Four Rhodes employees—Alonzo Longstreet, Jennifer Logan, Tierney Jackson, and Karen Mosley—were recognized with the college’s 2019 Outstanding Staff Awards based on nominations submitted by faculty, staff, and students. The presentations were made May 16 at the annual Service Recognition Brunch.
“The winners of this year’s outstanding staff employee awards are unanimous selections and so well deserved,” says Claire Shapiro, chief human resources officer. “Each one of our winners go about their work quietly and seamlessly. They are not folks looking for great fanfare. I am so happy we are able to honor staff of this caliber who serve in the Rhodes community with professional excellence and personal integrity.”
Outstanding Administrative Services Staff Award
This year’s Outstanding Administrative Services Staff award winner is housekeeper Alonzo Longstreet. Nominators wrote: “Alonzo is a conscientious and dedicated employee assigned to the Bryan Campus Life Center. He has many responsibilities, but most importantly he maintains all the sports floors in the facility, and he has become an important asset in supporting our athletic teams. He often adjusts his schedule to accommodate our varsity games. Alonzo is personable, always greeting those he comes in contact with, with a smile and kind words. Alonzo is an important member of our Housekeeping team and often keeps operations running smoothly, behind the scenes, and without fanfare or recognition.”
Outstanding Administrative Staff Award
Jennifer Logan, campus safety coordinator, received the Outstanding Administrative Staff award. Nominators wrote: “Jennifer shows true concern for students, faculty, and staff. Our faculty and staff lean on her not only in emergencies but every day to make the college run smoothly. Jennifer is pleasant and ready to help no matter what the job is. She is always quick with a life lesson, support, or even a correction for the student workers in campus safety. She is a consummate professional with a wonderful sense of humor. Her work is definitely appreciated.”
Outstanding Administrator Awards
Outstanding Administrator awards were presented to database analyst Tierney Jackson and instrument technician and chemical safety officer Karen Mosley.
Jackson’s nominators wrote: “From always keeping a positive attitude and looking on the bright side of any situation, to being the first person to volunteer when a problem pops up, Tierney’s enthusiasm for all things Rhodes never wanes. She’s a natural leader, serving as the project manager for our entire Workday project this year and seeing us through a massive overhaul of our Oracle database environment for Banner that involved long days and stressful weekends. Tierney is Rhodes, through and through, stepping up to lead Green Dot trainings on Saturdays and after work, as well as volunteering for the First-Year Experience program. She truly cares about our community, all members of our community, and her first instinct is always to help, always to serve.”
Nominators wrote about Mosley, who works in the chemistry department: “Karen is, simply put, the heart and soul of our department. Faculty and students alike depend on her every day to ensure that the nuclear magnetic resonance instrument is producing good spectra, that the GC-MS is up and running, and that the UV-Vis will talk to the printer. Neither our teaching labs nor our research labs could run without Karen’s expert eye watching out for all of us. Karen also does double duty helping the entire campus track and dispose of hazardous waste. Going beyond her job description, Karen is a trusted colleague. Her insights and expertise allow manuscripts to be written and presentations to be made. She is a sounding board for faculty who are having trouble with an experiment, and for students facing some frustration or other in the lab.”