Agencies in Transition: A Report on the Views of the Members of the Federal Senior Executive Service

Many think of leadership transition in government as something that happens only once every four or eight years. While presidential transitions are undoubtedly the largest in scope, leadership transition in government is a constant process. In fact, the average tenure of Senate-confirmed appointees is only 3.3 years, while appointees at executive departments generally spend only 2.8 years in a single post.In a federal government made up of departments and agencies as large and complex as any Fortune 500 company, a strong leadership team is critical to effective governance. Members of the Senior Executive Service (SES) serve as the primary link between political appointees and the broader federal workforce, operating and overseeing nearly every government activity. They play a significant role during leadership transitions, ensuring the continuity of operations within government. Members of the SES are also uniquely positioned to help incoming political leaders build on the positive reforms of the past, and provide insight from lessons learned that can inform success in the future.The National Academy saw the 2008 Presidential transition as an opportunity to draw upon the experience of the SES to find ways to strengthen the partnerships between political and career leaders and build a more efficient and effective government. The results of our study reinforced the critical role played by members of the SES, and revealed that the majority of these career leaders, though experienced in government, were relatively new to managing transition issues as executives.Key FindingsThe findings demonstrated that despite the newness of presidential transitions for most SES, they have a clear understanding about the role they must play in assisting new political appointees, the importance of forming an effective partnership, and their role in the process. At the same time, they wanted help to prepare for those roles, and were eager to engage in training and other activities that would promote success. These SES preferred to receive assistance in preparing for the transition through: (1) policy briefings; (2) discussions with their peers; (3) written materials; and (4) attendance at seminars or training sessions

The Nature And Work of Pastoral Workers Serving Deaf People: A Report of A Limited Survey

1981 V 14 Issue

The Nursing Profession in the 1990\u27s: Negligence and Malpractice Liability

Since expanded responsibility portends increased liability, a thorough understanding of the law must be achieved for nurses\u27 rights to be adequately protected and for nurses to be held properly accountable for their legal obligations. This work examines the legal rights, responsibilities, and particularly the potential legal liability of the nurse, in the contexts of modem nursing practice and current statutes and case law. The work focuses on one major aspect of the nurse\u27s legal liability -the tort, or civil wrong, of negligence

Analysis of the Phosphorylation Status of Epstein–Barr Virus LMP2A in Epithelial Cells

LMP2A deletion and point mutants, with mutations in phosphotyrosine-containing protein-protein interaction motifs, were transiently expressed in 293 cells and their phosphorylation was examined in immune complex kinase assays as well as in vivo. In vitro LMP2A phosphorylation depended on tyrosine 112. In vivo, mutations of single tyrosines did not eliminate LMP2 phosphorylation, although mutation of the LMP2A ITAM decreased LMP2A phosphorylation. The relationship between LMP2A in vitro phosphorylation and that induced by cell-extracellular matrix (ECM) interactions was also investigated. While LMP2A was phosphorylated to higher levels in whole-cell extracts of stimulated cells, a difference in in vitro kinase assays with extracts from stimulated and unstimulated cells was not detected, indicating that the ECM-mediated regulation of LMP2A phosphorylation is lost in vitro. In the presence of LMP2A, several cellular proteins with molecular weights between 70 and 80 kDa were phosphorylated on tyrosine. This increase in cellular protein phosphorylation depended on the LMP2A ITAM motif and suggests that the ITAM may participate in signal-transduction events in epithelial cells

The Georgia and New York State Programs for Assessing and Developing Sign Communication Skills of Rehabilitation Personnel

Effective communication between vocational rehabilitation (VR) personnel and their clients is critical to the rehabilitation process. This paper stresses (a) the importance of VR personnel and clients sharing the opportunity and challenge for establishing effective communication, and (b) the importance of an integrated approach to sign communication skills assessment and development/learning opportunities for VR personnel. The Georgia and New York State VR programs for assessing and developing the sign communication skills of VR personnel are described, and an overview of the sign communication assessment instrument used by both programs, the Sign Communication Proficiency Interview (SCPI), is provided

Effect of Recombinant Human Cytokines on Porcine Neutrophil Function

The activity of four recombinant human cytokines on porcine neutrophils was evaluated. Porcine neutrophils were treated with varying doses of recombinant human tumor necrosis factor-alpha (rHu-TNF), interferon-gamma (rHu-IFN), interleukin-8 (rHu-IL-8), or granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (rHu-GM-CSF). The function of treated neutrophils was compared with that of non-treated controls in the following assays: antibody-independent neutrophil cytotoxicity (AINC), antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC), iodination, Staphylococcus aureus ingestion, cytochrome C reduction, random migration, and chemotaxis. Treatment with rHu-TNF produced significant (P \u3c 0.05) depression of neutrophil random migration (2.5, 25, and 250 ng ml−1 rHu-TNF) and iodination (250 ng ml−1) and a near significant (P = 0.08) depression in ADCC (250 ng ml−1). Treatment with 25 000 U ml−1 of rHu-IFN caused a significant increase in AINC. At lower doses of rHu-IFN, there was a trend (0.05 \u3c P ≤ 0.08) toward depression of AINC (250 U ml−1) and ADCC (25 U ml−1) and enhancement of iodination (250 U ml−1). Treatment with 50 ng ml−1 of rHu-IL-8 caused a near significant increase (P= 0.06)M in AINC. There were no significant differences noted when porcine neutrophils were treated with rHu-GM-CSF (2.5–2500 U ml−1). No synergism was noted between rHu-TNF and rHu-IFN

Frank H. Spain oral history interview by Nancy Hewitt, July 17, 1985

Dr . Frank Spain, Director of Community College Relations, as part of the USF Silver Anniversary Oral History Project

The resistivity of lanthanum, cerium, praseodymium and neodymium at low temperatures

The electrical resistivity of lanthanum, cerium, praseodymium, and neodymium was measured between room temperature and approximately 2°K. The behavior was found to be affected by the method of preparation, the heat treatment, and the crystal structure of the samples, the latter bearing the greatest significance

Alteration of Neutrophil Function in BCG-Treated and Non-Treated Swine after Exposure to Salmonella typhimurium

Salmonella typhimurium infection in swine causes an enterocolitis followed by a persistent carrier state, but little is known about the mechanisms that allow this organism to colonize and persist in host tissues. Neutrophils provide a first line of defense against invading pathogens such as Salmonella typhimurium. The purpose of this study was to evaluate porcine neutrophil function after in vivo exposure to Salmonella and to determine if the immunomodulator, bacillus Calmette Guerin (BCG), exerts any effect on neutrophil function or on the colonization and persistence of S. typhimurium in the pig. Compared to negative controls, neutrophils from pigs exposed to S. typhimurium exhibited significantly decreased iodination, cytochrome-C reduction, antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity, random migration, and chemotaxis (P≤0.05). Neutrophil bactericidal activity against S. typhimurium was significantly enhanced. Most of the significant differences were noted in the first two days after exposure to Salmonella. Often the functional alterations were biphasic, peaking again 7–10 days after exposure. BCG alone significantly depressed random migration and cytochrome-C reduction in unstimulated neutrophils. The clinical course, colonization pattern, and persistence of Salmonella were similar between pigs receiving BCG and untreated pigs. These data suggest that S. typhimurium infection causes a depression in oxidative metabolism and motility, yet an increase in overall bactericidal activity against S. typhimurium in circulating porcine neutrophils. It also appears that BCG treatment, as reported here, does not enhance resistance of pigs to S. typhimurium colonization or reduce the number of persistent organisms in the porcine ileum