Dean of students Clayton Smith congratulates GEM Award winners Laura Handsor, Ann Marie Hranka, Tim Kenney, Ashley Seguin and (seated) Mike MacKinnon, Rosemary Briscoe and Chris Zelezney.Dean of students Clayton Smith congratulates GEM Award winners Laura Handsor, Ann Marie Hranka, Tim Kenney, Ashley Seguin and (seated) Mike MacKinnon, Rosemary Briscoe and Chris Zelezney.

Awards celebrate UWindsor staffers who Go the Extra Mile

Putting care into the student experience is what defines student affairs, dean of students Clayton Smith told those gathered for a luncheon Thursday recognizing members of his staff for performance above and beyond normal expectations.

The Going the Extra Mile (GEM) Awards celebrate the work of all areas of student affairs, from Aboriginal education to writing support.

Laura Handsor, who retired as international student program advisor in December after more than 40 years of employment by the University, received a lifetime award for a career of first-class service.

She said she was thrilled with the honour, and quoted poet Maya Angelou to sum up her approach: “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

Tim Kenney, a housekeeper in the Macdonald Hall residence, won a “Partner GEM award” as someone outside of student affairs who contributes to improving campus life.

The other awards are categorized by the source of their nomination:

  • Ashley Seguin, leadership and orientation assistant in the Student Success Centre, won a student-nominated award;
  • Ann Marie Hranka, assistant to the vice-provost, students, won a peer-nominated award; and
  • Campus Community Police officers Michael MacKinnon, Chris Zelezney and Rosemary Briscoe won a faculty-nominated award.

With an “Aloha” theme, the event featured the distribution of leis, hula lessons, and Hawaiian food.