Atkins Award Nominees

Every time I have the opportunity to work with Chris Cook I know I will be greeted with a smile. Chris always goes above and beyond to solve problems and works tirelessly to make sure that everything is taken care of.

Chris is not only invested in making sure the UMW campus is cared for, but he also spends time investing in people.

Heather is a remarkable leader and an example to emulate in this community. She serves as both the events and office manager for our department. As demanding as her roles are, she still finds time to assist with other responsibilities in our department. Even with the sacrifices that she must make in order to effectively complete all of these tasks, I admire not only how Heather asks others if they need assistance, but also how she juggles all of these responsibilities with grace and kindness.

This past weekend, we had many families scheduled for tours and visits since it was the first Open House of the season. The cancellation took many of our guests by surprise and a few called requesting to be accommodated the Friday (the day before Open House) for a tour. Heather worked with the available staff that afternoon and helped a family, who would’ve made a trip to our region in vain, manage to get a tour and see the campus on the only weekend the student had available to view schools. It’s this kind of care, positive attitude and hard work that distinguishes her amongst our staff. I should add, the behind the scenes of her personal life was rather hectic that week. All of this took place the same week her son had a seizure and was hospitalized. Though her son is recovering well, Heather had every reason to “miss the ball” and she didn’t. Her resilience is outstanding. She truly is an unsung hero who goes above and beyond to welcome our future Eagles. And all of this, done with the warmest smile. It is an honor to have her as a co-worker and to nominate her for this award.

Anna Hollrah has been a dedicated member of the classified staff in the Office of Academic Services since 2018. In her role as Program Support Technician, she manages the Academic Services front window and is often the point of contact for students, faculty, staff, and parents when questions and concerns arise. Anna handles her job with ease and unfailingly demonstrates superb customer service, even in the face of frustration and adversity from disgruntled clients. This is extremely valuable for me and my staff as Anna is often able to respond to and adequately address issues before they rise to the next level.  She is calm, empathetic, and solution-driven in her work and remains one of our best sources of information for students, faculty, and the university community.

Over the past two years, Anna has taken on new roles that expand the ways she supports our students and the university.  She now serves as a program lead on the EAB Navigate leadership team and is regularly the point-person to support faculty and staff users who need support with the tool. In addition, she is a member of the university-wide Coordinated Care team and supports the well-being of our students in collaboration with colleagues from across campus. In this role, Anna frequently collaborates with faculty and staff to gather important information on academic concerns related to specific students in order to provide a holistic approach to support.  In addition, Anna now supports the Honor Council including the planning and facilitation of Honor Convocation in August, another responsibility Anna recently took on with ease.

Anna is an incredible member of our team in the Office of Academic Services and contributes daily to the success of the university. This also includes regular support to the various offices in Lee Hall when coverage is needed in order to maintain seamless support for our students and the university community.  Her top-notch customer service skills, ability to address and solve issues, and general team-player attitude truly make her one of our unsung heroes. Anna is very deserving of this recognition as we could not do our work without her and her impact, through quiet and often behind the scenes, makes a difference for our university community each and every day.

I am pleased to nominate Kelly Eury for the Larry R. Atkins Award. I have known Kelly for over a decade now, and she has consistently been an inspiring and diligent presence here at UMW. I first met Kelly as a 2012 graduate, and I know that I echo the sentiments of many others when I say that her presence made an overwhelmingly positive impact on my time here at UMW. As a young professional who was still learning the ropes back then, I would have been lost without her professional example and warm smile guiding me through many processes. Kelly can attest to the fact that I asked her how to do a simple mail merge at least 5 times (and would likely STILL need to ask her for a brush up), and she always answered my help request with patience. This is just one small example of Kelly’s character as a colleague and team player.

Kelly inspires confidence with her can-do attitude and her willingness to help. If Kelly does not know the answer to a question right away, she is not afraid to do the research. As a worker, she is efficient, thoughtful, and detail oriented. She genuinely cares about the quality of the work she produces and takes pride in doing a good job. Kelly’s bright outlook and compassionate demeanor make everyone around her feel comfortable. Even with us working in two different departments, I know that I can still come to her and ask for help, and she will manage to find the time while still balancing her daily work tasks. She can always be counted on to provide a word of encouragement and pleasant demeanor to anyone she encounters, whether it be a prospective student trying to find their way, a person making a delivery, a coworker stopping to say hello, or even the president of the university. Her work throughout the years in Marketing, Admissions, and the Office of the President have been instrumental to the success of this institution. Her true impact cannot be measured with mere words. I can think of no one more deserving of recognition than Kelly.

I am writing this letter to nominate my colleague Sarah Moran for the USC’s Larry Atkins Award and to express my wholehearted support and admiration for a truly exceptional member of my team at the Center for International Education (CIE).  Over the course of her time at UMW, I have had the privilege of witnessing firsthand her unwavering commitment to her role(s) within CIE, her colleagues, and the overall success of our Center.

Sarah consistently goes above and beyond the call of duty in each and every task she undertakes. Her dedication to excellence is evident in the exceptional quality of her work whether is reconciling financial reports—always in compliance—, working in the eVA space, assisting faculty with the creation of a program, assisting them and their students while traveling overseas, meeting with students in her office, responding to a parent or mentoring peer advisors. Regardless of the challenges or obstacles that may arise, and believe me, we have many at CIE, an office that has been understaffed for 3 years now, Sarah approaches each assignment with enthusiasm and determination, always striving for the best possible outcome. It is truly inspiring to see someone who not only meets expectations but consistently exceeds them. It really brightens my day when she is in the office as she works remotely 2-days a week.

One of Sarah’s most remarkable qualities is her ability to do so with a smile on her face and plenty of passion for her job. Her positive attitude and infectious enthusiasm are a source of motivation for her teammates. I think that many across campus can agree with me: faculty, office of finance, student accounts, financial aid, alumni development, not to mention the many outside study abroad partners CIE works with on a daily basis.  Also, it is worth mentioning that in the face of deadlines, pressure, or complex projects, Sarah remains a beacon of positivity and optimism which easily spreads among the team. Her cheerful demeanor not only brightens the CIE workplace but also helps create a more collaborative and supportive environment for each and every one of our constituents: faculty, staff, students, parents, and partners.

Moreover, Sarah sets an exemplary standard for professionalism and teamwork. She is always ready and willing to lend a helping hand to her colleagues, offering support and guidance when needed. Her willingness to find solutions, share knowledge, and assist others contributes significantly to our team’s cohesion and success. Sarah embodies the spirit of collaboration and sets a positive example for all to follow.

In conclusion, Sarah is a tremendous asset to CIE and to the University of Mary Washington and her dedication, positivity, and commitment to teamwork are qualities that we should all strive to emulate. I wholeheartedly endorse Sarah for the USC’s Larry Atkins Award and believe that her contributions will continue to play a vital role in our continued growth and success at CIE.

Please do not hesitate to reach out if you require any additional information or would like to discuss further.

Thank you for your attention to this matter, and I look forward to witnessing Sarah’s continued achievements and contributions to our team, to the University, and to the field of international education.

Nomination 1:

I am nominating Kasey Morello because she seems like a perfect fit for the Atkins Award. She truly goes above and beyond with each and every task, and always has a smile on her face. She just completed her first full year here at UMW, and it was a very busy year. Kasey was eager to take on every challenge, and always very helpful, supportive, and dedicated to getting the job done. This August during Welcome Week, we were asked to plan two days of service, one on Monday Aug 21st for the Honors Program for 150 students, and one on Aug 22 for the NEST pre-arrival program (New Experiences for Students Transitioning) for 110 students. This required weeks of advance planning, relationship building with community partners, and purchasing of supplies for service projects. Kasey did an excellent job keeping track of multiple complicated tasks and staying on top of all deadlines and activities. Another example comes from our Alternative Service Break project, which is run out of the Center for Community Engagement. During her first year here, I asked if she would be interested in helping support the program. She dove right in and began managing the program, including the student meetings, the fund raising, the budget management, and recruiting volunteers. She has gone above and beyond her job description with this program, and has done it with a positive outlook and a can-do attitude, and is always helpful and supportive of others. I have many other examples of the ways in which Kasey is a problem solver, a helper, and a wonderful manager of a variety of complex programs for both the Center for Community Engagement and the Honors Program. She is truly deserving of this award, going above and beyond the call of duty with a smile, and is a positive example for other UMW employees.

Nomination 2

I write to nominate Kasey Morello for the Larry Atkins Award.  She meets the attributes of those previously nominated for this award including the name sake of the award.  Kasey is the Honors Program Coordinator and the Office Manager for the Center for Community Engagement.  This position involves balancing demands and provides support for two offices central to the core mission of UMW.  Kasey expertly completes the expectations of the positions but also brings energy, new ideas, and creativity to the two offices/programs she serves.  We are incredible fortunate to have her as a staff and team member.

Kasey is dedicated and hardworking.  She is extremely organized and efficiently navigates the demands of both offices while following the constraints and regulations from the Commonwealth (particularly in the area of purchasing and procurement).

More importantly Kasey has brought fresh ideas, creativity and energy to our program.  Recently she spearheaded the effort to add a day of service to the City as Text early arrival component.  Not only did these service projects help our local community it exposed the incoming new Honors scholars to the Center for Community Engagement on campus and potential future partners for their Honors Service earning course. This is just one example of how she goes above and beyond the call of duty to offer support and programming for our students.

Kasey’s attention to detail is instrumental as she must maintain the academic records and progress of our students in completing the Honors Program requirements.  Many of these requirements must be tracked in-house as they are not tied to an academic course and cannot be programmed in other systems such as Banner.  As the number of Honors Scholars entering and retaining in the program continues to rise, this workload is increasing.  Kasey accurately ensures that our students are on track to earn University Honors and she also professionally communicates with our scholars if they are missing anything or need assistance navigating the program requirements.  In addition, Kasey tries to know and remember the Scholars’ preferred names and pronouns to be inclusive in interactions with these students.  This is a feat with almost 400 students in the program.  This shows her dedication to the UMW students and her passion for her job.

I highly recommend Kasey for the Larry Atkins Award.  She is an unsung hero that without her support and behind the scenes work the Honors Program would not be the same without her.

As the chair of the department of Psychological Science, I would be lost without Rosemarie. She is constantly reaching out to check in with what I need. She reminds me of deadlines and works collaboratively on tasks. She is an absolute godsend when it comes to scheduling. She magically finds a way to accommodate everyone’s needs and fits them in the rooms where they need to go. This is often a huge balancing act as we need to negotiate 12 faculty schedules.

She is a kind supervisor of our student aids and helps our social media student aid to find and promote all of the great things our department does.

She is an absolute wiz when it comes to purchasing, keeping track of the budget and helping faculty with travel reimbursements. She has a fantastic can-do attitude when organizing travel and helping faculty do their requests for overnight travel and get reimbursed. She has recently had to go above and beyond the call of duty with reimbursing students for late season travel – including making special trips to the bank to make sure everyone got reimbursed when they needed to.

Rosemarie has a can do attitude about anything. Whether it is investigating the source of the mysterious beeping noises, getting a work order done to have art work hung, or creating and putting fliers all around Mercer to advertise events, she takes on tasks and gets them done!

Rosemarie brings her smiling face to work and shows a real interest in the life and well being of the members of the faculty. She makes our department feel like home.

Nomination 1 – David Fleming

Nomination 2 – Raymond Tuttle
Nomination 3 – Laura Gilchrist-March

Nomination 2
John is tireless in his support of UMW’s residential students and of the staff members that he directly and indirectly supervises. Residence Life literally could not do it without him; many of the services and programs that it offers were at least partly created by John, and he has been instrumental in their implementation.John has never sought out recognition and praise for the work he does; he simply does it, with loyalty to this institution and to those whom he serves, particularly the residential students and student staff. Working with him on student conduct and mental health issues, I am constantly aware of his compassion and his professionalism. At all times of the year, John works an inconceivable number of hours each week, but especially in August as UMW gears up to welcome new and returning students to the residence halls.When I think about everything that he does, I am exhausted, but he never shows that exhaustion. Instead, he is a faithful, friendly, and caring resource (and educator) for our residential students, Residence Life staff, and anyone who needs or has questions about anything that is housing-related. I have no idea how he does it, and even less of an idea on how he does it without ever losing his patience or his mind. When I think of professionalism and service here at UMW, it is John Hughey who comes to mind first.

Nomination 3
John Hughey is an incredible person and it truly shines in his work here at UMW. No matter what is going on John is the first to offer to help. We were short staffed last year and John was more than willing to assist me, their supervisee, with the weight of supervising, training, and assisting our student staff. You never see John without a smile and he is never NOT willing to help. When he sees our load becoming too much he is quick to swoop in and help. He doesn’t even need to ask because he knows us so well, he knows when things may be getting too much. Everyone on this campus knows John, and not only knows him, but usually has his personal number and they are seeking him out for assistance, even when it may not fall under his role anymore. I think that truly shows the dedication that John has not only for our department, but for the success of the university as a whole. He supports our students and is always happy to be the person to check in with students and have a hand in their support. He is just all around an amazing human being and an amazing supervisor. I feel lucky to have him on our team and I don’t think he gets even an ounce of the recognition he deserves. He continues to be an excellent supervisor and I am glad to call him friend too. I know that no matter what happens, John will always be willing to make sure that I am successful and that out department is successful, even if that means more work or time for him. He is more than deserving of this award

Allison Smith is a wage employee and has been a member of the Academic Services team since February 2022, supporting our front window operation. Allison is incredibly hard worker and maintains a problem-solving approach in her work. Given that Allison supports our front office operation, including in-person, phone, and email inquiries, it requires to her maintain exceptional customer service and problem-solving skills. Frequently, she is able to address concerns that are presented to our office in a way that does not require them to escalate to higher levels.  Further, she is always ready to pitch in and help our advisors and colleagues with various tasks and projects.

Allison takes initiative and has stepped up to support our office in new ways over the past year. Specifically, she has taken the lead on our support services data management and regularly leverages EAB Navigate Analytics to evaluate and assess the impact of our peer-led support programs.  This is something we were not able to do in the past and Allison took ownership of this process for us.  In addition, she represents our office at programs, meetings, and other university-wide initiatives which not only enhances our presence across campus, but also gives her a broader knowledge-base for her work.  She is incredibly hard-working, professional, and willing to step up.  We are lucky to have her on our team and at UMW as she is truly an unsung hero of the wage staff and someone who is deserving of this recognition