At All College Day in August, Collin College will announce its winners of the full- and part-time Recognition Of Service and Excellence (ROSE) awards given annually to two staff members. Cougar News is featuring the ROSE award finalists.
Annette Powell, Human Resources Secretary at the Collin Higher Education Center
Q. There are always small things that make one’s job interesting or worthwhile. What minute aspects of your job do you get the most joy out of?
A. I enjoy knowing that the work I do contributes to the flow of information that benefits students, staff and faculty.
Q. As a ROSE Award finalist, you’ve been acknowledged for going the extra step in one way or another. What is your approach or philosophy toward your job?
A. I do the best I can and everything else will fall in place.
Susan Miller, Testing Director at the Spring Creek Campus
Q. There are always small things that make one’s job interesting or worthwhile. What minute aspects of your job do you get the most joy out of?
A. One might call it a small thing, but just being there to answer the questions of students and parents really helps them get through the registration and testing processes. Websites are great for many things but sometimes they just need that human connection to reassure and provide the needed information. The direct instant feedback that I have assisted them in getting one step closer to their college experience is very rewarding and keeps me motivated to stay abreast of all the changes in processes and options for students.
Q. As a ROSE Award finalist, you’ve been acknowledged for going the extra step in one way or another. What is your approach or philosophy toward your job?
A. I love the everyday challenge of my job. I like to think of myself as the testing/TSI “go to” person for students, parents, staff and instructors. The requirements are ever changing and I feel I must do all I can to clarify information, facilitate changes, and to develop and provide training. I don’t do short cuts. I make sure the information being provided is correct and reliable every time.
Jimmie Dearman, Academic Advisor at the Spring Creek Campus
Q. There are always small things that make one’s job interesting or worthwhile. What minute aspects of your job do you get the most joy out of?
A. There are three things that make my job worth doing. First, knowing I get to work with wonderful professionals makes it a joy to show up. We are a team and willing to help each other out. Next, working at night, I deal with a majority of people who are full-time employees and part-time students. Seeing the happiness on the faces of these students achieving their goal of graduating makes it worth it. Finally, helping an incoming freshman start trying to achieve his or her goal of attending college and calming the nerves and helping him or her understand the classes needed to graduate.
Q. As a ROSE Award finalist, you’ve been acknowledged for going the extra step in one way or another. What is your approach or philosophy toward your job?
A. I have a simple philosophy – the student comes first. I want to find out what he or she wants from attending school and help him or her achieve it. I want to take as much bureaucracy out of the process as possible. When the student leaves, I want the advice he or she got to be well worth the trip.
Jackie Langford, Director of Healthcare Simulation at the Central Park Campus
Q. There are always small things that make one’s job interesting or worthwhile. What minute aspects of your job do you get the most joy out of?
A. I am in a very unique position in which I get to work with dead bodies (simulated mannequins, of course), make people sick, and even kill people (I guess I should say “let them die”). And then, I stand back and let the students assess them and tend to them appropriately and hopefully, not let the patients die. The most rewarding thing I get to do is watching light bulbs come on! I’m not talking about the overhead kind, though. When I have students working on a project or concept, I love being able to watch them as they discover a new truth or when they finally comprehend and understand a concept. Sometimes it seems like I can almost see a light bulb appear above their heads when they finally “get it.” Then I know I have been a part of something bigger and am affecting a change in someone else’s life. Those are truly rewarding moments in the teaching portion of my position.
Q. As a ROSE Award finalist, you’ve been acknowledged for going the extra step in one way or another. What is your approach or philosophy toward your job?
A. I have come to realize that one of my God-given gifts is teaching and helping others to learn and grow. I am energized when I am able to help others discover for themselves and to learn. I love finding ways of helping students to do just that. In this position, I have the privilege of being able to bring new learning ideas and techniques, and even new toys to the table for students to explore, work with, and learn from. Most of the interactions I have personally with students involves hands-on learning and feedback, both of which have been proven to help most students learn better and retain the knowledge and skills they need in order to become the healthcare providers that the real world is demanding of them. Because of this, I have the honor and privilege of being a part of the students’ growth towards becoming those persons they have dreamed of becoming.
Julie Youngblood, Programming Support Liaison at the Collin Higher Education Center
Q. There are always small things that make one’s job interesting or worthwhile. What minute aspects of your job do you get the most joy out of?
A. I enjoy analyzing and researching problems and issues, and seeing those resolutions take effect.
Q. As a ROSE Award finalist, you’ve been acknowledged for going the extra step in one way or another. What is your approach or philosophy toward your job?
A. I aspire to be a useful resource to the students, faculty and staff of Collin College and apply my best efforts and services. At the end of the day it makes me feel good to have helped and to know I’m contributing to improve someone’s day.
David Drane, Plant Operations Worker at the Central Park Campus
Q. There are always small things that make one’s job interesting or worthwhile. What minute aspects of your job do you get the most joy out of?
A. The smiles. The smiles I get when I help a student find his or her class. The smiles I get when I unlock a door for staff and faculty, when they have misplaced their keys. The smiles I get from community members when I help them navigate the building. Their smile makes me smile which makes both of our day better. Yes, I would say the smiles bring me the most joy, which is fuel for the soul.
Q. As a ROSE Award finalist, you’ve been acknowledged for going the extra step in one way or another. What is your approach or philosophy toward your job?
A. The Golden Rule: In everything, in every circumstance, do to others as you would have them do to you.
Glenda Strange, Child Development and Education Lab Instructor at the Spring Creek Campus
Q. There are always small things that make one’s job interesting or worthwhile. What minute aspects of your job do you get the most joy out of?
A. I work with wonderful people in the Child Development and Education Department. Since we work as a team, we can assist more students. I really like working with students!
Q. As a ROSE Award finalist, you’ve been acknowledged for going the extra step in one way or another. What is your approach or philosophy toward your job?
A. My approach or philosophy toward my job is that students are important and I want to give them the very best experience at Collin College in the Child Development and Education Department. I work very closely with the full and associate faculty, staff, Collin College Child Development Center staff and off-campus approved lab sites including independent school districts. I also believe that it is very important to have a positive attitude.
Steven Anschutz, Lab Assistant at the Spring Creek Campus
Q. There are always small things that make one’s job interesting or worthwhile. What minute aspects of your job do you get the most joy out of?
A. I enjoy being able to keep up on new technology in our field. Researching new equipment keeps me relevant when helping out students, and I am able to apply that knowledge to many areas of my life.
Q. As a ROSE Award finalist, you’ve been acknowledged for going the extra step in one way or another. What is your approach or philosophy toward your job?
A. My philosophy is pretty straight forward: cheerfully doing what you are asked to do in a timely fashion goes a long way.