Laughter, thoughtful conversations, recognition, and delicious Spanish-style food marked our 19th annual Staff Appreciation and Outstanding Awards. This year’s celebration was very special as it was Dean Ann Harrison’s first Staff Appreciation.

We took the time, as we do each year, to thank all our wonderful staff for their contributions. It was fantastic to see so many HEART, Spot, and Achievement award winners rise to be applauded by their peers, as well. Thank you for all that you do!

This year we received 63 nominations for Outstanding Staff who demonstrate the Defining Leadership Principles in their work, everyday. We also received 9 team awards for great-performing teams who inspire us to work collaboratively as often as possible. Big thanks to all those who took the time to nominate their peers, this could not be possible without you.

Selecting the winners was a very tough job! We are super appreciative of our selection committee for completing this task. We also would like to thank the event organizers, our wonderful photographer, and our caterer!

And now for the award winners:

For demonstrating “Question the Status Quo:” Drew Ollero from the Full-Time MBA Admissions Team!

Drew has been a pivotal player in driving Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion efforts within not only his team but also to benefit staff across Haas. He has worked to re-establish the Staff Brown Bag monthly discussion as a forum for staff to deepen understanding of DEI and increase inclusion within our school. His colleagues respect him for his “knowledge, willingness to share information and openness to ideas from others”.

From the FTMBA admissions standpoint, Drew has thoughtfully reached out to newly admitted Consortium students with resources, contacts, and events that may be relevant to them, which plays a big role in whether they choose to matriculate to Haas. Drew’s efforts have not gone unnoticed.

Congratulations, Drew! Well deserved!

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The next award is for “Confidence Without Attitude:” Congratulations to Loren Fentroy from the Full-Time MBA program office!

Loren goes above and beyond to support the Haas community. The student body depends on the Program Office for institutional knowledge and Loren has been an invaluable resource for not only students but colleagues as well. In addition, Loren has been effective and reliable when collaboration with different units and MBA programs is needed.

A student nominator mentioned that Loren takes care of extra-curricular activities, which often do not have clear rules, and is responsive and strategic when executing them, she fully commits to her tasks to ensure they are successful.

Way to go, Loren!

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And now for the award for demonstrating “Students Always:” Fani Garagouni from the Center for Financial Reporting and Management!

Fani is a force to be reckoned with. She assumed her new role as the Assistant Director of CFRM and has stepped into her position seamlessly. She is continuously learning and improving her role. She works to seek learning opportunities and shares them with the Haas community in many ways, including taking part in organizing the healthy “Cooking Demo” in January and the “Know Your Numbers” screening last fall. Fani was also a key player in ensuring Haas’ Gold Level Healthy Department Certification, this year.

In her unit, Fani focuses her work in supporting students interested in accounting. She is excelling at her tasks impressing students, faculty, and staff.

You rock, Fani!

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The final individual award is for “Beyond Yourself”: Congrats to Ashley Woods from the Faculty Assistance Team!

Ashley is always on top of her game, accomplishing tasks in a timely manner and thinking one step ahead. She is a tremendous asset and always helps students, faculty, and staff with a huge smile and a very infectious warmth.

A faculty member wrote letting us know that “from small things such as reminding me I forgot to submit an Uber receipt, to big things such as helping strategize and organize student and alumni events, she is always there to help facilitate”.

A student mentioned that “Ashley has amazing organizational skills, she perfectly handles last minute requests. Overall, she seems to tackle all her tasks with ease, a testament to how efficient she is.”

Congratulations, Ashley!

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Now for the Team Award in “Collaboration and Inclusiveness:” The HTS Enterprise Services Team! Robert Lozano, Ramon Soto, Kathleen Harris, and Miguel Rivas

This team worked together to provide support for the compressed timeline for the Xlab move from Hearst Gymnasium back to Haas. This project coincided with the Haas Network Account Retirement project which was also being supported by these folks. Even though they were under extreme time stress, they never let that get in the way of their professionalism. Every question and need was resolved. They worked late and even on weekends to ensure that the Xlab would be open to support campus research projects.

The team members supported each other and were a wonderful example of a team working together on a common goal. Their efforts inspired their colleagues in the best possible way. Thank you so much! We hope you all enjoy the lunch with Dean Harrison.

Congratulations!

Thank you to Engage @ Haas for being in charge of the staff gift this year. We received a mini first aid kit!

Congrats to all our winners and to all our #Haasome staff for being a part of such a fabulous and hardworking team!

Check out more photos from our event, below. Thank you to Manali Anne Photography for these fantastic shots!

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