2014 Service and Recognition Awards celebrate faculty and staff achievements

By Joel Delgado ’12, MS ’17

The 2014 Service and Recognition Awards Ceremony, an annual event which brings the university community together to celebrate the service, efforts and accomplishments of faculty and staff members, took place on Nov. 14 in the Graham Center Ballrooms.

“You are our bricks and mortar, creating the structure that has allowed us to build a world-class university that every year gives back more and more to the community,” President Mark B. Rosenberg told the room full of faculty and staff. “Your passion, drive, and commitment will be the major force as we move forward and continue to turn the impossible into the inevitable.”

Faculty and staff marking service milestones of 5 years, 10 years, 15 years, 20 years, 25 years, 30 years and 35 years were recognized and honored for their contributions to university life, as were members of the university community who retired during the previous calendar year.

President Rosenberg specially recognized two FIU employees – School of Journalism & Mass Communication Dean Emeritus and Professor Lillian Lodge Kopenhaver and Department of Earth and Environment Professor Florentine Maurasse – for reaching the 40-year service milestone.

“Dr. Kopenhaver and Dr. Maurrasse have dedicated their lives to FIU,” Rosenberg said. “They have participated in our students’ greatest achievements – in and outside of the classroom.”

For 2014, the Division of Human Resources received 282 nominations across all the university’s recognition awards, which include the following: FIU Torch Award, FIU Knowledge Award, FIU Opportunity Award, FIU Community, FIU Sustainability Award, President’s Access & Equity Award and Presidential Excellence Award.

President Rosenberg (second from left) stands with the winners of the FIU Presidential Excellence Award: Jeremiah K. Hower (far left), Elizabeth C. Ferris (second from right) and Leanne M. Wells (far right) from the Algebra On-Line Math Pilot.

Here is the list of the winners of the 2014 Service and Recognition Awards:

FIU Torch Award: Presented to an eligible employee who exemplifies FIU’s institutional values of truth, freedom, respect, responsibility and excellence by exhibiting the highest standards of character and ethical behavior. Winner: Felicia D. Vines Townsend

FIU Knowledge Award: Presented to a full-time staff employee, or group of full-time staff employees, who served as a role model for the pursuit, generation, dissemination and application of knowledge through professional development, mentorship and/or peer development. Winner: Mariela I. Delgado

FIU Opportunity Award: Presented to an administrative employee or group of administrative employees who promoted FIU’s vision of being a leading urban public research university by contributing outstanding service with a focus on student learning, innovation and collaboration. Winners: Carlos A. Becerra and Dorret Sawyers

FIU Community Award: Presented to eligible faculty, administrative, full-time staff or group of employees who supported the university’s mission by promoting high quality teaching, state-of-the-art research and creative activity, or collaborative engagement with out local and global communities during the past year. Winner: Center for Leadership & Service (Student Affairs) – Beverly Dalrymple; Joanna Garcia; Katyuska Hernandez; Patricia T. Lopez Guerrero; Sabrena A. O’Keefe; Nashira A. Williams

FIU Sustainability Award: Presented to an eligible employee who promoted FIU’s respect for the environment by providing knowledge, education and modeling ways to achieve climate preservation as well as capitalize on the economic opportunities of the solutions developed. Winner: Evelyn E. Gaiser

President’s Access & Equity Award: Presented to a full-time employee who demonstrated efforts exceeding his or her mandated job responsibilities to support the goals and objectives of diversity and inclusion. Winner: Elizabeth D. Kramer

FIU Presidential Excellence Award: Presented to a full-time employee, or group of employees, who supported institutional, strategic and operational excellence.

1st Finalist: Angela M. Laird

2^nd Finalist: Aquarius Reef Base Crew – Thor Dunmire (Posthumous); James W. Fourqurean; Rogelio Garcia; Mark W. Hulsbeck; Thomas A. Potts; Otto C. Rutten; Aileen Soto; Special Thanks to: Hank Stark

3^rd Finalist: eMerge Americas Team – JoAnn C. Adkins; Ayleen Barbel Fattal; Amy J. Ellis; Maria K. Lovett; Eduardo Merille; Kristina Mur; Oscar E. Negret; Robyn H. Nissim; Ana C. Ortega; Evelyn S. Perez; Dania Rivero; Aileen Sola Torres; Juan A. Turro; Ayxa A. Vecino

4^th Finalist: Enrollment Cancellation Cross-Functional Team – Paule L. Champagne; Ledys Diaz; Marina Gitelman; Andrea D. Jay; Natassia Martinez; Srilakshmi R. Medam; Ida I. Pabon; Jessy L. Palma; Lan Quach; Daniel A. Ramirez; Luis J. Rodriguez; Francisco A. Valines; Carlos E. Varona

And the 2014 winner of the FIU President Excellence Award: Algebra On-Line Math Pilot – Elizabeth C. Ferris; Jeremiah K. Hower; Suzanna M. Rose; Leanne M. Wells