I was just asked to take notes on the White House press briefing and told to send them out to the top two people. Who knew that all the note-taking I’ve done during the last four hours would finally pay off! I took notes during the press briefing, immediately re-wrote everything in a comprehensive paragraph format, and then forwarded it via e-mail. Dare I say that it was my mini-moment of glory? That said, swine flu is something that should be taken very serious and I am not aiming to make light of the current situation

During the last week I have been shadowing several screening managers at the airport.

Hector: screening manager (my old sm)
Frank: screening manager (my current sm)
Bill: TSM-I (my old sm) He essentially oversees other screening managers.

Screening managers oversee checkpoints for one shift, ranging from one checkpoint up to four occasionally. Hector explained to me that the job itself is not particularly difficult; when things are running smoothly there is little for him to do but when bumps occur then he is expected to take care of the issue. It seems like a simple concept, but this honestly had not occurred to me before. I suppose my theory was, the higher up you are the more work you have. Instead, Hector and even Bill emphasized that, while they do not have more work per se, they do have more responsibilities. [“If something goes wrong, we’ll be held accountable for it”]

On the days that I shadowed a screening manager we started with a daily meeting that all screening managers attend. Apparently a meeting is held for each shift, so a total of three per day. After the meeting we visited each of our assigned checkpoints. The meeting and checkpoint visits lasted for approximately three hours. Afterwards we would adjourn in one of several offices and start reviewing paperwork.

I realize this is an incredibly broad overview of what I did, but it really is difficult to explain to an outsider.

My internship currently goes until April 25th, meaning I have exactly two weeks remaining.

How you will continue to network in your field:
As far as making connections go, I will still work with two separate departments while also interning in the SOCC for several days. I think networking will be a little bit easier for me because I will not really be leaving my internship-site once I have completed my 14 weeks.

How you intend on continuing to apply for positions to increase the chance of getting hired:
I already applied for one position and a similar one just opened up again and I may apply for that one as well. (both are in the SOCC) I am currently on a waiting list to go full-time with TSA. In the meantime I think I will continue to apply for various positions at the main office.
If I apply for any additional positions I will use the same resume and essay question answers. I believe that the elimination process occurs at the interview stage, not during the application process. Perhaps I will make changes to my application process once I have received some feedback from current applications.

What you will accomplish before the end of your internship:
Next week I will shadow a screening manager at his checkpoint. During the last week I may shadow someone in the Regulatory Department. Each of the people I am going to shadow apparently already have a project lined up for me. For me, this seems like a really nice way to cap off this internship.
The screening manager will actually have me working with files that I had to put together during my first several weeks interning at the Airport.

Strengths:
A strength in regard to the workplace is that I have gotten to see behind-the-scenes in almost all of the departments within TSA. I think this makes working anywhere else in the airport easier because I know how things are handled.

Weaknesses:
The fact that I am still thoroughly fazed by people’s titles may be a weakness. Spending time in the SOCC, or even just being in the main office, I have realized that most of upper management is quite approachable. It may take a while for me to get used to addressing some people by their first names.

BAOs: To give you the gist of it, whenever a piece of luggage goes through screening and looks “bad”, BAOs get called. Likewise they test screeners as well as train them.

During this internship I have been shuffled between people and various departments in order to gain a better understanding of what happens at TSA behind the scenes. I think at this point Wes has gradually run out of places for me observe a department or shadow someone. There are so many different components to such a large organization, but understandably not every department or person is suitable for me to shadow. Anyway, since working at the checkpoint I have always been interested in what the BAOs do; no one mentioned if I could shadow them during my internship. Because of this I strolled in to their office on Tuesday and asked if I could shadow them, I should mention that no one EVER goes in their office. The Supervisor said that I could shadow the department but that there were certain things that I would have to skip out on. (makes sense..) Unfortunately my internship hours are a bit complicated to work with, in conjunction with the BAOs, so I was told to come back on Wednesday and they would let me know if anything else came up that I could tag along for in the future.

BAOs are stationed at the main office almost 24/7, I believe there are no flights for a three or four hours period in the early morning. (don’t quote me on that) I spent the first hour learning a bit more about what the BDOs do and afterwards I followed one of them (Steven) to the Airport. Steven went to two different checkpoints to give a class that some new-hires and transfers had missed out on. He ended up giving the same class a total of three times and I would like to think that because of the repetition, the information got ingrained in my head. The class was interesting and it was great to see how enthusiastic the TSOs were; unfortunately supervisors aren’t always supportive of classes and refuse to release TSOs so that they can occasionally attend a class.

On our way back to the main office Steven got a call and before I knew it we were speeding back to the airport, me made it there in record time. It turned out that one of the checkpoints had a bag in its x-ray that looked pretty bad. Since Steven was one of two people on call he was the one to respond. I’m not going to lie, it was pretty neat; our race back to the airport was like something out of a movie. Although Steven is allowed to park the car RIGHT in front of the airport and just run in, we parked across the street and jogged in to the terminal. Correction, he jogged through the exit while I speed walked through security and then stood off to the side.

Even though I’ve gotten this amazing amount of access along with this internship I wasn’t sure if this was one of those things that I wasn’t really privy to, so I just watched Steven from afar and then later got a re-cap of the whole thing. The bag that he had been called in for ended up being alright. It belonged to a roadie who had a few electronics that just did not look right on the x-ray image.

Today was a BIG day because the new FSD (Federal Security Director) arrived in Arizona today. We have an FSD right now (Jim) but he isn’t permanent, he just came to AZ to sort of transition between the last FSD and the incoming one. On Thursdays my schedule has me at the HR Satellite Office located at the Airport. Well, when I arrived at the Satellite office there was a sign that read “at FSD meeting”. After a quick call to Wes it turned out that the majority of FSD staff members were going to be meeting the new FSD at 9am. Wes said I should try and attend the meeting, but I didn’t arrive at Headquarters on time! When I arrived everyone was already seated and I would have had to walk right past the new FSD and most likely interrupt his speech just to enter the room. So I did a somewhat bitter stroll back to the front desk. I had so been looking forward to meeting the new FSD!

Well, before leaving I dropped in to the SOCC to discuss several things and to my surprise the new FSD was standing in the middle of the room! Apparently he had gotten a mini-tour of the SOCC and was in the process of meeting everyone working there today. I couldn’t just stroll up to him and introduce myself, never mind interrupting everyone else, so I just tried blending in to the background. As the FSD was on his way out of the SOCC he apparently spotted me, came back to where I was at, and made it a point of introducing himself. I managed a handshake, uttered my own name, and that was it. Someone else from the SOCC mentioned that I am an intern and the FSD chimed in that he had actually been wondering if TSA had a program that catered to interns. It sounded as if he was quite keen on the idea!

So even though I missed the original introductory meeting I still got to meet the new FSD and everything turned out quite well. After my shift at the FSO (Federal Security Office) I went to the Airport to complete my regular shift at the checkpoint; several times I might have let it slip that I had already met the new FSD earlier in the day. Maybe it’s just me, but meeting the new FSD during his first (official) 4 hours in PHX seems like a big deal to me! :-)

Today I went to a networking lunch with two other girls from the Office (Rochelle & Malisa). Once a month administrative assistants employed by various State and Federal agencies meet to socialize while simultaneously networking. I debated asking Rochelle and Malisa how these networking lunches had started but another admin. assistant actually answering my question while we were having lunch. She told me that by networking on occasion and getting to know people from other departments and agencies, if we should every have to work together, we would already have a point of contact. It sounds silly, but as soon as she explained her theory to me, a little light bulb went on.

All State and Federal agencies undoubtedly have each other’s contact information, but it would make such a big difference to have a point of contact.

TSA needs to work with Law Enforcement
TSA -> calls LE phone number -> speaks to LE person
Bill from TSA -> calls Jane from LE -> discusses situation

So that’s a crude explanation, but I think you get the general idea. I think networking lunches like the one I attended can be incredibly beneficial. I know it may seem odd to “waste” time on a seemingly silly socializing lunch that is on the clock so to speak, but you have to be able to look past the occasional gossiping and dinning to realize that connections are being made that would take much longer in a normal work setting. We all know that it is easier to make a connection outside of a rigid work environment when people are more at ease.

This week I spent my “other” days working with Catherine, one of two financial specialists. Catherine explained to me vaguely what her job entails and right off the bat had me listen in on a conference call regarding travel cards. TSA employees that have to “travel” for work are issued a credit card that, with the proper documentation, will be paid for by the government. (Trips can range from flying someplace to driving to a spoke airports within Arizona) At the beginning of this month TSA changed banks, so now another bank will issue our designated travel credit cards. Because of the change all info regarding cardholders is being reviewed right now.
Catherine had me review the list of AZ Cardholders and pay attention to details like birthdays and their assigned airports, ensuring that no files were labeled incorrectly during the transfer from the old bank to the new one. Believe it or not but it was incredibly time consuming looking up everyone’s birthday and which airport they are assigned to.

The first thing Wes had me work on was a set of org charts. Several charts that were originally created in Microsoft Visio display the chain of command within various departments. Some of the departments that the org charts focused on were the following:
- FSO (PHX’s Federal Security Office)
- Law Enforcement (employed by TSA)
- Screening managers, by terminal

I was essentially working on what looked like a family tree. Lines linking people to their superiors/subordinates with pictures for everyone. The whole thing was incredibly time consuming because this was my first time working with Visio. The org charts will actually be included in an informational packet for the new FSD when he arrives in a few weeks. (we have a temporary FSD right now) Working with the org charts really helped me learn and remember people’s names within the office.

During the last two days I’ve been stationed in the S.O.C.C. at Headquarters. Wes suggested I spend the weekends at the SOCC (instead of other days of the week) because everyone else at Headquarters works weekdays, meaning the place is rather empty on the weekend. The SOCC on the other hand is staffed 24/7!
What is the SOCC? As the name implies (Security Communications Center), it is a one-room “office” that regulates, receives, and transfers almost all forms of communication within the Airports. (in regards to TSA). To give you a general overview of what happens there:
- The SOCC has access to all airport cameras located at checkpoints.
- All incidents get reported to the SOCC
- Information that seems pertinent to running screening functions in AZ get passed on to management. Example: An incident at another airport, the SOCC would send out a briefing to all screening managers. (the info would eventually trickle down the chain of command)

I’m not sure how I can really give you better insight in to what happens in the SOCC. The SOCC has everyone’s contact information and likewise has the means to contact anyone within a matter of seconds. (be it someone located in PHX, somewhere else in AZ, or even HEADQUARTERS in DC)

In the office there are four primary computer stations with dual monitors and there are several large flat screens on one wall. The flat screens are used to monitor flights, display briefings, and monitor news stations. It’s fascinating to sit in the SOCC and just observe people, phone calls, and the monitors..it gives you a feeling of being in on everrrything.

I spent approximately 6 weeks at the airport and am now primarily at TSA’s Phoenix Headquarters. My main go-to-person is an admin assistant named Wes. Wes is an absolutely fantastic mentor, very out-going and incredibly knowledgeable about the whole organization. On my first day at Headquarters we put together a schedule that looks something like this:

Sun – S.O.C.C.
Mon - Other
Tue - Other
Wed - Other
Thu – HR Satellite Office @ the Airport
Fri - Other
Sat – S.O.C.C.

S.O.C.C. -> Stands for The Security Operations Communications Center (located at PHX Headquarters)

Other -> 4 days a week Wes will either have me tag along with him, give me things to do, or I’ll shadow someone else from the office.

HR Satellite Office -> The HR Department has an office at the Airport where someone is stationed Monday through Friday. Everyone is on a rotational schedule, so one day a finance person may be there and the following a benefits person.

So far my schedule is working out really well, minus the fact that I’m still spending 65 hours a week working in Phoenix. It has been great working with Wes because his cubicle is at the very front of the office next to the FSD’s office. (Federal Security Director, the highest TSA post in AZ) What this means for me is that any traffic in the office goes by his area, this translates to hearing about any and everything. Likewise, since Wes works directly for the FSD and the AFSD (Assistant Federal Security Director) I have been able to observe Management (and yes, essentially Tourism Management) in motion. I can’t even begin to describe how fascinating it has been to encounter classroom terminology/concepts in an actual workplace setting .

Here we go again..

In addition to taking care of returned white uniforms I have also been responsible for the following:

Maintaining a list of all uniform items that are available for pick up. Officers order their uniform items on-line but then come in to Resources to pick them up. Shipments come in from the uniform company on a daily basis.
In the uniform closet boxes are stored on shelves while bags are sorted in large FedEx bins in alphabetical order by the person’s last name. Each shelf is labeled with a letter and number. The first shelf is A and the top shelf is 1, the shelf below that is 2, and so forth. So a box on the first shelf at the very top would be labeled as “A1”. When new items come in I record the person’s name who the package is for, their work location, the date (when the package came in on), and the package’s location. All bags are labeled as “Floor Bin”, so we will know that they are in one of the FedEx boxes.
Keeping the closet organized can be incredibly time consuming because inventory has to be taken several times a week due to the fact that so many people work in Resources, all handing out uniforms. Often times people forget to remove officers’ names from the pick-up list thus making it appear like we still have the items days later. Likewise the bags get disorganized and are therefore difficult to find. What I tend to do is:

• Take inventory of all items in the closet, alphabetizing simultaneously.
• Recording information regarding new packages and then storing them.
• Up-dating the uniform list stored on excel.
• Printing 3 copies of the list and sending copies of the up-dated spreadsheet (via e-mail) to others in the office.

It’s not the best system in the world, but it has worked rather well so far.

To be continued in my next post!

Confusing, eh?

I’ve been in the same place for almost five weeks now and I feel completely settled in now. I still think that I should rotate to other departments so I can get a general overview of what really goes on behind-the-scenes at TSA, but that doesn’t meant that I’m not perfectly content where I am at right now. To give you a better idea of what exactly I’ve been up to I will try to outline what goes on in Property Management.

I’m sure some of you frequent travelers will remember that TSA officers stationed at security checkpoints used to wear white shirts, but on Septermber 11th (2008) a new set of uniforms was rolled out. Instead of stark white, the uniforms are now royal blue. Since the blue uniforms were rolled out all checkpoint officers have had to turn in their old white uniforms. I’m pretty sure the due date came and went and there are still so many uniform items that have yet to be returned. Some people still have uniforms from the original roll out, old patches and everything.

Property Management has been busy making and regularly up-dating a list of all the people that still owe white uniforms. What I’ve had to do in regards to the white uniforms:

• Log returned items when people turn things in. This includes finding their uniform paperwork, recording all returned items (stamping, signing, etc..), and making them a copy of said paperwork.
• Remove names from THE LIST, when they have returned all items they were issued from the white uniform roll out.
• Remove all patches from the uniforms so they can be disposed of. The patches get shredded and the “shirts” get disposed of I believe. (There isn’t much left once four patches have been removed) Some sweaters are being donated to the homeless once the patches have been carefully removed with some dreadful knitting/crocheting tool.

Dealing with white uniforms is only one of the many things the Property Management Team deals with, I’ll explain another task in my next post.

Pretend you're excited too..

I got to see Air Force One earlier today! Not the silly cargo plane but Air-Force-One! I barely left my Terminal in time to get to another Terminal's parking garage in time to see Air Force One make its u-turn and prepare for take off. It's a beautiful plane but for some reason didn't strike me as particularly big. Likewise there weren't any twin-rotor helicopters and the F-16s weren't visible. I think the F-16s usually depart from a base and then escort Air Force One once its in the air, so presumable the two that are accompanying it today came from Luke Air Force Base.

There were several other people standing close to me that were also filming the take off, you can even see one guy in my video clip that has a really good camera.

I think I started panicking a bit when the bus ride between the Terminals took much longer than it usually does. I didn't realize that people were stopping to take pictures of the plane, essentially just freezing the flow of traffic. At the end of the video clip you can actually catch a glimpse of the road with all the vehicles at a complete standstill.

I think its exciting..

This week has been pretty cool due to the fact that the All-Star Game took place on Sunday and President Obama flew in this morning!

The All-Star Game and all the hoopla surrounding it meant that there were incredibly high passenger loads for the last couple of days. And do you know what the game meant for me? (besides more work) It meant that I got to see celebrities! Sure, it shouldn't be a big deal. I'm tempted to be all nonchalant about it, but why pretend.. I love seeing celebs! There is something strangely intriguing about it. Anyway, I didn't recognize too many people. A co-worker/friend of mine kept ooh-ing and aah-ing, saying that tons of former basketball players (hall-of-fame'rs and so forth were coming through) but my celebrity knowledge is limited, when it comes to athletes. People I saw: Boris Diaw, Donald Faison, his girlfriend Cacee Cobb (ie. Jessica Simpson's cousin *lol*), and Mena Suvari! Funny thing is, I ran in to Mena in the food court, quite literally! :-o

I wish I could have gone to one of the All-Star Events, but I really couldn't with work/internship keeping me busy and sleep-deprived.

Now lets talk about something even more exciting! I've never actually seen Air Force One, only the bulky C-17 that carries all the president's cargo. (like Cadillac one)

A C-17, they're enormous!

I would love to see an Air Force One landing, because the whole process is apparently quite a sight to see. Before the plane lands F-16 fighter jets apparently clear the runway of any debris that could pose a threat or be something else entirely. I posted a clip of President Obama arriving at Chicago O'Hare last week via Air Force One. Instead of F-16s there were large twin-rotor helicopters clearing the runway.

I had to work this morning, other wise I might have waited for Air Force One to arrive. Since President Obama flies out again tomorrow morning I think I'll try to catch a glimpse of his plane or even just the C-17 during one of my breaks.

Tada!

Didn't go to work and essentially called-off from my internship. Kids, this is what happens when you don't sleep and spend 12 hours a day at the airport. Just imagine how many sick people roam the airport; so many opportunities to get sick!

Bound To Happen

I’ve had a sore throat for quite a few days now. Thought I might get sick and sure enough, today it finally kicked in!!

• I have a sore throat
• I can’t breathe
• I may have a fever

Throw in a stomach ache and I think that covers it. I feel so sluggish right now, its ridiculous! I hope I can get over this super quick instead of having to deal with it for several days. I can’t take more than one day off from work without needing a doctor’s note. Likewise it wouldn’t be so great if I called off from the internship. Anyway, if only I could get some more sleep. (6 hours just aren’t enough)

So tired!

I feel like I should be up-dating more often. (much more often!) I actually have things I want to post and discuss on here; no joke, I've caught myself thinking ,"that would make for a great post!"

I just don't have the time to sit down and crank out a good post. Yesterday I "worked" 14 hours and today I "worked" 11 hours and I'm completely drained right now. Regardless of what anyone says, this is work! It just happens to be un-paid. I'm not sure why people assume that because its an un-paid internship it must also be super easy.

Anyway, here's my first "internship" picture. It shows my walk to work! (ie. the 3 minute jog from the employee lot to the main terminal) The Airport is a world of its own at night, its completely deserted and actually quite beautiful. I wish I could post more exciting pictures.. But I don't think there will be too many internship pics since upper management wouldn't approve. :o/

Friday [0800-1800]

• Gave out uniforms
• Labeled shipping labels for uniforms that need to be returned to VF solutions
• Ran an errand
• Organized Daily Shift Reports
• Were already filed but now need to be ordered by date so that they will be organized before going to the archive room. Will eventually be sent out to NARA.
• Shredded papers
• Equipment Test Log
• Made a new excel spread sheet, essentially replacing the old document.
• Received white uniform items
• Lost & Found
• Listened to “Found Property Call Log”
• Wrote down info from answering machine
• Called people to identify lost and found items or get more information
• Identified owner of a laptop
• Answered phone calls and recorded information regarding lost items

Thursday [0800-1700]

Uniforms

• Labeled shipping labels for uniforms that need to be returned to VF solutions
• Accepted white uniforms and filled out proper paperwork
• Took their name off of the “owe uniform items” list
• Removed any TSA insignia from shirts and sweaters
• Sweaters and jackets will apparently be donated
• Did inventory of packages currently in the uniform closet
• (Having an up-dated uniform list keeps things running as smoothly as possible in the uniform dept.)
• Up-dated uniform list (originally prepared in excel)
• Removing the names of those who picked up items
• Adding the names of those who now have items to pick up

• Up-dated list that shows who still owes old uniform items (originally prepared in excel)

• Filed uniform packets. (A packet that has all old paperwork and is signed when all items have been returned from the original “white” uniform roll-out)
• Gave out uniforms

Lost & Found

• Performed inventory of lost & found items from all of the checkpoints. (Is done to ensure everything is still accounted for)
• Re-arranged lost & found id’s; ordered by date that they were found on not by date that they were processed on or the processing #

Other

• Prepared paperwork to get sent to NARA
• Kronos, only sorted papers documenting attendance from the first week of Aug 2004

The first day..

I am starting off in an office located at the airport that houses four separate departments. Since they all share one main office space I will be able to observe everyone one of the departments and the various functions each one engages in on a daily basis. That said, I’ll primarily work with the Property Management Team. Some of their job duties involve the following:

• Uniform & Badge distribution
• Managing supplies and equipment that is temporarily released to checkpoints/baggage locations.
• Disposal of old uniforms
• Managing a “Lost & Found”

On the first day I spent quite a while reading. I think no one was really prepared for my arrival; apparently the department only received a day’s notice that they would be having an intern. At first I read a big packet of directives. There is a directive for absolutely everything within TSA and each one is phrased in the most detailed legal lingo. So its not exactly “light” reading. I am familiar with them because I have had to read quite a few of them while doing my monthly training at work. (Directives that affect checkpoint screening functions)

After I finished reading the directives I was told to look up NARA and familiarize myself with the administration. Learning about NARA was much more interesting that sifting through such heavy legal lingo.

NARA: The National Archives and Records Administration
(located north of the National Mall, on Constitution Avenue in Washington, DC)

• Helps in creating and maintaining accurate and complete records of an agency’s functions and activities and in ensuring the authorized, timely, and appropriate disposition of documentary materials that are no longer needed to conduct business.
  
  Disposition: Getting rid of an asset or security through a direct sale or some other method.

• Their guide helps agencies improve the quality of their documentation by describing how Federal personnel should create and properly manage documentation containing important information.


• Frequently agencies become aware of inadequate documentation because of congressional inquiries, Freedom of Information Act requests, litigation, or through the news media.
  
• Federal records may be created on any physical media including, paper, film (microfilm, photographic film, x-ray), disk (optical, magnetic, video audio), and tape (magnetic, video, audio). The method of recording information may be manual, mechanical, photographic, electronic, or any combination of these or other techniques.
  
  

Some of the things NARA keeps:

• Declaration of Independence
• Constitution
• Bill of Rights

My Internship

I started working for TSA in May of 07’ and when I started thinking about where I might like to intern TSA seemed like a pretty good idea.

• I plan on staying with TSA for a while after I graduate. I figured an internship with TSA would help me learn more about the agency and perhaps give me an idea of what I would like to pursue career wise. I currently work at a security checkpoint but I can’t stay there forever.

• I thought I would probably be able to learn so much more since I am already familiar with the agency, the location, people, etc..(instead of starting with a blank slate)

• And on a more practical note, since my work schedule isn’t too easy to work with, I figured TSA would be an ideal internship site because I wouldn’t have to commute for ages just to get from work to internship. (and they would be willing to work with my schedule!)

In March of 07’ I put in paperwork to see if I could intern with TSA. I ended up having to be quite persistent because people kept sending me to someone else:

“you’ll have to e-mail/talk to/meet with ________"

Long story short, I finally got positive feedback approximately two weeks before the deadline. (for submitting an internship site)

So now I’m working 25 hours a week at the airport and interning for 40 hours. We will see how things pan out, but apparently the plan is to have me rotate between different departments every 2 weeks so I can get an overall sense of what goes on behind-the-scenes at TSA. It’s all terribly exciting for me! :o)

It's a first..

Like the name implies, I'm too busy to blog. So I'll create some stupendous blog at a later date!