WWU's first Celebration of Excellence event set for Oct. 23

October 8, 2020

Western Washington University will host its first ever Celebration of Excellence event at 8:30 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 23; this virtual event will combine for the first time the employee awards previously presented at Opening Convocation, the Faculty Senate Awards, and the Employee Recognition Ceremony. This event was initially scheduled for June 5, but was postponed due to COVID; a digital invitation to the event with connection information will be sent out to the campus next week.

Because these awards ceremonies have in the past been an opportunity for colleagues to gather, catch up, and congratulate the award winners, the university is facilitating the following virtual interaction opportunities:

  • Employee mosaic: All WWU employees are encouraged to submit a photo of themselves -- a basic selfie, or a photo of themselves in their current workspace, or a photo of themselves doing their favorite quarantine hobby or activity, or with their current Working From Home "colleagues" like pets, kids or plants! These images will be included in a WWU faculty/staff mosaic that will be featured on the morning of the event, so you can "see" your fellow colleagues, similar to the mosaic created for Paint Bellingham Blue. WWU staff and faculty can upload their photo by Oct. 21 on this photo upload site: https://www.wwuevents.com/rsvp/selfies/index.html.
  • Broadcast chat: There will be a chat feature during the live broadcast of the Celebration of Excellence Awards event so that you can "cheer on" the award recipients.
  • WWU Social Media: Award recipients will be featured on WWU social media, so feel free to like/comment in support of colleagues there as well.


The following awards and recognition will be presented during the Celebration of Excellence event:

  • Arlan Norman Award for Excellence in Student Mentoring – Robert Mitchell, Geology 
  • Carl H. Simpson Bridging Award – Lindsey MacDonald, WWU Sustainable Communities 
  • Equity & Inclusion Award – Shevell Thibou, Western Libraries 
  • Excellence in Teaching Award - Verónica Vélez, Secondary Education 
  • Outstanding Classified Staff Award – Teri Hall, CBE 
  • Outstanding Faculty Leadership Award – Keith Russell, Health & Human Development 
  • Outstanding Faculty Mentor Award – Brian Hutchinson, Computer Science 
  • Paul J. Olscamp Research Award – Greg O’Neil, Chemistry 
  • Peter J. Elich Excellence in Teaching Award – Glenn Tsunokai, Sociology 
  • Philip E. Sharpe, Jr. Community Engagement Award – David Sattler, Psychology 
  • President’s Exceptional Effort Awards 
    • Justina Brown, ATUS 
    • Sarah Crawford, Human Resources 
    • David Engebretson, WebTech 
    • Jessica Heidemann, Student Health Center
    • Ryan Key-Wynne, Admissions 
    • Ellen Kuhlmann, Space Administration
    • Talisa Manker, Decision Sciences 
    • John Solberg, Print & Copy Services
  • Professional Staff Award for Excellence 
    • Shevell Thibou, Western Libraries 
    • Wayne Galloway, Facilities Management
    • Justina Brown, ATUS 
  • Ronald Kleinknecht Excellence in Teaching Award – Stephen Howie, Journalism 
  • Team Recognition Award – Small Business Development Center - Kitsap 
  • Years of Service Recognition (employees celebrating a milestone anniversary in the past year: 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 25, 40, 45, 50 years at Western)

 

More information on the event will be included in the upcoming electronic invitation; look for it in your campus email!