The Center for Homeland Defense and Security is thrilled to announce that Heather Hollingsworth, Director of Communications, has won the California Women in Homeland Security’s Athena Award. This award is a national recognition for women who have made a lasting impact within homeland security through leadership, innovation, mentorship, and service.
Hollingsworth is a superpower within CHDS and has been with the Center for more than 20 years. She joined the Center at its inception directly following 9/11, leading its Operations Team. She understood early on that strong, lasting relationships with sponsors, alumni, partners, and stakeholders would be critical to our national mission. She made that vision a reality and created the Strategic Communications office.
While her role at the helm of the StratComm office is a highly public one, the “Heather magic” takes place quietly, behind the scenes. She leads by example, guiding her team, her peers, and her network with a rare, collaborative instinct that has strengthened the Center throughout the years, resulting in numerous successful initiatives.
She plays a critical role in the recruitment of students, as well as keeping our alumni engaged through the development of Watermark, our bi-annual magazine that highlights alumni and stakeholders’ achievements within the homeland security enterprise. She hosted Viewpoints, a show featuring interviews with the nation’s homeland security leaders who share their insights on current issues and challenges facing the country. She launched ProPages, an online platform to showcase the Center’s staff, faculty, and alumni, who represent a broad spectrum of the homeland security enterprise. She is the driving force behind the annual APEX conference, a place where alumni discuss homeland security issues as well as expand their professional network. Hollingsworth’s contributions in promoting the partnership between CHDS and the Department of Defense’s Domestic Preparedness Support Initiative (DPSI) have also been instrumental. She’s a vital connector, a trusted agent, a reliable partner, and, of course, a force multiplier.
Please join us in congratulating Heather on receiving the Athena Award—a well-deserved honor for a career defined by her vision, collaborative approach, and effective leadership style that brings the best of the best together to fulfill our Center’s ultimate mission: to safeguard our nation.
