According to a University press release, UNM has again been recognized with a prestigious award from the Department of Defense Security Service for Industrial Security excellence.
UNM is one of a select number of nationwide facilities to receive the 2016 James S. Cogswell Outstanding Industrial Security Achievement Award, according to the press release.
“Less than one percent of one percent of all cleared facilities received this recognition this year, so it truly is reserved for the ‘best of the best,'” David Bauer, West Region director of DDS, is quoted as saying in the press release.
According to the press release, DSS chose 42 winners from a total 14,000 cleared facilities, representing companies both large and small, that undergo continuous assessments. The Industrial Security Program holds an emphasis on the partnership between industry and government to protect classified information.
This partnership ensures protection for national security, classified information and the U.S. military, according to the press release. The selection process is rigorous and requires a minimum of two consecutive superior industrial security review ratings along with a sustained degree of excellence and innovation in a facility’s overall security program management, implementation and oversight.
The team, presenting the award to President Robert Frank and Provost Chaouki Abdallah, cited the exemplary work of Deborah Kuidis, manager of Industrial Security at UNM, according to the release.
Kuidis is quoted as saying that it is the recognition of a friend and others who were hurt and killed in the September 11, 2001 terror attacks that drives her push for security excellence in the department, according to the press release.
“I sit behind a desk while others are out there on the frontline sacrificing their lives in cities and in the military to make sure another 9/11 doesn’t happen,” Kuidis is quoted as saying in the press release. “We don’t need an award to tell us that the faculty and students are making a difference in our safety and security, but it sure is nice to be recognized.”
