Senior Air Force civilians presented Presidential Rank Awards

  • Published
  • Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs
WASHINGTON (AFNS) --  Nine senior civilians were recognized during the annual Presidential Rank Awards Ceremony at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, July 6, 2018.

“Each of you has developed deep competence in your area of expertise,” said Secretary of the Air Force Heather Wilson, who presided over the ceremony. “You’re recognized and respected for that by your peers, your subordinates and by other leaders in the Air Force and the Department of Defense.”

Presidential Rank Awards recognize extraordinary achievements by career executives in Federal service. These awards recognize the top individuals who have made significant and lasting contributions to their agency and the federal government.

In addition to delivering meaningful results, nominees must demonstrate the highest level of leadership competencies including leading change and leading people. Extraordinary executive leaders model these critical abilities by taking on some of the most difficult organizational challenges as well as developing a strong and diverse workforce for the 21st century.

“There are a lot of people who want to work for and with you,” Wilson said. “You create high performing teams dedicated to something that’s important, something that’s beyond each of us as individuals.”

The awards feature two categories: distinguished and meritorious. Nominations are evaluated by boards of private citizens and approved by the president.

The full list of those honored during the ceremony can be found below:

Distinguished Senior Executive:

Patricia Young
Distinguished Senior Executive
Executive director, Air Force Material Command
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio

Randall Walden
Distinguished Senior Executive
Director and program executive officer, Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office,
Office of the Administrative Assistant to the Secretary of the Air Force
Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, D.C.

David Drake
Distinguished Senior Executive
Technical advisor for Information Technology,
Communication and Information Directorate,
National Air and Space Intelligence Center
Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio

Meritorious Senior Executive:

Andrew Cox
Meritorious Senior Executive
Director, Space Security and Defense Program
Air Force Space Command, Peterson AFB, Colorado

C. Douglas Ebersole (Retired)
Meritorious Senior Executive
Executive director
Air Force Research laboratory, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio

D. Mark Peterson
Meritorious Senior Executive
Chief financial officer/comptroller
U.S. Special Operations Command, MacDill AFB, Florida

Steven Wert
Meritorious Senior Executive
Program executive officer for Battle Management,
Air Force Life Cycle Management Center,
Hanscom AFB, Massachusetts

Robert Bussian
Meritorious Senior Executive
Special advisor for Innovation Intelligence
System Support office,
Office of the Administrative Assistant to the Secretary of the Air Force, Pentagon, Washington, D.C.

Meritorious Senior Level Professional:

Kenneth Barker
Meritorious Senior Level Professional
Technical Advisor for Systems Engineering
AFLCMC,
AFMC,
Wright-Patterson AFB, Colorado