OSAC Awards
The annual OSAC Awards, given by OSAC, honor U.S. Department of State employees or groups and private-sector individuals. These peer-nominated awards recognize significant contributions to enhancing the ability of American organizations to protect their personnel, assets, information, intellectual property or business operations overseas.
OSAC DISTINGUISHED ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
The Distinguished Achievement Award is presented to U.S. Department of State representatives who have made a significant, direct contribution to the safety and security of American organizations abroad.
2022 Distinguished Achievement Award, Regional Security Officer
Karen Lass, Regional Security Officer, London
Karen Lass is a living expression of what OSAC strives to be for its membership: dependable, accurate, reliable and accessible. Together with the OSAC United Kingdom Steering Committee, she has deftly lined up excellent events with rare opportunities for members such as convening at the Ambassador’s residence in London—an engagement where 150 people celebrated the chance to reunite in person after years of remote-adapted meetings. Karen continues to navigate the priorities of her Country Chapter with admirable skill and keeps everyone motivated and connected via active Google and WhatsApp groups, in-person events, personal visits and more.
Award presented by Christina Johnson, Chemonics International
2022 Distinguished Achievement Award, Program Office
Bina Surati Hensel, Senior Analyst, OSAC Program Office, Europe
Throughout Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Bina Surati Hensel’s extensive historical knowledge and constant situational awareness helped OSAC produce the best research, reporting and benchmarking possible. Bina utilized multiple communication platforms, including the formation of a dedicated Signal group, to deliver this content to a vast audience in the moment and to open it up to critical dialogues around evacuation routes, charter flights and more. Bina personally ensured member questions and concerns were directly responded to around the clock. The communications channels and products she worked to set up then continue to be utilized today and her consult is sought on an ongoing basis.
Bina brings a positive approach to all her work that compels people to dig in together with strong team spirit. This invaluable skill brings calm to those straining to navigate highly complicated and fluid security environments and incentivizes her fellow OSAC Program Office staff members to work effectively toward shared goals. Her consistency has forged trust between the private and public sectors on innumerable occasions and has enabled informed decision-making throughout the OSAC community.
Award presented by Christina Johnson, Chemonics International
2022 Distinguished Achievement Award, Private Sector
Michael Latza, Manager Regional Security, Mastercard
Mike Latza has leveraged a deep understanding of security from both the public and private sectors to make great contributions to the OSAC community. Mike served as a Diplomatic Security Special Agent in Chicago, an Assistant Regional Security Officer in Abu Dhabi, Erbil and Dubai, and he served as a U.S. Army Engineer in Germany, Iraq and Afghanistan. Now in his role at Mastercard, he continually dedicates himself to building strong connections within OSAC United
Arab Emirates (UAE) and beyond.
Mike’s support is best demonstrated in support of his fellow members through crisis
response, especially as seen during the recent unrest in Kazakhstan. As violence rocked the country, Mike steadily fed critical information that was used for OSAC situational analysis and facilitated in-the-moment information sharing within OSAC UAE. When some organizations did not readily have access to information streams online, Mike personally ensured channels remained open using the platforms they could reach. It’s this kind of fortitude, persistence and good will that makes OSAC the premier public-private partnership it is today.
Award presented by Christina Johnson, Chemonics International
Previous Winners:
2021: BryAna Stearns and Ryan Wildes
2020: Rebecca Gomez and Dinesh Elangovan
2019: Richard Barta and William Gannon
2018: Shari-Ann Peart
2017: Rebecca Spingarn
2016: Anton Kort, Kat Plitsyna and Kirby Rosenbluth
2015: Arie van Veelen
2014: Lindsay Harrison and Seth Green
2013: Sarah Kessler and Timothy Haley
COUNTRY CHAPTER ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
The OSAC Country Chapter Achievement Award highlights exceptional performance by an OSAC Country Chapter.
2022 Country Chapter Achievement Award: OSAC Colombia-Bogotá Chapter
OSAC Bogotá’s long history of excellence has been carried on and upward through the leadership of Regional Security Officer Fernando Matus and Co-chair Ricardo Triana. Together they have consistently rallied productive events, including monthly virtual meetings that regularly saw attendance of 60 or more, enabling members to stay in close contact while navigating the challenges of the pandemic. This year, members have tackled major security topics like cybersecurity and cyber-fraud and regional concerns like kidnapping and organized crime. They took the initiative to call upon other OSAC chapters to collaborate, forming valuable bridges and tapping into broader perspectives. And they have created numerous opportunities for open dialogue and information exchange that have helped the wider OSAC community stay connected, informed and secure.
Presented by Edward Silverman, Allied Universal®
Previous Winners:
2021: OSAC India-Chennai
2020: OSAC Ireland-Dublin
2019: OSAC Afghanistan-Kabul
2018: OSAC Venezuela-Caracas
2017: OSAC Ukraine-Kyiv
2016: OSAC Turkey-Istanbul
2015: OSAC Afghanistan-Kabul
2014: OSAC Kenya-Nairobi and OSAC Libya-Tripoli
2013: OSAC Nigeria-Lagos
COMMON INTEREST COMMITTEE ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
The OSAC Common Interest Committee Achievement Award highlights exceptional performance by an OSAC Common Interest Committee (Regional Committee, Sector Committee or Special Interest Committee).
2022 Common Interest Committee Achievement Award
Academia Sector Committee
The Academia Sector Committee (ASC) has exemplified the best that public-private partnerships have to offer in its continual sourcing of expert speakers, streamlined coordination of global events and a continual pursuit of timely information to keep U.S. colleges and universities operating safely around the world. ASC Chair Christine Sprovieri, Brown University’s Director of International Travel Risk Management, and Vice-chair Jaime Signoracci, Director of International Safety and Security at University of Notre Dame, are long-term, dedicated volunteers who
actively engage with the OSAC Program Office and extended Common Interest
Committee membership. The ASC and its Steering Committee have been steadfast in delivering essential materials such as mental health toolkits and ongoing risk analysis for study abroad
programs, satellite campuses and more. The ASC also has led by actively working to expand diversity throughout all levels of academia. Their outreach to Historically Black Colleges and Universities to join and hold their first in-person event was a great example of this success.
Presented by Edward Silverman, Allied Universal®
Previous Winners:
2021: International Development Sector Committee
2020: Women in Security
2018: Aviation Sector Committee
2017: International Development Sector Committee
2016: Hotels and Lodging Sector Committee