Recognizing Excellence

The Recognizing Excellence program was developed to recognize and reward employees for outstanding contribution to the campus, based on the Finance and Administrative Services (FAS) Values and Core Competency.

All previous nominees and awardees: Previous Recognizing Excellence Awardees

2026 Recognizing Excellence Awardees & Nominees:

• Legendary Leader: Deborah Davis (awardee), Brittani Brown (awardee), Brenda Hovis, Alma McFarland, Mitchell Maynard, Janine Prior, Virginia Berman.
• Legendary Service: Christina Norita (awardee), Noella Richer, Zinab Sahial, Elizabeth Vera, Patty Hanks, Patricia Munoz, Veronica Ohm, Debbie Russo, Khulood Abu Yousef, Donald Tharp, Ray Lopez, Brennan Vilbrandt.
• Rising Star Award: Fernando Camacho (awardee), Iris Ruiz, Rebekah Baza, Marion Peralta, Sofia Espinoza, Olivia Ohm.
• PAW Award Collaboration: Elle McFarland (awardee), Noella Richer, Ruth Canseco, Kandi Rehard, Sandi Deinhardt, Madeline Kreig.
• PAW Award Continuous Improvement: Donald Tharp (awardee), Elle McFarland, Sharon McIntosh, Heather Steiger, Maria Froehle, Marissa Acosta.
• PAW Award Positive Spirit: Rebekah Baza (awardee), Symeon Martinez, Jill Heath, Brenda Hovis.       

Selection process:

• Nominations are open to the Division.
• All nominations are scrubbed of all identifying information and provided to a Selection Committee comprised of awardees from the previous year.
• The Selection Committee reviews the anonymous nominations and then scores each from 1 to 5. The nominee with the highest overall score receives the award and is recognized during the Division Meeting.
• Please note: To ensure more colleagues have a chance to shine, previous winners are eligible for recognition again in five years.