Acknowledging groups of staff and faculty by periods of service, the President went on to single out three longest-serving employees who have been with HSU since 1969: Nancy Kelly (Budget & Institutional Data, Academic Affairs), Catherine David (Library), and Lois Stevens (Library, not present).
Staff Recognition Awards, instituted some 20 years ago, honor meritorious staff members. Ten are selected each year from the many more who are nominated. Introducing this years recipients, President Richmond quoted excerpts from the written nominations submitted by colleagues.
The honorees:
- Angela Brown:bAdministrative Assistant, Data Analyst, GIS Technician – Institute for River Ecosystems. “She has performed way above and beyond the call of duty and her tireless efforts and sacrifices are the main reasons that the Institute for River Ecosystems and the Watershed Ecology Team are still afloat. The Institute has prospered due to the spirit of cooperation that Angie has nurtured among HSU administrators, staff, faculty and students.”
- Richard Bruce: Department Coordinator, Department of Psychology. “He is always efficient and accurate, even when working under time constraints. He shows initiative in developing time-saving procedures and demonstrates exceptional problem-solving skills. He uses his talent in organizing departmental gatherings for students, which assists in student retention efforts.”
- Donna Clark: Language Skills Specialist, Learning Center. “Her tireless work and dedication in working with English as a Second Language and Educational Opportunity Program students to strengthen their writing and reading comprehension skills have contributed greatly to the university’s retention of students. She developed a science study skills strategy manual for students majoring in the sciences and natural resources, which has proven to be an invaluable tool for students and faculty alike. She frequently attends after-hour events in support of students, a commitment which assists in student retention efforts.”
- Cathy David: Library Assistant. She is the hardest working, most productive employee her nominator has ever known. “Though often given challenging and time-consuming jobs, Cathy manages a smile to whoever gives her a task, rolls up her sleeves and plows through it. She takes the lead in coordinating large projects. Whenever something needs to be done, Cathy’s there.”
- Steve Gubanez: Facility Maintenance Mechanic: Housing. Nominated by a student who appreciates “Steve’s skill and ability to provide facility maintenance in the student housing areas while taking the students needs into consideration. He’s prompt in addressing situations needing his attention and a model of how we as students were so respectfully treated by him.”
- David Rowe: Trainer and Data Warehouse Project Manager, CMS. “During the struggles of using the newly implemented CMS finance system, David provided relief by offering end-user understanding, information, and tools to get the job done. David is an exceptional employee because of his work ethic, positive attitude, willingness to work with others, dedication, social and technical skills, innovative ideas, knowledge, and responsiveness to the needs of end-users.”
- Andrea Schwandt-Arbogast: Web Manager. “Andrea worked tirelessly with colleagues to completely overhaul and reinvent the HSU web site, resulting in one of the most visually stunning, efficient, and effective web sites of any university, which has greatly improved HSU’s image and presence and its ability to reach out to prospective students. A champion of web accessibility standards (ensuring web material is accessible to those with disabilities), Andrea is sharp, prepared, organized, courteous, extremely knowledgeable and always works hard with staff and faculty to resolve web-related issues.”
- Tracy Smith: EOP/Student Support Services Advisor. “Tracy sets the bar in providing service to our students and has the largest student caseload assignment in the EOP/SSS office. She meets continually with her students, provides immediate follow-up with students at risk, and is among the most active members of our staff in providing student programming and activities. Her commitment is exemplified in the number and quality of initiatives she has been involved with, each of which demonstrates a level of effort above and beyond her primary job responsibilities. They include instituting flexible curriculum in the Peer Mentoring Program, which has resulted in increased participation. She exemplifies the personal touch Humboldt is recognized for.”
- Sergio Torres: Custodian. “Sergio carries out his duties with diligent and truly caring attention to the needs of the employees in the areas of [his] responsibility. He exemplifies the dedication and professional excellence of HSU’s custodial staff. He does not hesitate to go the extra steps to ensure the cleanest, most comfortable work settings. Even with the stress of budget reductions, Sergio has remained positive, dedicated, and caring.”
- Phil Zastrow: ITEPP Student Services Coordinator. “Phils recruitment efforts have resulted in a 50% ITEPP student enrollment growth in 2006-07. He renewed efforts to connect ITEPP students with services and activities across the campus, sending ITEPP students a strong message of campus support that assists in campus retention of these students. Phil identified inadequate pre-college math preparation as a major obstacle to Indian student recruitment and retention and in spring 2006 he traveled to Hoopa two nights per week to teach math at College of the Redwoods Klamath-Trinity Branch to assist in preparation.”
President Richmond urged individuals who had nominated colleagues not included in the 10 to share their nominations with them personally. “It will mean a great deal to them even though they weren’t selected,” he said. “Also, if you took time to nominate a coworker, thank you for taking the time to do this. Being recognized by your colleagues is a very important way of saying ‘thank you’ to each other for the work that we do here.”
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Provost Rick Vrem welcomed and recognized new staff and faculty, including lecturers and part-time employees, who have joined HSU in the current academic year. “We’re especially fortunate at Humboldt to have a very dedicated and professional staff,” Vrem stated. “I’m also especially impressed with the quality of the new faculty and staff that weve hired over the past few years. You are the future of this University,” he declared, adding, “As I’ve said on more than one occasion, I believe HSU is in very good hands.”
In closing, President Richmond appealed for unity and cooperation to reach the difficult budget decisions that will have to be made in the next several months. He said that Spring Welcome, the start of a new year, is a fitting occasion to commit toward working together to make this an even stronger institution. He urged everyone to read the recent report of Dr. Manual Esteban posted on the President’s Office web site (http://www.humboldt.edu/~hsupres) and emphasized that “we have a collaborative and open budget process in place that will serve us well in making these decisions.”
In fact, he added, “This budget situation offers an important lesson for all of us. As we go through life, there will be many such challenges and those of us who can meet them head on and creatively turn them into opportunities for personal and institutional betterment will be the success stories of our future.”
The President also directed attention to the University’s latest achievements: climbing admission applications (up 15%, nearly twice the rate CSU-wide), growing average student loads (15.34 for freshmen), dramatic increases in alumni gifts, and the approaching completion of the new Behavioral and Social Sciences Building.
HSU’s highly popular Jazz Combo, directed by Dan Aldag, Assistant Professor of Music, entertained the audience with student musicians Matt Brogdon (alto sax), Sky Miller (tenor sax), Jeanette Kyle (baritone sax), John Ferreira (trumpet), Jaime Mitchell (trombone), Easton Stuard (piano), Michael Smith (bass), and Simon Lucas (drums). They drew spirited applause.