ENGINEER PROFESSIONAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE - APRIL 2021 UPDATE

ENGINEER
PROFESSIONAL
ADVISORY
COMMITTEE
APRIL 2021 UPDATE

Welcome
 Visit the EPAC website often to keep informed!
     Events Subcommittee Page Calendar
         •   Upcoming events + links to recordings
         •   May 13th - CPO Town Hall
         •   June 10th – Next General Meeting
 Thank EPAC for fantastic work so far this year
     E-week celebration
     CCHQ and SG Facebook pages
     Senior Officer Panel #2
     Spring Awards Review
     Recruitment PowerPoint
     Education survey and CE Updates
     Newsletter

Chief Professional Officer Remarks

Unaccompanied Children Mission
CPO Town Hall coming up MAY 13th from 1500-1630 EST
                                                                     RADM Edward Dieser,
  Please submit any questions that you would like addressed to LT     Chief Engineer
   Drew Katherine Drew.Katherine@fda.hhs.gov by April 30th
  Topics will include Engineer Category promotion statistics
 Update on PHS Leadership

EPAC Chair Remarks

 I encourage you to consider taking the next step to serve
  our category
   Apply to become an EPAC voting member – due June 30th         CDR Deb Cox, EPAC
    • Submit to LCDR Praveen K.C. by email to kcpraveen@epa.gov         Chair

 If you are a voting member, start thinking about applying to
  be Chair-Elect
 We welcome feedback how we can improve/topics you
  want us to discuss

                                                                  LCDR Praveen K.C.,
                                                                   EPAC Chair-elect

EPAC Chair Remarks

Great interview for Women’s History Month
 RADM Gayle Shaffer, Deputy Surgeon General, BUMED
  Biggest barrier she had to overcome was herself – we second guess whether we are
   qualified for positions
  Leaders need to get more comfortable being uncomfortable
     Courage to step outside your comfort zone
  Raise your hand when opportunities present themselves
  Lifelong learning
      Not a curve, sometimes it’s vertical
      Keep trying
      Ask for help – we all need it!             Women's History Month: RADM Gayle Shaffer Interview

EPAC Chair Remarks
March COA
  RADM Giberson : BE DYNAMIC – NEVER IDLE
  RADM (ret.) Lushniak: DECIDE DELEGATE           DISAPPEAR - Task Risks - DO and DELIVER
  Be humble, confident and laugh
  Every 3-5 years do a self check – professional/personnel
   • Are you doing important work?
   • Are you valued?
   • Are you happy?
  Some books mentioned: Colin Powell’s In Life and Leadership, Shawn Achor’s The Happiness
   Advantage (Harvard) & The Inspiration Code: How the Best Leaders Energize People Every Day by
   Kristi Hedges

 Atlanta COA Leadership webinar speakers
  Stressed focus on the value you bring to your customers
  Encouraged officers to not only review their PAC website but others – there are nuggets in each!
  Books: Deep Work by Cal Newport, The Checklist Manifesto by Atul Gawande, and Death By Meeting
   by Patrick Lencioni

Meeting Overview

Rules                      General Discussion and
                             Questions
Awards
                            Commissioned Corps Women’s
Career Development          Issues Advisory Board
 CE Summary Sheet &                                           LCDR Melissa de Vera,
  Guidance Document         Commissioned Officer’s           EPAC Executive Secretary
                             Association
Events
                            Junior Officers Advisory Group
Information
                            Society of American Military
 Public Health and          Engineers
  Engineering Practice
                            Closing Comments and Adjourn
Readiness
Recruitment & Retention

Executive Secretary

 Meeting platforms – vary from month to month
  Check email week of meetings to find most current platform
  Updates to upcoming meetings are also available online at the EPAC website
  The .ics file will only block out your calendar for meetings
                                                                                 LCDR Melissa de Vera,
  Skype might not be used for future EPAC General Meetings                     EPAC Executive Secretary

   o Next General Meeting is June 10th
     •   Call in information is TBD

Rules Subcommittee

Voting Member Selection Application and Process
  2021 EPAC Voting Member Application posted:
    Team Lead: LCDR Praveen K.C.
                                                                       LCDR Praveen K.C.,
    Team member: LCDR Abbas Bandukwala and CDR Diana Wong                    Chair
     o EPAC website
     o Engineer Announcements email
     o Due 6/30/2021
  EPAC Voting Member Selection Process
     o Submit Application with supervisory approval
     o Agency Liaison verify applicant’s eligibility status
     o Committee of Current EPAC voting members and past EPAC chairs
       review applications and provide recommendation for EPAC vote
                                                                        CDR Frank Chua,
  Questions: KC.Praveen@epa.gov                                          Vice Chair

Awards Subcommittee

Awards Review Board-Spring Cycle: 8 Awards
    Society of American Military Engineers (SAME) PHS Engineering Achievement
     Awards
        Green Medal
                                                                                 CDR John Kathol, Chair
        Hollis Medal
        Cumming Plaque
    Chief Engineer Awards
        Burgess
        Lynch
        Villforth
        ELIT-PEER
        ELIT-OPEN
Nomination period closed on March 1, 2021.
Total nominations for all awards: (31), Avg. 3.9 nominations/award.                 CDR Matthew
                                                                                 Mergenthaler, Vice Chair

Awards Subcommittee

SAME Awards
    RADM Dieser notified SAME of the PHS Awardees on April 5, 2021.
    RADM Dieser & SAME will be sending out notifications to PHS Awardees in early
                                                                                            CDR John Kathol, Chair
     April.
Chief Engineer Awards
    The review period for the Awards Subcommittee ended on April 5, 2021.
    Final results are being tallied and reviewed for irregularities and inconsistencies.
    Awards Subcommittee will be submitting results to EPAC Chair/CPO this week.
    RADM Dieser will notify Awardees in mid to late April.

                                                                                                CDR Matthew
                                                                                            Mergenthaler, Vice Chair

Career Development Subcommittee

 Senior Officer Panel #2 occurred on March 11
 Senior Officer Panel #3 will occur on July 8
 Presentation on Update to CE template documents to occur during meeting
  with vote to follow                                                           CAPT Eric Hanssen, Chair
 Currently accepting requests for PE Licensure eBooks and study material –
  please email Omobogie.Amadasu@ihs.gov
 Currently have 55 mentor/mentee pairs – if interested in being
  mentor/mentee please email EPAC.mentoring@gmail.com
 All CDS projects have Project Charters documented on EPAC Website – if a
  project interests you, please reach out to Project Lead to join the project
 Next CDS call Monday, April 26th 3:00pm – 4:00pm EST

                                                                                 LCDR Michael Simpson,
                                                                                      Vice Chair

Update to:
CE Summary Sheet
New Guidance Document
L C D R KEL LY KAC H U R AK
LT AD AM C O O KE
LT J AISO N EAPEN

Why Update?
There were two recommended documents on EPAC’s website
There was confusion around which was “better” or “preferred”
There was no guidance document to help officers use the forms

Goals
 Provide one easy to use document as a tool for engineers to use to help officers report
  their continuing education annually.
 Provide a guidance document to note how to use the file, best practices, and provide
  guidance on what to include/not include in the CE Summary Sheet

Components of CE Summary Sheet
Summary of CE completed the calendar year
List of relevant Meetings, Conferences, or Other Events
Table of Previous Year’s CE

Examples of each are included on the following slides.

Continuing Education Summary
Sheet

Example: Meeting, Conference, or Other Event

Example: Previous Year CE

New Guidance Document
Reviews why the document was created
Discusses trainings recommended to include
Discusses trainings recommend to not include

                             QUESTIONS?

Events Subcommittee
Kudos: E-Week, Events SC Initiatives, Other EPAC SC
CPO Town Hall: (13MAY21, 1500-1630 ET)
  Call for questions open until 30APR21
   o Submit to LTs Drew.Katherine@fda.hhs.gov or Morgan.Lee@fda.hhs.gov or Events SC leadership   LCDR Michael Gifford,
                                                                                                        Chair
SAME JETC: (VIRTUAL, 17-21MAY21)
  Lead: CDR Ben Marnell / Co-Lead: LCDR Tim Martin
  Exploring innovative ways to connect with you for SAME JETC
Engineer Category Day: (VIRTUAL, 1000-1700 ET, 23JUN21)
  Lead: LCDR Matt Palo / Co-Lead: LT Bijay Tamang
  Thank you for abstracts, special additions this year
Opportunities:
  Information – website, emails
  Events SC - volunteering and/or support                                                           CDR Greg Ault,
                                                                                                       Vice Chair

Information Subcommittee
Spring 2021 Engineer Newsletter
 Vote results are in for new format
 Received 9 articles
 Currently in the review and editing phase   LCDR Garrett Chun, Chair
 Ready for OSG review by May

Social Media
 Made 9 social media postings on CCHQ
  Twitter and Facebook accounts in
  February

                                                LCDR Travis Sorum,
                                                   Vice Chair

Information Subcommittee

EPAC Website
 Overhaul and standardization of the EPAC website is nearing completion of
  conformance to Branding Guidelines
 Recording Links are for the first two Senior Officer Panels are posted on the
  Career Development section                                                      LCDR Garrett Chun, Chair

 Website is up-to-date
 Need photographers and graphic artists

APAN Sharepoint Site
 EPAC has a APAN Sharepoint Site to act as a depository and file archive
  site for EPAC subcommittee work
 Contact garrett_chun@nps.gov if interested in utilizing

                                                                                    LCDR Travis Sorum,
                                                                                       Vice Chair

Public Health Engineering Practice
        Subcommittee

Meetings 3rd Thursday of the month at 2pm EST
    Discuss subcommittee activities
    Open for engineers to bring questions, challenges, and projects related to daily workload
    LT Wimer (CDC) - gia3@cdc.gov
    CDR Coburn (FDA) – james.Coburn@fda.hhs.gov                                                 CDR James Coburn, Chair

Working with Information Subcommittee on website update

Skills Database (CDR Gumapas)
  Collaboration with Career Development
  Adding entries to make it more expandable

COVID environmental controls for Dental facilities
  Room for additional project(s) on COVID environmental controls for other facilities and
   laboratories
  https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/coronavirus-covid-19-and-medical-devices/uv-lights-
   and-lamps-ultraviolet-c-radiation-disinfection-and-coronavirus
                                                                                                 LT Bryan Wimer, Vice Chair

Readiness Subcommittee

Readiness Awareness Initiative
  Survey closed and evaluation is ongoing
  Will be discussed during April SC meeting

Engineer Readiness Training and Education                                        CDR Sean Bush, Chair
  Evaluating deployment trainings for online/accessible vs. classroom only and
   identifying substitutes where possible

2020 Engineer Booklet
  Addressed comments, edited photos
  Anticipate submission for review shortly
  Considering the focus for the next booklet

Deployment Connector Initiative
  Drafting initiative framework                                                  CDR Tara Gooen-Bizjak,
                                                                                       Vice Chair

Recruitment & Retention Subcommittee

Communications:
Revised draft recruitment presentation is with CCHQ for review
                                                                          LCDR Fred Kelly,
Exploring recruitment contacts and venues at FDA                             Chair
Other teams:
Revamping initiatives to reflect limited contact with applicants once
 application is submitted
Newly Commissioned Engineer Officers
 ◦   January OBC 123 – LT Sophia Lopez, IHS, Sparks NV
 ◦   February OBC 124 – LTJG Saul Ruiz, FDA, Jamaica NY
 ◦   March OBC 125 – No Engineer
 ◦   April OBC 126 – Engineers in class, names TBD
Next Subcommittee call Thursday, May 20th 1500-1600 EST                 CDR Stacey Yonce,
                                                                            Vice Chair

General Discussion
and Questions
PRESS *6 TO UNMUTE YOUR PHONE

Commissioned Corps Women’s Issues
       Advisory Board Update

 No meeting was held in March due to
  numerous officers being deployed.
 For PAC Distribution: CCWIAB’s Health
  and Wellness Committee, in collaboration
  with the JOAG Outreach Committee –
  Uniform Subcommittee, put together a
  one pager which highlights some of the
  recent USPHS female uniform and
  appearance updates (see attachment).       CDR Kimberly Piermatteo,
                                                CCWIAB Liaison
 Updates from April 7th Meeting (TBD)
 Meetings held on the 1st Wednesday of
  every month. Next meeting is scheduled
  for May 5th.
 If you have any questions or issues you
  wish to raise to CCWIAB, please send an
  email to
  kimberly.piermatteo@fda.hhs.gov.

Commissioned Officer’s Association
        Update

 COA Photo Contest
   Raise awareness of the important work of USPHS Commissioned Corps
   Photos should be of PHS officers who are engaging in activities that
    protect public health of the Nation at home and at work.
   All photos should be received by April 26, 2021
   Rules and additional information fond on COA’s website at:             CDR Brad Cunningham,
                                                                               COA Liaison
    https://coausphs.org/page/2021_COA_Photo_Contest
 Upcoming Events
   Learning from 2020 to Advance the Public’s Health (April 13 – 15)
   o David Michaels, MPH, PhD (GW School of Health)
   “The Core Values of the USPHS” (May 4)
   o RADM (ret.) Kenneth Moritsugu and CAPT Paul Jung
   https://www.phscof.org/virtualevents.html

Junior Officers Advisory Group Update

 Journeyman Speaker Series on Financial Independence – Living a
  Debt Free Lifestyle recording is here
 Leadership presentation on Being Students of Leadership recording is
  here
 Next JOAG General Meeting is April 9, 2021 at 1300 EST                 LCDR Michael Wandersee,
   Leadership presentation on Leading From the Lower Ranks                   JOAG Liaison

 Join the listserv by clicking here

Society of American Military Engineers
        Update

SAME Membership – $60 one-time fee while active duty
  Value to Your Agencies
   o CDR Steve Sauer coordinated with SAME members and organizations to secure funding from the
     National Academy of Construction to serve an Indian Community of 3,000 with sanitation facilities
  Value to Your Career
                                                                                                         LT Kevin Remley,
  www.same.org                                                                                           SAME Liaison

Virtual Joint Engineering Training Conference (17 May – 21 May)
  $39 for Uniformed Service members of SAME, $59 for non-members
  www.samejetc.org

Virtual Facilities Management Workshop (26 Jul – 30 Jul)
  Deadline for abstract submission: 12 Apr
  Free for Uniformed Service/Government
  www.fmworkshop.org

Closing Remarks

 Category Day June 23rd 10am-5pm EST – Virtual
  13 abstracts were received – O-3s to O-6s submitted
                                                                         RADM Edward Dieser,
  Lunch time noon EST - ?                                                 Chief Engineer
  Awards ceremony with the CPO
  Category Meet & Greet – cameras on (ODUs or uniform of choice)
    Name
    Duty Station
    Job title
    Fun fact most might not know about you – with cameras on (ODUs)

 Mark your calendar to ensure you can attend!
                                                                       CDR Deb Cox, EPAC Chair