(From left: Sandra Bailey, Maria Lynn Kessler, David Culler, Abbie Allen)
Oregon Institute of Technology honored its own on September 18th during the annual convocation of faculty and staff prior to the start of the 2014-15 academic year. Employees were recognized for outstanding service to students and to the university and awardees received checks for $1,000 each.
Oregon Tech’s Student Affairs Department awarded the Most Valuable Partner Award to recognize exceptional collaboration with the Student Affairs staff. This year, the award was given to Mike Schell, Director of Athletics, for his assistance to the department. Schell was recognized for his willingness to provide guidance to student athletes in how to effectively navigate through college, and his great working relationship with the Admissions staff.
The Oregon Tech Foundation also awarded the Faculty Achievement Awards to faculty members who have demonstrated outstanding achievement in the classroom, outside the classroom, or through inspiring students to reach beyond their potential. The Foundation recognized Dr. Maria Lynn Kessler from the College of Health, Arts, and Sciences and Dr. David Culler from the College of Engineering, Technology, and Management. Dr. Kessler was acknowledged for providing opportunities to her students to gain more knowledge of their field of study through participation in meetings, networking with local professionals, and bringing in guest speakers. Dr. Culler is heavily involved with recruiting international students from Spain and Mexico, and has significantly grown Project Lead the Way, a pre-college academic enrichment program, as Affiliate Director.
Additionally, the Foundation presented two Alumni Engagement Awards, presented annually to faculty/staff who demonstrate enthusiasm, commitment, creativity, and cooperation in their efforts to engage alumni with their department, the alumni relations office, and the university as a whole. The first award was presented to Abbie Allen, Oregon Tech -Wilsonville Student Services Specialist. Ms. Allen helps ensure that alumni members are connected with Oregon Tech and recently began a speaker series on the Wilsonville Campus called College to Career, which brought in a number of alumni speakers. The second award was presented to Dr. Maria Lynn Kessler for her commitment to her program’s alumni and devotion to her current students, which helped Oregon Tech launch Applied Behavior Analysis graduate classes in Wilsonville.
Cher Brence, an Analyst Programmer in the ITS department, received the Classified Staff Award. Ms. Brence is instrumental in keeping the Banner data tracking system and many campus offices running smoothly. She plays a key role in helping many departments advance technologically as our student population and business process needs change.
Sandra Bailey, Director of Assessment, was presented the President’s Staff Award. This award is given to an individual whose achievements extend to the university as a whole, who puts the well-being of the university above personal needs, and who makes Oregon Tech a better place to work. Ms. Bailey co-chairs the General Education Review Task Force and has been crucial towards Oregon Tech for her skill with keeping the university accredited and ensuring that the university is recognized for excellence nationwide.
