Recognized Staff Archive
June 2012
Shana Codr, Administrative Assistant II, 4-H Youth Development
Administrative Assistant Shana Codr needs to be recognized for her accounting innovations. The loss of a full-time financial technician in our department left a void that has remained unfilled. Last year we did not collect all 4-H conference registration and workshop fees due simply because we did not have staff to perform this task. Shana said she was willing to work on the problem, and designed a system that eliminated most data entry, streamlined accounting practices, and reduced workloads for our office, administrative staff, accounts payable, and county Extension offices. There are no words to express how grateful we are for her hard work and cheerful demeanor during several stressful months in our office. —Claudine Zender, Extension Associate, 4-H Youth Development
Catherine Weitz, Application Administrator, ITS
Thank you to Catherine Weitz, who worked with the VandalWeb technical team to modify the View Document screen in the Finance tab to automatically flood in document text for the document approver. This change is a great improvement to the functionality of the Approve Documents list. I really appreciated Catherine's responsiveness to my request for the change and her ability to liaise with the technical team to make sure it got done. Thanks to the team that worked on this as well! You all helped make my job a little easier. :) —Cheyenne Smith-Sarkkinen, Administrative Assistant 3, Admissions
Key UI Participants—Facilities
Kudos to Ben Camp, Project Manager; Butch Fullerton, Construction Manager; and Phil Livelsberger and Meredyth Whiteman, Landscape Irrigation System Coordinators. “I have been meaning to send this email forever. I just wanted to say thank you for the beautification project on Perimeter Drive. I love the new lights (and took advantage of better visibility when the days were shorter), the trees, the path, everything. It looks amazing! Thank you for all the hard work to make that entrance/exit to campus look wonderful!” —Claudia Wohlfeil, Site Operations Coordinator, University of Idaho Bookstore
Kris Roby, College Advisor, College of Letters, Arts and Social Sciences
Kris not only helped guide me through some important decision making as a staff member who is also a student, she provided extra help when registration was tricky. I later discovered that she was cheerfully assisting me while on vacation. Thank you for your dedication! I so appreciate your expertise and commitment. —Dixie Kearney, Training Specialist, Professional Development and Learning
Tutoring and Academic Assistance Programs Staff
Suzi Billington as the Director of TAAP and the entire TAAP staff needs to be recognized for the outstanding work they do to provide access and success support for students at UI. At our recent spring in service session, the TAAP staff under the leadership of Suzi Billington, managed to update and improve the TAAP mission and vision statements. We were able to do this because of the amazing team we have in TAAP. This successful teamwork is what allows us to the best job possible. Thanks for being such wonderfu colleagues these past two years. —Sara Stout, Manager, Tutoring and College Success
Danial Bleile, Web Coordinator, UCM and Research
Danial, I just want to tell you thank you for everything you do! You constantly step up to help the rest of the team out, and neither the Web Communications team nor the University of Idaho staff would be complete without you. You've stepped up as the analytics guru, and most recently, go-to-person for the little development requests we don't want to admit we need help with. You're an awesome co-worker and person, and I can't thank you enough! —Johanna Blickenstaff, Web Coordinator, UCM and Enrollment Management
Heather Ropelato, Assistant Director of Admissions, Office of Admissions
Heather has taken me under her wing these past weeks and helped mentor me in my new position. I have benefited from her tutelage to say the least and it is very much appreciated. Thanks Heather! —Forrest Johnson, Assistant Director of Admissions, Office of Admissions
May 2012
Marty Lunt, Payroll Technician, Payroll & Benefit Services
Marty answered a concern regarding an adjustment that I made with a payroll form. She was extremely helpful and explained what I needed to do to correct the issue. She did not give me the run-around and I really appreciated her positive attitude! Marty you rock! —Karen Gillespie, Academic Advisor, College of Business and Economics
Todd Young, Web Specialist, CALS Educational Communication
Todd is beyond AWESOME!!! Not only did he create a system for me to track position authorization forms AND a system for departments to request EPAFs for centralization of EPAFs... he ALSO created a tracking system for requesting exceptions to IH searches!!!! Todd is my hero and makes my life easier!!!!! THANK YOU!!!!! —Charity Buchert, Personnel and Diversity Coordinator, CALS Administrative Services
Ray Pankopf, Director of A and E Service, Facilities
Topic is the new Donor Wall at the Administration Building lobby. Thank you for the time and talent you so generously invested in making the donor wall a reality. The events of last week were magical and they have set the stage for our future in important ways that I don’t think we will fully appreciate for some time. The confidence and pride that filled our faculty, staff and alumni was priceless. That confidence will pay dividends for many years to come. I want to tell you personally how grateful I am for your support and for all you for THE University of Idaho. —Christopher D. Murray, Vice President, University Advancement
Video Communication, ITS
Major KUDOS to Daryl Power & Dee Thompson! We had a mishap and a $10,000 piece of videoconferencing equipment fell off its perch and Daryl and Dee came to our rescue by getting us up and running again in time for our next class with CDA. Thank you both for your optimism, quick response, and in taking care of us. Thank you! —Debra Rumford, Desktop Publishing Specialist/Technical Support, Family and Consumer Sciences
April 2012
Ron Shaw, Web Coordinator, University Communications and Marketing
Ron saved the day for us twice this last week. Though he was busy, he made time to help us through some urgent and complex web issues and helped to make the online Banner training classes function correctly. Above and beyond! Thank you, Ron! —Dixie, Julie and Elissa, Professional Development and Learning
Building Services Staff at the Commons and TLC
A big thank you goes out to the Building Services team at the Commons and TLC. These staff members keep our buildings in great shape, even during periods of high traffic. On Vandal Fridays they went above and beyond their regularly exceptional work, helping direct lost parents and students, and helping them to feel welcome. Great job! —Glen Kauffman, IFA Coordinator, ASUI
Ted Unzicker, Scheduling Coordinator, Registrar's Office
I appreciate Ted being on top of things with fall registration going on, especially since he's new to the job. He was able to quickly approve COWS for me that allowed registration to continue smoothly. Thanks a bunch Ted! —Lucinda (Cindy) Blum, Office Specialist II, Movement Sciences
Kelly McGahan, Kibbie Dome Assistant Manager
I was responsible for setting up the Vandal Friday table for the Golf Course last Friday the 13th. My sister was in the hospital in Coeur d'Alene and I was traveling back and forth. Kelly found me a cart to unload and store my decorations on and then let me leave my table decorations in her office Thursday afternoon. My plan was to be back around 9:00 am to set up my table Friday morning. I left Thursday to go to the hospital, got home around 11 pm and was at the Kibbie Dome by 9 am Friday. I was tired and stressed. When I walked into Kelly's office to get the cart to take my decorations into the dome to set up my table, I was met by Kelly and she said "I had some free time so I set up your table for you." WOW!!! It was perfect. Nothing nicer could have been done for me. Thank you, thank you, thank you. —Kandy Nelson, Operation's Coordinator, Golf Course
Angie Sowers, Enrollment Specialist, Coeur d'Alene
A big thank you to Angie Sowers for going above and beyond our expectations here in Coeur d'Alene in ALL that she does. She's a welcome site for students walking through the door at the Harbor Center. She takes on any task with a smile and a positive attitude and is the first to volunteer for extra projects. I especially appreciate her assistance with recruitment, Commencement and the student Easter Egg hunt this spring! —Becky Byers, Coordinator of Recruiting and Advising, Coeur d'Alene
Jana Joyce, Program Specialist, Mathematics
Jana is currently assisting in CNR with research proposals and I have the privilege of working closely with her. She is juggling two departments and doing a FABULOUS job! I really appreciate her quick work and upbeat personality! —Sarah Martonick, Sponsored Programs Administrator, Office of Sponsored Programs
March 2012
Clarence Catt, Foreperson, Custodian, Idaho Commons and Student Union
The Payroll and Benefits Team would like to thank Clarence for all the extra attention to detail and great customer service that he and his team provided to us while preparing for and conducting the "Employee Health Fair" on March 28th. He was awesome to work with and is so appreciated by our department. Thank you Clarence, great job!!!!! —Susan Clark, Director, Payroll and Benefits
Lois Rasmussen, Administrative Assistant III, TRiO Projects
Representing our projects at Policy Seminar this week, juggling the needs of 6 projects within our department, and generally working so hard to make our jobs easier. —Ali Bretthauer, SVUB Project Specialist, College of Education - TRiO Projects
Kai Coldsnow & Shelby Owens—Sound, Production & Lighting
Deepest thanks and appreciation to Kai Coldsnow & Shelby Owens for providing sound services for the Women's Center's celebration of International Women's Day! You truly helped ensure that our event flowed smoothly and incident-free! —Lysa Salsbury, Program Coordinator, Women's Center
Doug Vandenboom, Buyer, Purchasing
Kudos to Doug Vandenboom for being consistently helpful, cheerful, and efficient. Doug has been invaluable in putting together many very detailed RFQ's for equipment for the classrooms. Thanks Doug! —Greg Clifford, Manager, ITS Classroom Technology Services
Angela Thornberry, Maintenance Craftsperson, Idaho Commons and Student Union
Angela, thank you for your hard work and dedication all the time, but especially with the additional work in the ASUI office as of late. —Denise Carl, Coordinator, Student Engagement, ASUI
Ryan Edinborough, HR Assistant, Human Resources
Thank you for all that you do to help our U of I New Employees get off to a good start! Your monthly visits to New Employee Welcome are appreciated! —Elissa Keim, Manager, Professional Development & Learning
Spring Leadership Dinner Facilitators
Greg Tatham, Ray Gasser, Amanda Mollet, Clint Payton, Heather Gasser, Jim Ekins, Bill Smith, Kelli Schrand, Kodjotse (Ro) Afatchao, Radhika Sehgal, Glen (denise) Kauffman, Jerry Galloway, Sharon Fritz, and Christina Kerns. Thank you for helping to make the spring leadership dinner with Vernon Wall a success by serving as a facilitator! —Denise Carl, Coordinator, Student Engagement, ASUI
February 2012
Shawn O Neal, Manager/Adviser, Student Media
KUDOS for your help with the Ron Paul event. —Brian Moyer, Event/Security Coordinator, Idaho Commons & Student Union
Cretia Bunney, Payroll Manager, Payroll and Benefit Services
Soooo grateful that Cretia is looking out to make sure people get paid when supervisors such as myself forget to approve time sheets! Thank you, Cretia! —Bill Smith, Director, Martin Institute/International Studies
Ann-Marie Bilderback, Sponsored Programs Administrator, Office of Sponsored Programs
Words cannot express how much I appreciate her help and advice on proposal submissions. She is always so kind and helpful - Thank You Ann-Marie! —Cody Williams, Grants and Contracts Compliance Specialist, CALS Administrative Services
Phillip Sertich, Building Maintenance Craftsperson, UI Coeur d' Alene
Philip is an asset to UI NI. This past winter I worked many late cold nights. He was very attentive: always checking in on me, walking me to my car or watching as I left the building—ensuring my safety at all times. He makes UI NI a great place to work. —Marcee Hartzell, Director, College of Education - TRIO
Krystal Flack, Administrative Assistant, Landscape Architecture
Krystal provides exceptional support across the college with unwavering energy and commitment. We are fortunate to have Krystal as a member of our community and recognize her outstanding performance, integrity, humanity, professionalism, and initiative. —Rula Awwad-Rafferty, Professor, Architecture and Interior Design
Kim Malm, Management Assistant, Auxiliary Services
My gratitude to Kim for her recent help getting a new caterer's paperwork completed and approved so quickly. Because of her quick responses, we were able to complete the process in time for a stakeholder to hold an important training in our facility. —Elaine Kempton, Administrative Assistant, College of Law - Boise
Krystal Flack, Administrative Assistant II, Landscape Architecture/College of Art & Architecture
Krystal is always professional in her work habits. She is very thoughtful and goes out of her way to respond to students and the rest of us! The College of Art & Architecture is very fortunate to have Krystal as one of our team members. —Ellen McKenzie, Management Assistant, College of Art & Architecture
Peter Haworth, Custodial Foreman, Facilities/Building Services
THANK YOU so much for quickly responding and dealing with a yucky situation in Admin. It is people like you that keep our buildings beautiful, and you are very much appreciated! —Elissa Keim, Manager, Professional Development & Learning
Mark Edwards, Assist. to the President for Diversity, Equity and Community & Associate Vice Provost for Student Affairs
Our first Lunches with Leaders was a success, thank you to Mark Edwards to sharing your story with students in such an authentic way. —Denise Carl, Coordinator, Student Engagement, ASUI
January 2012
Bruce Mann, Justin Brown, Butch Fealy & Robert Tyler
Thank you to Bruce Mann (ASUI Student Engagement), Justin Brown (Campus Dining), Butch Fealy (Student Recreation), and Robert Tyler (law student) for serving as moderators for College Bowl. From Black Eyed Peas lyrics to adenosine triphosphate, your time is appreciated in reading some very difficult questions. —Denise Carl, Coordinator, Student Engagement, ASUI
Marty Lunt, Payroll Technician, Payroll and Benefit Services
Marty Lunt has always been so pleasant and helpful in answering our department's payroll questions. She gets back to us quickly and goes above and beyond to research any issues that come up, answer our questions, and help our employees. Thank you, Marty! —Cheyenne Smith-Sarkkinen, Administrative Assistant III, Admissions
Landscape and Grounds, Facilities
Facilities Landscape crew—Thanks for a great job at snow and ice removal and keeping our UI campus safe! Coming in at 5 am isn't fun, but we appreciate it! —Cheri Cole, Administrative Assistant II, College of Graduate Studies
Kenneth McCurry, Dawn Sundman, and Kelly Cooley, Facilities
[Excerpted] I would like you to know how much I appreciate the work of you and so many of your employees, which supports our program and helps us provide a high quality setting for our early childhood program. I requested extra help in improving the appearance of our floors in the Child Development Laboratory. They were clean, but the fall semester activities with groups of young children had taken their toll on the shiny finish we enjoyed beginning the school year with. Although not in their schedule, Kenneth McCurry quickly responded, providing not only the care of the floors, but helpful explanations about the floor care routines the teams have determined to work best. When I thanked Kenneth afterward, he explained that Dawn Sundman and Kelly Cooley, in particular, were responsible for the additional wax and resulting beautiful shine now reflecting from our floors, which took the team several hours to complete. We are thankful for ALL you do for us and we do appreciate you every day, and I often tell many people how fortunate I am to work at the University of Idaho, and about how wonderful our facilities support is. —Suzanne Planck, Director of Child Development Lab, Family and Consumer Sciences
Kim Osborne, Grants & Contracts Specialist, College of Natural Resources
I would like to thank Kim for her extreme attention to detail, positive attitude and amazing ability to multi-task. She is an amazing asset to this University and deserves recognition. —Sarah Martonick, Sponsored Programs Administrator, Office of Sponsored Programs
Jamie Garlinghouse, Graduation & Commencement Services Specialist, Registrar's Office
For having a great attitude, being a pleasure to work with, and being so very competent with degree questions. —Katie Strittmatter, Assistant Director of Retention, CALS Academic Programs
Julie Clarkson, Administrative Services Manager, University Advancement
I would like to thank Julie for her dedication and commitment to the Advancement group. I appreciate her positive & professional attitude and always taking the time to help even when she's busy. —Irma Sixtos,
Administrative Assistant III, Advancement Services
Steve Merriam, Team Cleaning Lead, Student Recreation Center
A Safety Buck for Steve's 2011 efforts in doing weekly test/flushing of all 4 emergency eyewash units at SRC. More important than a dollar is knowing these units will do their job in the event of a chemical splash on skin/eyes. Thanks Steve! —Rob Miller, Industrial Hygiene Specialist, Environmental Health & Safety
December 2011
Marsha Benson, Telecommunications Supervisor, ITS Telephone Services
Marsha is so incredibly kind, helpful and willing to answer the silliest questions all the time. I appreciate the work that she does on this campus and it is always done with a smile. —Denise Carl, Coordinator, Student Engagement, ASUI
Guy Schmidtlein, Team Cleaning Specialist, Facilities
Guy truly takes pride in his work, and we appreciate it! He notices what needs to be cleaned, and makes sure it gets accomplished. We've rarely been cleaner. Guy is friendly and full of good humor; always greets us as he makes his rounds. Thanks, Guy! —Elaine, Molly and Becky Queener, Steiner and Schoenberg—the office girls in Mechanical Engineering
Linda Sheperd, Technical Records Specialist II, ITS - Records Management
I want to send a HUGE thanks to Linda Shepard for all her help with the many files we've had in records over the years. She is an absolute UI gem and is always a joy to work with! Thanks Linda...you're the best! —Donna Crenshaw, Office Manager, Career Center
Rachel Halsey, Assistant Director of College Recruiting, CALS
On behalf of the Staff Affairs Committee—Kudos and a BIG THANK YOU to Rachel Halsey (Chair) for all her outstanding work and leadership she has done for Staff Affairs and she will be missed greatly. —Amber Crowley, Web Coordinator, College of Business & Economics and College of Education
Glenda Bull, Telecommunications Coordinator, ITS-Telephone Services
Thanks to Glenda who successfully led the troubleshoot efforts in fixing the phone lines in CALS. Glenda is gracious, professional and great at her job. Thanks! —Kathy DeVoe, Admin, CALS
Bruce Pancheri (Plumbing Shop Foreman) & Elmer Johnson (Plumber/Water Systems)
Once again I want to thank you all for taking such excellent care of our Swim Center. Your diligent work and attention to the detail of our water quality has had a positive impact. Along with the human effort the recent upgrades has produced one of the finest aquatic facilities in the nation. All the best and THANK YOU! Your efforts are appreciated! —Dan Lawson, Aquatics Director, USS/Swim Center
November 2011
Althea Flegel, Program Coordinator, Idaho EPSCoR
Congratulations on leading organization of the 22nd National EPSCoR Conference and for the recognition you received from the National Science Foundation and the EPSCoR Community. Your hard work and dedication left an outstanding impression for Idaho. —Rick Schumaker, Project Administrator, Idaho EPSCoR
Melissa Husebye, Administrative Assistant, Finance and Administration
Melissa’s cheerful attitude and positive approaches has made the Risk unit’s staffing transition a good experience for those in our unit and the community we assist. Thank you, Melissa. You’re the best! —Carry Salonen, Risk Specialist, Risk Management
Judy Colbeck, Benefits Specialist, Payroll and Benefits Services
I would like to thank Judy for her quick response to an issue I experienced with AvantServe. She solved the problem in a few hours and was very pleasant. —Sarah Martonick, Sponsored Programs Administrator, Office of Sponsored Programs
Fall Leadership Conference
I would like to extend a thank you to the following folks: Barry Bilderback, Charity Buchert, Alton Campbell, Mychal Coleman, Trevor Fulton, Jami Hinshaw, Sasha Johnson, Christina Kerns, Kelli Laxson, Bruce Mann, Cori Planagan, Beth Riggin, Leslie Rist, Mike Simpson, James Wagner and Jordyn Wright for presenting at this year’s Fall Leadership Conference on Saturday, October 15. The conference wouldn’t have been a success without you! —Denise Carl, Coordinator, ASUI Student Engagment and Leadership Programs
Marketing and Communications
A special "Thank you" to Marketing and Communications for paying for the cost of color printing of the "What is Staff Affairs?" brochure given out at the Staff Appreciation Fair. —Debra Rumford, Desktop Publishing Specialist/Technical Support, School of Family and Consumer Sciences
Joe Pallen, Photo Specialist II, Photographic Services
Kudo's to Joe Pallen, recently won an award for his photos for the University. See more in the next Staff Affairs newsletter. —Chris Cooney, Sr. Director of Marketing and Communications
October 2011
Shelby Silflow, Assistant Manager, John Bales, Director - Bookstore
Thank you Shelby, John and the rest of the VandalStore team for your amazing work on the “Throw the Vandal V” event! Your efforts, commitment, and team spirit give true meaning to VANDAL PRIDE! Thank you!! —Chris Cooney, Sr. Director of Marketing and Communications
Tim Roberts, Colin Hines, John Ackers, Campus Security - Emergency Services
A huge thank you to the members of the Allied Barton security team who provided an escort and traffic control for the "Take Back The Night" march. You did a fantastic job! Thank you! —Lysa Salsbury, Program Coordinator, UI Women's Center
Russell Walgamott, Violence Prevention Programs (B.E.A.R. coordinator)
A special shout-out and heartfelt thank you to Russell Walgamott for your tremendous efforts and hard work in helping to plan and publicize this year's "Take Back The Night." It was a great event, thanks in large part to your important contributions. —Lysa Salsbury, Program Coordinator, UI Women's Center
Shawn O'Neal, The Argonanut Staff
We wanted to thank Shawn and the staff at the Argonaut for their generous donation for the Take Back the Night Ad. We had an amazing turn out to stand up against violence on our campus! We appreciate all you do. —Violence Prevention Program/ Valerie Russo UI Women's Center/Lysa Salsbury
September 2011
Campus Mail Services Team
Kudos to the mail team! This was quite a job—over 24,000 pieces, 2 pieces per envelope that had to be hand stuffed… and all the large mailing envelopes came with the flap partially glued shut on them, so they had to be unstuck by hand, then resealed once they had the information in it. All on about a 2 week deadline. —Charles Zillinger, Director - Landscape & Exterior Services, Facilities
Staff Affairs Committee Personnel
On behalf of myself that was the best Staff Appreciation lunch I ever had. Bravo Zulu folks. —Joe Groves, Inventory Specialist, Asset Accounting
Lisa Marquez, Payroll Accountant, Payroll and Benefit Services
Lisa always always goes over and above for those of us in need. Payroll is vital to each of us and it helps to have a dept full of such helpful, polite, knowledgeable staff! —Theresa Albright, Financial Assistant, Kimberly Research & Extension Center
Heather Taff, Accountant, General Accounting
A great big Thank You to Heather Taff for all of the extra time and effort she has given in the last few months. Regarless of how busy she is, she is always willing to go above and beyond to help in anyway she can. Thanks Heather!!!!!!! —Vicki Cooper, Sr. Accountant, Controller
Michelle Wheeler, Administrative Assistant II, Research and Economic Development
Thank you to Michelle Wheeler for her outstanding work in organizing the Staff Appreciation Fair! —Shishona Turner, Administrative Assistant II, College of Agricultural and Life Sciences
Jim Logan, Communications Specialist, Registrar's Office
Thank you to Jim Logan for his outstanding work in organizing the Staff Appreciation Fair! —Shishona Turner, Administrative Assistant II, College of Agricultural and Life Sciences
Linda Shepard, Technical Records Specialist 2, ITS-Records Management
Thank you for always being so helpful and pleasant. We apprciate you! From the staff at Purchasing. —Cynthia Adams, Administrative Assistant II, Purchasing Services
Larry Chin, Principal Architect, Facilities
Kudos of appreciation to Larry Chinn and his team for the early opening of the loading/parking lot adjacent to the library during the installation project of the chilled water lines. Thanks so much! —Carol Mayer, Library Assistant 3, Library
Peg Hamlett, Fitness Manager, Campus Recreation
Special Kudos to Peg Hamlett! You truly went the extra mile to rearrange a schedule and find the additional resources needed to accommodate my request. I did not anticipate the request being fulfilled this semester, much less in a few days. Wow! Thanks so much! —Jeanie Levinski, Financial Aid Advisor, Student Financial Aid Office