AU’s annual Staff Appreciation Week kicked off on June 5 with a brunch honoring 19 performance award winners. The event—which also recognized staff marking 5, 10, and 15 years of service—returned to the Katzen Arts Center rotunda after a three-year hiatus due to the pandemic.
 
Winners were selected from a record 161 nominations representing 273 staffers across 66 departments. An eight-person committee featuring representatives from across campus met in April to review nominations. The winners received a certificate, a monetary award, and a day off work. 
 
AU President Sylvia Burwell said that honorees were a testament to the university’s culture of belonging—emblematic of the Changemakers for a Changing World strategic plan.
 
“We are all here because we believe in our mission: to advance knowledge, foster intellectual curiosity, build community, and empower lives of purpose, service, and leadership,” she said. “As we reflect on the past and get ready for the future, I hope you will continue to feel proud of what we’ve accomplished as a community. . . . American University has accomplished so much, and we are on a promising trajectory. Together, I know we can reach new heights.” 
 
Join us in thanking and celebrating the following outstanding members of our community who make AU a better place to work and learn:
 
Collaboration Award: Improving the Student Experience for New Eagles 
A stellar collaboration between First Year Advising, Housing and Residential Life, and New Student and Family Programs greatly improved the onboarding experience for incoming students. Karyn Cassella and Amanda Dowd, New Student and Family Programs, Jimmy Ellis, Undergraduate Education and Academic Student Services, and Mason Henderson, Housing and Residence Life, teamed up to prioritize what new students most needed to focus on before and after arriving on campus. The partnership, which resulted in new deadlines for housing and course registration, led to an increase in student satisfaction throughout the course registration process and a sizeable jump in orientation participation.   
 
Community Support Award: Law with Impact 
Saba Ahmed is a staff attorney with the Defending the AU Dream Initiative—housed in the Washington College of Law’s Immigrant Justice Clinic. Ahmed provides free legal and programmatic support for undocumented immigrants studying at AU, as well as other college students across the DC area—underscoring AU’s commitment to working with Washington. As the sole staff attorney with AU Dream, she offers information and guidance for students applying for asylum, helps them navigate the immigration legal system, and connects them with support services.   

Essential Support Award: Ensuring the Student Community Is Well 
As a registered nurse at the Student Health Center, Ginta Carlson connects with students, encourages inclusive practices, and assists the department well beyond the scope of her work. Carlson proactively included students’ preferred pronouns to their health records, thus creating a more inclusive and welcoming experience for those who identify as nonbinary and transgender. Carlson also implemented a new approach for screening, monitoring, and treating students with certain infections and played a significant role in the health center’s successful reaccreditation process in January.

Inclusive Excellence Award: Changing Minds through Peer-To-Peer Engagement 
An impactful cross-campus collaboration to support the AU-Anne Frank Center partnership program included university librarians Mychaella Bowen and Claire Young, Esther Philip in Student Affairs (formerly the Office of Campus Life), and Jose Suarez, a student worker in Student Affairs. Their efforts sought to raise awareness of antisemitism and all forms of racism, helping to enhance our campus climate and inspiring our community to be upstanders against all forms of hate.
 
Innovation and Change Award: Bringing Education to Life
Saagar Gupta is making a true impact at the Center for Community Engagement and Service by building strong relationships with nonprofits across the DC area, thus improving and expanding programs available to students. For example, he enhanced the use of GivePulse, which tracks students’ community-based learning, and facilitated AU joining the President’s Volunteer Service Award program, elevating the profile of AU’s community service programs. 

Maria Bueno Lifetime Achievement Award 
A special thanks to Nathan Williamson, director of undergraduate advising in the Department of Government, who has worked with more than 7,000 students in the School of Public Affairs. During his 22-year career, Williamson has improved retention rates in SPA and worked to ensure the use of common advising practices across campus. 
 
Outstanding Supervision Award
Jonnel Clothier, director of AU Central, proactively addressed team dynamics during and after union strikes in fall 2022. Clothier created a space for staff to share their viewpoints and guided the team forward. Her cultural awareness and proactive management style exemplifies the qualities of an outstanding supervisor, serving as an inspiration for all.
 
Staff and Faculty Collaboration Award: Increasing Access to the Ballot Box 
AU Votes helped students from all 50 states and DC register to vote and cast their ballot in the 2022 midterm elections. Sally Acharya, Student Affairs (formerly the Office of Campus Life); Matthew Brown, School of International Service; Regina Curran, Department of Information Security; Emma Godel, graduate student worker, Gwendolyn Reece, University Library; and Jacob Wilson, Undergraduate Education and Academic Student Services, helped about 1,000 students navigate an often-confusing registration process. They also hosted Absentee Ballot Days at the library, notarized ballot return envelopes, and collaborated with other members of the campus community to promote voting efforts. 

Ravi Raman contributed to this story.