Updates on EPA Roles for SDWIS Prime & CMDP

by Michael Plastino

Hi all.

We’re in a season of changes at EPA with respect to various SDWIS Prime & CMDP roles.

First, as you may know, since April, Greg Fabian and Latonia Cheatham-Strickland have been working with Patti Fauver of Utah (soon on a ½ time detail to EPA as SDWIS Prime Product Owner) and the contractor to redesign the SDWIS Prime user experience and to “tighten-up” the system. You saw some of these changes during last May’s DMUC and in August and will see more in the coming weeks as this work winds down. With Prime development restarting now, Greg and Latonia will continue working with Patti on the Sprint team as business analysts and supporting SDWIS Prime as the application architects. Patti and Kristen Gastner (SDWIS Prime Project Manager) will be engaging with a soon to be formed SDWIS Prime Testing Group (more on this soon) and quarterly with the SDWIS community on testing of Prime as development progresses.

Second, as of the deployment of CMDP into production at the end of September, the lead role for managing the CMDP has shifted from the Protection Branch (Division PWSS Program lead) to the Infrastructure Branch (Division IT lead). Will Bowman will remain engaged for an interim period of several months to lead efforts with the 6 Phase 1 states’ transition to using CMDP, to prioritize potential CMDP upgrades and to provide ad hoc consultation to the Infrastructure Branch CMDP customer support team. LA Darnell is leading the CMDP customer support team and leading support of the Phase 2 states’ CMDP transition efforts. Brianna Knoppow is the lead for the CMDP help desk / training materials and supports Phase 2 states’ CMDP transition efforts. Trang Le is the lead for CMDP system operations and supports the CMDP help desk and Phase 2 states’ CMDP transition efforts. Kristen Gastner is the lead for any CMDP modifications.

Third, LA Darnell is retiring effective November 25^th. We’re both very sad for her to leave us and also happy to celebrate her entry into her next life adventure. So many thanks to LA for all the great service to Prime Transition, Interfacing Applications Work Group (IAWG), and CMDP Roll Out – as well as all her substantial SDWIS work her first go round with the drinking water program!!

We’re using a team approach to carry on with all the various aspects of LA’s work. Cary McElhinney, EPA’s IAWG Co-Chair, is filling LA’s EPA – state data exchange solutions Product Owner role (more on this role and this work in the weeks ahead!). For the Blanket Purchase Agreement that States and Regions can utilize to purchase Prime / CMDP transition support, Trang Le is stepping up from the Alternate Contracting Officer Representative (COR) role to the Lead COR role and Brianna Knoppow will step up into the Alternate COR role after obtaining her COR certification over the next few weeks. For leading the CMDP customer support team and leading support of the Phase 2 states’ CMDP transition efforts, I’ve advertised at EPA HQ for a detail position, which I hope to have in place by the end of the year.

Fourth, we have transitioned the EPA Co-Chair of the Outreach Work Group (OWG) from Roger Howard to Brianna Knoppow. Over the past several months, in addition to his long time leadership of ARCS and SDWARS, Roger has taken on leadership roles for DWMAPS and branch web activity – dropping off of SDWIS Prime will allow Roger to give more focus to his many other roles. Many thanks to Rogers for his years of co-chairing the OWG! Prior to Brianna getting hired in September, she interned in our branch from mid-2014 through early-2016, supporting the SDWIS Fed Reporting Services and DWMAPS projects – gathering user requirements, proposing solutions and developing and delivering training materials.

Fifth, I am extremely happy to have returned to the Infrastructure Branch in the Branch Chief role. I learned a lot in my permanent Office of Environmental Information (OEI) position of Collection Strategies Division Director from May 2015 through the OEI re-organization in July 2016, as well as in my acting position as OEI Technical Architecture and Planning Division Director from July through September. It’s awesome to be back home with both the great drinking water mission and extended community.

Last, I am also extremely happy to announce that Felecia Fort was recently selected for the Infrastructure Branch Associate Chief position. Felecia joins us from the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP) where she was with the Antimicrobials Division in the Office of Pesticides Program (OPP).  Prior to this position, Felecia was the Acting Director of the Environmental Assistance Division in the Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics in OCSPP, where she provided supervision and leadership for four branches with financial, human resources and liaison responsibilities. Felecia will be the branch management lead for the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund while I’ll be the branch management lead for information management.