Each year, Colorado State University celebrates the teaching, research and service achievements of CSU students, alumni and friends, academic faculty, administrative professionals and classified staff as part of the Celebrate! Colorado State Awards.

While we can’t Celebrate! in person this year, we can share the complete list of honorees here. Please reach out to your co-workers to congratulate them on a job well done.

University Distinguished Teaching Scholar

Jane Shaw

Jane Shaw
Department of Clinical Sciences

Dr. Jane Shaw, professor in the Department of Clinical Sciences in the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, has been named a Colorado State University University Distinguished Teaching Scholar for 2021.

The University Distinguished Teaching Scholar designation honors faculty members for outstanding teaching and their continuing commitment to the pursuit of excellence in teaching and learning.

Shaw, a pioneer in the field of veterinary communication, has achieved international and national recognition for building a model curriculum to train veterinary students to communicate effectively with clients, and for developing a transformative communication workshop series while a member of the CVMBS faculty.

Upon graduation, 97% of the Doctor of Veterinary Medicine Class of 2020 rated communication as a competent skill and identified the communication curriculum as the strongest aspect of the veterinary medical program.

“I can unequivocally state that CSU DVM alumni cite their [communications] training as the single greatest contributor to professional preparedness,” wrote Dr. Melinda Frye, associate dean for veterinary academic and student affairs in the college, in nominating Shaw for the UTDS honor. “After assuming their professional roles, these individuals quickly come to appreciate their communication education as they daily apply their foundational skills not only in communication but in interpersonal relations and professionalism.”

The Veterinary Communication and Professional Excellence curriculum has received commendation from the American Veterinary Medical Association Council on Education. The curriculum has been studied and adopted by veterinary colleges around the world.

Frye acknowledged Shaw’s perseverance to gain acceptance of the curriculum within a profession not always focused on such “soft skills.”

“Dr. Shaw worked tirelessly to educate teachers and learners across the globe regarding the critical nature of these attributes in optimally equipping veterinary professionals to thrive in an array of roles,” she wrote.

The groundbreaking and rigorous VCPE program provides veterinary medicine students with critical skills for compassionate and effective communication that improves client understanding, partnership, and satisfaction that results in better patient outcomes and improved animal welfare.

A major component of VCPE is simulated interviews between students and actors specially prepared by Shaw to simulate interactions veterinarians encounter in their practices every day. Students are briefed before and debriefed after each encounter to understand how they handled the discussions and how things could have been done differently to create better outcomes for not only the client and the vet but for the patient as well.

Students report gaining important professional skills and insights from the experience.

“The structure of the client interviews really facilitated improvement,” one said. “Having time to access the cases beforehand to think about what might be happening, and then sharing these thoughts in a group collaboration before the interview allowed me to really organize my thoughts. The debrief and feedback from colleagues was an excellent way to reflect on what happened, highlight potential improvements and alternative approaches, and prepare for the next interview.”

“I really appreciate how Jane Shaw pushes us to get out of our comfort zone and stretch ourselves, but insures a supportive and comfortable environment to do so in,” said another.

“Hands down the most useful thing we did this week.”

Shaw also developed the FRANK™ Workshops to provide continuing communication education to practicing veterinarians worldwide as well as to train CSU interns, residents and faculty.

Shaw joined CSU in 2005, after completing her undergraduate work in animal science at Cornell, her DVM at Michigan State, and her Ph.D. in epidemiology at University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada. Until 2014, she served as the director of the Argus Institute, a one-of-a-kind program in a veterinary college dedicated to the human-animal bond, counseling, pet loss and grief support, and veterinary-client-patient interactions.

She has written 20 published manuscripts and a guidebook to veterinary communication. Over her career, Shaw has raised $827,673 in programmatic, continuing education, educational and research grants. Shaw was named Colorado Veterinary Medical Association Outstanding Faculty of the Year in 2011 and elected to the Teaching Academy of the Consortium of Regional Western Colleges in 2015.

Scholarship Impact Award

Debbie Crans

Debbie C. Crans
Department of Chemistry

Debbie Crans, professor in the Department of Chemistry in the College of Natural Sciences, has received Colorado State University’s 2021 Scholarship Impact Award for Career Achievement, in recognition of her research accomplishments and professional impacts on the fields of both organic and inorganic chemistry.

The Scholarship Impact Award recognizes distinguished CSU faculty whose scholarship has had a major impact nationally or internationally. This is the first year the Office of the Vice President for Research has named two award recipients: the award for Recent Achievement focuses on the last 10 years of scholarship, and the award for Career Achievement honors an entire career of scholarship.

The Scholarship Impact Award includes $15,000 in funding to support the recipient’s research and/or scholarship program and an invitation to present a lecture on their scholarship.

Over her 34-year career at CSU, Crans has become a world expert in the area of metals in medicine, bioinorganic and biological chemistry. She is best known for her work on the chemistry and biochemistry of vanadium-containing compounds, which has earned her major national and international awards in both organic chemistry (Cope Scholar Award 2015) and inorganic chemistry (Vanadis Award 2004 and American Chemical Society Distinguished Service and Research Award 2019).

Most of this work involves the chemistry of vanadium compounds acting as anti-diabetic agents.

Crans pioneered the characterization of vanadium compounds as active insulin enhancing agents and documented the structural similarity between vanadium and phosphorus, which allows vanadium compounds to bind enzymes. Her work ranges from fundamental chemistry to in vivo clinical studies, designing new compounds, investigating their fundamental properties, and studying their biological activity.

Recently, Crans has worked on the effects of vanadium compounds as anti-cancer agents, taking two approaches to improving treatment of difficult-to-treat cancers that are resistant to cisplatin.

Crans joined CSU in 1987 after completing her Ph.D. in organic chemistry at Harvard. She earned her undergraduate degree at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark.

At CSU, she has maintained an active research group for the past 34 years with support from NSF, NIH, PRF and other donors, raising over $8 million in research funding. She holds one patent and has two active disclosures, and has presented 263 invited talks (with another dozen postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic).

Crans has mentored more than 60 graduate and postgraduate students and 200 undergraduates in research over her career, as well as publishing 236 peer-reviewed articles that have been cited more than 10,000 times, and edited 12 books or journal issues.

“The dramatic and broad impact of Professor Debbie Crans’ work brings to CSU prestige, honor and recognition,” wrote George Barisas, professor of chemistry and University Interdisciplinary Scholar at CSU, in nominating Crans for the Scholarship Impact Award. “I have always been impressed by the timeliness of her interests, the creativity of her research, the breadth of her international reputation, her concern for student success and her broad participation in University and professional activities. “

Crans, named the College of Natural Sciences’ Professor Laureate for 2015-17, currently chairs the department’s biological chemistry program and the faculty awards committee.

Her most recent national award, the 2019 ACS distinguished service award in inorganic chemistry, is the highest honor the organization can bestow on any member. Crans is only the third woman to receive this high distinction in the society’s 53-year history.

To celebrate Crans’ achievements, a full issue of the Journal of Inorganic Biochemistry published in 2020 was dedicated to her.

Scholarship Impact Award

McKay John

John McKay
Department of Bioagricultural Sciences and Pest Management

John McKay, professor in the Department of Agricultural Biology in the College of Agricultural Sciences, has received Colorado State University’s 2021 Scholarship Impact Award for Recent Achievement, in recognition of the research he has undertaken and the significant impacts it has had on the field of plant ecology and evolution.

The Scholarship Impact Award recognizes distinguished CSU faculty whose scholarship has had a major impact nationally or internationally. This is the first year the Office of the Vice President for Research has named two award recipients: the award for Recent Achievement focuses on the last 10 years of scholarship, and the award for Career Achievement honors an entire career of scholarship.

The Scholarship Impact Award includes $15,000 in funding to support the recipient’s research and/or scholarship program and an invitation to present a lecture on their scholarship.

McKay’s recent research focuses on plant biology with an emphasis on linking genetic variation with physiological traits and ultimately performance in the field. For the past several years he has been using his expertise in ecology to understand drought tolerance in plants. He studies all aspects of plant biology “from roots to shoots,” and has done groundbreaking research on the genomic basis of drought response and local adaptation.

Amy Charkowski, head of his department, called work on drought tolerance “one of the most important areas needed to insure the future well-being of humanity” in her letter nominating McKay for the Scholarship Impact Award.

“Dr. McKay has helped put CSU on the map as a place to study and research drought tolerance,” she added.

Since 2010, when he joined CSU, McKay’s work has attracted nearly $10.5 million in external funding, the highest in the department. He has also published over 70 peer-reviewed articles, including papers in PNAS, Plant Cell, New Phytologist, that have generated over 9,500 citations, and presented dozens of guest lectures and papers at conferences and symposia around the world. McKay was named a CSU Monfort Professor in 2012 and elected an AAAS fellow in 2019.

McKay is renowned for translating his ecological and evolutionary findings to an applied context, such as biofuels production and crop breeding. His work in phenomics led to a patent on equipment for root phenotype analysis. This piece of equipment allows plant breeders and agronomists to measure how plant genetics and crop and soil management affect root phenotypes.

McKay was one of the first plant genomics experts to work with hemp after it once again became legal to grow in the United States. Hemp is a challenging plant to study because it lacks the decades of work invested into other crops. He also has worked with others in the College of Agricultural Sciences to teach an international drought workshop at CSU that has served nearly 150 students from at least 40 countries.

McKay holds a bachelor’s degree from the State University of New York in Albany and a Ph.D. from the University of Montana in Missoula.

Board of Governors Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching Award

Blythe LaGasse

Blythe LaGasse
M.M., ’14
School of Music, Theatre, and Dance

Blythe LaGasse, professor of music therapy in the School of Music, Theatre, and Dance in the College of Liberal Arts at Colorado State University, is the recipient of the 2021 Board of Governors Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching Award.

The award is presented in support of the Board’s belief that excellence in teaching involves creating a process of inquiry that stimulates the curiosity of students and that helps them develop and probe ideas. The teaching function increases motivation, challenges students, and channels inquiry, and LaGasse has demonstrated these characteristics throughout her career at CSU.

LaGasse teaches undergraduate courses in music therapy methods, practice and research. Her approach uses neurological and best-practice approaches, including service learning, peer-to-peer collaboration, feedback mechanisms, and technology to support student learning and success. Her overarching mission is to prepare students for careers as clinical music therapists and for advanced study in the field as scholars and practitioners, with a focus on developing clinical, musical, and research skills throughout the four-year undergraduate curriculum.

LaGasse also established the Undergraduate Music Therapy Research Academy, where music therapy students have the opportunity to engage in research with peers from across the university in collaboration with the Brainwaves Research Lab, which focuses on interdisciplinary neuroscience and music research. In 2020, she started a collaboration with the University of Colorado Hospitals on the use of music therapy and virtual reality for pain control in palliative care.

Her dedication as a teacher was rewarded at the college level in 2016, as she was the recipient of the College of Liberal Arts Excellence in Teaching Award. She was the 2017 recipient of the Online Innovative Educator (OLIE) Award and the 2020 recipient of the TILT Exceptional Achievement in Instructional Innovation in Service-Learning Award, among many other recognitions.

LaGasse joined the faculty in 2005 after completing her master’s in music therapy at CSU. Her undergraduate and Ph.D. work was competed at the University of Kansas. She currently serves as editor of the Journal of Music Therapy, has published dozens of academic articles and chapters, edited an introductory textbook to the music therapy profession, and has presented workshops and invited lectures online and around the world.

“Dr. LaGasse is an outstanding instructor and is fully prepared when working with students,” wrote fellow faculty member Wes Kenney after observing a class taught in April 2019. “The observed class exercises and presentations were well-thought-out from beginning to end. At no point did the energy lag as the students were constantly challenged to come up with answers or solutions based on information received. Dr. LaGasse kept changing how information was presented through questions, lecture, and demonstrations. The students were interested in the subject matter being presented and showed themselves to be fully involved gleaning knowledge through full participation.”

In 2020, LaGasse redesigned her courses, in part due to the pandemic and the need for different ways of learning. However, she took this as an opportunity to really look at all course alignment, assignments, and practices, making significant changes especially at the 200-level.

“When reviewing prior class structures, it seemed that the issue was that students who did not grasp concepts accepted a lower grade and moved forward, consistently making the same mistakes,” she wrote in her application for this award. “The new system allowed students to learn from their mistakes, building the foundation necessary for all other methods courses. Although there are modifications needed for this new structure, the students showed higher competency throughout class, as compared to prior years.”

LaGasse is also a strong proponent of service learning for those using music in health care.

“What I appreciate about service learning is how this experience helps to shift students from the idea of ‘healing’ or ‘changing’ people with disabilities (an ableist idea) toward a mindset of using their skills to help each individual realize their own potential,” she wrote. “This change in mindset is essential because it pulls students away from the idea of savior-ship to understating their role as an ally and an advocate for other people.”

Alumni of the program report that they have been able to use this concept in their professional lives.

“Dr. LaGasse gave me the skill to develop new ideas that allow my clients to best meet their goals,” one said.

“To say that her method of teaching was effective and engaging would be a gross understatement,” said another. “It not only helped me understand the class material, but it also gave me a framework of inquiry that I can use when I am faced with challenges in the workplace.”

Current students also appreciate her teaching.

“Since returning to college after some time off I can safely say Dr. LaGasse is one of the best teachers I have had. She has exceeded what I was hoping for in a university level education and has made the transformation from community college feel natural,” one wrote in a class survey. “Dr. LaGasse is very knowledgeable with music therapy and we are lucky to have her at CSU.”

Monfort Professor

Emily Fisher

Emily V. Fischer
Department of Atmospheric Science

Emily V. Fischer, an associate professor in the Department of Atmospheric Science in the Walter Scott, Jr. College of Engineering, has been named a Monfort Professor, one of Colorado State University’s highest honors.

Monfort Professorships are awarded to faculty who are considered rising stars in their fields. The two-year awards provide $50,000 each year for recipients to work on specific research projects and are made possible by the Monfort Family Foundation.

Recognized as an international leader in the study of atmospheric chemistry and air quality, Fischer is particularly well known for her work on wildfire emissions. In 2018, she was the overall leader of a major aircraft campaign to study smoke from wildfires across the western U.S. as it travels downwind. Due in large part to her tremendous efforts, the campaign, supported by NSF and involving dozens of scientific participants from 6 universities and the National Center for Atmospheric Research, was a major success and is revolutionizing our understanding of the composition of smoke emitted from wildfires and its transformation during long range transport.

“Emily is an amazing scientific leader,” wrote her nominator and department head, Professor Jeffery Collett. “Most atmospheric chemists specialize in measurements or modeling; Emily’s success in building high-profile research efforts in both areas attests to the great talent and energy she brings to the field.”

To date she has published 80 peer-reviewed articles in leading journals and received more than $10 million in sponsored research funding ($7.6 million as principal investigator) from a broad range of federal agencies, including NSF, NASA, EPA, NOAA, and NPS.

Fischer was named one of “10 Scientists to Watch in 2020” by Science News and has received major awards from the American Geophysical Union (Macelwane Medal, 2019) and the American Meteorological Society (Outstanding Early Career Scientist Award in Chemistry, 2020), among numerous others. In 2018 she received a Graduate Advising and Mentorship Award from the CSU Graduate Student Council.

Beyond her extensive atmospheric chemistry research, Fischer is nationally recognized for her efforts to improve participation of women in the geosciences. Her leadership of the NSF-supported PROGRESS (PROmoting Geoscience Research, Education and SuccesS) project has led to tremendous breakthroughs in strategies to support the persistence of women in the field.

Through this project Emily and her collaborators demonstrated strong increases in retention associated with new mentoring practices that paired undergraduate women with established women in the field.

PROGRESS has just been funded by NSF to expand efforts to new geographic regions and to increase focus on students of color. Fischer is also part of a national campaign, Science Moms, providing climate change outreach.

“Emily is the most energetic and enthusiastic faculty member I have encountered in my career,” Collett wrote. “She is committed to using science as a tool to better the lives of people.”

Fischer received her Ph.D. in Atmospheric Sciences from the University of Washington in 2010. From 2011-2013 she served as a NOAA Climate and Global Change Postdoctoral Fellow at Harvard University’s Center for the Environment before joining CSU as an assistant professor in August 2013. She was promoted to associate professor in 2019.

Fischer has devised a Monfort Action Plan to take advantage of improving low-cost sensor technology to identify impacts of air pollution on economically disadvantaged and minority communities. According to Collett, this powerful plan will energize and catalyze Fischer’s contributions to CSU’s land-grant mission to aid Colorado’s citizens.

Monfort Professor

Lauren Wolff

Lauren B. Shomaker
Department of Human Development and Family Studies

Lauren B. Shomaker, an associate professor in the Department of Human Development and Family Studies in the College of Health and Human Sciences, has been named a Monfort Professor, one of Colorado State University’s highest honors.

Monfort Professorships are awarded to faculty who are considered rising stars in their fields. The two-year awards provide $50,000 each year for recipients to work on specific research projects and are made possible by the Monfort Family Foundation.

Shomaker is a nationally recognized scholar in a critical, interdisciplinary, and highly innovative area of research, focusing on the role of depression in metabolic disease risk, particularly during adolescence. This combination of psychology and physiology is dedicated to alleviating health disparities in populations that disproportionately bear the disease burden of metabolic and mental health illness.

Specifically, Shomaker is exploring the links between depression and diabetes. Both are serious public health issues that disparately affect racial/ethnic minority families and present earlier and more severely in females. Existing data primarily focus on adults who have developed Type 2 diabetes, and her unique impact on the field has been to extend the science to adolescence using a prevention lens. Her work employs strong community-engaged collaborations in Latinx, African American, and Native American populations.

In a series of randomized controlled trials, Shomaker’s team found that intervening to decrease depression in at-risk, primarily Latino/African American adolescents, using brief, cost- effective, mental health interventions, improves insulin resistance a year later.

“Dr. Shomaker’s work is critical in helping us continue to build an impactful and well-recognized footprint in innovative research that weds mental and physiological health toward the laudable goals of reducing disease burden, particularly in populations in which health inequities abound, wrote her nominators, CHHS Dean Lise Youngblade and Associate Dean of Research and Graduate Students Matt Hickey, himself a University Distinguished Teaching Scholar. “She possesses a rare generosity of spirit, and her commitment to collaboration, team science, and supporting and mentoring others can only continue to help us achieve our institutional goals.”

Since coming to CSU in 2013, Shomaker has been awarded over $8.6 million in grant funding. Her work has been funded by five institutes at the NIH, which underscores the transdisciplinary appeal of her research. Most recently, she has received two large grants from the National Institutes of Health totaling $5.5 million, both as the principal investigator.

Shomaker has published 82 peer-reviewed articles, the majority in top-tier journals. She is highly visible in her field, with 99 conference presentations to date and another 48 talks, including invited presentations at national/international scientific conferences and invited talks for local and national research groups and meetings.

In addition to her position at CSU, Shomaker maintains affiliations with the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development; Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, where she completed her postdoctoral work; Children’s Hospital Colorado; and the Colorado School of Public Health. She was also named a Fellow of The Obesity Society in 2019.

The College of Health and Human Sciences recognized Shomaker in 2016 with the College Tenure Track Scholarly Excellence Award.

“Dr. Shomaker’s commitment to her internationally recognized research program in no way diminishes her commitment to and excellence in teaching and mentoring, nor her exceptional commitment to service,” Youngblade and Hickey added. “She is highly engaged across all aspects of the university mission, and indeed is recognized as an outstanding instructor and mentor.”

Shomaker plans to use her Monfort Award to leverage clinical trial biomarker data to expand critical knowledge of stress physiology underlying the depression-insulin resistance connection in adolescents at risk for Type 2 diabetes. She will also develop a novel, pilot feasibility study of intervening to treat depression symptoms and improve core mental and physical health indices in adolescents with Type 1 diabetes.

Provost’s N. Preston Davis Award for Instructional Innovation

This award recognizes technology-related instructional innovation or the significant encouragement of such innovation. It is named for N. Preston Davis, who retired in 1992 after serving the CSU community for more than four decades.

Gillian Bowser

Gillian Bowser
Associate Professor
Department of Ecosystem Science and Sustainability


Provost’s Awards for Faculty Excellence: Lincoln Laureate

This award celebrates exceptional balance and joint excellence across teaching, scholarly or creative activity and service in the best spirit of the land grant university mission.

Brett Fling

Brett Fling
Assistant Professor
Department of Health and Exercise Science


Provost’s Awards for Faculty Excellence: 14’er Award

This award recognizes exceptional innovative achievements demonstrating unique vision, creativity and grit.

Jenifer Harmon

Jennifer Harman
Associate Professor
Department of Psychology


Provost’s Awards for Faculty Excellence: Provost Teaching Scholar

This award is for especially notable teaching and learning impact by an early career professor represented by innovative teaching, course design, curriculum or other accomplishments that enhance student success.

Jennifer Bousselot

Jennifer Bousselot
Ph.D., ’10
Assistant Professor
Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture


Provost’s Awards for Faculty Excellence: Provost Research Scholar

This award recognizes an especially notable scholarly or creative achievement of an early career professor represented by a high-impact publication; establishment of an exceptional center or research team; or outstanding invention, innovation, or artistic accomplishment.

Miyake Garret

Garret Miyake
Ph.D., ’11
Associate Professor
Department of Chemistry


The President’s Council on Culture Award (Individual)

This award recognizes individuals, units or teams that have contributed in significant and positive ways to creating a University culture.

Melissa Burt

Melissa Burt
M.S., ’08; Ph.D., ’16
Assistant Dean for Diversity and Inclusion
Walter Scott, Jr. College of Engineering


The President’s Council on Culture Award (Group)

This award recognizes individuals, units or teams that have contributed in significant and positive ways to creating a University culture.

Women and Gender Advocacy Center 

Women and Gender Advocacy Center logo

Kevin Ann Oltjenbruns Award for Outstanding Leadership

This award serves to highlight the extraordinary efforts of truly outstanding CSU faculty and staff who, through their leadership and mentoring/advising, go above and beyond the standard expectations for employees with similar responsibilities.

Jennifer Aberle

Jennifer Aberle
M.S., ’03; Ph.D., ’07
Interim Associate Dean for Undergraduate Affairs
Department of Human Development and Family Studies


Outstanding RSO Advisor of the Year

This award recognizes a faculty/staff RSO adviser who demonstrates strong relationships with students, employs effective interpersonal skills, respects students’ agency and supports their holistic development.

Claudia Hernandez

Claudia Hernandez
B.S., ’15; M.S., ’20
Outreach and Equity Coordinator
Walter Scott, Jr. College of Engineering


Albert C. Yates Student Leadership Award

The Albert C. Yates Student Leadership Award is given to a student who demonstrates strong involvement, demonstrated leadership and a commitment to upholding CSU’s values, traditions and spirit.

Pauletto, Ally Murphy

Ally Murphy Pauletto
B.S., ’21
Student
International Studies


Advancing Education Scholarship: Honoring the Legacy and Memory of Martin Luther King Jr.

The Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarship is presented each year to a CSU graduate student who demonstrates service to and advancement of underrepresented student education and personal academic excellence.

Maria Chavez

Maria Chavez
Ph.D., ’23
Graduate Assistant
Graduate Degree Program in Ecology


Office of International Programs Distinguished Service Award

This award is given in recognition of outstanding contributions to the internationalization of CSU.

Danielle Frey

Danielle Frey
B.S., ’04; D.V.M., ’08
Director of International Student Experiences for D.V.M. Students
College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences

Venkatachalam Chandra

Chandra Venkatachalam
M.S., ’83; Ph.D., ’87
Associate Dean for International Programs
Walter Scott, Jr. College of Engineering

Jody Donovan

Jody Donovan
Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students
Division of Student Affairs


Margaret B. Hazaleus Award

This award is given to faculty or staff that support women’s and gender equity at CSU.

D-L Stewart

D-L Stewart
Professor
Student Affairs in Higher Education

Angelica Murray Olsenv2

Angelica Murray Olsen
Senior Program Coordinator
Women and Gender Advocacy Center


Enrollment and Access Distinguished Service Award

This award recognizes an individual who has made an impact on the work of the Division of Enrollment and Access.

Wilmsen Erik

Erik Wilmsen
B.A., ’97
IT Coordinator for Enrollment and Access
Division of Information Technology


Multicultural Staff and Faculty Network Distinguished Service Faculty Award

This award is presented to a faculty member in recognition of their outstanding contributions to their profession and the multicultural community.

Fabiola Ponce Ehlers Zavala

Fabiola Ponce Ehlers-Zavala
Professor of English
Department of English, INTO CSU (Executive Director)

Sonjia Cervantes

Sonjia R. Cervantes
Front Range Region Program Assistant
CSU Extension

Helena Gardner

Helena L. Gardner
Director of University Housing
Housing and Dining Services


Oliver P. Pennock Distinguished Service Award

This award recognizes meritorious and outstanding achievement over a five-year period by full-time members of the academic faculty and administrative professional staff.

Mike Antolin

Michael Antolin
Professor and Chair
Department of Biology

Alexander Brandl

Alexander Brandl
Associate Professor
Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences

Natalie Cartwright

Natalie Cartwright
Academic Advisor/Global Opportunities Coordinator
College of Business

Amy Martonis

Amy Martonis
Assistant Director
School of Social Work

Kristy Pabilonia

Kristy Pabilonia
D.V.M., ’02; Ph.D., ’12
Associate Professor and Director of Clinical Diagnostics
Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology


Jack E. Cermak Outstanding Advisor Award

This award serves to highlight and reward the extraordinary efforts of outstanding advisors.

Undergraduate Award

Ann Randall

Ann Randall
M.S., ’96
Undergraduate Program Coordinator, Academic Success Coordinator, and Assistant Professor
Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology

Undergraduate Award

Lauren Wolff

Lauren Wolff
Academic Adviser
Undergraduate Programs Office, College of Business

Undergraduate Award

Steph Lebsock

Steph Lebsock
B.S., ’12
Academic Success Coordinator
Department of Animal Sciences

Graduate Award

Lucas Thompson Rachel

Rachel G. Lucas-Thompson
Associate Professor
Department of Human Development and Family Studies


Classified Personnel Council Outstanding Achievement Award

This award celebrates meritorious and outstanding achievements to the University by State Classified employees.

Courtney Hensel

Courtney Hensel
Communication and Curriculum Coordinator for the Veterinary Communication for Professional Excellence Program
Department of Clinical Sciences

Kathy Krell

Kathy Krell
B.A., ’07
Office Manager
Lory Student Center Director’s Office

Kevin Nolan

Kevin Nolan
Learning Management System Administrator
ACNS

Sandy Dailey

Sandra Dailey
Program Assistant II
Graduate School

Jan Lee Cordova

Jan Lee Cordova
B.A., ’98
Fiscal Officer
College of Business


Distinguished Administrative Professional Award

This award is presented to administrative professional staff for continuing meritorious and outstanding achievement in the areas of outreach, teaching, administration, and/or research.

Adam Jon Aparicio

Adam-Jon Aparicio
Senior Staff Counselor/Coordinator for Diversity and Outreach Services
CSU Health Network

Katie Risheill

Katie Risheill
B.S., ’06; M.M.P., ’11
Associate Registrar for Academic Services
Office of the Registrar

Beverly Earley

Beverly Earley
M.B.A., ’90
Public Health and Risk Manager
Immunizations and Allergy in CSU’s Health Network

Mike Brake

Michael Brake
B.S., ’02
Associate Director for Assessment and Technology
Collaborative for Student Achievement

Steve Johnson

Steve Johnson
B.S., ’13
Lab Support Engineer
Department of Mechanical Engineering


Faculty Institute for Inclusive Excellence Diversity Impact Award

This award recognizes one Faculty Institute for Inclusive Excellence Fellow who has actively transformed their classroom and positively influenced the campus climate.

Katie Knowles

Katie Knowles
Curator of the Avenir Museum of Design and Merchandising and Assistant Professor
Department of Design and Merchandising


Exceptional Achievement in Service-Learning Student Award

This award celebrates social or environmental contributions achieved through an academic service-learning course, a supervised internship or professional project, or community-engaged research.

Department of Sociology Students

Sociology Students at CSU doing community service
Sociology Students in class at CSU
Sociology Students doing community service at CSU

Service for Food Bank for Larimer County
Pre-pandemic photos


Exceptional Achievement in Service-Learning Community Partner Award

This award is in recognition of social or environmental contributions achieved through an academic service-learning course, a supervised internship or professional project, or community-engaged research.

Food Bank for Larimer County 

Food Bank of Larimer County

Charlene Olms
Community Engagement Coordinator
Food Bank for Larimer County

Michele Marquitz
Programs Director
Food Bank for Larimer County


Exceptional Achievement in Service-Learning Community Partner Award

This award is in recognition of social or environmental contributions achieved through an academic service-learning course, a supervised internship or professional project, or community-engaged research.

New Belgium Brewing Company  

New Belgium Brewing Logo

Exceptional Achievement in Service-Learning Instructional Innovation Award

This award honors faculty members who demonstrate an innovative contribution to service-learning curriculum development and/or community outreach.

Jason Downing

Jason Landis Downing
Senior Instructor
Department of Sociology

William Timpson

William Timpson
Professor Emeritus
School of Education


Spirit of Philanthropy Award

Recognizes a faculty or staff member whose commitment and passion to support CSU have made a significant impact on the fundraising efforts of the university.

Doug Max

Doug Max
B.S., ’75
Retired Senior Associate Director of Athletics; Facilities and Event Management
Athletics


CSU Ventures Award for Innovative Excellence

This award is presented to a researcher who is not only an innovator but someone whose innovations have been transferred to industry and are exhibiting strong potential for commercial success.

Ray Goodrich

Raymond Goodrich
Executive Director IDRC; Professor MIP
Infectious Disease Research Center and Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology


Interdisciplinary Scholarship Individual Award

This award recognizes either a faculty member or research team whose interdisciplinary scholarship has had a major impact nationally and/or internationally, or who have demonstrated their potential to do so.

Jessica Prenni

Jessica Prenni
Associate Professor
Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture


Interdisciplinary Scholarship Individual Award

This award recognizes either a faculty member or research team whose interdisciplinary scholarship has had a major impact nationally and/or internationally, or who have demonstrated their potential to do so.

Ogallala Water Coordinated Agriculture Project Team faculty

Ogallala Water Coordinated Agriculture Project Team faculty

Meagan Schipanski
Project Lead; Associate Professor
Soil and Crop Sciences

Allan Andales
Professor
Soil and Crop Sciences

Jordan Suter
Associate Professor
Agricultural and Resource Economics

Dale Manning
Associate Professor
Agricultural and Resource Economics

Ryan Bailey
Associate Professor
Civil and Environmental Engineering

Additional CSU contributing team members include: Andrew Jones, satellite remote sensing and data analytics expert, CIRA; Amy Kremen, program manager, Department of Soil and Crop Sciences; Diane DeJong, Extension and outreach program specialist; Garvey Smith, graduate student, Department of Soil and Crop Sciences; Agustin Nunez, graduate student, Department of Soil and Crop Sciences; Joel Schneekloth, irrigation specialist, Colorado Water Center; Soheil Nozari, graduate student, civil and environmental engineering. (Image: pre-pandemic photo)