Laura Callahan
Encyclopedia
Laura Callahan was the former senior director at the United States
Department of Homeland Security
who resigned after an investigation revealed that she had obtained academic degree
s from a diploma mill
. Callahan had also served as Deputy Chief Information Officer
(CIO) of the US Department of Labor
and was previously a senior information technology
(IT) manager at the White House
. Through her work in the latter position, Callahan had been involved but not responsible for computer problems that caused thousands of email
messages to escape the reach of a congressional subpoena
.
irregularities of the 1996 presidential campaign
, investigators discovered that thousands of subpoenaed federal email messages were missing due to an unspecified computer error. In March 2000, Callahan was called to testify before Congress regarding her role as White House IT manager during the Clinton administration. Three Northrop Grumman
contract workers responsible for operating the system testified that Callahan and another federal employee ordered the problem to be kept so secret that it was referred to only as “Project X”.
The final Report of the independent counsel to the Court, filed May 18, 2001, stated, ”The allegations that witnesses were threatened to prevent disclosure to this or other investigations were unsubstantiated.”
IT budget. She was subsequently elected President of the Association for Federal Information Resources Management (AFFIRM), a professional organization representing federal information technology managers.
According to Department of Labor
employees later interviewed by the media, Callahan had become increasingly difficult and hostile to work for. A 2001 report issued by Assistant Inspector General John J. Getek cited "allegations of waste, mismanagement, fraud and abuse" against Callahan's office and faulted her management practices for fostering “low morale” among her staff of 125. Notwithstanding this, Callahan was promoted twice by the agency, and in March 2003, she was named to the position of Deputy CIO of the Department of Homeland Security.
In 2003 Callahan was reported to have obtained qualifications on her government resume from Hamilton University
, a diploma mill
in Wyoming. She said that she was fooled into believing the institution was accredited. Callahan was placed on paid administrative leave in June 2003, and continued to draw a six-figure DHS salary until her resignation on March 26, 2004. She was never charged with a crime.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Department of Homeland Security
United States Department of Homeland Security
The United States Department of Homeland Security is a cabinet department of the United States federal government, created in response to the September 11 attacks, and with the primary responsibilities of protecting the territory of the United States and protectorates from and responding to...
who resigned after an investigation revealed that she had obtained academic degree
Academic degree
An academic degree is a position and title within a college or university that is usually awarded in recognition of the recipient having either satisfactorily completed a prescribed course of study or having conducted a scholarly endeavour deemed worthy of his or her admission to the degree...
s from a diploma mill
Diploma mill
A diploma mill is an organization that awards academic degrees and diplomas with substandard or no academic study and without recognition by official educational accrediting bodies. The purchaser can then claim to hold an academic degree, and the organization is motivated by making a profit...
. Callahan had also served as Deputy Chief Information Officer
Chief information officer
Chief information officer , or information technology director, is a job title commonly given to the most senior executive in an enterprise responsible for the information technology and computer systems that support enterprise goals...
(CIO) of the US Department of Labor
United States Department of Labor
The United States Department of Labor is a Cabinet department of the United States government responsible for occupational safety, wage and hour standards, unemployment insurance benefits, re-employment services, and some economic statistics. Many U.S. states also have such departments. The...
and was previously a senior information technology
Information technology
Information technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications...
(IT) manager at the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
. Through her work in the latter position, Callahan had been involved but not responsible for computer problems that caused thousands of email
Email
Electronic mail, commonly known as email or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the Internet or other computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be online at the...
messages to escape the reach of a congressional subpoena
Subpoena
A subpoena is a writ by a government agency, most often a court, that has authority to compel testimony by a witness or production of evidence under a penalty for failure. There are two common types of subpoena:...
.
Email Investigation
During an examination of campaign financeCampaign finance
Campaign finance refers to all funds that are raised and spent in order to promote candidates, parties or policies in some sort of electoral contest. In modern democracies such funds are not necessarily devoted to election campaigns. Issue campaigns in referendums, party activities and party...
irregularities of the 1996 presidential campaign
United States presidential election, 1996
The United States presidential election of 1996 was a contest between the Democratic national ticket of President Bill Clinton of Arkansas and Vice President Al Gore of Tennessee and the Republican national ticket of former Senator Bob Dole of Kansas for President and former Housing Secretary Jack...
, investigators discovered that thousands of subpoenaed federal email messages were missing due to an unspecified computer error. In March 2000, Callahan was called to testify before Congress regarding her role as White House IT manager during the Clinton administration. Three Northrop Grumman
Northrop Grumman
Northrop Grumman Corporation is an American global aerospace and defense technology company formed by the 1994 purchase of Grumman by Northrop. The company was the fourth-largest defense contractor in the world as of 2010, and the largest builder of naval vessels. Northrop Grumman employs over...
contract workers responsible for operating the system testified that Callahan and another federal employee ordered the problem to be kept so secret that it was referred to only as “Project X”.
The final Report of the independent counsel to the Court, filed May 18, 2001, stated, ”The allegations that witnesses were threatened to prevent disclosure to this or other investigations were unsubstantiated.”
Department of Labor and Department of Homeland Security
Callahan left the White House in 1999 as the “Project X” investigation was developing, and was appointed Deputy CIO of the US Department of Labor, where she was responsible for overseeing the Department's $420mMillion
One million or one thousand thousand, is the natural number following 999,999 and preceding 1,000,001. The word is derived from the early Italian millione , from mille, "thousand", plus the augmentative suffix -one.In scientific notation, it is written as or just 106...
IT budget. She was subsequently elected President of the Association for Federal Information Resources Management (AFFIRM), a professional organization representing federal information technology managers.
According to Department of Labor
United States Department of Labor
The United States Department of Labor is a Cabinet department of the United States government responsible for occupational safety, wage and hour standards, unemployment insurance benefits, re-employment services, and some economic statistics. Many U.S. states also have such departments. The...
employees later interviewed by the media, Callahan had become increasingly difficult and hostile to work for. A 2001 report issued by Assistant Inspector General John J. Getek cited "allegations of waste, mismanagement, fraud and abuse" against Callahan's office and faulted her management practices for fostering “low morale” among her staff of 125. Notwithstanding this, Callahan was promoted twice by the agency, and in March 2003, she was named to the position of Deputy CIO of the Department of Homeland Security.
In 2003 Callahan was reported to have obtained qualifications on her government resume from Hamilton University
Hamilton University
Hamilton University was an unaccredited institution based in Evanston, Wyoming, USA. According to the Oregon Office of Degree Authorization, it was first established in Hawaii as American State University...
, a diploma mill
Diploma mill
A diploma mill is an organization that awards academic degrees and diplomas with substandard or no academic study and without recognition by official educational accrediting bodies. The purchaser can then claim to hold an academic degree, and the organization is motivated by making a profit...
in Wyoming. She said that she was fooled into believing the institution was accredited. Callahan was placed on paid administrative leave in June 2003, and continued to draw a six-figure DHS salary until her resignation on March 26, 2004. She was never charged with a crime.
External links
- Profile and interview of Callahan while Deputy CIO at the Department of Labor – Government Computer News