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Awards of Excellence 2022

Honoring and celebrating full-time faculty and staff who dedicate their time and talents to students, scholarship, and the advancement of higher education

By UVU Photo

April 14^th, 2022

On the evening of April 12, 2022, the UVU Board of Trustees and Presidential Awards of Excellence program recognized full-time faculty and staff who dedicate their time and talents to students, scholarship, and the advancement of higher education. Annually, the UVU Board of Trustees elects to recognize several employees for their contributions to strengthening UVU's mission. Additionally, the Presidential Awards of Excellence highlight faculty and staff for their efforts in key areas related to UVU's mission, values, and action commitments.

James Clarke, Chairman of the UVU Board of Trustees

“It is with great pleasure that the Utah Valley University Board of Trustees, in conjunction with President Tuminez and the campus community, gathered to celebrate these outstanding individuals and their dedication to serving UVU. The Trustee and Presidential Awards of Excellence are the institution’s highest honors, which they have earned by exemplifying UVU’s values. They have truly distinguished themselves with their commitment to our dual mission and service to our students, campus, and community.”

“They demonstrate exceptional care, exceptional accountability, and exceptional results. On behalf of the Board of Trustees, we have no doubt that their efforts and contributions will impact and enhance UVU in the future as they have today. Thank you for creating an environment in which students, faculty, and staff alike understand the positive attributes you bring to our campus and the broader community.”

“Thank you for joining us for the 2022 UVU Awards of Excellence program. This evening, we’re celebrating 80 years of UVU excellence. We are so grateful to be back in person this year to celebrate our 17th annual Awards of Excellence. For the past two years, we’ve celebrated these awards a little differently. For 2020 and 2021, awardees engaged in a virtual-only program. Tonight, we are elated to celebrate our 2022 recipients in person with nominators, friends, and family members of the recipients, along with additional colleagues, families, and friends joining us virtually.”

“It’s no small feat to receive an Award of Excellence. Those receiving awards tonight have gone above and beyond to ensure that our students receive an exceptional education and an experience here to match. These individuals are our friends, mentors, and leaders. Tonight, we celebrate them and their contributions to Utah Valley University.”

Astrid S. Tuminez, President, Utah Valley University

“At UVU, we believe in the power of potential. Students are at the center of everything we do. As leaders, faculty, and staff at UVU, we unlock our students’ unlimited potential by having our core values inform the work we do. We are a community that believes in exceptional care, exceptional accountability, and exceptional results. The UVU annual Awards of Excellence recognizes employees who go “above and beyond” to help our students learn, grow, and achieve their goals. Tonight, we will honor and recognize our 2022 Awards of Excellence recipients, whose exemplary performance raises the bar for all of us.”

“The awards we are celebrating tonight represent the pinnacle of individual honor at UVU. They celebrate those who not only believe in our mission and values, but implement them in their day-to-day conversations, interactions, and decisions. Our awardees have a lasting impact on our students — helping them not only to complete their degrees and programs, but also to form lasting relationships, become more resilient, and be better prepared for work and life.”

“Congratulations to the 2022 Awards of Excellence recipients! Thank you for your kindness and professionalism. Your outstanding contributions make me and so many others proud to be associated with you and UVU.”

Trustees Award of Excellence Recipients

DaSheek Akwenye, Chief Inclusion & Diversity Officer

“One of the greatest opportunities UVU gave me was the chance to come here as a first-generation student-athlete all the way from Namibia, South Africa. I left my family behind, and UVU was just a place I could come home.”

“First and foremost, I just want to say thank you to the UVU Board of Trustees and President’s Cabinet for this award. It’s truly an honor and a privilege to be able to receive this. I also want to thank my wife and kids for the support every day when I come to work and the sacrifices I make for them. I also need to thank my mentors, Dean Palmer, Dr. Kyle Reyes, and Marilyn Meyer. Thank you guys for everything you’ve done for me.”

Amie Houghton, Assistant Professor, Criminal Justice & Program Director, Forensic Investigation

“The greatest opportunity UVU has given me is the opportunity to share my skills that I’ve spent well over a decade developing through work and schooling. I love being able to share that with our students.”

“I’m honored to receive this award. To be honest, I never really felt like what I was doing was amazing. It all really comes down to my students. My whole goal is to make sure they’re able to be successful in their careers and in life. It’s been an honor to teach them and to give them the advice that they’ll need in the world.”

Alan Parry, Ph.D., Professor, Mathematics

“One of the things I really loved about UVU from the moment I arrived was the sheer amount of instructional support. The Office of Teaching and Learning and a few other resources on campus allow you to look at your teaching and be a little more critical about what you’re doing. But attending learning circles and workshops, seeing how other professors teach their courses, and eventually completing the Online Teaching Academy gave me a much broader perspective on ways I could help students.”

“I’m just overjoyed to be here. I’m so grateful to be at UVU; it’s one of the best places I’ve ever been in my life. I almost feel like UVU was kind of made for me. Everything at UVU since I’ve been here has been aligned with the kinds of goals that I had and I was able to jump in and get involved as quickly as I could.”

Scott Houle, Head Coach, Cross Country/Track & Field

“It’s been something that I’ve always liked to do. I’ve always been a competitive person. As you get older, there are limited things you can do to stay competitive in the sporting world. I followed my brothers into coaching. At UVU, it’s been really fun to take this from a junior college to a Division 1 competitor and to be able to beat a lot of the teams around the country.”

“Thank you for this award. I know there are a lot of deserving people out there and I really do appreciate the recognition that our men’s and women’s track and field teams, along with our assistant coaches, are receiving at this time. I recruit many young men and women to this university. As I go out, I try to pass on this dream of what they’re looking for and convince them to come to UVU over other top-name schools. They come here and grow and go through the experiences that I’m blessed to see every day, and it’s all thanks to you guys. How the professors teach students in the classroom, how the facilities look — it’s all important because parents and recruits pay attention to those things. As I sell that dream, they leave this campus with the reality that UVU is a great place.”

Gloria Alfaro, Custodian, Facilities Services

“What I want everyone to know is that Utah Valley University is the best place ever to work. It is a place where you can be safe, warm, and protected. It’s also a university with prestige.”

“I feel so humbled, happy, and grateful. It is an honor to receive this award. It is an honor to be selected. I read all of the biographies of the other recipients and I thought, ‘Wait a minute… I’m not professional like them. I am a custodian.’ However, I’m professional at what I do! I feel so proud to be among the other recipients.”

Presidential Award of Excellence Recipients

Nathan Gerber, Director, Web Development Services

“The greatest opportunity UVU has given me, you could say, is my job. I have loved my work here. When I started, I didn’t think I would stay here very long, but I love it and have made a long-standing career out of it.”

“I first and foremost want to thank my family. My wife has put up with my antics and my desires to move forward for 31 years. My children who are watching online with their spouses are so supportive of me. My mom is watching online as well. I’m super proud to be part of the digital transformation team here on campus. It’s such an honor to work with so many good people. I have the unique opportunity to interact with almost every other department across campus. It's a great opportunity to be part of this movement and to see what we can do in the lives of students.”

Jessica C. Hill, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Behavioral Science

“I think the greatest opportunity UVU has provided me is the ability to be curious. The freedom to investigate. The ability to follow my interests, wherever they may go, to the benefit of my students. What I find most rewarding right now at UVU is the relationships I’m able to make with people. I’m able to act as a leader in my faculty role. I’m able to act as a leader across the Utah System of Higher Education. I’ve really just found it rewarding to see the breadth and scope of the amazingness that’s out there and to be part of it.”

“Thank you. I really feel like this belongs to everybody at that table and several people online. Thank you to my husband, Sam, who is the father of our seven children. My whole family has supported me as I try to advocate for women across the Utah System of Higher Education. Dustin and Tara who were in my UVSELF cohort and helped me get started. Kat, who’s been an amazing mentor and who won the inaugural Liz Hitch Mentoring Award from the Utah Women’s Leadership Exchange. Provost Sanders from Salt Lake Community College who helped advocate with the chief academic officers to get the program started. Commissioner Woolstenhulme, who helped sponsor us and supports rising women leaders across the system. My mama, Diane, who helps me be brave every day. And Matt Draper, who got me hired here and mentored me through getting tenure and who keeps me going every day. Thank you to Julie and Nancy online. Know that this award is just as much yours as it is mine.”

Greg Jackson, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Criminal Justice

“UVU is really good about giving you space to do your thing. As I talked to friends at other universities while I was writing, creating, and producing ‘History That Doesn’t Suck,’ a lot of them said that they didn’t feel like they’d have the same flexibility to do something that out of the box. UVU never made me feel like I was going in a bad direction.”

“My wife told me I have to give a speech that “doesn’t suck.” I want to again say how grateful I am to be here. I work with incredible people. I was talking to a colleague and mentor of mine about my career and where it’s at. It’s a weird space because you don’t go to grad school thinking, ‘I’m going to be on national television regularly.’ I appreciate being at an institution that values engagement with the public — that values work that’s seen and absorbed by people who don’t have the luxury of going to a university or being in more elite spaces. I’m grateful to UVU’s Board of Trustees, President Tuminez, Provost Vaught, my dean, and everyone here who allows me to be in these spaces.”

Jeannette Vargas German, Lab Manager, Emergency Services

“The greatest opportunity UVU has given me is the ability to work with the students and the opportunity to help them reach their dreams. I have also had the opportunity to engage the students in our community through service projects, such as a CPR class for the community. Also, I love working with a team of professionals who not only believe in my potential but have allowed me to grow.”

“Thank you. I am honored and humbled to receive an award for something I love to do —helping students be successful. I grew up in a humble family that taught me the importance of helping and serving others. Thank you to my family members who are here tonight supporting me. Thank you to my sisters, Angela, Joann, and Yudi. Thank you to my husband and my children, and to my niece and nephew. A special thanks to my mom because I am here today because she has helped me become the person I am. Thank you to President Tuminez and the committee for selecting me to receive this award. I would like to recognize Steve Allred and Kevin McCarthy for being my mentors and helping me to grow within my career. They are an example of caring for others and exemplify what inclusion means. Thank you also to the Emergency Services department, the EMS program, Dean Hanewicz, Assistant Dean Burr, and the students for making UVU a better place to work.”

“The best gifts you can give to someone are time, love, and life. Do me a favor, please, and next time you see a student in the hall, tell them that they can do it.”

Gabriel Mayberry, Social Media Manager, University Marketing & Communications

“I have loved the opportunity here at UVU to grow within my role. I started as a freelance photographer for the photography team, moved into a full-time photography position, and now, my current role as a social media manager, all within a relatively short amount of time.”

“Thank you to President and everyone who was involved in the nomination. I was floored when I heard the news. I am so grateful for this award and the ability to work with everyone here. Higher education is something I’m really passionate about as a first-generation graduate. I love being able to come to work every day and make a difference in someone’s life. I’m grateful for everyone who’s sitting at my table tonight. They’ve all had a huge impact on my career. Most of all, I’m grateful to my parents who have been there every step of the way.”

UVU students from the Ballroom Dance Team, Culinary Arts, and School of the Arts showcase their talents

The UVU award-winning Ballroom Dance Team performed along with UVU student Kade Bennett, who sang "Avant de Quitter ces Liez" by Charles Gounod from the opera Faust, accompanied by Maren Daynes on the piano. UVU Culinary Arts faculty and students provided the food..

Footnotes

Photos by August Miller, Kennedy Evans. Text by Courtney Hooker Barkdull, Emmy Bell.

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FootNotes

Photos by August Miller, Kennedy Evans. Text by Courtney Hooker Barkdull, Emmy Bell.