UNIVERSITY OF UTAH STAFF EXCELLENCE AWARDS
The University Staff Excellence Awards (USEA) program was established in 1992 to recognize superior service and ongoing contributions by the University of Utah's full-time staff employees. In 2006, the process was changed to allow recognition of the exceptional contribution of a much larger number of staff. In 2023, a new award category was introduced to recognize the outstanding efforts of our part-time staff employees (.01 to .74 FTE). Twenty-four District Staff Excellence Awards (DSEA) are given to staff from four Districts, and four Part-Time Awards will be given (one per District). The number of awards for each District is determined by the number of staff working in that area.
| District | # Full- Time Awards |
| 1. Academic & Student Affairs | 4 |
| 2. Administration | 5 |
| 3. Hospital/Clinics | 10 |
| 4. Health Academics | 5 |
| Total | 24 |
| District | # Part-Time Awards |
| 1. Academic & Student Affairs | 1 |
| 2. Administration | 1 |
| 3. Hospital/Clinics | 1 |
| 4. Health Academics | 1 |
| Total | 4 |
Nominations should be made in line with the University's Six Commitments to our Community. The winners are selected by an Executive Committee coordinated by the Chair of the U of U Staff Council and approved by the Chief Human Resources Officer, Jeff Herring. Each winner receives a $3750 honorarium and a personalized plaque.
These 24 DSEA winners are the pool from which the eight recipients of the Presidential Staff Excellence Awards are chosen. All District winners, both full-time and part-time, will be recognized in their respective areas and at the USEA luncheon hosted by University of Utah leadership and Jeff Herring in the fall.
Faculty and staff are encouraged to nominate a staff employee from any of the districts who meets the eligibility criteria by completing the online nomination form. The nomination form is only open May 1 - June 30, 2024.
For more information about the University Staff Excellence Awards, please contact Mandy Skonhovd (Mandy.Skonhovd@utah.edu) at 801-581-6206.
Part-Time University Staff Excellence Award Criteria
Four Part-Time Staff Excellence Awards, one per each District, will be awarded to staff employees who:
- have at least two years of continuous, part-time service (.01 FTE to .74 FTE) to the University of Utah by June 30, 2024
- are in good standing with their respective department and the University (no disciplinary actions on file within the last three years)
- are not Faculty, Director-level staff and above, UU Staff Council members, or District Award team members; self-nominations are also not accepted
- exemplify one or more of the Six Commitments to our Community
- Part-time award winners not are eligible for the final 8 University Staff Excellence winners
Full-Time District & University Staff Excellence Award Criteria
24 District Awards will be awarded across 4 Districts, determined by number of staff working in that area. From this pool of 24 District winners, the final 8 University Staff Excellence winners will be selected by an Executive Committee. To be eligible for the District and University Staff Excellence awards, the employee should:
- have at least two years of continuous, full-time service (.75 FTE and above) to the University of Utah by June 30, 2024
- be in good standing with their respective department and the University (no disciplinary actions on file within the last three years)
- not be Faculty, Director-level staff and above, UU Staff Council members, or District Award team members; self-nominations are also not accepted
- exemplify one or more of the Six Commitments to our Community
When writing your nomination or letter of recommendation, please note that nominations must be in line Six Commitments to Our Community. You should be prepared to demonstrate how your nominee exemplifies at least one or more of these commitments in their work and contributions to the University of Utah:
- Commitment to Lead: How does your nominee serve as a leader at work, home and in the community?
- Commitment to Education: How does your nominee inspire lifetime success through learning?
- Commitment to Research: How does your nominee innovate, improve lives, and change the world/their community/their work?
- Commitment to Serve: How does your nominee embed themselves in the social, economic, and cultural fabric of Utah and the University of Utah?
- Commitment to Patient Care: What is your nominee's impact on patient care and how do they care for the health & well-being of all Utahns?
- Commitment to Unify with Sister Institutions: How does your nominee represent the University of Utah and their commitment to the growth and success of the U's mission?
Nominations will be scored by District teams and the final Executive/Selection Committee based on the following:
- Service Excellence: Demonstrates creativity, self-motivation, and desire for improvement.
- Work Excellence: Demonstrates exceptional ability in quality work, proficiency, initiative, dependability, and creativity. Quality of work as measured against the type of work being performed
- Excellence beyond Job Category: Shows outgoing desire for improvement
- Commitment to Teamwork: Positive attitude, willingness to cooperate and the ability to relate to others /care/concern/respect
- Relationships:Establishes and maintains effective working relationships with co-workers, leadership and internal/ external customers
- Commitment to the U: Has an attitude of ongoing commitment & understanding of U and helps the University achieve its mission
- Overall Impression
Nominations may be made by any faculty or staff member and must be completed by an online submission. We encourage all nominations be submitted through the online format for the 2024 Staff Excellence Awards.
We recognize that there may be some individuals who are unable to submit an online nomination. If you do not have access to a computer or have other concerns about submitting an online nomination, please contact your district chair. Each situation will be addressed as needed so all who want to submit a nomination are able to do so.
Letters of support are a great way to provide additional (yet optional) backing for a nomination or to show a group/department effort in nominating a particular employee. A total of three, one-page max letters can be added as attachments to the online nomination form; letters of support should continue to highlight/build upon the initial nomination by providing more examples on how a nominee support one of more of the University's Six Commitments to our Community.