University of Tennessee PTAC’s Debbie Barber Elected Vice President of National Association

Barber to oversee all association educational offerings

(For Immediate Release): The Association of Procurement Technical Assistance Centers (APTAC) is pleased to announce that Debbie Barber, of the University of Tennessee Procurement Technical Assistance Center, has been elected Vice President of the Association, with responsibility for the association’s continuing education and certification programs, including two national training conferences each year. She was first appointed to the position to fill a vacancy in 2017, having previously served as chair of APTAC’s Education Committee. She will serve as Vice President until March of 2020. APTAC’s Board and Committees are comprised entirely of volunteers who represent member PTACs.

Barber has been devoted to helping small businesses for over twenty years. She spent nine years as procurement specialist with, and then Program Manager of, the Greater Columbus (OH) Chamber of Commerce PTAC. She then served as director of certification for the Women’s Business Enterprise Council – Southeast (WBEC-SE) before moving to Tennessee to join the University of Tennessee PTAC in 2007, where she is currently a PTAC Consultant. She has also worked for the WBEC-South in Tennessee and been an active member of Women for Economic Leadership and Development (WELD) and with local chapters of the National Contract Management Association (NCMA) in both Ohio and Tennessee. She has a BS in Business and a Master of Strategic Leadership in addition to APTAC’s Certified Contracting Assistance Specialist and Certified Procurement Professional (CPP) Certifications.

APTAC is the professional organization of and for the 94 Procurement Technical Assistance Centers (PTACs) sponsored by the Defense Department’s Defense Logistics Agency and local host organizations. PTACs, located across the United States, including Alaska, Hawaii and the District of Columbia as well as the territories of Puerto Rico and Guam, help local businesses become capable government contractors. PTACs support a broad base of small business suppliers providing the highest quality and best value to government agencies and creating a strong and vibrant economic base for our communities. They assist small businesses by offering training events, bid-matching services, one-on-one sessions with procurement counselors, notification of important contracting changes, help with understanding government contracting procedures and requirements, guidance in registering with the federal government, and much more. They assist government agencies by locating and educating contractors and potential contractors who can provide the products and services they need.

APTAC supports the PTACs by providing them critical updates on the ever-changing procurement processes across all federal agencies; comprehensive training opportunities and certification to ensure that PTAC staff can bring the highest level of capability to their work; networking forums so that PTAC professionals across the country can share best practices and draw upon their collective expertise; and a national presence to collaborate with federal agencies on small business contracting initiatives and otherwise provide a voice in national government contracting assistance and policy arenas. The work of APTAC is carried out by a cadre of dedicated volunteers, all of whom are procurement professionals from member PTACs, and supported by a small administrative staff.

 


 

 For help with Government Contracting: contact your nearest Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC). Funded through Cooperative Agreements between the U.S. Department of Defense and state and local governments/institutions, PTACs provide free and low-cost assistance in virtually all areas of government contracting.