Congratulations to the Northwest Vista College Touchstone winners below:
Caring:
Hector Trevino
Math & Engineering Department
Instructor/Math Adjunct Coordinator
“I offer my strongest recommendation that Hector Trevino be selected for the 2018 Touchstone Champion Awards. Hector’s performance as a faculty and adjunct coordinator has been nothing short of stellar!
He is continually lauded by peers and students for his caring heart inside and outside the classroom. To say that he has made the job of adjunct faculty much easier would be an understatement. If there is a request of any sort from a fellow faculty or from a student, Hector is there to help and support with satisfaction of the faculty or the student. It does not matter whether it is early in the morning or late in the evening. He plays a caring role in the day to day functioning of our Math & Engineering department.
Hector’s dedication and willingness to go above and beyond his job responsibilities are a testament to his character. He always displays a “can do” and caring spirit to aid those who come to him for assistance. His leadership is evident by his willingness to support and mentor adjunct and students. He demonstrates leadership by setting an exemplary example for others to emulate.
Again, I offer my strongest recommendation that Hector receive the Touchstone Champion Award for Outstanding Support in 2018. If you have any questions about this recommendation please do not hesitate to contact me.”
Community:
Amanda Gorrell
Librarian
Amanda has been a mentor to me from the moment I started working at NVC in January of this year. She’s always willing to go that extra mile for the community she serves at NVC. She develops programs that promote community, learning, and openness. Such as the Animal Therapy program, the Hot Chocolate social, and workshops for faculty/staff. Amanda is always encouraging her team to volunteer for campus events. As a new librarian I have shadowed her in the classroom and her teaching style is something I strive for.
Creativity:
Martin (Charlie) Young
Academic Program Specialist
Teaching with Technology
Charlie Young is the person I turn to for anything that involves the creation of video, graphics, or web design. Since he returned to NVC, most of his tasks have been routine, but when I have the opportunity to assign him something that requires the use of graphics, colors, layout, and design, his eyes light up! Recently, he created a beautiful set of banners and advertising posters for the NVC Unconference. He is also an excellent photographer who excels in close-up photography, portraiture, and creativity with lights. We are very fortunate that Charlie Young has returned to NVC and is eager to spice up all of our lives with his creative ideas!
Integrity:
Michael Lee Gardin
Assistant Professor
English
Michael Lee stands up in the face of great opposition to defend what is right even when it was not easy to do so. She will even sacrifice opportunities for herself to ensure ALL students, faculty, and staff are in an environment where they can succeed. She sticks to her principles (did someone say principle-centered leadership?) not because she’s following some scripted self-help curriculum or because she thinks it will help her climb the increasingly corporate academic ladder. She does so, because it’s the right thing to do. She’s an inspiration. And she is tireless.
Joy:
Necola Glaze
Senior Advisor
Vista Central; Welcome & Admissions
If you have not already met Necola you should. She is the most joyful person on campus. Her energy is not only a spark to our office but our students when they come in. There has not been one minute where she has not been able to brighten anyone’s day with her warm presence. She takes of all students and their parents to ensure everything is going to be ok and makes it very fun for them. She takes great pride in her work but understands that each student matters and does it in a way that improves us all. She is a great person to have in any office.
From day one on the job this woman as demonstrated her ability to assist our new students with a level of professionalism while making them feel welcome and demonstrates daily joy in providing such great customer service. She is our Math Liaison and POC for our Veterans who come to Vista Central.
Learning:
Erin (Lindi) Edwards
Senior Advisor
Vista Central
Lindi is consistently going to great lengths to ensure our students are provided clear messages from our office. She has been a primary lead for Enrollment’s updating our documents used as resources and NSO. Most recently she used her knowledge and experience in providing critical updates to our website.
Synergy:
Lisa McGoldrick
Executive Assistant to the President
President’s Office
I would like to nominate Lisa McGoldrick for the Synergy Touchstone Award this year. Lisa is a great example of the NVC Synergy we talk about on our campus. I am not only an NVC alumnus but also an employee, and over the years I have seen excellent examples of the synergy we create as students and employees. When looking at the nomination submission form Synergy is always the first in mind. The definition of synergy is,” The combined power of a group of things when they are working together that is greater than the total power achieved by working separately” (Cambridge Dictionary, 2018). This year Lisa is the first to come to mind to nominate. Through her work and the events, she hosts she brings synergy throughout our campus every month. She keeps everyone in mind and can create committees that synergize allowing the group not only achieve their goal but do it through collaboration.
If you have ever been on one of her committees, they are all about collaboration amongst the members. She allows people to thrive at what they specialize in and brings people together to create something that was better than the time before. This year’s largest and most celebrated event was Commencement. Lisa put together a team of individuals who worked together all year to create what was seen at our Graduation this year. Our students had a fantastic event, and it was one of the largest we have had over the years. She was able to host this event and accomplish the goals she was charged with for graduation utilizing an NVC committee and volunteers. A celebration of this magnitude to be so successful with volunteers is right on point with the definition of Synergy. She brought us all together for a great evening and celebration that would not have been achievable without the combined power of our NVC Volunteers, faculty, and staff. If this is not an Award winning example of synergy, I do not know what is!! Please consider Lisa McGoldrick for this award. Thank you
Diversity:
Norma Velez-Vendrell
Library Director
Norma does an outstanding job in her new position as library director. She listens openly to ideas that I have and supports them in becoming a reality. She believes in collaboration and asks for input in decisions that need to be addressed. That is something new that I’ve never experienced from a supervisor. She’s an inspiring role model and has shown me that a leadership position is possible in my future. Her door is always opened and she shows everyone on her team respect. I’m grateful to have her representing the library.
Openness
Leslie Moore
College Services
Leslie has demonstrated openness to me in more ways than one. First and far most is in conversation. She give you a safe zone to discuss anything. She never violates the safety of a conversation. This leads to trust. Having the ability to hold a conversation and trust that the individual is going to have the best intentions at heart is rare. Thanks to Leslie I know how to do this now and can build trust through-out the campus.