For more information on Staff Recognition Week, May 20–24, click here.
Terrance Camp
Athletic Attendant
Athletic Department
Chancellor’s Outstanding Staff Award
Terrance Camp is one of four athletic attendants working in the Mizzou Sport Park in Intercollegiate Athletics. His job requires the ability to juggle multiple tasks and handle people with grace. His role is vital to the organization and execution of MU athletic events. He covers the gamut: football, men’s and women’s basketball, gymnastics, soccer, swimming and diving, tennis, track and field, softball, wrestling, and baseball.
His positive attitude and perpetual smile makes Camp stand out in his position as athletic attendee, nominators say. He has the ability to handle requests, complaints and, yes, compliments with grace.
Camp always is the first to take on a project or volunteer to help others finish their work. Plus, he does everything without a complaint, a nominator said.
His exuberance makes others want to work alongside him. Camp also mentors some of the younger staff on being all you can be while on the job.
“From the first day he stepped into the department, I knew that Terrance was a rare breed,” one of his nominators said.
“He is the definition of what it is to be a true human being, a gentleman and, most of all, a hero.”
Steven Heinrich
Research Maintenance Technician
Division of Biological Sciences
College of Arts and Science
Chancellor’s Outstanding Staff Award
Steven Heinrich’s job doesn’t stop when the lights are switched off at the end of the day. As a research maintenance technician for the biology department, if something breaks down at 3 a.m., Heinrich is there to assess the problem and find a solution.
The Mr. Fix-It of Tucker and Lefevre halls, and Tucker and Botany greenhouses, Heinrich is responsible for maintaining all research and teaching equipment — from autoclaves and growth chambers to air conditioning equipment and compressors — used by students and faculty. Heinrich also helps build research equipment for graduate student research projects.
“He fixes everything that needs to be fixed,” said Barbara Sonderman, coordinator of greenhouse facilities, “and he fixes it so well, and builds equipment so well that it hardly ever needs to be replaced or fixed again if he has worked on it. Our department really needs four or five Steves.”
Heinrich gets requests from professors, graduate students and staff, and his to-do list expands daily with new requests to build new equipment or fix old equipment. In an effort to conserve resources and save the department money, Heinrich recycles and reuses materials and equipment parts whenever possible.
In his nine years at MU, Heinrich has learned how to look at a piece of equipment and immediately diagnose whether it needs to be replaced, recycled or rebuilt. Described as resourceful, reliable, efficient and responsible, Heinrich takes his job seriously.
“He takes a lot of pride in his work,” Sonderman said, “and makes me want to take pride in mine.”
Gary Link
Special Assistant to the Athletic Director
Mizzou Alumni Association Award for Alumni Relations Excellence
Gary Link is the voice behind the colorful radio commentary of Tiger Radio Network. In addition to his commentary, the former MU basketball player serves as a special assistant to the athletic director and works as a member of the Tiger Scholarship Fund.
He often goes on multiple speaking engagements and appearances as an MU representative. In addition, he conducts tours through Tiger facilities after hours and on weekends. He keeps the tours lively through stories about Mizzou’s history and tales of its coaches, a nominator said.
Link strives to build positive relationships with alumni by having an open phone line and a desire to connect. He’ll hand-deliver tickets to fans or take a donor out to lunch. He’ll often stop by the basketball team’s practices, as well. Through his numerous efforts, he has inspired multiple Tiger fans.
A walk downtown with Link sometimes results in people introducing themselves to him and thanking him for his work at Mizzou, a nominator said. He genuinely cares about each fan.
Link also maintains relationships with former MU athletes, and his effort to stay in touch with them has resulted in record numbers turning out for the annual players reunion.
Each year, more than 60 former players return to campus to watch a game as a guest of the university. Without Link, the event would draw fewer former players because of Link’s reputation and commitment to Tiger sports, a nominator said.
“Anyone who witnesses his interactions with alumni can quickly tell what a great impression he makes,” one of his nominators said. “Alumni and fans are impressed by his sincerity, amazed by his spirit and amused by his wit.”
Link embodies MU’s values and spirit, nominators say. He’s a true lifetime Tiger.
Frankie Minor
Director
Division of Student Affairs
Barbara S. Uehling Award for Administrative Excellence
Frankie Minor’s name isn’t on any of the residence halls across campus, but after 19 years of service, his influence has been felt campuswide. As director of Residential Life, Minor’s responsibilities are vast, including defining the philosophy and principles the department operates under, setting policies and managing staff.
“Frankie is truly a hands-on leader and has been known to jump in the trenches with his staff to shovel snow, answer phones, and deal with student and parent concerns,” said Jeff Zeilenga, assistant vice chancellor for student affairs. “Frankie’s management style is guided by his belief in treating all people with dignity and respect.”
Minor’s promotion of civility and community responsibility can be seen throughout his department. When the MU Statement of Values was drafted, Minor was instrumental in adopting “Respect” and “Responsibility” as two of the four pillars that guide faculty, students and staff. As enrollment continues to rise, Minor embraced the diversity among students and helped develop inclusivity videos, which address gender identity and expression, race, gender bias, disability, religion and spirituality, and sexual orientation. The videos are shown to all Res Life employees.
In a department that is 34 percent Hispanic, Minor recognized the need for a free English-as-a-Second-Language course for Spanish-speaking staff and a Spanish language course for other staff. The employee handbook and vendor instructions are available in English and Spanish, too.
Minor also works to expand opportunities for his staff to participate in. He has worked with Campus Facilities, Human Resources and Division of IT to implement free smoking cessation courses, professional development classes and safety campaigns with the goal of having one year with no recordable injuries.
“Frankie is absolutely committed to ensuring that staff members in his department have a positive, inclusive and safe workplace experience,” Zeilenga said.
Kirsten Pape
Internship Coordinator
Office of Service-Learning
Mick Deaver Memorial Award
In a time when students find it difficult to distinguish themselves from the pack, when good grades and a position on a school club executive board don’t always lead to a job, Kirsten Pape has her work cut out for her. As internship coordinator for the Office of Service-Learning, Pape provides students individualized support, turning their passions and interests into an internship opportunity.
“While many advisers dole out information without engaging students in the process, Kirsten forces them to take ownership of their learning, their opportunities and their challenges, helping push students out of their comfort zones while ensuring they are well-supported,” said Anne Case-Halferty, project coordinator in the Office of Service-Learning.
Pape’s primary role is coordinator for the Civic Leaders Internship Program, a government and nonprofit internship that places students in the offices of state elected officials, including state representatives and senators. Pape spends the fall semester recruiting high-achieving students, interviewing and preparing candidates, and networking with both government and nonprofit organizations. During spring, she manages 80 students who participate in the program, one of the largest in the country, and travels to Jefferson City, Mo., to follow up on their progress.
She also is the adviser for the Leadership and Public Service minor, which focuses on student leadership through service experiences and tackles leadership and social issues through course work; the Teach and Learn Korean program, an international fellowship program; and the National Science Foundational Scholarship, a program for at-risk, low-income minority students pursing degrees in biological sciences.
At the heart of all of Pape’s roles is helping students discover, cultivate and explore their passions and strengths, developing the future generation of leaders.
“Students leave our office empowered,” Case-Halferty said. “They feel as if they have a stronger sense of self, a greater awareness of available resources, and increased confidence in themselves and their future direction.
“Kirsten strives to help build a whole student, an individual who will be able to leave campus and enter a successful career that utilizes their skills and enables them to have meaningful and productive futures.”
Martha Pickens
Coordinator
Graduate Studies Program
School of Journalism
Chancellor’s Outstanding Staff Award
Missouri School of Journalism graduate students say that without Martha Pickens, they might not have made it to graduation day. As coordinator of the Graduate Studies Program, her duties range from managing all fiscal aspects of the office to academic, personal and professional guidance for about 250 master’s degree-seeking students.
“I don’t think there is a single graduate student at the J-School whose education and experience have not somehow been enhanced by Martha’s guidance,” said Ben Unglesbee, a graduate teaching assistant. “I can’t imagine how things would get done — how students would pick classes, find housing, get jobs or graduate — without her.”
As an academic adviser, Pickens has a valuable understanding of programs, privacy issues and policies. She is also known for her ability to balance the smallest of details with the bigger picture. Whether it’s tracking office supplies or coordinating the expansion of the program to include the rapidly growing field of data journalism, Pickens is described as “virtually flawless” in performing her job.
Associate Dean for Graduate Studies Esther Thorson attributes the program’s high completion rate to Pickens’ counseling skills. In exit surveys, master’s degree students expressed trust and respect in Pickens’ advising in situations involving sexual preference, plagiarism and poor class performance.
Now in her 22nd year of service to MU, Pickens is back in school, working toward a master’s degree in educational psychology, which she is scheduled to complete this month. Her master’s thesis research focuses on the educational needs of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.
“Her actions continually show me that the work she does is for the students — not for her own convenience or praise,” said former graduate student Courtney Shove.
Beth Tankersley-Bankhead
Executive Director
Missouri College Advising Corps
Chancellor’s Outstanding Staff Award
Beth Tankersley-Bankhead oversees 24 college advisers who work in 26 Missouri high schools as part of the Missouri College Advising Corps.
The advisers are recent MU graduates who guide high school students through college planning, which includes preparation, applications and the financial aid process. The schools are those with a high percentage of first-generation-college, low-income and underrepresented students at risk of not attending college.
Tankersley-Bankhead, executive director of the corps, motivates her staff through hard work and enthusiasm, her nominators say.
She organizes two outreach events in which MU staff members, deans and other distinguished faculty speak at the high schools. She monitors the program’s annual budget, develops a training program for advisers and secures additional program funding.
Most important, Tankersley-Bankhead motivates her staff to serve the students to the best of their ability, nominators say. Advisers who need additional guidance on a professional issue can go to Tankersley-Bankhead for help.
She holds advisers to a high standard and makes them accountable for their actions, one nominator said. Her tough love and support encourages everyone she works with to work hard.