Libya, contributed to the final destruction of the U.S. chemical weapons stockpile and enabled the banning of deadly nerve agents.
