Randolph-Macon College issued the following announcement on Oct. 19
On Tuesday, October 19, Randolph-Macon College honored 12 staff members for their outstanding contributions during the College’s semi-annual Yellow Jacket Awards Ceremony in Birdsong Hall.
President Lindgren expressed gratitude for the sustained creativity and resilience displayed by R-MC’s faculty and staff, noting the unusual challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic over the past 20 months.
“Our loyal staff members work hard every day, often beyond normal work hours, and always with a gigantic sense of pride in what they do," President Lindgren said. "All of your work enables us to provide the very best liberal arts education that can be found anywhere for our R-MC students.”
Yellow Jacket Awards were given to a dozen staff members who were identified and nominated by their peers as exceptional employees. Each award recipient received a certificate and a cash award.
Remarks for each employee, shared by President Lindgren, are excerpted below.
The 2021 Yellow Jacket Awards
The Excellence as a Team Member award is given to an employee who exhibits outstanding teamwork and cooperation, both in their own department and with others. Two staff members were presented Excellence as a Team Member awards.
Alison Crehore
Administrative Assistant to the HAC
"Alison is integral to the successful transition of our freshman class each fall, working tirelessly during the summer to ensure students complete required forms and processes. She answers new family and student questions, directing them to campus resources, while helping to manage the logistics of our New Student Orientation program, during which Alison can be seen everywhere, ensuring a smooth and enjoyable experience for our new students.
The first person that visitors see in the HAC, Alison is characterized for her outstanding customer service skills, a can-do attitude, and her consummate empathy towards everyone."
Sarah Doggett
Administrative Assistant to Financial Aid
"During a time of great transition in the Financial Aid office and while the College navigated COVID-19, Sarah has been open, responsive, and willing to adapt to change all while providing her steadfast support. She organized and transitioned both current and historical student files into Docuware, which greatly contributed to an earlier release of aid packages for returning students.
Sarah’s historical expertise at the College has been invaluable as her new colleagues learn about R-MC. Her great sense of humor, her ability to engage individuals, and the compassion that she shows everyone are all deeply appreciated."
The Excellence Behind the Scenes award is given to a staff member who provides excellent service behind the scenes, showing initiative and drive, and making Randolph-Macon a better place for work and study. Four staff members were presented this award.
Lisa Gresham
Housekeeper
"Lisa consistently works extremely hard and takes a great deal of pride in keeping the Brock Recreation Center clean. Dedicated and loyal, she often works seven days a week while school is in session to make sure the building is ready for events on the weekends.
Lisa is very dependable, and she has a great relationship with both employees and students. Her passion for helping to create a better, healthier Randolph-Macon shows every day at the Brock Center. Quite simply, Lisa Gresham is an inspiration."
William Perkins
Housekeeper
"William came to Randolph-Macon a little more than 10 years ago as a special hire to work at Andrews Hall. Described as a very hard worker, William has made sure that Andrews Hall has been well-maintained ever since. If you don’t recognize William when you visit Andrews, just listen for his infectious laugh.
William has done fine work while students are on campus, but is also well-known for his summer work. He takes a lot of pride in his building when there are non-R-MC students here as well, working with the Japanese and Latin Academies, the various athletic camps, and the Reunion Weekends."
Matt Anderson
Associate Registrar of Academic Services
"While others in the Registrar’s Office may engage more frequently with faculty and staff members, Matt’s work is integral to supporting the student experience. Matt plays a significant, behind-the-scenes role in our admissions process as he provides transfer credit evaluations for all students who have been admitted to R-MC.
He collaborates with department chairs to review transcripts and evaluate credits for every admitted transfer student, including those directly from high school, who may have considerable dual-enrollment credit. His important work helps these prospective students make informed decisions about attending R-MC."
Brent Hoard
Director of Web Services
"Brent is the most tenured member of the Marketing and Communications team, and has approached this new chapter with gusto, bringing both tremendous experience and demonstrating extraordinary passion for his work. Brent is known for often working late into the evening, designing new sections for the website like the new COVID-19 protocols chart and dashboard, and the positive changes we’ve seen recently on the homepage.
He also is a good steward of the College’s resources, frequently volunteering to build technology solutions that others might deem to purchase. He brings thoughtful, measured analysis to every problem and champions data-driven decision-making."
The Excellence in Service award is given to an employee who provides excellent service to students, staff, faculty, parents, alumni, or visitors. Three staff members received this award.
Patrick Collie
Lead Grounds Worker
"Patrick willingly took on additional responsibilities as interim lead groundskeeper while a colleague was on extended leave. He did a superb job working to keep the campus in excellent condition, helping to manage the duties of other staff, and going the extra mile to make sure we present the very best first impression to R-MC visitors. As a result of his good work, Patrick was promoted to lead groundskeeper, and he leads the grounds team with a great understanding of plant care.
His attention to detail—from mulching to cleaning sidewalks to keeping up the general appearance of the College—is remarkable."
Laura Ruxton ’14
Assistant Director of Annual Giving
"Laura was recruited back to the College not long after her graduation in a split role, assisting the President’s Office and helping to run the summer Convergence program, where high schoolers learn about the intersection of science and faith.
More recently, Laura joined the Annual Giving staff in the Development Office. She focuses on younger donors, but truth be known, she is highly engaged in most projects and campaigns for the critical R-MC Annual Fund. Laura helps raise significant unrestricted funds for the College and has also been key to maintaining our high levels of alumni donor participation."
Kate MacDonald
Director of Disability Support Services
"Kate consistently demonstrates a drive to strengthen the support offered to R-MC students with disabilities—who currently represent 16 percent of our student population—as well as the faculty members working with these students.
Such support requires extensive review of documentation and careful assessment of appropriate accommodations. Kate dedicates significant time to student meetings and parent phone calls alike, handling these often-delicate situations with enormous professionalism and compassion. Much of Kate’s student support is confidential by nature; thus, she and her critical work rarely receive public recognition."
The Excellence as a Manager award is given to a mid-level manager who provides excellence in personnel and department leadership to include employee development, innovative ideas, time management, or use of College resources. Three staff members received this award.
Sara Weinstein
Director of Residence Life & Housing
"As you can imagine, parents and students have many opinions about housing. Sara hears them all. She is a tireless advocate for her staff, her partners in Housekeeping and Physical Plant, and students—and she works hard to eliminate barriers to everyone’s success.
Sara’s work is grounded in best practices and an understanding of how co-curricular and residential experiences promote student development, an understanding essential to helping us achieve our mission of developing the mind and character of our students. Our important Residential Life program and our entire campus are better off because of Sara’s gracious demeanor and her dedication to developing partnerships across the College."
Beth King
Executive Director of Campus Relations & Summer Programs
"Beth works tirelessly each day to plan and execute events that represent the College well, touching all areas of campus life—from student-centered events like Commencement to summer camps to campus-wide lecture series, and everything in between.
No matter the size of the event or the audience with whom she works, she manages the logistics smoothly and with great attention to detail. Regardless of last-minute changes, weather concerns, or multiple urgent requests, Beth manages our events and summer camps seamlessly and with a calm and reassuring demeanor."
Rebecca Bowles
Operations/Course Materials Manager
"After the campus store closed to in-person customers in March 2020, Rebecca did an extraordinary job establishing guidelines for the ultimate reopening, including a redesign of store layout, effective signage, protective barriers, and social distancing indicators.
She was also instrumental in working with our faculty to convert textbook sales to an online purchasing model, and she organized the store’s curbside pickup for textbooks and other items ordered. Rebecca is also known for tackling potential problems with careful foresight, wisdom, and an uncanny ability to remain calm and focused on the issues at hand."
Original source can be found here.
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