April Honorees

Roderick Rinon, Chief Engineer for Baltimore FOM, is challenged daily. With all of the frigidly cold mornings and  90 degree summer afternoons, it’s far more satisfying, you might say, to drive around the 695 beltway during rush hour than it is to control the interior building temperatures at State Center.

Roderick and his team of engineers operate the central power plant and all of the heating and cooling systems in every building and on every floor throughout State Center. It is a demanding 24/7 job. They are also responsible for the heating and cooling system at the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services Building on Guilford Avenue.

As you might imagine, Roderick’s work day begins before most of us get out of bed, and he can be spotted late into the evenings and even weekends probing and testing system components to ensuring that our buildings’ HVAC systems are kept up to par. He also monitors the long and short-range weather forecast and makes the necessary adjustments to the heating and cooling system to insure our buildings remain comfortable and the building temperatures remain between 68 and 76 degrees.

For all the long hours of hard work to keep us comfortable during every change of season, Roderick is FOM’s Caught DGS nominee for April.

Maryland Capitol Police Officer Yu-Wen Cheng joined the Annapolis Detachment in 2016. In this brief period, he has proven to be an energetic and eager learner. Certified as a field training officer, he trains new police officers assigned to the Detachment. He has also obtained specialized training in the following:

• Detection of improvised explosives
• Officer safety and wellness
• Police Intelligence
• Patrol rifle
• Taser

With his tenacious attitude and desire to assist, Ofc. Cheng has taken it upon himself to conduct research and develop intelligence information on criminal activity and on groups and individuals potentially seeking to disrupt our legislative process and peaceful demonstrations in Annapolis. Using social media and open sources, Ofc. Cheng developed numerous intelligence alerts to assist the Annapolis Detachment Command in planning for events and rallies. For his efforts, Ofc. Cheng was designated as the Annapolis Detachment Intelligence Officer.

His outstanding service in the capacity of Intel Officer was never more apparent than during the 2019 Legislative Session. Throughout the three-month session, Ofc. Cheng worked tirelessly to obtain intelligence information to support the Detachment’s operations. He regularly came in during off-duty hours to conduct research on any potential threats that could pose a risk to MCP officers, DGS facilities and our community. His assessments were invaluable and proved instrumental in ensuring a successful 2019 Session.

Rio Woodard, Administrator; Kimberley Slusar, Deputy Administrator; Barry Kramer, Accountant; and Robert Nozeika, Fiscal Account Tech, of the Fiscal Services Capital Projects Unit represent a combined 96 years of service.

The Unit is undergoing a number of changes. With half the staff set to retire, it is being proactive by initiating cross-training and position-shadowing opportunities for other staff. In the midst of these retirements, the unit acquired additional responsibilities as a result of unanticipated legislation passed during the General Assembly session.

The bill transferred workload to DGS for processing payments to capital grants awardees without additional funding or personnel. Again, the Unit’s response has been proactive. There have been meetings with the Capital Grants Office, the results of which have been new processes and pending technological enhancements. As the new workload continues to be assessed, regular communication between the two divisions makes timely responses possible.

Fiscal Services is proud of the Capital Projects Unit’s foresight and contributions in maintaining fiscal responsibility and accountability.

Emily Soontornsaratool, Energy Data Program Manager in the Energy Office, has taken on the role of managing the Green Purchasing Committee as the Secretary’s designated chairperson. The Maryland Green Purchasing Committee is an interagency committee created by the Green Maryland Act of 2010. It is tasked with providing the state with education and training as a means of promoting environmentally-preferable purchasing.

The Committee develops and implements statewide green purchasing policies, guidelines, programs, best practices and regulations which provide benefits to the health and well‐being of Maryland citizens and environment. As chairperson, Emily has, in a few short months, reinvigorated the GPC by providing consistent, imaginative and enthusiastic leadership. She has excelled at the numerous responsibilities accompanying the position while continuing to uphold her already full workload.