Tobyhanna Army Depot recognized two employees for their work during the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2026, the depot announced Monday, Nov. 9.

Public Affairs Assistant Kelsey James won the Junior Category Employee of the Quarter award. Associate Counsel Jamie Schelling took the Senior Category honor, according to a depot release.

James cuts media monitoring from an hour to minutes

James is one of the newest members of the depot's Public Affairs Office, where her duties include multimedia journalism, project management and community outreach. Her quarter included coordinating a visit from Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Materiel Readiness Patrick Kelleher, handling itineraries, depot tours and logistics.

She also introduced artificial intelligence-assisted workflows for daily media and reputation monitoring. The change cut what had been an hour-long daily task to minutes, according to the depot, reclaiming dozens of hours of staff productivity.

James overhauled preparations for the Assumption of Responsibility ceremony for Sgt. Maj. Cory Alkire, eliminating redundant steps and creating reusable event templates.

"I am very honored to have this award, but I couldn't have done it without my team," James said. "The people here are so supportive and helpful, it makes it easy to succeed and to do my job to the best of my ability."

Public Affairs Officer Danielle Weinschenk praised James in the depot's release, calling her "an indispensable asset" whose "transparent communication, and dedication to continuous improvement make her most deserving of recognition."

Schelling handles investigations, FOIA and acting chief counsel role

Schelling's nomination form listed three internal formal investigations, two informal investigations, two Inspector General inquiries, eight complex Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) reviews and dozens of administrative actions with zero backlog during the quarter. She also delivered operational briefings to new employees in the Directorate of Installation Services.

On top of that caseload, Schelling served as Acting Chief Counsel for four weeks across June, July and August while her supervisor, Chief Counsel Brandon Gatto, was absent.

Gatto wrote her nomination.

"Jamie embodies the core Army value of selfless service," Gatto said in the nomination. "She voluntarily absorbs high-stakes responsibilities on leadership's behalf while maintaining total dedication to her core depot duties."

Schelling also volunteered to work with the depot's Privacy Act Officer to identify redundant forms and with the Human Capital Division to eliminate unnecessary legal reviews for routine reassignments. She analyzed the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure statutory framework during strategic deliberations and served as counsel for two Equal Employment Opportunity complaints.

Associate Counsel Dave Tomaszewski, who works alongside Schelling in the Legal Office, said her "advice to our command is thorough and timely."