The newly renamed Walter O. Bachus Gold Medal was presented for the first time at the 2006 Joint Engineering Education and Training Conference & Expo in New Orleans.

Nomination Criteria: Outstanding leadership and accomplishments in support of the SAME mission over the awardee's entire period of membership in the SAME.

Nomination Process: Nominations for this award must be made by a Society member and endorsed by a Post President or member of the National Board of Direction, using the Society nomination form. The Post President or member of the National Board of Direction endorsing the nomination will verify that the individual meets the eligibility criteria for the award, and that the nomination package provides information to support each of the nomination criteria and all required information on the nominee. The nominator is responsible for ensuring the package, with endorsement, is received by SAME HQ on or before February 2.