By MC2 Brian H. Abel

William Kelley, right, receives the Founders Award from center director Glen Woodbury during the 2017 Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) Center for Homeland Defense and Security (CHDS) Alumni Professional Exchange (APEX) in the Barbara McNitt Ballroom, Feb. 23. Kelley and fellow recipient Stanley Supinski have been with CHDS in various roles since 2002.

"The Founders Award is awarded to individuals who have made vital contributions to the establishment of CHDS, and the ability of the center to serve the nation," said Woodbury. "Kelley provided a rigorous recruitment and application process for CHDS, and Supinski was the first director of the CHDS University and Agency Partnership Initiative (UAPI)."

Both awardees have worked tirelessly to contribute to CHDS' ability to educate homeland security professionals of all levels, Woodbury says, and have played key roles in evolving the discipline of advanced education in homeland security and defense.

"The UAPI program was the first program in the country to share homeland security curriculum with universities and agencies across the nation," said Woodbury. "They both provided incredible efforts to promote the importance of graduate education in homeland security."