Rowe, Rivera share staff member of year award; 11 staff receive service pins

Rowe and Rivera.

No, they are not senior partners in a personal-injury law firm. They’re not the middle infield double-play combo on the Florida Gators’ baseball team. Nor is this “R & R” ticket the one to beat in the 2012 presidential race, although the double-R alliteration on their campaign signs would make for some really rad reading and chanting by supporters.

Rowe and Rivera are Angela Rowe and Donna Rivera and, like presidential candidates, they do have their supporters, as evidenced by their selection earlier this month as the College of Education’s 2011 Staff Members of the Year. Rowe is the graduate secretary in the School of Human Development and Organizational Studies in Education, and Rivera is the office manager in the School of Teaching and Learning.

The duo was crowned this year’s top staffers at the Staff Appreciation Luncheon May 11 in the Norman Hall courtyard. While attendees munched on conch fritters and cheeseburgers-in-paradise to celebrate the event’s tropical Key West theme, Dean Catherine Emihovich read some of the glowing tributes that fellow faculty and staffers wrote about award recipients Rowe and Rivera in letters of nomination.

Here’s a small sampling of what Angela Rowe’s fellow-staffers said about her and the vital role she plays in the HDOSE office:

— Angela is dedicated and professional while ensuring the high-volume applications and admissions processes run as smoothly as possible;

— She consistently goes above and beyond what is expected of her;

— She is exceptionally knowledgeable about the College and graduate school policies; if there’s something she doesn’t know, she always goes the extra mile to find out the correct information;

— Angela is very approachable even when she’s terribly busy;

Rivera’s STL co-workers were equally generous with their compliments:

— Donna knows her job, the university system, and gets things done at the highest quality level possible; the work she does for faculty, staff and students truly exceeds the title of office manager;

— In managing a department as complex as STL, Donna juggles many responsibilities that range from assisting the STL director with budget planning to keeping track of hundreds of financial, academic and personnel records for STL faculty, staff and graduate assistants;

— I can honestly say that our program and my individual grant projects would not run smoothly without Donna’s support and counsel

— Her thorough understanding of STL budgetary needs and operating procedures is nothing short of amazing.

Thanks to everyone who took the time to write a letter of nomination, and a BIG THANKS to members of the Award Selection Committee for carefully reviewing and evaluating the many nomination letters. Committee members were: Sondra Smith, Colleen Swain, Penny Cox, Jodi Mount, Sandy Durham and Patty Bruner.

Service pins awarded

Also at the luncheon, the following staff members received pins for milestones reached in years of service:

— 20 years: Susan Stabel
— 15 years: Linda Preston, Robin Rossie
— 10 years: Sherrie Kezele-Sullivan
— 5 years: Trace Choulat, Kay Curcio, Sandra Durham, Sylvia Hayes, Jodi Mount, Tammy Perez, Allison Pipkin

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WRITER: Larry Lansford, Director, COE News & Communications, llansford@coe.ufl.edu; 352-273-4137