May 15, 2007:  Marnie Farmer, Secretary for the Department of Music, is awarded the College's Staff Professional Achievement Award (SPAA).

The nomination on her behalf reads:

"Marnie’s official position with the University is 'Secretary' of the Music Department.  But for those of us who work with her, she is that and MUCH more.  She is very conscientious about attending to the LARGE number of duties assigned to her position.  And yet she is also a veritable resource on many other levels.  (Examples: I depend on her for information about negotiating my way around the various software programs we use on this job.  She has helped both the Department Head and me on a number of occasions with computer issues, and has made the completion of our tasks more effortless and efficient. She is also much more mechanically inclined than I, and I depend on her to keep the office equipment 'going' to the best of her ability).  She is usually at her desk before the office is officially open, and also often has to be reminded to take time out for lunch.  There is no question about it…she puts in her time, and then some.  The University is getting its money’s worth out of her to say the very least!    

In addition to her official duties on the job, she has also taken charge of a couple of auxiliary projects.  She volunteered to co-chair the COAL Book Discussion Group, and (for two years in a row) she has captained the COAL Relay for Life team, which is aptly named 'Art with a Heart'. This year the team of only 8 people was successful in raising over $1500 and qualified for 'Bronze Team' status.  As part of the fund-raising efforts, she sold raffle tickets, giving the winner the opportunity to cut her hair.  This effort benefited cancer victims/survivors in two ways.  Her hair was donated to 'Locks of Love' (to make wigs for cancer patients) and the proceeds from the raffle became part of the team’s total donation to Relay for Life. 

I feel that Marnie is an asset to the department, to COAL, and to the University as a whole.  She is very deserving of the SPAA recognition."

Nancy Harris
Administrative Secretary, Department of Music

Congratulations and well done, Marnie! 

April, 2007:  Staff members from the College of Arts and Letters form the "Art With A Heart" team for the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life.  The team shatters its goal and raises over $1500 thanks to the team's efforts and donations from colleagues, friends and family throughout the College community.

Pictured from left-to-right: Barbara Jones, Carol Anne Costabile-Heming, Marie Murphree, Marnie Farmer, Miriam Burlison, and Nancy Harris.

Way to go!

January, 2007: Gloria Reed receives a Staff Excellence in University Service award.  Gloria also celebrates 20 years of employment at Missouri State.  She currently serves as an Administrative Secretary in the Department of Theatre and Dance.

Congratulations, Gloria!  Thanks for all the years of service.

April 17, 2007: Charles Klarr, Distributed User Support Specialist for the Department of Media, Journalism and Film, is awarded the College's Staff Professional Achievement Award (SPAA).

A summary of the nominations on his behalf reads:

"I nominate Charles Klarr for staff member of the month.  He is just a gem for our department and like most of us doesn’t get paid what he is worth.  He literally keeps our department running smoothly, and it is truly mind boggling since he has so many things on his plate. He is in charge of all the equipment maintenance and repairs (this is extremely important for MJF), supervises the media lab, equipment, and students who work there.  He runs our computer system and server, maintains our website and has now taken over teaching a class [due to another teacher’s medical leave].  He just really deserves to be recognized for the great work that he does for our department and college on a regular basis, and now he has gone above and beyond. He should know that we all appreciate him."

Deborah Larson
Assistant Professor, Department of Media, Journalism and Film

"I’ve worked closely with Charles this year in my capacities as Coordinator of the EA program, and as Chair of the MJF and COAL Tech Committees.  He is always willing to go the extra mile to research and find out technology data and information, and has a good sense of how all the various computer and hardware in all of our diverse media, journalism and film labs will interface and interact.  He works long hours, far above and beyond the forty hour load expected.

He is an extraordinary asset to the department and the college in his roles as a DUSS and a lab supervisor. Under his guidance we have been able to build and maintain state of the art audio and video computer editing labs – labs that have allowed our students to excel.  The high number of awards MJF and EA students win for their creative work is in no small part due to Charles’ vision and hard work.

I believe that he is most worthy of recognition for a SPAA award."

Mark Biggs
Associate Professor, Department of Media, Journalism and Film

Congratulations and well done, Charles! 

January, 2007: Nancy Harris, Administrative Secretary for the Department of Music, is awarded the College's Staff Professional Achievement Award (SPAA).

One of the nominations on her behalf reads:

"I would like to submit Nancy Harris, Administrative Secretary in the Music Department, for the Staff Professional Achievement Award for January 2007.  Nancy consistently puts 110% into her job.  One of the daunting tasks she has to handle is the process of Incoming Student Auditions each semester.  This is a very detailed and lengthy process that cuts into much of her other day-to-day work, yet she handles it all without complaint.  This involves arranging auditions with applied faculty and ensemble directors, setting up campus tours with the Admissions Office and scheduling Theory Placement tests for each and every student interested in attending Missouri State as a music major.  In essence, it is a logistical nightmare.  This semester, there was an added aspect that was thrown into the mix.  When we missed the first week of classes due to the ice storm, Nancy was put very behind in this process.  She still had her regular start-of-the-semester issues, which were now combined with scrambling to contact persons interested in attending the next audition date, February 2^nd and 3^rd.  She handled it all beautifully and was able to work out a schedule to everyone’s satisfaction.  I am proud to work in the same office with her and feel that she very much deserves this award."

Marnie Farmer
Secretary, Department of Music

Congratulations and well done, Nancy!

# # #

February, 2007: Wilma Catlin, Administrative Secretary for the Department of English, is awarded the College's Staff Professional Achievement Award (SPAA).

One of the nominations on her behalf reads:

"Wilma works wonders in our front office—training and overseeing student workers, tending to daily crises, greeting and helping visitors, etc.—in short, making sure the front office runs smoothly and makes a good impression on those who walk through the door. But she does so much more! She makes sure faculty work orders are done accurately, their desk copies and textbooks are ordered on time, their classroom clocks have batteries—you name it, she does it for us. But she does more! She helps Dr. Blackmon with his 'extra' projects, making sure rooms are booked, copies are made, fliers are posted, etc. And she helps me in more ways than I can possibly list: she puts the entire course schedule on the computer every semester, she schedules teaching assistants, she books rooms and orders food and copies fliers for my projects, and she manages my calendar and does as well as anyone could at keeping me on track—whatever I need done, I can ask Wilma, and she will take care of it. And she does it all with an amazing degree of efficiency and good humor! Wilma has brought order to our front office and to our lives. I cannot imagine having a more dedicated and efficient person in her chair, and I wholeheartedly support her for the Staff Professional Achievement Award, for she truly performs above and beyond expectations and shows extraordinary commitment to us as individuals as well as to our department and college."

Kris Sutliff
Professor, Department of English

Congratulations and well done, Wilma!

December 12, 2006: Angie Anderson, Senior Administrative Clerk for the Department of Theatre and Dance, is awarded the College's Staff Professional Achievement Award (SPAA).

A summary of the nominations on her behalf reads:

"I would like to nominate Angela Anderson in the Department of Theatre and Dance for the Staff Professional Achievement Award (SPAA) for the month of November.  Angela is consistently going above and beyond the call of duty in a department which contains an extremely diverse protocol.  Angela's dedication and proficiency is remarkable, juggling not only faculty travel expense reports and grant monies, but multiple budget lines for our production season, which includes ten productions (including Tent Theatre).  Additionally, she manages expense reports for our many outreach programs to area public schools.

The SPAA award recognizes performance above and beyond expectations and Angela Anderson fits the bill.  She is always more than helpful in explaining budgetary matters to those of us who may have questions or need.  Most importantly, Angela is a staff member who is dedicated personally to the well being of this department.  Conversations with Angela exhibit enthusiasm, interest, curiosity and excitement about what the faculty and students do in this Department.  Additionally, she is involved in the University in writing courses and has initiated a book club within the College of Arts and Letters!

I cannot think of a person who might be more noteworthy and deserving of the SPAA award."

Sheila Gordon
Assistant Professor, Acting and Voice
Coordinator of BFA Performance Area
Department of Theatre and Dance
 

"…my experience working with her has clearly indicated to me that Angie [Anderson] is most highly qualified to receive this form of recognition.  Angie is a tireless worker who dedicates her time to overseeing the budgetary aspects of the Theatre and Dance programs.  She is an extremely informed staff professional whom the entire faculty, staff, and I depend on to provide the information and assistance so important to making all the areas and programs within the Department to function smoothly.  She is a disciplined worker who extends her efforts beyond normal job expectations. … Every year Angie organizes gift giving within the Theatre and Dance Department for a number [of] local charities, including the American Cancer Society and Adopt a Kid, which is indicative of her generous nature. … Angie provides excellent service to the Department and University and is most worthy of this recognition."

Wade Thompson, Acting Head
Department of Theatre and Dance

Congratulations and well done, Angie!

November 14, 2006: Karen Sikes, Administrative Secretary for the Communication department, is awarded the College's Staff Professional Achievement Award (SPAA).

A summary of the nomination on her behalf reads:

“I write to nominate Karen Sikes for the Staff Professional Achievement Award (SPAA).  Karen consistently performs very well in her role of administrative secretary for the Communication Department, but over the past several months she has repeatedly gone above and beyond the call of duty and been of exceptional service to the department.“

Duties considered especially meritorious by Dr. Adams include:

• Assisting the Center for Dispute Resolution with administrative support, including purchasing and budgeting, as well as clerical support.
• Adapting to changes in accounting and purchasing procedures.
• Assisting faculty “with everything from procurement to travel to class management.”
• Serving students with a special affinity “while maintaining a professional distance and appreciation for policies and procedures.”
• Special events, particularly COM Week.
• Student and alumni relations, which includes “maintaining current databases on [COM’s] alumni and communicating regularly via email with students.”

“In sum, Karen is an excellent administrative secretary and in recent months has been called on to do even more.”  

  -- Carey Adams, Head of Communication Department

Congratulations and well done, Karen!

October 10, 2006: Miriam Burlison, Administrative Secretary for the Modern & Classical Languages department, is awarded the College's Staff Professional Achievement Award (SPAA).

Excerpts from nominations on her behalf read:

"It's scary to think what the Modern and Classical Languages Department would do without our secretary, Mrs. Miriam Burlison. Her smiling, good-natured presence behind her always tidy desk is a comfort to students and faculty alike. Whatever problem you bring her, no matter how big or complicated - Miriam is always happy to help, and she always gets the job done. Whether it's by going the extra mile on a task, or by providing a sympathetic ear, or by taking the wind out of one's sails with her wicked sense of humor, she keeps our entire department on an even keel. Miriam is much more than a secretary to us... she is a valued colleague and friend. I wish the University were able to pay her something closer to what she deserves for everything she does. Barring that, Miriam certainly deserves the Staff Professional Achievement Award, for September... and every other month." -- Joe Hughes,  Professor of Modern & Classical Languages

"...Miriam always excels.  Her basic professional attitude is always excellent:  she is courteous, patient, friendly, has a great sense of humor, and let’s not forget EFFICIENT.  She gets it all done.  Why I’d like for her to get the award is that in addition to faculty and head who always have “immediate” and “demanding” thing that need to be done “NOW,”...Oh yes, and let’s not forget that my whole faculty thinks she is more important to the well-being of the department than I am." -- Madeleine Kernen, Head of Modern & Classical Languages

 
Congratulations and well done, Miriam!

September 12, 2006: Steve Talley, COAL Distributed User Support Specialist for Art & Design, is awarded the College's first Staff Professional Achievement Award (SPAA).

The nomination on his behalf reads:

"Steve Talley is the biggest reason that faculty within the Art & Design Department have won so many university teaching awards. Without Steve performing his duties overseeing the four departmental labs and maintaining faculty computers so efficiently, innovating new resources for students to learn, the department would be a barren place and the students not as well served. Steve has responded to 2659 requests from me, alone, since July 2002 when he was first hired. He is essential to the functioning of the Art & Design Technology Committee, which originated the database that COAL is currently using to track all technology resources. Steve allows the department to efficiently utilize the recycling of resources funded from Form5 and SCUF. Steve led the implementation of the render farm across a network of 400 computers that span the campus. His keen oversight of this project means that animation students can achieve 400 times the standard results, enabling their professional development opportunities to soar. Steve's efforts and attitude deserve recognition from the highest levels."  -- Vonda Yarberry, Professor of Art & Design

Congratulations and well done, Steve!

It was a "three-peat" for artist Dwaine Crigger. On Wednesday, the southwest Missouri sculptor was awarded one of four $1,000 top prizes — for the third year in a row — at the annual MO 50 Exhibition. The show, which features works by 50 selected Missouri artists, is open through Aug. 20 at the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia.

"I'm pretty excited," says Crigger. "To get an award is amazing. Three years in a row is incredible."

Keith Ekstam,who, like Crigger, teaches at Missouri State University, also won $1,000. Mel Hall of Springfield won honorable mention. Other selected exhibiting Ozarkers include Gregory Benne, Kevin Hughes and Benjamin Schulman of Springfield; Jeff Johnston of Nixa; Susan Leslie Lumseden of Thayer; Sandra Strother of Marshfield; and Peggy Wyman of Macomb.

We extend our congratulations to our recent College Award winners.

For service:  Isabelle Bauman, Communication; Jaime Bihlmeyer, Media, Journalism and Film; Dwaine Crigger, Art and Design; Tracy Dalton, English; Tom Dickson, Media, Journalism and Film; Rachel Gholson, English; Etta Madden, English; Art Spisak, Modern and Classical Languages; Pearl Yeadon-Erny, Music.

For teaching:  James Baumlin, English; Billie Follensbee, Art and Design; Jason Jolley, Modern and Classical Languages; Michael Stowe, English; Duat Vu, Art and Design.

For research:  Keith Ekstam, Art and Design; William J. Burling, English; Janis King, Communication; Carol Maples, Theatre and Dance; Mary Jane Pardue and Mark Paxton, Media, Journalism and Film.


We would also like to congratulate the COAL University Award winners.

For service:  Charlene Berquist, Communication; Judith John, English.

For teaching:  Randy Dillon, Communication; Cedomir Kostovic, Art and Design; Judith Martin, Modern and Classical Languages; Norma McClellan, Music; John Prescott, Music; Yili Shi, English; Jean Stringam, English.

For research:  James Parsons, Music; Sarah Perkins, Art and Design.

Congratulations are in order for Tonia Tinsley (Modern and Classical Languages), Rebecca Xu (Art and Design), Matthew Calihman (English), and Lanette Cadle (English) who recently earned the “Master Advisor” designation by participating in an intensive workshop on academic advising issues.

The advisors who complete this Master Advisor Workshop demonstrate admirable commitment to excellence in academic advising and to serving Missouri State students.  For more information on the Master Advisor Program, please contact Kathy Davis, Director, Academic Advisement Center, at extension 6-5258.

Pat O’Neill (COAL), Angie Anderson (Theatre and Dance), and Barb Jones (COAL) have been selected to participate in the University Staff Ambassadors program. The program is designed:

“To provide staff an opportunity to learn about all of the divisions and campuses within the University System;

To provide interesting and fun professional development opportunities to staff;

To promote a better understanding by staff as to the value of their role within the University and their contribution toward our mission of ‘developing educated persons’;

To foster increased communications across departments, divisions, and campuses by creating a bond among the members of each class.”

According to Patricia O’Neill, “I applied because I field a lot of questions from students and members of the public who need to know where to go to find information, help, or services."

The program began July 12 and will run for 12 months.  Topics include Learning about Student Affairs, Learning about University Advancement, and Managing People, Paper and Projects, among others.

For more information contact Debbie Donnellan, USA Program Coordinator or go to www.missouristate.edu/USA.