Superior Accomplishment Awards honor top UF staff and faculty

May 8, 2009

More than 350 employees recently gathered at the University of Florida’s Reitz Student Union Grand Ballroom for the 2009 Superior Accomplishment Awards ceremony. The annual program recognizes staff and faculty members who contribute outstanding and meritorious service, efficiency and/or economy to the quality of life for students and employees.

The Superior Accomplishment Awards are presented each spring semester for the period covering the previous academic year — Aug. 1, 2007 to July 31, 2008. Awards are given in the following six categories, first at the divisional level and then at the university level: Clerical/Office Support, Support Services, Scientific/Technical, Administrative/Supervisory, Administrative/Professional, and Academic Personnel.

Division-level award recipients receive cash awards of $200 each, then compete for university-level awards, which offer eight $1,000 and six $2,000 cash awards.

The following individuals received awards at the university-level, the Superior Accomplishment Awards’ highest honors, and were awarded with a $2,000 check, a commemorative plaque, and an invitation to the president’s box during an upcoming home football game: Clerical/Office Support, Denise A. Caswell, office assistant – Botany & Zoology; Support Services, Ella Henderson, custodial worker, Physical Plant Division; Scientific/Technical, Laura Garrido, senior biological scientist; Administrative/Supervisory, Carl Williams, senior university postal manager, Mail and Document Services; Administrative/Professional, Holly Moses, coordinator 2, Department of Health Education and Behavior and Academic Personnel, Matthew Winter, assistant professor, College of Veterinary Medicine – Small Animal Clinic.

Several individuals received the Jeffrey A. Gabor Employee Recognition Award, sponsored by the Gabor Agency, Inc. These employees were each awarded with a $1,000 check and a commemorative plaque. The recipients include Ana Calderson, Multipurpose Facilities, assistant director 2, Reitz Union; Kenneth “KJ” Green, motor vehicle operator, Physical Plant Division; Bernard “Ski” Jasinski, maintenance mechanic, O’Connell Center; Matthew Pendleton, IT expert, Housing and Residence Education.

Recipients of the Willis HRH Employee Recognition Award, sponsored by Willis HRH of Gainesville Inc., were awarded each with a $1,000 check and a commemorative plaque. Recipients include Marie Meldrum, program assistant, IFAS; Angenette Minter, assistant custodial services superintendent, Housing and Residence Education; Roberta Peacock, office manager, Department of History; Tanja van der Veen, human services coordinator 2, University Police Department.

“The Superior Accomplishment Awards recognize outstanding individuals and their contributions to the university,” said Paula Fussell, interim vice president for Human Resource Services. “We are very proud of all of the employees who were nominated for these awards. I encourage faculty and staff to take part in the nomination period this fall for the 2010 awards, to recognize their peers and colleagues.”

UF’s Superior Accomplishment Awards Program was developed to recognize deserving university employees and is coordinated by the Office of Human Resource Services.

For more information about the Superior Accomplishment Awards and the nomination process, or to view photos from the ceremony, please visit www.hr.ufl.edu/awards/saa.