Awards
Penn State Intercom......August 9, 2001

Student Affairs
employees honored

Several Student Affairs employees were recently honored for their exemplary service to students and the University.

William Asbury, vice president for student affairs, presented the awards at the annual Student Affairs Staff Development and Recognition program held at the HUB-Robeson Center on the University Park campus.

* Vice President's Award for Quality Improvement is presented to an individual or team that demonstrates a commitment and dedication to the philosophy, practice and application of continuous quality improvement principles. The recipient is the Sorority Housing CQI Team, a cross-unit team whose members included Marce Pancio, Kelly Manion and Kim Schindler from Residence Life; Stephen Rupprecht from Greek Life; Kathy Krinks and Colleen Kosko from the Assignment Office; Dan Nugent from the CQI Office; Michelle Dzyak from the Paterno Library; and students Cassandra Logan, Emily Saylor and Laura Steehler. The team's charge was to examine and make recommendations for improvement of the sorority assignment process in the residence halls.

* Vice President's Award for Above and Beyond Service is presented to Student Affairs employees for superior performance in completing special projects and/or for going above and beyond in the performance of their job responsibilities. Recipients are Julie Arnold, Rose Ennis and Angela Stuck from the Office of Judicial Affairs at University Park for their positive interactions with students and parents.

* Vice President's Award for Outstanding Service to Students is presented to Student Affairs employees who demonstrate exemplary service to students. Recipients are Kathy Hillegass from the Center for Adult Learner Services at University Park for her work with the adult learners at Penn State and Jack Rayman from Career Services at University Park for his leadership of Career Services and his vision and pursuit of the new Career Services building at Penn State.

* Service to the Campuses Award is presented to Student Affairs employees at University Park for commitment and dedication to students and staff at the Commonwealth campuses/colleges. The recipient is Sandy Edwards from the Office of Unions and Student Activities at University Park for the support and direction she provides to Commonwealth Campus Student Government and the student activities staff at the campuses/colleges.

* John W. Beatty Outstanding Chief Student Affairs Officer Award is presented to a chief Student Affairs officer at a campus/college location who demonstrates exemplary leadership, dedication and commitment to students over a period of years. The recipient is David Shields of Penn State Altoona.

* Campus Program Award is presented to Student Affairs employees for the exemplary coordination of an outstanding campus/college program. Two programs received the award this year:

-- "These Hands Weren't Made for Hurting" by Kate Stahl Kinsinger and Gina Baird of Penn State Altoona. This program helped to raise awareness regarding relationship violence and promoting a positive message of care and concern for one another.

-- "Cultural Exchange Luncheon Series" by Sean Kelly of Penn State DuBois. This program was developed to celebrate the cultures that make up the DuBois campus community as well as to educate the students, faculty and staff.

* Campus Achievement Award is presented to Student Affairs employees for exceptional service to the campuses/colleges over a period of years, including a commitment to students and distinguished involvement in system-wide activities. This year's recipient is Jose Rodriquez from Penn State Abington for membership on various committees involving support and assistance for students and for the open door policy he exhibits.

College honors 2 for
teaching, advising excellence

H. Joseph Sommer III and John Moore are the recipients of outstanding faculty awards from the Schreyer Honors College.

Sommer, recipient of the Schreyer Honors College Excellence in Advising Award, has served as an honors adviser for 20 years. He is a professor of mechanical engineering and professor in-charge of graduate programs for mechanical and nuclear engineering. An instructor at the University since 1980, Sommer has received many honors and awards.

Moore, recipient of the Schreyer Honors College Excellence in Teaching Award, is an associate professor of English and University marshal-in-charge of the Schreyer Honors College medals ceremony. Moore has taught a variety of honors courses over the years. He has received many honors and awards.

Governor honors center
for watershed work

The Penn State Center for Watershed Stewardship received an award recently from Gov. Tom Ridge for work it did with a Berks County conservancy on the stream that provides Reading's drinking water.

The center also is involved in an award-winning project on Kettle Creek in Potter and Clinton counties.

Ridge announced the initial 25 winners of the first-ever Governor's Award for Watershed Stewardship. The center won its award for assessment and planning for the Maiden Creek Keystone Project, a joint venture with the Berks County Conservancy.

An interdisciplinary unit in the College of Agricultural Sciences and the College of Arts and Architecture, the center was established four years ago by a $1.78 million grant from the Howard Heinz Endowment.

The project was carried out by a team of five graduate students from the School of Forest Resources and the Department of Landscape Architecture, and by three faculty on special Heinz Faculty Fellow appointments to assist the work. They were Kenneth R. Tamminga, associate professor of landscape architecture; William E. Sharpe, professor of forest hydrology; and Barry Evans, senior research assistant.

Maiden Creek watershed covers 216 square miles in Berks and Lehigh counties. With forested headwaters on Blue Mountain, farmland in the lower reaches and Reading's reservoir near the mouth, Maiden Creek has been polluted by runoff from development and agriculture. The center took less than a year to prepare a plan to reduce the pollution and protect the stream. The Berks County Conservancy estimates that the in-kind value of the Keystone Project on Maiden Creek, based on student and faculty time totaling more than 5,000 hours, is $87,000.

The Kettle Creek Watershed Association earned an award for its work on the stream in northcentral Pennsylvania, accomplished with multiple partners including the center and National Trout Unlimited.

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