Please see the current site for material released since that date. Contact us with any questions about finding information. The White House and the Small Business Administration have recognized the State Department for supporting small, disadvantaged and women-owned businesses through its purchases of goods and services. The most recent recognition, the Dietra Ford Award, was presented to Under Secretary for Management Bonnie Cohen at the White House on behalf of the Department for supporting women-owned businesses. The award honors the former director of the General Services Administration's Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization.
State is the first recipient of the award.
Earlier, the Department received two awards from the Small Business Administration. The Frances Perkins Vanguard Award, named for the former secretary of Labor, singles out the federal agency that has demonstrated the greatest commitment in awarding contracts to small, women-owned businesses. State was the only agency to be so recognized. The Federal Gold Star Award recognizes the performance of the staff of the Department's Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization in the Bureau of Administration for their role in achieving contract award goals. Other agencies receiving the award included the Departments of Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.