Bryan Molnar, electronic technician supervisor for
Information Services Classroom Technology, received a
President's Excellence Award for effectiveness and
efficiency from Kent State President Lester A. Lefton.

Nominations for the fifth annual President’s Excellence Award will be accepted from Aug. 12 through Sept. 13. The award program recognizes staff members who demonstrate exceptional performance in advancing the strategic goals of the university during the previous fiscal year.

To date, 39 staff members have been recognized with the President’s Excellence Award, and each received a check for $1,000. Past recipients have come from diverse areas within the university and include employees in varied positions, such as program manager, administrative support staff, maintenance repair worker, residence hall workers, director, coordinator, electronic technician supervisor, a police officer and a head coach from Intercollegiate Athletics. You can view a complete list of past recipients on the President’s Excellence Award website.

President Lester A. Lefton states that he established the award program in 2009 because of the “countless members of our university community who excel at trying to make each day better for themselves and for our students. There are many examples of the dedication our staff members bring to their jobs,” Lefton says. “Sometimes this is demonstrated through work on a major initiative, and sometimes it comes through the employee’s daily, and often special, interactions with students, their colleagues and others.”

In keeping with the purpose of the President’s Excellence Award, a nominee must demonstrate exceptional performance in advancing one of the following criteria that are aligned with the university's strategic goals. This includes actions, initiatives or projects related to the list below and must have occurred during the previous fiscal year (July 1, 2012 through June 30, 2013). This includes actions, initiatives or projects related to:

• Collaboration
• Diversity and Inclusion
• Effectiveness and Efficiency
• Excellence in Customer Service
• Serving as an Ambassador for the University
• Student Success
  

Full-time classified and unclassified employees at all Kent State locations who have been employed by the university for a minimum of one year and are in good standing are eligible for nomination. Past recipients of the President's Excellence Award are not eligible to be nominated again for a minimum of two (2) years following their award. Faculty are not eligible for this award.

Nominations may come from peers, supervisors or other divisional leaders, faculty or students and must be submitted by Sept. 13. Nominations will be reviewed, and a final list will be submitted to the Office of the President. The final decision resides with the president; award recipients will be announced in December.

The nomination form, along with detailed information on the award criteria and the nomination process, is available on the President’s website. The nomination forms may be printed and mailed or submitted electronically.

If you have questions regarding the award or nomination process, please contact Geraldine Hayes-Nelson, Ph.D., executive director for HR Outreach and Initiatives at 330-672-2901 or ghnelson@kent.edu.