Penn State Mont Alto Penn Stater Awards

Purpose       

To annually recognize outstanding service by Mont Alto staff, faculty, and tech service employees. The award is generally presented during the end-of-year luncheon. 

Eligibility

Any Penn State Mont Alto full-time staff, faculty, or tech services employee who has been employed at Mont Alto for a period of at least 12 months and has not been the recipient of the award within the past two academic years

Criteria

• Competency in, and enthusiasm for, one’s job
• Loyalty to the University and the profession
• Sensitivity to diverse populations
• An advocate for students to internal and external constituencies
• General contribution to the campus
• Active participation and leadership
• Has gone “above and beyond the call of duty” to the campus

Philosophy

The Mont Alto campus places a high value on the creation and maintenance of a productive, diverse, and supportive community.  Therefore, it is appropriate to encourage and recognize outstanding contributions.  Contributions from employees vary greatly in scope, yet each employee has the potential to positively impact the lives of many individuals.  These awards recognize outstanding efforts by individual full-time staff, faculty, and tech services employees.

Administration

The awards will be administered by the Chancellor’s office.  The previous two recipients in each area, faculty, staff, and tech services will make up the awards selection committee. Award nominations will be made via the campus Awards website. If a committee member is nominated for the award, they will be excused from the committee and a replacement will be named.

Selection

At the beginning of March the Chancellor’s office will announce the Penn Stater Awards and solicit nominees from the campus community.  All Mont Alto campus employees will have an opportunity to nominate a colleague in any department.  The deadline for receiving nominations will be June 6.  No nominations will be considered after this deadline.  The Chancellor will forward all nominations to the Chairperson of each committee.

The committee’s decision must be limited to one selection or to recommend that no award be given.  The award will be presented to the individual who best meets the criteria as determined by the voting ballot.

Each Awards Selection Committee will notify the Chancellor of its decision on or before July 21.  Presentation of the awards will be made by the Chancellor at MADE on August 20, 2020.  A press release and photo will be sent to the appropriate news media after the announcement.

Awards

An individual plaque will be given to each recipient and a centrally-located plaque will be placed on campus.  Each recipient will receive a cash award of $300 and will have a designated parking place of his/her choice in an established lot for one year.

Deadline

We will publish the 2021 nomination deadline in spring 2021. 

Past Recipients

2020 winners

Faculty: Kelly Sprinkle
Staff 2020:  Patricia Gochenauer
Tech Service:  Mike Shindle

2019 Tech Service:  Donna Koster

“When Donna is given a task she willingly takes on that task to completion to the best of her ability. She is a perfectionist who arrives at work every day ready to do her job in the three buildings that she maintains. She treats every person on this campus equally as should we all. Donna is always willing to encourage a student or just listen. She is a true asset.”

2019 Staff:  Darlene Pasi

“Darlene comes to work every day with the most positive attitude, a contagious enthusiasm and outlook, and energy. She not only attends required conferences to maintain her professional license, she also attends national conferences to stay current on professional counseling, drug, alcohol, and related issues. She's been the constant morale builder in her department. She is always positive, encourages her co-workers, and is always eager to lend a helping hand. Darlene is an invaluable asset to the Student Affairs team as well as the campus. She is an example of dedication, fortitude, and hard work, and is an inspiration to many.”

2019 Faculty:  Renee Borromeo

“Renee is involved in all aspects of the PTA Program – both the Mont Alto Campus’ and Penn State’s five PTA programs, in the community, and the University. She is a wealth of institutional knowledge as a University Faculty Senator. She is a contributor to each Mont Alto Faculty Staff (MAFS) meeting, a member of the MAFS Constitution Committee, a Colloquy presenter, the Chair of the University Smoking Task Force, and is known for her committee work at University Park.”

Nomination Form

All nominations are confidential.