RIT staff honored for excellence and dedication

RIT honored the service and dedication of its employees with the Presidential Awards for Outstanding Staff ceremony on March 19. The annual awards are presented to staff members who exemplify outstanding service and dedication to the university and who exhibit a high degree of personal ethics and integrity, while demonstrating a commitment to student success.

The Rising Star Award

The Rising Star Award recognizes a staff member with three years or less of service to the university who presents progressive examples of high-quality service; has demonstrated a willingness to work collaboratively with colleagues and university constituents; and shows imagination, creativity, and innovation, which embody the RIT spirit.

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Makenna Payton

This year’s recipient is Makenna Payton, associate director of Student Transitions and Success in the Center for Campus Life.

According to her nomination, Payton builds relationships with leaders and partners across campus, all in the service of RIT’s Orientation program, including the restructuring of staffing and training. Through careful analysis and innovative redesign from the ground up, Payton has created a more streamlined and effective system, improving both operational efficiency and the overall experience for student leaders and program participants.

Excellence Awards

Excellence Awards recognize staff members who excel in their duties, promote teamwork, and inspire others. Honored are individuals who demonstrate an innovative approach to their jobs and foster collaboration, communication, and cooperation among colleagues and stakeholders, and teams that impact the university in an exceptional way through exemplary service, ongoing innovation, and best practices.

The Excellence Awards winners are:

Courseleaf Catalogue Implementation Team: Deja Campbell, assistant registrar for Degree Audit and Course Planning; Laura Cummings, associate director, Content Marketing; Christine Licata, vice provost for Academic Affairs; Joe Loffredo, associate vice president for Academic Affairs and Registrar; Jared Lyon, senior web developer/programmer; Rebecca Montante, degree audit specialist; Michelle Mullen, IT project manager; Julie Nemer, curriculum systems analyst; Marla Roberts, ITS software engineering manager; Stephanie Romanet, assistant registrar for Course Management and Scheduling; Brenda Thornton, director of Curriculum Management; Max Xiong, senior associate registrar; and Ning Zhang, software engineer III.

According to the team’s nomination, this cross-disciplinary group transformed the outdated course cataloguing process into a dynamic, data-driven system. The team’s technical excellence allowed for a complex integration with the Student Information System, creating a secure and reliable way to retrieve data. The new system has not only improved data quality, but it has positioned the university for future paperless workflows that will save hundreds of hours for the Registrar’s Office and marketing teams. The team’s collaboration across functional, technical, and academic partners is the hallmark of this project.

Brandy Cunningham, senior staff assistant, College of Liberal Arts Dean’s Office

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Brandy Cunningham

Cunningham’s nomination stated that “she has quickly moved from being a ‘connector’ of people to a true linchpin for the college, cultivating relationships that have created a much stronger sense of community.” One of her most significant contributions has been her overhaul of the adjunct hiring process, developing a clear intuitive system, while elevating the experience for the adjuncts, ensuring they are treated as valued colleagues. One nominator said, “Brandy is a gracious and skilled teacher. She doesn’t just offer to do things for someone; she offers to show them—and stick with them—until they understand how to do it themselves.”

Kara Grace, office manager, Office of the Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs

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Kara Grace

In addition to overhauling the functionality of offices, Grace supervises and mentors a team of student workers by aligning their office projects with their career goals, such as connecting a student with AI expertise to the AI Hub to develop a chatbot. Her nomination stated, “Kara is a master at building morale through what she calls ‘small, meaningful contributions.’ Her impact is just as much about efficiency as it is about atmosphere. Kara is a proactive problem solver who doesn’t wait for a request to take action.”

GCCIS FirstByte Committee Team: Denise Stade, senior staff specialist, software engineering department; Fran Broderick, director of Marketing and Communications; Gina Shevchuk, assistant dean for Student Success; Heidi Davis, scheduling officer; Lana Verschage, director of Student Engagement and Belonging and Women in Computing; Lynn Wildman, assistant director of Computing Security; Melissa Woodhams, senior staff specialist; Olivia Nuccitelli, college events manager; Micah Audycki, marketing content specialist; Shelby Trudeau, academic adviser; Lauren Shields, assistant dean for Academic Services; and Tyler Monica, marketing content specialist.

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GCCIS FirstByte Committee Team

The team came together three years ago to ensure that every first-year student feels supported, seen, and empowered to thrive. The idea blossomed into FirstByte, a comprehensive student-success and retention ecosystem that has become a model for the university. FirstByte builds creative programs, from tabling events to interactive game shows and other initiatives, like Wellness Mondays and Failing Forward sessions that help students successfully navigate challenges. In the program’s first year, the college saw a 50 percent reduction in student losses between the first and second semesters and a 3 percent increase in overall first-year retention.

Isaac L. Jordan Sr. Staff Award

This award is named after RIT’s first chair of the President’s Commission for Promoting Pluralism. Jordan’s leadership helped lay the foundation for the university’s inclusive values, including compassion, the power of listening, and unwavering commitment to equity and belonging.

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Peggy Tirrell

This year’s recipient is Peggy Tirrell, senior associate director of Graduate Business Programs and Admissions in Saunders College of Business.

For more than four decades, Tirrell has created pathways for students, built meaningful relationships, and championed inclusive practices that have strengthened the campus community. Her commitment to access is evident as she looks beyond applications to see potential and possibility. As one colleague shared, “It is not uncommon for students to seek Peggy out specifically to serve as their advocate during some of the most stressful and vulnerable moments of their academic careers. Her advocacy is grounded in empathy, clarity, and an unwavering respect for students’ dignity.”

Dancy Duffus Award for Outstanding Citizenship

The Dancy Duffus Award for Outstanding Citizenship within the RIT Community recognizes a staff member who embodies the utmost integrity and who consistently shows imagination, creativity, and innovation, as well as a deep commitment to RIT.

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Kathryn Cilano

This year’s award is presented to Kathryn Cilano, director of Student Engagement and Community Life, Division of Student Affairs.

Under her strategic vision, student-focused programs like Into the ROC, which connects over 1,500 students annually to the heart of the Rochester community, have seen a 545 percent increase in participation. Her dedication to active citizenship is most visible in her transformative work with ROAR the Vote, expanding the scope and infrastructure of campuswide civic-learning initiatives. Her work ensures that students graduate not just as professionals, but as informed, engaged citizens ready to shape the future of our society. In 2022, she led the strategic transition of RIT FoodShare, guiding an operational redesign that expanded the university’s capacity to address food insecurity on campus. As the architect of the Demonstration Response Team and the Natural and Environmental Response Protocols, she has navigated RIT through globally and nationally challenging times with what her colleagues describe as grace, clarity, and an unwavering ethical compass.

Albert J. Simone Legacy Award

This legacy award recognizes a staff member whose long-term body of work is exemplary and who has contributed significantly to RIT for 25 years or more.

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Laura Watts

This year’s winner is Laura Watts, senior associate director of Admissions Operations and Enrollment Analytics.

Since 1996, Watts has been the steady hand behind the implementation of the university’s most critical systems, serving as the lead for PeopleSoft/Campus Solutions, the integration of the Hyland OnBase paperless review system, and the transition to Slate. According to her nomination, “Watts is defined by what she calls her ‘internal moral compass.’ Raised with a mentality of giving 100 percent effort, she approaches every task—no matter how great or small—with a pursuit of excellence.” She has also built a culture of community within her team, treating colleagues like family, prioritizing their development and teaching them to be self-sufficient and confident, while always keeping the interests and future opportunities of students at the center of her work.

More information on the awards is available on RIT Staff Council website.