Spotlights

The first thing to know about Michael Ferguson, an information specialist with U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Office of Information and Technology, is that he is a reader. If you ask him to describe the core ideas that inform his worldview, you’re likely to hear a favorite passage from something he’s read, recited by heart.

About weathering the ups and downs of a 30-plus-year career, for example, Ferguson quotes from Spencer Johnson’s “Peaks and Valleys”: “You change your valley into a peak when you find and use the good that is hidden in the bad time.” Ferguson’s ability to…

On Oct. 15, U.S. Customs and Border Protection 
honored 23 employees who died in the line of duty
at the Woodrow Wilson Plaza in Washington, D.C. 
in a ceremony held during National Police Week.  
Photo by Jaime Rodriguez

Twenty-three names read aloud. Twenty-three…

U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas
addresses thousands of law enforcement personnel, family, and
friends who attended the 33rd Annual Candlelight Vigil held  on the
National…

New Border Patrol Processing Coordinators have Early Impact on Operations ​Border Patrol Academy Chief Jason Owens speaks to the
graduating class and leads them on the traditional cover
run to celebrate their achievements.

After completing 36 training days and 288 training hours, the fifth class of the U.S. Border Patrol Processing Coordinators (BPPC) proudly received their badge and credentials on Sept. 21, 2021 excited for what they…

CBP Acting Commissioner Troy A. Miller welcomes
attendees to CBP’s second Virtual Trade Week,
held July 20-22. 
Photo Credit: U.S. Customs and Border Protection

As America continues to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. Customs and Border Protection hosted its second Virtual Trade Week, July 20-22, bringing its industry and…

As the nation's largest federal law-enforcement agency and an employer of more than 63,000 Americans, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is poised to help lead the movement toward equity in the U.S., striving daily to recruit and hire a workforce that reflects the diversity of the population it serves.

“Do I feel like I’ve been accepted?” says
Cherri King. “Not everywhere. But you get to
a point in…

Almost two years ago, U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Office of Field Operations (OFO) wanted to understand ways to better attract, retain and advance female officers. Leadership found that female officers thrived when they had visible female leadership, mentorship and support systems.

These insights inspired the creation of OFO’s Law Enforcement, Leadership, and Legacy (3L) Alliance Program. The 3L Alliance Program creates a space for female…

Have you ever wondered how you can become a U.S. attaché, serving your country while working overseas? For U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Attaché Amy Cloud, becoming an International Relations Specialist (IRS) paved the way.

(CBP) Attaché Amy Cloud

Cloud gained valuable experience as an IRS, leading to further exciting opportunities such as helping create the first border police in Costa Rica. She also visited every Central American country…

The U.S. borders have remained open for legitimate
trade during the coronavirus pandemic. Above, a
container ship is docked at the port of Seattle in
Washington state.

Photo by Jerry Glaser, CBP file photo

As the first days of summer began to unfold, the 15th term of Customs and Border Protection’s trade advisory committee came to a close. Members of the Commercial Customs Operations Advisory…

Since his first ride-along with a local police department, Supervisory Marine Interdiction Agent Cleon Arrington was hooked on law enforcement. By the age of 22, he was pinning on a badge and wearing his passion for protecting his community. His love of safeguarding and serving others encouraged him to start his own security company as a side hustle, which gained the attention of U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Arrington was originally contacted by a Border Patrol recruiter and found himself in short order at the Border Patrol Academy, where he began to hear about Air and Marine…

Air Interdiction Agent (AIA) Presley Rose recalled her first encounter with U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Air and Marine Operations (AMO) at a job she had as a flight instructor. After seeing an AMO helicopter land, she introduced herself to the AIAs. The agents gladly answered her questions on becoming an AMO pilot and in two minutes she was hooked. “When someone is passionate about something it compels you to listen and want to know why.”

…

My name is Chimsakda “Chuck” Uk. I’m a Marine Corps combat veteran and a proud member of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) family. In the Marines we had a saying, “If you do what is easy, your life will be hard. But if you do what is hard, your life will be easy.” Hard is what we did in the Marines. However, if you had told me 10 years ago that after my discharge from the Marine Corps I would one day become a federal employee, I wouldn’t have thought it easy. Why, you ask? Well, the reason is deadly serious. Like many combat veterans, I never thought I would survive my…

A CBP officer at the port of Los Angeles-Long Beach
in California, awaits a cargo ship for inspection.

Photo by Vincent Vuong

Change was the dominant theme when U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s trade advisory group met virtually on March 17, for its first quarterly meeting of 2021. As the COVID-19 pandemic marked its first anniversary, members of the Commercial…

Aviation Enforcement Agent (AEA) Alison Garduno has been around aircraft her entire life. Her father was a Naval officer stationed in Norfolk, Virginia, and her mother managed a base flying club. Eager to find her own path to the sky, Garduno changed course in college and joined the Navy as a Naval Aircrewman Mechanic.

Aviation Enforcement Agent (AEA) Alison Garduno
has her dream job. She set her sights on a career
as…

It is said that if you want a thing bad enough to go out and fight for it, to work day and night for it, to give up your time, your peace and sleep for it, that with the help of faith, hard work, and perseverance you’ll get it. Jay Bishop, an Army veteran and current Management and Program Analyst within the Office of Congressional Affairs (OCA) at U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) headquarters in Washington, DC, personifies this mantra magnificently. Bishop explains, “My path to participation in the VA’s Non-Paid Work Experience Program (NPWE) internship wasn’t my first choice upon…

Agency delivers massive security effort at Super Bowl LV during global pandemic

 

An Air and Marine Operations UH-60 Black Hawk
helicopter and crew from Miami patrol the airspace
over Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, in
advance of Super Bowl LV.

Photo by Jerry Glaser

On Sunday…

Adam Sulewski was recently selected to the supervisory position of branch chief of the Trade Agreements Branch for the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USCMA) Center. USMCA replaced the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). He started his career path with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) spring of 2009, when he applied to the Presidential Management Fellows (PMF) Program and interviewed with CBP's Office of International Affairs.  

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