Employees Celebrate Service Milestones

UC Merced honored 164 employees recently at its annual Celebrating Service awards ceremony. The annual event pays tribute to staff members who have achieved milestone anniversaries at the campus and system levels.

A joint effort by the Office of the Chancellor, Human Resources and Staff Assembly, the morning event included breakfast and a formal presentation of awards.

Staff Assembly President Pam Taylor emceed the invitation-only event. Brian Powell, associate vice chancellor for Human Resources and Administrative Services, credited the honorees with being campus architects.

“Here, today, we celebrate the fateful decisions that each of you made … to join UC Merced and the UC system,” Powell said. “Your decisions have shaped our past and shape our future.”

Staff members like those honored at the ceremony have had a great impact on the rapid growth of the university.

“Indeed,” Powell said, “we are living through history with our 2020 Project literally transforming the landscape around us, a history that would not be possible without your decisions to join this institution, and without your contributions, past, present and future, to this great campus.”

Staff members are rewarded for every five years of their service; they each receive a crystal block recognizing service to UC Merced and a pin or paperweight recognizing service to the University of California outside of UC Merced.

Celebrating 30 years of UC-wide service at the ceremony were Vice Chancellor of Development and Alumni Relations Kyle Hoffman and Admissions and Outreach Director Encarnación Ruiz. Administrator of Research Accounting Services Christina Christensen and Susan Sims, special assistant to the provost/executive vice chancellor and chief of staff, have each served the UC system for 25 years.

A full list of recognized employees can be found on the Staff Assembly website.