{"id":155622,"date":"2016-04-22T15:41:24","date_gmt":"2016-04-22T19:41:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/?p=155622"},"modified":"2016-04-22T15:41:24","modified_gmt":"2016-04-22T19:41:24","slug":"witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\/","title":{"rendered":"Witmer Awards recognize staff for distinguished service"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Witmer Award for Distinguished Service is given to staff members whose careers have been characterized by outstanding and sustained contributions to the University.<\/p>\n

President and CEO Joel Seligman and Robert Witmer Jr., chairman emeritus of the Board of Trustees, will present the Witmer Awards\u2014as well the Meliora Awards and Staff Community Service Award<\/a>\u2014at a reception in honor of the recipients on Wednesday, April 27.<\/p>\n

Larry Ansini, director of University compensation<\/h3>\n

\"witmer_Larry_Ansini_web\"During his 40-year career at the University, Larry Ansini has demonstrated his prowess in the complex field of wage and salary administration\u2014and he does it with a strong work ethic and commitment to doing what\u2019s right.<\/p>\n

Ansini and his team work with University and Medical Center leadership to review and discuss strategies, conduct audits and internal equity reviews, and tackle other compensation-related matters\u2014all with the goal of attracting, motivating, rewarding, and retaining staff.<\/p>\n

\u201cLarry has always been first and foremost a champion and advocate for University employees, and the compensation work he does reflects his impeccable ethics and integrity in his efforts to design, implement, and maintain a staff compensation plan that is consistent, transparent, and fair,\u201d writes Susan Wormer Chippero, senior counsel for labor and employment, in a letter supporting Ansini\u2019s nomination.<\/p>\n

Ansini is also lauded for his mentoring his team members and leading by example.<\/p>\n

Colleagues note that he is especially effective in working with state and federal agencies on compliance-related matters.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are fortunate to have someone so articulate, professional, and knowledgable at the helm anytime there have been issues of compliance, audit, or legal scrutiny,\u201d writes Tony Kinslow, associate vice president for human resources, in a nomination letter. \u201cAs a result of Larry\u2019s capabilities and foresight, we are always armed and well positioned to address new regulatory guidelines such as those around pay equity based upon gender or race.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kate Miller, senior director of census management and support services<\/h3>\n

\"Witmer_Kate_Miller_web\"Kathleen (Kate) Miller, who joined the University in 1978 as a nurse at Strong Memorial Hospital, is a \u201csupportive, trusted, and effective\u201d leader who works tirelessly to ensure the hospital is the best place to receive care and the best place to work.<\/p>\n

As senior director of census management and support services, Miller\u2019s efforts are directed at reducing wait time for inpatient beds by making the flow of patients at the hospital more efficient.\u00a0Colleagues say Miller has promoted innovative thinking and creative solutions to ease the hospital\u2019s urgent capacity issues. She works closely with her staff to ensure appropriate triage of patients and she has efficiently managed transfer requests from other hospitals.<\/p>\n

\u201cWithout question, Kate\u2019s work has continually helped enhance the overall patient experience,\u201d writes Jackie Beckerman, senior director for the patient experience and the Strong Commitment, in a nomination letter.\u00a0\u201cKate\u2019s kind and caring demeanor, combined with her high expectations and ability to hold people\u00a0accountable, makes her an exceptional leader.”<\/p>\n

Miller makes communication a priority\u201a spearheading a daily executive briefing meeting that brings together leaders from more than 20 hospital departments to discuss safety and census issues. Several nominators have called it the most productive and important meeting serving hospital patients.<\/p>\n

Michael Leonard, associate chief quality officer and associate professor of pediatrics and public health sciences, says Miller \u201crole models our institutional values.\u201d
\n\u201cShe is firm but fair, decisive but flexible, and professional at all times.”<\/p>\n

Lisa Peck, department administrator for UR Ventures<\/h3>\n

\"Witmer_Lisa_Peck_web\"When colleagues at UR Ventures turn to Lisa Peck with a project or task, they know it will be handled correctly and be completed on time.<\/p>\n

With 23 years at the University under her belt, Peck \u201cknows how everything fits together at the University,\u201d writes David Englert, marketing manager for UR Ventures, in a letter supporting her nomination. \u201cThis gives her the ability to make things happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

Peck maintains and manages the department\u2019s budget and is responsible for distributing royalty payments to faculty members and to the University. She also serves as office manager, ensuring that UR Ventures and the co-located Center for Business Engagement have everything they need to function properly.<\/p>\n

She served a crucial role in UR Ventures\u2019 move to Saunders Research Building, nominators say. Colleagues also cite her invaluable help during the set-up and implementation of the the department\u2019s sophisticated project-management system, SalesForce.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn sum, she is trustworthy beyond reproach, unflappable, resourceful, and confident\u2014and all with an exemplary \u2018can-do\u2019 attitude,\u201d writes Scott Catlin, associate vice president of technology ventures, who adds that Peck is \u201cone of the unsung heroes that form the fabric of any great institution.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Debbie Shannon, administrator for the Center for Visual Science<\/h3>\n

\"witmer_Debbie_Shannon_web\"For more than 32 years, Debbie Shannon has been an essential part of the research engines driving several University departments.<\/p>\n

Shannon, who joined the Center for Visual Science in 2001, is recognized by colleagues for her ability to expertly manage multi-investigator, multi-institutional research proposals\u2014a skill she honed working in the departments of Physics and Astronomy and Chemistry before moving to CVS.<\/p>\n

\u201cHer prowess and efficiency in proposal development took CVS to a whole new level in terms of the number and quality of large proposals we were able to submit,\u201d reads a nomination letter by David Williams, the William G. Allyn Professor of Medical Optics, director of the Center for Visual Science, and dean for research in Arts, Sciences & Engineering.<\/p>\n

Faculty from departments such as Neuroscience, Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Optics, and Ophthalmology have reached out to Shannon for assistance with grant proposals, Williams notes.<\/p>\n

Nominators also recognize the small things she does to keep the center running smoothly.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe is always super busy, yet always makes the time to help faculty, staff and students with problems,\u201d writes Gregory DeAngelis, the George Eastman Professor and associate director of the Center for Visual Science. \u201cIn all of her activities, Debbie maintains the highest level of professionalism, integrity, and courtesy. I can\u2019t imagine how CVS would function without her!\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Witmer Award for Distinguished Service is given to staff members whose careers have been characterized by outstanding and sustained contributions to the University. President and CEO Joel Seligman and…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[29032,29192],"class_list":["post-155622","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-staff-awards","tag-witmer-award"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWitmer Awards recognize staff for distinguished service<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Witmer Awards recognize staff for distinguished service\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Witmer Award for Distinguished Service is given to staff members whose careers have been characterized by outstanding and sustained contributions to the University. President and CEO Joel Seligman and…\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"News Center\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-04-22T19:41:24+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/witmer_Larry_Ansini_web-1-420x630.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Jennifer Roach\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Jennifer Roach\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Jennifer Roach\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/0768acf0abf9535c0d838bcd77c3e9cd\"},\"headline\":\"Witmer Awards recognize staff for distinguished service\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-04-22T19:41:24+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":996,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2016\\\/04\\\/witmer_Larry_Ansini_web-1-420x630.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"staff awards\",\"witmer award\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\\\/\",\"name\":\"Witmer Awards recognize staff for distinguished service\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2016\\\/04\\\/witmer_Larry_Ansini_web-1-420x630.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-04-22T19:41:24+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/0768acf0abf9535c0d838bcd77c3e9cd\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2016\\\/04\\\/witmer_Larry_Ansini_web-1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2016\\\/04\\\/witmer_Larry_Ansini_web-1.jpg\",\"width\":600,\"height\":901},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Witmer Awards recognize staff for distinguished service\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/\",\"name\":\"News Center\",\"description\":\"University of Rochester\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/0768acf0abf9535c0d838bcd77c3e9cd\",\"name\":\"Jennifer Roach\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.rochester.edu\\\/newscenter\\\/author\\\/jwedow\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Witmer Awards recognize staff for distinguished service","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Witmer Awards recognize staff for distinguished service","og_description":"The Witmer Award for Distinguished Service is given to staff members whose careers have been characterized by outstanding and sustained contributions to the University. President and CEO Joel Seligman and…","og_url":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\/","og_site_name":"News Center","article_published_time":"2016-04-22T19:41:24+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/witmer_Larry_Ansini_web-1-420x630.jpg","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"author":"Jennifer Roach","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Jennifer Roach","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\/"},"author":{"name":"Jennifer Roach","@id":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/#\/schema\/person\/0768acf0abf9535c0d838bcd77c3e9cd"},"headline":"Witmer Awards recognize staff for distinguished service","datePublished":"2016-04-22T19:41:24+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\/"},"wordCount":996,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/witmer_Larry_Ansini_web-1-420x630.jpg","keywords":["staff awards","witmer award"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\/","url":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\/","name":"Witmer Awards recognize staff for distinguished service","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/witmer_Larry_Ansini_web-1-420x630.jpg","datePublished":"2016-04-22T19:41:24+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/#\/schema\/person\/0768acf0abf9535c0d838bcd77c3e9cd"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/witmer_Larry_Ansini_web-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/witmer_Larry_Ansini_web-1.jpg","width":600,"height":901},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/witmer-awards-recognize-staff-for-distinguished-service\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Witmer Awards recognize staff for distinguished service"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/","name":"News Center","description":"University of Rochester","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/#\/schema\/person\/0768acf0abf9535c0d838bcd77c3e9cd","name":"Jennifer Roach","url":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/author\/jwedow\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/155622","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=155622"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/155622\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":155762,"href":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/155622\/revisions\/155762"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=155622"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=155622"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=155622"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}