The one place Rhonda Wallace, administrative specialist in the CORE Research Office, didn't expect to see Executive Dean Ken Johnson, D.O., was sitting at her desk. But on Monday, Feb. 2, there he was with a bunch of green and white balloons. She became the first person to receive a CARE (Celebrating Achievements & Recognizing Excellence) award. CARE is the new Heritage College employee recognition program.

 

"I'm floored," Wallace said. Grace Brannan, Ph.D., CORE research executive director, nominated Wallace for the nearly six months of support she provided to the CORE office on the Dublin campus as they searched for a new administrative support person. "She worked

above and beyond the call of duty to meet deadlines for CORE Research and CORE offices in Dublin. Rhonda is a wonderful coworker!" said Brannan.

 

John Sattler, photo resources supervisor in the Office of Communication, was equally surprised when Johnson showed up at an office staff meeting. Sattler - who's usually taking pictures at Heritage College events and activities - was suddenly in front of the camera. "I'm so happy with the work you're doing," said Johnson, thanking Sattler for the late nights and weekends he routinely puts in. "One of the reasons why we can tell the stories, promote our messages successfully, is because of John's photos. He is

Executive Dean Kenneth Johnson, D.O., delivers CARE awards to, from top, Jody Gerome; John Sattler; and  Rhonda Wallace.

also one of our college's greatest ambassadors," said Karoline Lane, chief communications officer, who nominated Sattler.

 

The Dean's prize patrol finished up at the River Rose Obstetrics-Gynecology Office in Athens where Jody Gerome, D.O., ('05) works. She is also the CORE assistant dean for the Southeast Ohio region and an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology. Surrounded by her colleagues, Johnson congratulated Gerome and read her nomination.

 

Joyce Jadwin, Psy.D., assistant director of faculty development, wrote that Gerome sets a standard of excellence "by taking the time to acquire or refer students and residents to appropriate resources when they are struggling with academic issues or managing the many other aspects of training to become a physician."

 

The January CARE recipients will be presented with a certificate of award during the February Executive Committee meeting and will receive $75 in their paycheck.

 

Changes made to CARE nomination process

The new Heritage College employee recognition program called CARE received 43 nominations in January. Due to the huge response, some slight changes have been made to give nominees a better chance to have their name drawn from the pool.

 

If you recall, every month, three people - one each from administrative staff, classified staff and faculty - are drawn from all nominations collected during the month. We will continue collecting names each month, but now, nominees will also remain eligible for monthly drawings on a quarterly basis during the calendar year. Beginning with the first quarter (January - March), the names of nominees will remain in the pool throughout the quarter unless the person's name is pulled during a monthly drawing. The pool of names will be emptied at the end of the quarter and populated again throughout the next period. With this new process, names will not have to be resubmitted each month. However, if you want your nominee to be included in the next quarter's pool, their name will have to be resubmitted through the CARE website, which includes details about nomination criteria and the submission process.

 

At the end of each quarter, nominees will receive details about their nomination, and the names of all nominees will be posted on the CARE website.      

 

Michael Wolanin, IT coordinator, joined the Office of Medical Informatics at the Heritage College, Cleveland on Jan. 26.  He can be reached on the Cleveland campus in SPA-212, at 216.491.6526.