Spotlight
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) May 19, 2008 * Abraham Lincoln Memorial Auditorium VA Medical Center, 50 Irving Street, NW, Washington, DC 20422
Agenda
8:00 am
Registration, Networking & Continental Breakfast
8:30 am
Welcome & Introduction Margot Dorfman, CEO, U.S. Women’s Chamber of Commerce
8:45 am
Agency Overview - Scott Denniston, Director, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU) Doing Business with the Dept. of Veterans Affairs Wayne Simpson, Deputy Director, OSDBU
9:00 am
Biographies
Cover: The cover image is from the 2007 Veterans Day poster
10:00 am
Break & Networking
10:15 am
Center for Veterans Enterprise (CVE) - Patricia Gould, Optimization Program Manager, CVE
Carolyn D. Bryant Program Analyst, Outreach Staff C&P Service, Veterans Services Carolyn Bryant began her VA career at the Philadelphia VA Insurance Center in 1988, where she served as a Policy Service Technician, Insurance Phone Specialist, Lead Insurance Phone Specialist and Supervisor. In September 2001, Carolyn transferred to the Philadelphia VA Regional Office as a Veterans Service Representative, where she also mentored new Veterans Service Representatives and became a member of a Special Teams Project that led to her being permanently transferred to the Wilmington Regional Office. In Wilmington, Carolyn was assigned additional duties as the Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom Coordinator, Military Records Specialist and Joint Services Records Research Coordinator.
10:45 am
Veterans Benefit and Services – Irene Trowell – Harris, Director, Center for Women Veterans & Carolyn Bryant, Program Analyst, Veterans Services
11:15 am
Information & Technology Sandi Hughes, Program Analyst, Office of Information and Technology
11:30 am
Veterans Benefit Administration (VBA) Ernest Williams, Senior Management Analyst, VBA
11:45 am
Overview & Remarks
12:00 pm 1:00 pm 2:30 pm 2:45 pm 4:00 pm
Lunch on your own One-On-One Meetings Break, refreshments One-On-One Meetings Adjourn
In December 2007, Carolyn joined the VACO Compensation and Pension Service outreach staff, where she currently serves as consultant to the Women’s Veterans Program and Former Prisoner of War Program. She is also the designated Federal Officer for the Advisory Committee on Former Prisoners of War. Scott F. Denniston Director, Office of Small Business and Center for Veterans Enterprise Department of Veterans Affairs Mr. Denniston was appointed to the position of Director, Office of Small Business in October 1987. He is a veteran, having served in the U.S. Army. He is active in the National Contract Management Association (NCMA), the National Defense Industry Association (NDIA) and is a past chair of the Small Business Committee of the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association.
Mr. Denniston is a nationally recognized advocate for veteran entrepreneurs. In 1998 he was appointed to the Commission on Service Members and Veterans Transition Assistance, where he developed recommendations for enhancing and expanding support for veteran business owners. Most recently, he established the Center for Veterans Enterprise, a VA organization dedicated to and providing support for veterans and service-disabled veterans interested in entrepreneurship. Margot Dorfman U.S. Women’s Chamber of Commerce – CEO NASBC Opportunity Outreach Coordinator Margot Dorfman is the CEO of the U.S. Women’s Chamber of Commerce. She is a visionary leader who has dedicated herself to promoting the economic and leadership interest of women. Her extensive background in business, business ownership, publishing and nonprofit leadership has prepared Ms. Dorfman to set the vision for the U.S. Women’s Chamber of Commerce. Dorfman founded Arizona Women’s News, Hispana News and the Greater Phoenix Chamber Business Connection. She holds a Master’s Education from Lesley University and a B.S. in Education from Northeastern University. Additionally, her experience includes over ten years in executive positions with General Mills and other Fortune 500 firms. Patricia Gould Training Officer, Center for Veterans Enterprise Ms. Patricia Gould is the Training Officer for the Center for Veterans Enterprise (CVE) at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. She also serves as the Community Liaison representative where she develops educational initiatives, and educates members of the community and veteran small business owners about the benefits of cooperative partnerships. Ms. Gould is also responsible for designing the training programs to equip veteran small business owners with the necessary tools and knowledge sets for success. Ms. Gould is a member of the business expansion team and works closely with the business advisors to ensure that the training developed for the veterans meets the veterans’ needs. Ms. Patricia Gould began her career with the Brooklyn Public Library where she was responsible for training the tutors and staff. She later joined the US Navy where she developed the training curriculum for the personnel in her department. After completing her tour in the Navy she joined the Maryland Air National Guard where she is currently serving as the Non Commissioned Officer in Charge of the Squadron Medical Element. Sandra Hughes Program Analyst, Small Business Advocate Officeof Information and Technology Sandra Hughes has worked for VA since 1989 when the Veterans Administration first became the
“Department” of Veterans Affairs headed by a Cabinet Secretary. Previously, Ms. Hughes served as the COTR for VA’s Procurement of Computer Hardware and Software Contract (PCHS-2) and was a member of the management team for PCHS-1 and NOAVA Contracts prior to that. Ms. Hughes participated in the management team when the decision was made to use the NASA SEWP IV Contract, and currently act as a VA Liaison to that Contract under which VA is exceeding our small business utilization goals. In the role of OI&T Small Business Advocate, Ms. Hughes encourages consideration of small firms for VA’s IT business needs and offers guidance to small businesses on marketing to VA. Last year VA OI&T nearly met or exceeded all of the Secretary’s Socioeconomic Goals in the utilization of small businesses. Wayne A. Simpson Deputy Director, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU) U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Wayne Simpson was appointed Deputy Director, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU), U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) on December 4, 2000. A demonstrative small business advocate and seasoned acquisition professional in his own right, Wayne joined OSDBU from the National Cemetery Administration (NCA) Operations Support Center, Quantico, VA, where he served as Chief of NCA’s Centralized Contracting Division (Supervisory Contract Specialist) and a senior level warranted contracting officer from March 1995 to December 2000. Before his selection to that position, Wayne served as Deputy Director, Office of Memorial Programs, VA Headquarters. Wayne also held the positions of contract administrator, contract specialist and procurement analyst with VA’s Office of Acquisition and Materiel Management, and served as a VA Medical Center contracting officer. Linda F. Sitney Outreach Small Business Specialist VA Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU) Linda Sitney is a Senior Small Business Specialist with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU). A service-disabled veteran, Ms. Sitney joined VA’s OSDBU team five years ago after retiring form the military with 28 years in the Army. Ms. Sitney’s distinguished military career included numerous awards and achieving the rank of Command Sergeant Major. Ms. Sitney enjoyed her uniformed service to this country and wanted to continue to serve her country by serving her fellow veterans. Ms. Sitney is a demonstrated small business advocate who recognizes the importance of small business to American’s economy. A native of Jackson, Mississippi, Ms. Sitney holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Management from the University of Maryland and a graduate degree in
Health Care Administration from Central Michigan University. Ms. Sitney has two daughters, Natasha and Kendra and a grandson, Rasheed Jr. She resides in Brandywine, Maryland. Irene Trowell-Harris, RN, EdD Director, Center for Women Veterans Irene Trowell-Harris, R.N. Ed.D., was nominated to be Director of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Center for Women Veterans in June 2001 and approved by the White House on October 2, 2001. In this role, she is the primary advisor to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs on programs and issues related to women veterans. Prior to her appointment, Dr. Trowell-Harris served as Director of the VA Office of Inspector General’s Washington, D.C. Healthcare Inspections Regional Office. In this position, she directed a multidisciplinary staff of inspectors responsible for conducting oversight reviews to improve the economy, effectiveness and efficiency of VA programs. Concurrent with her position in VA’s Office of Inspector General, Dr. Trowell-Harris served 38 years in the U.S. Air Force/Air National Guard, retiring as a Major General in September 2001. During her military career, Dr. Trowell-Harris held numerous positions, including chief nurse executive, flight nurse examiner, commander, advisor for nursing and readiness, assistant to the director, Air National Guard (ANG), and military representative to the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services for the ANG. She was a 1997 Air Force representative for the Committee on Women in the NATO Forces Conference held in Istanbul, Turkey. Ernest Williams Senior Management Analyst Veterans Benefit Administration (VBA) Ernest Williams is a Senior Management Analyst for the Veteran Benefit Administration (VBA), Associate Deputy under Secretary for Managements Acquisition Liaison Staff. He serves as a senior management analyst advising program officials on numerous areas including program acquisition strategies, and contracting and acquisition policy just to name a few. He consults program managers and is responsible for overseeing the development of acquisition documentation for all Non-IT acquisitions to ensure there are no conflicting or overlapping acquisitions of goods and/or services. Mr. Williams has more than 25 years experience in government business in the fields of contracting, acquisition management, and logistics. Among his previous assignments, he worked as a Contracting Officer for the U.S Department of State Foreign Service Acquisitions Branch; Supervisory Procurement Officer for the National Medical Research Institute In Bethesda Md; Contracting Officer for the Department of the Army and Government bankcard program coordinator for the U.S Department of State Information Resource Management Bureau.
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