Eastern Michigan University: Institutional Values Awards

The Institutional Values Awards were presented in September 2005 to the following individuals and teams.

Chris Hyndman, Richard Rubenfeld, Julie Myers, Larry Newhouse, Andrew Maniotes. Not pictured: Melanie Buffington.

Contributions to the Quality of Student Learning Experiences: For contributions in providing a positive, supportive environment for student success at EMU. WINNER: The Artists and Exhibitions Committee, comprising Melanie Buffington, Chris Hyndman, Andrew Maniotes, Julie Myers, Larry Newhouse and Richard Rubenfeld.

The Artists and Exhibitions Committee organizes Ford Gallery exhibitions and a lecture series of visiting artists, art educators and art historians. The goal is to contribute to the overall quality of the student learning experiences and to engage and serve the public outside the EMU audience.

This past year, the A&E Committee produced all but one of the Ford Gallery exhibitions, instead of relying on prepackaged, traveling exhibits. And the exhibitions were as varied as the members of the committee.
They produced:
The View from Europe: Political Posters by Floor Wesseling
Linda Leonhard: The Art of the Assemblage
Chakaia Booker, lecture
Holey Moley: More Comic Art at EMU
Graduate Thesis Exhibitions of
Christine Hagedorn, Mark Heisler and Cathy Barry
Ed Eberle, lecture
Art Faculty Show
Josh Walton, lecture
Pinball! Pinball! Pinball!
Graduate Student Exhibition with the Graduate Symposium
The Expressive Figure 1950-2000:
Selections from the Permanent Collection of the
Art Department, Eastern Michigan University
Kenton Hall, lecture
Pat Mink, lecture on “New Traditions: The Digital Quilt”
Guy Goodwin, lecture
April Annual Student and Honors Exhibitions
Children's Institute Art Exhibition

Dick Schwarze

Continuous Improvement, Innovation and/or Customer Service: For contributions in developing new approaches to service delivery; increasing effectiveness and efficiency; providing greater customer satisfaction; using creativity to improve services to EMU’s students, faculty, staff and external constituencies. WINNER: Dick Schwarze, University Photographer.

Richard (Dick) Schwarze, University photographer, has spent the last 30 years capturing on film (and digitally) the people, places and events that make up Eastern Michigan University.

If it happened on campus, Dick and his Nikons were never far away, shooting frame after frame of our collective history.

It is for that tireless effort, for his devotion to EMU and for his constant need to stay on top of technology, that we honor Dick with this award.

He has spent the better part of his career here working with the latest technology to take the best pictures possible. He has spent hours with colleagues from across campus, teaching them about photography and the technology that goes hand-in-hand with his special skills, all the while providing each division, department and unit with the utmost in customer service. If it needed documenting — from the boardroom to the classroom — Dick has been there.

Eastern Michigan's history is much more vivid just because he came to work each day and left a little piece of himself behind on each frame.

Judy Sturgis Hill

Diversity, Human Dignity, Multicultural/International Involvement: For contributions in enhancing understanding, respect and inclusion of diversity among members of the EMU community and all of its constituencies. WINNER: Judy Sturgis Hill, assistant professor of Communication and Theatre Arts and interim director of Diversity.

Sturgis Hill is being recognized for her ongoing mission of inclusion on campus. Through her work in the classroom and in myriad teaching moments across campus, Judy is the embodiment of acceptance, tolerance and multicultural understanding.

Her passion is evident in all she does for EMU and our community. During her 35-year journey on campus as a student, educator and administrator, Judy has modeled the importance of accepting and celebrating people's differences.

From coaching some of our forensics champions, to working with high school students in Summer Institutes, Judy has helped EMU incorporate and weave diversity into the tapestry of our history and our future in the global classroom.

Joe Ohren

Public Engagement and Community Service: For contributions in completing exemplary community service activities and building EMU linkages/partnerships with the local community, the Detroit metropolitan area, southeast Michigan, the State of Michigan and the nation. WINNER: Joseph Ohren, professor of Political Science and Director of the Master of Public Administration Program (MPA). Joe also serves as the Coordinator of Public Service at the Institute for Community and Regional Development (ICARD).

Ohren has been instrumental in making community service a vital part of the academic experience for EMU students by keeping students active in his research projects, placing them in internships in public service and in locating positions after graduation. He has made public service a part of his daily life in and out of the classroom. His students and local communities know Joe Ohren walks the talk.

For the past two decades, Joe has been a principal liaison to local governments for the MPA program and the undergraduate programs in public administration and public safety administration in the Department of Political Science. Under his leadership, more than 60 local communities and state local agencies have received training and technical support, primarily in goal-setting and strategic planning.

The Melissa Mail Team: Anne Mckee, Malcolm Marts, Dawn Stovall, Shucha Baveja.

Team Excellence: For contributions in furthering the mission of EMU in the areas of instruction, institutional support or service, cooperation among units, customer service, and/or student support, for results achieved in the previous calendar/academic year. WINNER: Melissa Mail Team, division of Enrollment Services.

The Melissa Mail Team was recognized for its use of collaboration and creativity to solve a problem. The members observed a situation that could be bettered, collaborated on an innovative solution and new technology was used to allow each team member to better perform his or her job, streamline work processes and make changes that resulted in a substantial cost savings for the University.

By using technology, creativity and the EMU work ethic, Shucha Baveja, Admissions coordinator of systems technology; Dawn Stovall, admissions mailroom supervisor; Anne McKee, admissions assistant director for communications; and Malcolm Marts, manager, University mail services; were able to not only provide quicker, more personal mail service to our incoming and prospective students, but were able to save thousands of dollars in postage in the process for both now and in the future.