On Tuesday we had a visit from Anne Taylor from the senior leadership of the CU Medical Center - the primary agenda was concerned with our Research Professor initiative - there is interest in this because, not surprisingly, the issues that we have at Lamont are not completely unique. I have a significant meeting with the Executive Committee of the Engineering School on Monday for this very same reason.
I met briefly with the Campus Life Committee on Wednesday - something I must do on a more regular basis, but in this case specifically to welcome Jason Smerdon into his new role as Chair of
this important group.
I spent a large part of Friday on the Cross Bronx Expressway as an inevitable consequence of the need to attend a day-long meeting at Stony Brook. It was the inaugural meeting of the NY Marine Science Consortium - we are one of the founding members, and I am on the Executive Committee - 26 full members so far - academic institutions
around the state. The goal is to get the State better educated about the resource it holds in its world class universities - that are capable of generating the knowledge that the State so desperately requires if it is to tackle its many marine environmental issues with wisdom and effectiveness.
Every year from now on we will have to face the effort reporting issue again - and that time is coming in a few weeks - we will be organizing meetings to continue to provide information and guidance. If you have questions about this difficult but necessary process, please do not hesitate to ask - do not try to grapple with problems yourself - resources exist to help you solve any questions that you may have - just reach out to your DA or directly to Edie Miller. And also we will be getting some more briefings from leadership downtown - events that I know you all look forward to with interest and
excitement.
And last - but by no means least:
As you all know each year we give the Lamont Service Award to a member of the administrative or support staff who has demonstrated:
* Extraordinary effort;
* Exceptional work quality;
* Capacity to anticipate and solve issues before they are problems;
* Willingness to go "above and beyond" the call of duty, often without being asked; and
* High degree of reliability and trust by supervisors, research staff, peers, and customers
Nominations and supporting letters are reviewed by a small committee who recommends a winner for my approval. This year the individuals nominated for the Lamont Service award include:
Ann Binder, IRI
Kathy Carlsen, HR
Diane Hicks, Finance
Karen Hoffer, Purchasing
Rob Kakascik, IT
Mary Pasquince, Tropical Agriculture
Doug Shearer, IT
Catherine Tozer, Geochemistry
Cathy Troutman, Safety and Security
The winner of the Lamont Service Award this year is Cathy Troutman who in addition to her regular high standard of performance, stepped in to take on a number of critical tasks while we searched for a new Safety and Security Manager.
We are planning an awards luncheon to honor this group of exceptionally talented and dedicated administrators. Please join me in extending congratulations and a heartfelt thank you to all of the nominees.
If the weather holds, I hope to sail around to Mamaroneck late Saturday - the weekend looks too good to miss.
Have a good one,
- Mike