

ARS Secretary
Wins Agency AwardBy David Elstein February 12, 2003BELTSVILLE, Md., Feb.
12--Annapolis resident Martha Hollenbeck will receive the annual Secretary
of the Year award today from the Agricultural Research Service, the
U.S. Department of Agricultures chief
scientific research agency. The award will be given during a ceremony at the
agency's Henry A. Wallace Beltsville
Agricultural Research Center. Hollenbeck is a secretary with the agency's
National Program Staff, in the
Animal Production, Product Value and Safety (APPVS) group, which oversees the
agency's research in animal production, food safety, and human nutrition. Her
responsibilities include arranging travel, monitoring the budget, and managing
files. "Martha Hollenbeck is a teacher to employees on her staff and
others," said Joseph Spence, acting associate deputy administrator for
APPVS. "She is usually the first to learn how a new computer program works
and will show everyone how to use it. The staff often benefits from her
discoveries." The citation for the award reads, For demonstrating professional
support above and beyond the ordinary by being a teacher, counselor and a coach
to her peers and superiors. Hollenbeck first worked for ARS in the 1960s while a student at the
University of Maryland. She returned to ARS
in 1984 and has worked as a laboratory technician, secretary and support
services assistant for the agency. In my 20-plus years at ARS, I have
been fortunate enough to work in agricultural research in the laboratory, the
greenhouse and the field, and in administrative support," Hollenbeck said.
"I have found all the job areas rewarding and enjoyable." U.S. Department of Agriculture | |