Weber State University Career Services held a Career Championship Banquet honoring 12 faculty and staff members who have contributed to student career and professional development on March 15.
The Career Champions Program started in 2020, but due to COVID-19 restrictions, Student Services wasn’t able to put on an in-person banquet.
“This is the first of many banquets; we hope to make this an annual thing,” Jacob Wilkey, career counselor for the College of Health Professions and co-organizer of this event, said.
Event co-organizers Jenna Kane, marketing and publicity specialist for WSU Career Services, and Callie Oyama, Career Services marketing intern, wrote that “Career Champions go above and beyond to provide students with the necessary tools to further their career prior to graduation.”
But as mentors, what do they do for the students at WSU?
“Mentors are individuals who invest in students’ lives, wanting what’s best for them outside of the classroom environment,” Kane said.
The career champions of 2021-22 displayed each of those attributes, and students took the opportunity to recognize it. Students elected the staff and faculty who won these awards. The students left comments on their submissions paying homage to the specific work these mentors have done for their lives.
“WSU is the highest ROI institution in the state of Utah because we have dedicated people who really look across all of our disciplines to make individualized impact on our students’ education,” Brad Mortensen, WSU President, said.
The individualized impact is what this event is all about. The nominations and kind words from students who nominated these career champions are direct translations of the individualized approach the faculty and staff take at WSU.
The following professors and instructors were recognized and awarded with a plaque: Rick Westmoreland, adjunct Professor, Criminal Justice; Sheila Anderson, associate professor for the Department of Child and Family Studies; George Kvernadze, mathematics professor; Terrilyn Morgan, instructor for the School of Accounting & Taxation at the Goddard School of Business & Economics; Patrick Murphy, adjunct professor of communication for Lindquist College of Arts & Humanities; and Matt Nicholaou, associate professor and Dumke Endowed Chair of the Dumke College of Health Professions.
Other award recipients are Tashina Barber, multicultural retention counselor for the Center for Multicultural Excellence; Jennifer Bodine, sustainability manager for the Energy & Sustainability Office; Nicholas Downs, athletics marketing and operations coordinator for WSU Athletics; Tim Eck, director of Wildcat Store Operations; and Tara Peris, director of Student Involvement and Leadership.
“The three things that come to mind when I think of Career Champions are seeing greatness in students, empowering students and developing trust with students,” Ben Ferney, WSU Student Body President, said.
The award-winning individuals above displayed all three of these qualities, and in the following years, more hardworking WSU staff and faculty will be recognized for their work with the student body.
