Panther of the Week: Tech. Sgt. Kali Gradishar

Tech. Sgt. Kali Gradishar, 460th Space Wing Public Affairs NCO in charge, is this week’s Panther of the Week. The Panther of the Week program recognizes Airmen and civilian professionals for outstanding contributions to mission and team success. As spotlight performers, individuals are chosen by base leaders for demonstrating the Air Force's core values of integrity first, service before self and excellence in all we do. (Courtesy photo)

Published May 9, 2016
460th Space Wing Public Affairs

BUCKLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. -- Name: Tech. Sgt. Kali Gradishar, 460th Space Wing Public Affairs NCO in charge

Length of Service: Nearly 10 years

Hometown: Pueblo, Colorado

Hobbies: Hiking, DIY/home-improvement projects, yoga, camping, snowboarding and skiing

Unique Fact: She has served in as many countries in the Air Force as she has years in the service.

Goal: To always find ways to learn something new, to become better tomorrow than today and to never shy away from experiences and opportunities.

Panther at a Glance: Tech. Sgt. Kali Gradishar is the NCO in charge for the 460th Space Wing Public Affairs Office, where she manages the budget and training, as well as supervises and mentors 12 enlisted Airmen. She is also the additional-duty First Sergeant for the 460th Wing Staff Agency. In these roles she gets the opportunity to help others and watch people grow, which is her favorite part of the job. She hopes to do her job well enough to have a positive influence on the way others view their mission and their role in the Air Force.
From March 2015 to May 2016, Gradishar acted as a valued member of the 460th Space Wing Inspector General team. There she was the Management Internal Control Tool and Self-Assessment Program manager for the 460th Space Wing. She oversaw and guided training for 34 units and 84 members in the development and sustainment of their own self-assessment programs, as well as provided guidance and assistance across the wing with the use of MICT. She led regular working groups with unit representatives, which provided the latest guidance, tips for unit SAP improvement and opportunities to share concerns or successes from which others could learn. In addition to her two programs, she also aided 27 inspections, identified more than 600 expired corrective actions and 659 non-compliance items, tracked nearly 1,000 self-assessment checklists and uncovered more than 125 undetected deficiencies.

She also focused significant effort on improving the IG office, to include areas outside of her specific responsibilities. Specifically, she facilitated the re-write of outdated Commander's Inspection Program Business Rules, rewrote MICT Business Rules and wrote the guidance outlining IG processes and requirements for all types of inspections: vertical, horizontal, mission assurance, spot and SAP validation. Gradishar's efforts led to the Wing's "EFFECTIVE" rating given by the Air Force Space Command Inspector General during the 2016 Unit Effectiveness Inspection Capstone that took place in April. For her hard work and continued professionalism in preparation for and during the UEI, she was recognized as a "top performer" and received an Air Force Space Commands Professional Performance Award.

We are pleased to share that Gradishar has also recently been selected to attend the very competitive and coveted Officer Training School at Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama.

- Auburn Davis, Chief, Public Affairs, 460th Space Wing