Only days after Thanksgiving, more than 100 NWS Weather Forecast Offices will mark SKYWARN Recognition Day, December 7, 2002, "giving thanks" for the thousands of volunteer amateur radio operators helping NWS forecasters gather vital severe weather information and aiding the warning process. During the day, SKYWARN operators visit NWS offices and contact other radio operators across the world.

This issue also has a related story about one local office's participation in a Hamfest held recently in Indiana for amateur radio operators.

We take our hats off to all the the SKYWARN spotters and ham operators, an imporant part of the NWS team!

On November 20, I traveled to Kansas City, MO, to attend the Central Region MIC/HIC conference and spend some time with students at the Training Center. My reason for this one day trip was to continue a dialog with our employees on internal communications and concerns they would like to share with me. That dialog extends from employee input into the NOAA Program Review, results from NWS employees in the SFA, as well as recent employee focus group results.

During my visit, employees shared many issues with me regarding NOAA's NWS Focus, all-employee e-mails, training, AWIPS builds, SFA, and operational software, to name a few. I encouraged them to get involved with their supervisors to solve their problems or elevate them to the next level, as through the SFA action item process.

Both Jack and I, as well as all the members of the Corporate Board, are committed to improving the performance of the NWS, and we all need to work together to make that happen. We want to improve the work environment for all of us. To do that involves knowing the issues.

The Office of Communications has conducted nine focus groups with field employees since May 2001, and we have learned a great deal from our research. Through these sessions, we've learned that communications within the organization are better than they once were, but still need improving. NOAA's NWS Focus provides an avenue to circulate information throughout the organization. NOAA's NWS Focus readership averages 2,000 readers per issue. While this is an increase in readership from a year ago (approximately 1,700), I think this tool is underutilized. One employee I spoke with says she prints and posts NOAA's NWS Focus on the office bulletin board to share with co-workers. What else can we do to increase readership of NOAA's NWS Focus? Is there a different or better way to get you the information you need? Are the stories meeting your needs?

Employees say they want two-way dialog between headquarters and the field. A new column in NOAA's NWS Focus entitled "Director's Dialog" was created because employees told us in focus groups that they'd like to ask NWS Director Jack Kelly questions directly. However, to date, we have only received about 10 questions for "Director's Dialog." You can get results through this column. Because of one question, the NWS Directives process was changed so that when a directive is signed, it now becomes effective two weeks or later after that date mitigating operational impacts to the field. This inquiry through "Director's Dialog" spurred the change! I encourage you to send in questions that are important to you and your colleagues. We want to provide you with solid information to enable you to do your job better.

Employees say they need more technical, engineering, and program/product information. Did you know that there are list servers available to help you share information about technical issues? This service is also underutilized. Why? How else can we get you the technical information you need? Have you accessed the web sites of different organizations within NWS that provide technical information, i.e., the Office of Operational Systems Division of Maintenance, Logistics, and Acquisition?

NOAA's NWS Focus and the new NWS Employee Resources and Best Practices web site offer up-to-date information on pay, benefits, outreach activities, and current program information. Are these good vehicles for delivering this type of information to you?

I hope you all know that Jack and I treasure the time we spend in the field talking with employees and learning more about the great things you do with support from the regional and national headquarters. Jack and I will continue to visit your meetings, conferences, and offices. If there is a special event you would like us to attend, invite one of us with enough lead time and we will do our best to be there.

If you have ideas or comments on any of the questions raised above, send them to NWS.Focus@noaa.gov.

An experimental version of the NWS National Digital Forecast Database (NDFD) became available for review by partners and customers December 2, 2002.

While not intended for redistribution or operational use at this time, the Office of Climate, Water, and Weather Services (OCWWS) is making the experimental version of the NDFD available to customers to allow high volume users to get a feel for the specifics of the database location, format, geographic sectors, and weather forecast elements, and to solicit feedback from users on potential refinements to the NDFD, according to Esther Atkins, Chief, Integrated Operations Branch, OCWWS.

"We want to get feedback from our partners about the current experimental version of the database, and we also want to give them an opportunity to consider how they may use the data to develop new products from what will be a rich, consistent, and seamless source of NWS forecast information," said Mike Tomlinson, Chief, Operations and Requirements Division, OCWWS.

When the NDFD becomes operational (scheduled for September 30, 2003, for the continental United States; and three months later, for all remaining areas served by the NWS), partners and customers will have access to near-real time, coordinated forecasts in a gridded format.

Initially, the experimental database offers forecast products for two sectors of the country and the detail of these graphical forecasts covers parts of counties down to an area equal to about 3 square miles (a spatial resolution of 5 kilometers). Ten additional sectors of the U.S. will be phased in over the next 13 months, for a total of 12 sectors that will make up the complete database.

The experimental database now contains forecasts for the Mid-Atlantic and Central Plains sectors. The Mid-Atlantic sector includes the county warnings areas covered by six Weather Forecast Offices: Atlanta, GA; Greenville/Spartanburg, SC; Jackson, KY; Knoxville/Tri Cities, TN; Charleston, WV; and, Blacksburg, VA. The Central Plains sector includes the county warning areas covered by seven forecast offices: Kansas City, MO; Wichita, KS; Omaha, NE; Oklahoma City/Norman, OK; Springfield, MO; Topeka, KS; and Tulsa, OK.

More than 6,000 people attending the Fort Wayne, IN, Hamfest and Computer Expo learned more about NOAA and the NWS thanks to efforts of the Northern Indiana Weather Forecast Office (WFO).

WFO Northern Indiana staff, including two amateur radio operators, participated in the Hamfest November16-17, 2002. Warning Coordination Meteorologist Steve Eddy (call sign KC9BQD) and Lead Forecaster Patrick Murphy (call sign KB8QEV) were joined by Lead Forecaster Rodney Smith and Journeyman Forecaster Mike Skipper as the WFO shared exhibit space with Indiana/Michigan/Ohio Skywarn.

Murphy said the WFO staff educated visitors on various aspects of the NWS and answered many questions about the recent Veterans Day weekend tornado outbreak.

"We attend this event to educate people about the contributions our amateur radio Skywarn spotters make to the NWS," Murphy said. "The recent tornado outbreak was a good example we cited to emphasize how timely reports by Skywarn spotters help us focus our warning decision-making process."

Billed as the second largest hamfest in the nation, the two-day event at War Memorial Coliseum gave the NWS an opportunity to showcase NOAA Weather Radio, spotter and safety brochures, a tornado in a box, and educate attendees about amateur radio contributions to NWS severe weather coverage.

NWS staffers also helped lead a forum that featured an amateur radio communications exercise centered around a simulated weather event before more than 75 spectators. Staffers also provided information on the upcoming Skywarn Recognition Day (December 7, 2002) and the nationwide participation of ham radio operators and NWS offices in the event.

A recent forum sponsored by the Plain Language Action and Information Network (PLAIN) brought officials from many Federal agencies together in the Washington, D.C. area to discuss ongoing efforts to teach employees to communicate clearly. Among the speakers was Undersecretary of Education Gene Hickok. Read about PLAIN efforts in a GovExec.com article.

• Click here to see NEW APPOINTMENTS/TRANSFERS to NWS through November 30, 2002.

• Click here to see RETIREMENTS/DEPARTURES from NWS through November 30, 2002.