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Shirley Nelson - CALWORKS
What can I say about Shirley Nelson? She works only three days a week in
CalWORKs but the dedication she has makes it seem like she works 5 days.
Shirley is always willing to go the extra mile. I witnessed Shirley help
out a student who was confused and upset and she demonstrated extreme
patience. We were about to close down for lunch and a student walked in
with several questions and seemed frustrated. Shirley listened to the
student, let her say what she had to say and assisted her with answers
so that she calmed down. It was after 12:00 p.m., and she could have
told the student to come back later, but she was more concerned about
helping the student then going to lunch on time. Shirley has such a
warm and caring heart for our students that she deserves to be
recognized!
Who
will be next?
November
Acts of
Excellence
Marta Munoz - CALWORKS
What can I say about Marta Munoz! When we found out we
faced a 41% budget cut, she was one of the first staff who asked what
can I do to help? She is always willing to give an extra hand and goes
out of her way to help the students we serve. On November 24th
we were told by Student Activities that they had one more food gift
basket to give to a needy student. In a matter of minutes Marta
identified who could use it. In her usual caring manner, she had heard
a student’s plea for help and acted immediately. I remember seeing the
student leaving Student Activities with the food gift basket in her
arms, and tears in her eyes. Marta helped make this student in need have
a wonderful Thanksgiving! What can I say Marta is one person who truly
cares! Her dedication is exemplary and deserves to be commended.
Robert Miller – Faculty, Arts
I’d like to nominate Robert
Miller, our ceramics instructor for the “Caught in the Act”. On Friday,
November 20th, he organized a glass fusing workshop and invited faculty,
staff and students. I can not tell you how much fun it was. The
workshop was from 1:00 to 4:00pm but he allowed us to stay until 5:00pm,
because everyone was so excited with the work they were creating.
And... HE provided all the materials! It was wonderful to over hear
the students talking with pride about the Christmas presents they were
making for their family and friends and in these tough times, it was so
refreshing to see faculty, staff and students all working around the
table, helping each other out and getting inspired by one another.
Truly an awesome experience! Thank-you Robert!
October
Acts of
Excellence
Frank Tran – Staff, Maintenance
Frank is always very courteous and pleasant to be around
and takes great pride in his work. He has done many jobs for the H.R.
office and always goes the extra mile. As a member of H.R. and the
person responsible for handling workers compensation claims for the
district, I truly believe that Frank went above and beyond the call of
duty this time.
On October 7th, Frank was working with two
other employees from the maintenance department when one of our
employees was severely injured on the job and Frank’s quick response to
the situation helped to minimize the injury. Frank took immediate charge
of the situation, and did all the right things to help save the finger
of our employee until the paramedics arrived on the scene. Once the
paramedics arrived on the scene and saw that our employee was well taken
care of and that he was stable and not in shock, he was given the choice
of being transported for medical attention via ambulance or by vehicle.
Our employee was stable and chose to be transported via District
vehicle. With the approval from his manager, Frank proceeded to take
our employee to Work Care at Presbyterian hospital and than on to a hand
specialist for surgery. .
Jodi Senk – Faculty, Physical Education
I would like to
nominate Jodi Senk for the Caught in the Act award. Over the last
month, she worked diligently with Pat Viramontes to ensure that the
ninety plus faculty members who were on PersCare switched to
PersChoice. Failure to switch would mean faculty would have to pay up
to $10,000 extra in the new year. This task was even more challenging
given that the health plans individual are on is confidential. So, Jodi
contacted each of the 190 faculty members via email on several
occasions, tracked those who responded, and followed up with phone calls
or emails to those who did not in order to make sure that everyone had
the appropriate coverage and no one would be stuck with a potential
$10,000 bill! Jodi went well beyond what was required or expected and
is very deserving of the award.
August/September
Acts of
Excellence
Adele Enright – Faculty, Library
Few people relish the thought of
packing and moving their belongings to a new home. Even fewer would
even consider taking on the management of moving a whole library from
3.5 floors to a new one-floor building!
We in the Library were extremely
fortunate to have Adele Enright step up in Spring 2008 (yes, more than a
whole year ago) to volunteer for the job of coordinating and being the
point person for our library move. Years before we started packing the
first box of books, Adele was already our representative to the design
meetings, contractor meetings, College building committee meetings and
so on. Her commitment to moving the department (and its >80,000 books,
audiovisual materials, AV equipment, computers, printers, archives,
etc.) in an orderly, transparent manner was a paramount factor in our
experiencing a relatively smooth transition to the new building.
Adele spent countless hours of her
own time attending meetings with project management team, architects,
consultants, contractors and College administration. She solicited
library staff/faculty comments and suggestions, acted as our liaison to
these agencies and undertook a multitude of other tasks too numerous to
mention. For her dedication to the Library, her tireless efforts
and good humor throughout the whole building and moving processes, I
heartily and gratefully recommend Adele Enright for the Caught In The
Act award.
Sandra Salcedo – Classified Staff, Student Life
I would
like to nominate Sandra Salcedo in the Student Life office –
Every
semester Sandra helps out on FLEX Day, and every semester she goes above
and beyond what you would expect from a “volunteer.” This year she
organized the display and clean up of the continental breakfast, offered
a hand to the Division secretaries in the distribution of faculty name
tags, helped set-up the all campus BBQ and handing out of lunch
tickets. This is not her job, but she recognizes that for the day to be
a success, many people must step up to the plate and work together. She
is an extraordinary person who is willing to give a 110% of themselves
and for that I think she should be recognized.
Juana Mora – Faculty, Chicano/a Studies
Last spring
as the economic crisis hit and we were told to cut classes in order to
save money, I saw Juana Mora show her dedication to the Chicano Studies
program and her students. She managed to save her Chicano Studies
classes from the chopping block by making a sacrifice. She gave up some
of the reassign time allotted to her as Chicano Studies coordinator in
order to keep this class going. She put the students and the program
before her own self interest. Bravo!
Summer Acts of Excellence
Matt Koutroulis– Faculty, Chemistry/SLO Coordinator
Matt took the initiative to completely revamp how SLOs are created,
managed, and reported. His efforts in creating the online platform will
save all faculty countless hours when doing their SLO work. The Social
Science/Humanities can be a tough audience. And let's face it; the SLO
topic does not generate excitement. However, his presentation was met
with since appreciation and enthusiasm. What he has accomplished to
move SLOs forward is truly impressive. His contributions to other
faculty and the college in general deserve widespread recognition and
gratitude!
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