Dayton, Va.

On April 9, Acting Deputy Under Secretary Dr. Denise Eblen visited a USDA-inspected establishment, together with staff from the Office of Planning, Analysis and Risk Management (OPARM), the Office of the Administrator (OA), and more. They toured the plant and met with FSIS first shift employees. 

 
Pictured, from left: Supervisory Public Health Veterinarian Dr. Hannah Sather, Frontline Supervisor Dr. Laurence Toyer, FSIS Chief Financial Officer Eric Lippold, Dr. Eblen, Assistant Chief Information Officer Carla White, OPARM Assistant Administrator Gerri French, OA Deputy Chief of Staff Dr. Jenifer Tolan.

Photo by a plant employee.

Jackson, Miss.

On March 27, the Office of Field Operations (OFO) Jackson District honored two of its inspection program personnel. 

Consumer Safety Inspector Nekeisha Knox was recognized and presented a Certificate of Appreciation and a Recognition Coin for “Empowered” by Jackson Deputy District Manager Dr. Kermit Harvey for identifying critical errors in an export shipment and properly notifying both the establishment of their error and her chain of command for awareness. 

Pictured, from left: Frontline Supervisor Marc LeRoy, Knox, Dr. Harvey, and Jackson District Manager Dr. Larry Davis.

Dr. Harvey presented FLS LeRoy a certificate and pin honoring 30 years of service to the agency.

Pictured, from left: LeRoy, Dr. Harvey.

Photos by OFO Resource Management Specialist Jamaal Jackson.

Langston, Okla.

On March 12, FSIS hosted the Small Plant Roundtable at Langston University. FSIS staff from the Office of Public Affairs and Consumer Education (OPACE), Office of Policy and Program Development (OPPD), and Office of Field Operations (OFO) participated, as did an official from the State of Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry (ODAFF) and a liaison from the USDA’s Office of Partnerships and Public Engagement (OPPE).

Pictured, from left: OPACE Public Affairs Specialist Soledad Calvino (moderator), OPPD Labeling and Program Delivery Staff Director Rosalyn Murphy-Jenkins, OFO Executive Associate for Regulatory Operations Robert Bane, and OFO Dallas District Deputy District Manager Dr. Gary Davis.

Photo taken by OPACE Student Trainee Melissa Cordell.

Las Vegas, Nevada

On March 2-6, FSIS employees from the Office of Field Operations participated in the annual Western Veterinary Conference (WVC) to conduct recruitment and outreach activities. WVC is a large national continuing education event attended by veterinarians and technicians with interests in small and large animal medicine. This year’s conference was attended by about 15,000 people. 

Veterinary Recruiting and Outreach Coordinator Dr. Sonya Eden and Alameda District Frontline Supervisor Dr. Dawn Walters represented FSIS. Drs. Eden and Walters had the goal of recruiting veterinarians and consumer safety inspectors for critical in-plant positions, conducting outreach regarding the vital role veterinarians play in FSIS’ public health mission, and providing attendees with valuable information on career pathways, recruitment incentives and federal benefits available in FSIS service. 

 
Pictured, from left: Dr. Walters, Dr. Eden. 

Photo courtesy of a conference attendee.