Staff Excellence Awards

Nominated by Denise Murphy-Rohr, Director of Dance, Theatre and Dance and Franssy Zablah, Assistant Professor, Psychological & Brain Sciences
with support from:
Steve Tague, Interim Chair of Theatre and Dance
Andrea Stevens, Operations Advisor, Arts & Sciences

“I have seen Matt in various roles and can attest that he has been an invaluable asset to the CAS Facilities Team, and all of CAS, in supporting UD’s focus on service, community and innovation. In Matt’s role, he provides exemplary service, prompt responsiveness and thorough communication to the 20+ departments and units across 15+ buildings assigned to him. He also supports his fellow teammates to serve their buildings, pitching in wherever is needed. This has been especially true this winter and spring when one team member had a serious injury and was out of the office for some time. Matt came in on weekends and snow days to get the job done. Because of Matt’s spirit of camaraderie and willingness to help, he maintained such excellent service levels to these departments that most people did not even realize that his teammate was away.” –Andrea Stevens

Specific work has included:

• Coordinated the move of the dance minor program into Hartshorn Hall from its rented home on Main St. This involved significant updates to existing spaces in Hartshorn Hall, the logistical coordination of new materials from ordering and purchasing to scheduling and delivery to installation and the physical move of objects from one building to another.
• Key player in the relocation of the Psychological and Brain Sciences (ICMH-C project) to STAR Tower in February 2023 with the goal of developing an integrated behavioral health clinic which will significantly expand services and create strong partnerships with other CHS clinics to meet the diverse needs of the community serviced in the clinics. Matt has been a key player in our clinic move and expansion. His involvement in the ICMH-C project is a perfect example of how he embodies the Blue Hen spirit!
• His management of the move of the Department of Dance out of a leased property resulted in a combined savings of more than $500,000 over the next five years for the College. He will contribute to additional leased space vacancies over the next three years for a savings of an additional $1M+. He coordinated innovative renovations to Hartshorn Hall that reimagined the efficiency of the space and combined the Department of Theatre and Dance under one roof. As a result, Hartshorn Hall will have 60 class meetings per week in the building for the fall 2024 semester, up 600% from the number in fall 2023.
  
• The work with the Department of Fashion and Apparel Studies has contributed to large growth within that department as well and his move of the Department of Africana Studies into Memorial Hall has created opportunities for synergy between that department and the Department of English. Delivering on UD’s strategic pillar of: “Reimagining Intellectual & Physical Capital for a Sustainable & Boundless Campus."

• Sebastian Derry, Library Department Head II 
• Derek Dolby, Associate Librarian 
• Stephen Erickson, Electronic Resources Manager 
• Megan Gaffney, Library Department Head II 
• Jennifer MacDonald, Library Department Head II 
• Mark Grabowski, Director, Computing Ops 
  

Nominated by Trevor A Dawes, Vice Provost, Library, Museums and Press 

• “The DELCAT Implementation Team was charged with the migration from OCLC Worldshare Management System to ExLibris Alma, an integrated library management system that supports the tasks necessary to operate the library. Over an 18-month migration period, in addition to their regular jobs, [the DELCAT implementation team] used their expertise to present the UD community of library users with this innovative system that offers enhanced, customizable search capabilities, a more intuitive user interface and better visibility and discovery of our collections and resources. This new system gave us access to analytics, allowing the department to make data-informed decisions. 
   

"This complex migration reimagined intellectual capital and expanded student access and success. The team improved the process on the back end and front end of the system to have seamless discovery and accurate information provided for the betterment of UD and researchers using our catalog.” –Trevor A Dawes

The impact of this work:

• A Library catalog is an integral part of Library services; a way to look up titles, topics, etc. to find materials for research, learning and teaching. Using DELCAT, researchers from around the world can discover resources found at the University of Delaware Library, Museums and Press. 

• The catalog aids academic research by providing access to a wide array of scholarly resources. Students and faculty can find relevant materials for assignments, papers and research projects,  enhancing the quality and depth of academic work.

• A comprehensive catalog encourages interdisciplinary learning by offering resources from various fields of study. This exposure to diverse materials fosters a broader understanding and exploration of different subjects and perspectives. 

• Online catalogs are invaluable for distance learners who may not have physical access to the library. They provide equal access to resources, enabling remote students to engage in research and learning activities as if they were on campus.

Specific work on this project included:

• Prepared to cleanup existing collection and people data in the system, reviewed all related policies for configuration in the new system and served as liaisons to the vendor during the migration.

• Developed a continuity processes for the migration and made decisions that impact how the campus community discovers our resources in this system and accounts for the acquisition of these resources.

Nominated by Peter Benson, Department Chair, Anthropology with support from Jennifer Trivedi, Asst. Professor, Anthropology

“More than just doing an excellent job in [her] role, she has quickly become the most essential and influential part of our concerted efforts to (in the words of the UD and CAS strategic plans) "improve student experience," "lead the way in student learning and engagement," and "develop and diversify faculty, staff and students... We have increased the number of anthropology majors by 25% in the two semesters since her hire!" 

Specific work has included:

• Redesign of Anthropology Blue & Golden Days display with special attention to increasing diverse representation of research, teaching and student demographics.
• Helped the chair systematically review and revise all of Anthropology's course titles, course descriptions, and curricular attributes—a monumental logistical undertaking that was critical for refreshing and innovating our academic program.
• Jeanine coordinated all elements of a major, weeklong Fall-semester event focused on improving undergraduate student professionalization and career training in anthropology. This event has now rolled over into an additional phase in which our department is part of a pilot program of the Career Center looking at new networking and career search possibilities for UD undergraduates.
• Standardized our office functions and filing systems on a shared Google Drive (using Docs, Forms, and Sheets) to facilitate communications and procedures within the anthropology department.
• Created a Gantt chart that details all department processes to enhance workflow among staff and the chair and improve outcomes for students and faculty.
• Leveraging her own UD art degree, Jeanine decorated our space with anthropological art, gallery-style informational placards, and new displays showcasing student and faculty achievements...She routinely immerses herself in department culture and programming, setting a new standard for how logistical and intellectual work can be merged and highlighting the critical role that staff play in the university mission.
• When we installed the HT94 art installation in Munroe Hall, the work came with several important parts, including logistics of arranging the space, providing food for students, staff, faculty and community members who were participating, and actively installing the work. The art installation has been one of the most successful programs in department history, garnering widespread community participation and important recognition by the UD and CAS Comms teams. Jeanine’s leadership, coordination and immersive learning were essential for the program’s success.