Name: Alissa Ramirez
Core Values: Collaboration
Reason: A new student was scheduled on my calendar for a counseling appointment accidently, he thought he was being scheduled with someone from GED. I immediately called the GED department in hopes to connect him right away without him having to wait longer to speak with the correct RCC program and Alissa answered my call. She understood the need to connect with him right away and reached out to him within five minutes of our conversation. This immediate response to the student’s needs during the appointment time he had scheduled was needed to keep him in the system and not force him to jump through hoops. She heard my concerns and jumped right in to assist.
Name: Roz Mendoza
Core Values: Collaboration
Reason: Roz consistently and proactively communicates across multiple departments as she assists students with schedule adjustments, ensuring that each student’s best interests are reviewed in regard to financial aid ramifications and that student accounts are correct after changes are made. The learning curve with J1 resulted in a notable increase in this work during fall term. Roz asks good and important questions and I appreciate her diligence, attention to detail, kind words and good humor every time I interact with her. Thank you, Roz!
Name: Nicole Sakraida
Core Values: Integrity; Diversity, Equity and Inclusion; Sustainability
Reason: Nicole supported me with a difficult situation in my department with a student’s financial aid file. Nicole was generous with her time to learn about financial aid regulations and was able to de-escalate the situation with the student. I appreciate how she managed the conflict with respect for both the student and the staff involved.
Name: Frankie Everett
Core Values: Integrity; Collaboration; Diversity, Equity and Inclusion; Sustainability; Courage
Reason: I appreciate Frankie in the financial aid office. She leads by example and leads her team towards success with clarity and has a positive energy. During the changes with the new FAFSA and learning J1 Frankie has supported her staff with grace and confidence. Frankie recognizes our unique strengths and helps us feel valued and understood. Frankie’s ability to resolve difficult issues has proven invaluable during all the changes we have had lately. Without Frankie’s leadership style, our team would not be as strong as it is now.
Name: Sara Bristol, Leslie Cox and Vicki McCrary
Core Values: Integrity; Collaboration; Diversity, Equity and Inclusion; Sustainability; Courage
Reason: Sara, Leslie and Vicki, thank you for stepping up at the last minute and ensuring every necessary step was completed to get the SENSE survey up and running. Your dedication and teamwork made all the difference! Because of your hard work and thoughtful recommendations, we achieved a 15% response rate—the highest we’ve seen in years. This remarkable result is a testament to your professionalism, adaptability and commitment to excellence. Your efforts have a meaningful impact, and I am so grateful for everything you do to make projects like this a success. Thank you for going above and beyond!
Name: Liz Butler
Core Values: Integrity; Collaboration; Diversity, Equity and Inclusion; Sustainability; Courage
Reason: Liz is an amazing colleague who is always attentive and quick to respond to my questions, helping me move forward with my projects and ideas. She is willing to create and test new ideas that make things easier for faculty, staff and students, even when it means extra work for her. If something doesn’t work out as planned, Liz never gets upset or critical. She stays open to new ideas and focuses on finding better solutions. Such as, always ensuring that accessibility is taken into account for all ideas/documents created. Ever since the first day I met Liz, she has been friendly, welcoming and supportive, making me feel included and valued every time we work together. Liz is someone I can depend on, a great resource and I’m so grateful to have her as a colleague. She truly deserves recognition for her work throughout the institution!
Name: Bea Frederickson
Core Values: Collaboration
Reason: Bea has done an outstanding job supporting her colleagues in learning a new system, even as she was still mastering it herself. Her patience and willingness to share created a supportive environment that helped others feel confident and capable in using the new Travel & Professional Growth Program (TPGP). By sharing her knowledge as she learned, she demonstrated exceptional teamwork and a commitment to ensuring the success of the entire team.
Name: Sheri Bransfield, Shannon Wade and Debra Watson
Core Values: Collaboration
Reason: Sheri, Shannon and Debra collaborated with Jodie Fulton and Tammy Canady to develop a process for One Card statement reconciliation. The goal was to minimize post-purchase requisition entry and provide a mechanism to account for all One Card activity when the statement comes. We looked at how staff could streamline the allocation, eliminating the need to itemize entries to minimize data entry for staff and eliminate the need to “receive” purchases by shipping and receiving that were not actually shipped to the College. They are helping to provide drop-in sessions for staff and continuing to update help guides and processes as we seek to be more sustainable.
Name: Marty Christensen
Core Values: Collaboration
Reason: Marty consistently goes above and beyond with our sim lab. He is always willing to collaborate and makes himself as available as possible to us. His knowledge and assistance is invaluable to our nursing department. Marty — we love you!
Reason: The nursing program has been working very hard to get our simulation program up and running. It has been an IT nightmare. This week we have Laerdal trainers here to train faculty how to use the manikins to the highest level possible. From the start, to prepare for the training sessions faculty had to prepare multiple updates to manikins, laptops and sim pads all of which Marty and other IT personnel helped us. Today Laerdal trainers arrived and the manikins did not play nicely—Marty put himself “on call” for the Laerdal trainer and the Laerdal IT support person. Marty saved our bacon and he did it with grace and a true sense of collaboration. With his help, we will be able to improve our students’ success and improve outcomes. Thank you Marty.