"We See It Clearly" - VISION 2020
Nearly 300 Facilities Services staff members attended the semi-annual all-staff meeting hosted at the Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts this summer. The meeting was launched with a very lively and entertaining video that captured FS staff members' work on-campus and in the community. To see our summer all-staff compilation video, click here.
Provost, Daniel Diermeier, our distinguished guest speaker, provided a very insightful conversation about the university’s mission and our supporting role. Jim McConnell, Associate Vice President, followed with an explanation of how the changing operating environment requires our emphasis on efficiency and effectiveness. Additionally, McConnell shared client complements and highlighted departmental accomplishments.
The second half of the meeting was dedicated to staff recognition and awards. The Keller and Safety Awards were received by FS staff who demonstrated exemplary service.
The Keller Award is named after Project Manager Janet Keller, who during the last months of her life led a project team to create the USITE Computing Cluster in Crerar Science Library. Throughout the duration of this project, which represents a significant contribution to the University of Chicago community, Janet was repeatedly cited by clients and team members alike for upholding the highest values of teamwork and cooperation and for providing excellent client service and satisfaction. The Keller Award was created in 2002 to recognize Janet and other outstanding Facilities Services employees in her honor.
- Ernie Negrete, Maintenance Electrician, received the Keller Individual Award for his dedication to the Uchicago community through his work. Ernie Negrete’s name will be added to the permanent plaque honoring Keller Awardees which hangs in the 10th Floor Break Room at Harper Court.
- The VISION 2020 Working Group, comprised of 16 FS staff members, achieved the Keller Team Award. This team was honored for work that goes above and beyond expectations and for helping create VISION 2020, the manual for how we will conduct business over the next three years.
The Safety Spirit Award is presented annually to an individual staff member or team that consistently excels at creating and promoting a safe work environment through the application of safe practices, attitude and actions. Juan Diaz, Maintenance Electrician, was this year’s recipient.
Service Awards acknowledged 46 FS staff members who have been employed by the university from 5 to 40 years (at 5-year increments). Each staff member received a service pin in recognition of his/her contribution to the university community.
The presentation concluded with the long list of University of Chicago Facility Awards which we achieved in FY 2018:
- Merit Award Finalist from the Chicago Building Congress (Physics Research Center)
- LEED Gold for New Construction from the U.S. Green Building Council (Physics Research Center)
- LEED Gold from the U.S. Green Building Council (Campus North Residential Commons)
- Merit Award from American Society of Landscape Architects, Illinois Chapter (Swift Hall Cloister Garden)
- "From Checklist to Check" Best Practices, second place from Central Association of College and University Business Officers
- Design-Build National Award of Merit - Educational Facilities from Design-Build Institute of America (Campus North Residential Commons)
- Design-Build Excellence in Design Architecture from Design-Build Institute of America (Campus North Residential Commons)
- Chairman’s Award for Community Impact and Social Responsibility from Design-Build Institute of America (Campus North Residential Commons)
- Best Project Award - Residential/Hospitality from ENR Midwest (Campus North Residential Commons)
- Excellence in Engineering from the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating & Air Conditioning Engineers, Inc. (IL Chapter) (Campus North Residential Commons)
- Institute Honor Award from the American Institute of Architects (Logan Center for the Arts)
- Merit Award for Excellence in Architecture from Society for College and University Planning (Saieh Hall for Economics)
- Honor Award from Boston Society of Architects, AIA (Saieh Hall for Economics)
This year we wore sunglasses for our annual staff picture to represent our slogan, “We See It Clearly” for VISION 2020. We look forward to another year as we continue to build and maintain excellence.