Congratulations to Charron Andrus, EIM Awardee & COSA Winners

April 26, 2023

Dear One IT Colleagues,

Awards season is upon us, and I’m very happy to announce that several of our One IT colleagues have been recognized for their outstanding achievements over the past year. 

Excellence in Management (EIM) Award

The Excellence in Management Award honors exemplary managers and supervisors who have led their teams and team members to meaningful accomplishments this past year. What’s great about these awards is that nominations come directly from team members!EIM recipients demonstrate and encourage mentorship, dignity, respect, and belonging.

Please join me in congratulatingCharron Andrus, Associate Chief Information Security Officer (ACISO) on being selected as a recipient of the Excellence in Management Award!Charron is the embodiment of this year’s theme Everyday Hero: Leading the Path to Excellence. She leads the path to excellence with her work and leadership in Information Security (both on campus and beyond) plus her continued focus on diversifying the technology space. Thank you for all you do and what you bring to Berkeley IT Charron! There will be an awards ceremony held on May 2 at 2 p.m., mark your calendar and join the ceremony virtually. View the full list of 2023 EIM Recipients

Chancellor’s Outstanding Staff Awards (COSA)

The Chancellor’s Outstanding Staff Awards are coordinated by the Chancellor’s Staff Advisory Committee (CSAC). COSA awards are presented to individuals and teams who, in addition to performing their normal job duties with excellence, demonstrate exceptional initiative in contributing to the UC Berkeley campus community. 

The COSA is presented on an annual basis to individual staff members and teams who demonstrate exceptional initiative to create significant positive impact on the UC Berkeley campus community.Congratulations to the following staff members and teams, who have contributed to improving Berkeley's environment over the last year:

Individual COSA Recipients

Mikaela Auerbach, Berkeley International Officeis an invaluable and pioneering member of the Berkeley International Office (BIO). In Fall 2020, she leveraged her data analysis skills in drawing on multiple campus and federal data systems to create reports that helped the university plan for Fall 2021 instruction for international students. She is adept with technology, using her skills to help BIO improve the student experience. Mikaela is a strong collaborator with a keen understanding of the work of student services professionals.

Wood Foster-Smith, Berkeley IT has designed and implemented data processes and tools that Berkeley faculty and staff use daily to obtain insights for decision-making, tracking progress, and proactively identifying areas that need improvement. Wood’s steady, behind-the-scenes work building student data reporting infrastructure enables much of the Berkeley campus to function more effectively and efficiently. The creativity, thoroughness, and collegiality that imbue all of his work ensure that essential campus reporting processes will meet the needs of Berkeley faculty and staff well into the future. 

Amy Neeser, Research IT is dedicated to promoting research excellence among Berkeley faculty and researchers through her work in Research IT’s consulting program. Her efforts have led to shared workflows, cross-training, and improving the efficiency of Research IT’s services. Amy is also dedicated to proactive inclusive and equitable community engagement and in uplifting underrepresented and underserved communities, through events and initiatives such as Women in Data Science Berkeley, Women in High-Performance Computing Bay Area Chapter, and Love Data Week. 

Nili Ovaici, Berkeley IT transformed our Student Information Systems (SIS) culture and organization by focusing on mentorship and the professional growth of others. She ensures all voices are heard and is inclusive and thoughtful when streamlining processes. She has guided discussions on topics from resources and capacity strategies to Achieve Together conversations, all through a DEIB lens. Nili supports receiving and giving feedback and is dedicated to breaking down silos and cross-training staff. She truly cares about all her colleagues and is committed to developing others.

Yuvi Panda, Division of Computing, Data Science, and Society is the architect of the campus DataHub, where students easily access standardized computing environments. DataHub is utilized across a broad range of disciplines, including Engineering, Social Sciences, Natural Sciences, and Humanities. As an active mentor to staff and students, Yuvi was essential to the project’s conception, development, and deployment. His leadership exemplifies the university’s leveraging and maximizing utilization of over 20 Berkeley core R&D facilities, generating over $1 million in revenue, and becoming a beacon of attraction to the world’s change-making entrepreneurial students and faculty, and startups.

Rana Silver, Berkeley IT is dedicated to nurturing a culture rich in partnership, innovation, inclusivity, and equity. Her unwavering commitment to growing and developing others has opened doors of professional development for staff throughout the Student Information Systems Unit in Berkeley IT and the One IT community. Her contributions to maturing the Berkeley IT organization via User Groups and an IT governance framework have helped foster trust, ensure representation from diverse campus communities, and guide the committee to focus on IT priorities that support campus strategies and initiatives.

Team COSA Recipients

The following members of our One IT community were part of teams who received a COSA:

Equity-Oriented Advising and Coaching Program Development & Implementation Team

  • Syrhonda Calhoun, Research, Teaching and Learning

  • Susan Hagstrom, Research, Teaching and Learning

  • Liza Schlosser-Olroyd, Research, Teaching and Learning

  • Donna Vivar, Research, Teaching and Learning

Financial Planning Post-Strike Implementation Workgroup

  • Stacey Alvarez, People, Performance & Culture

  • Eric Armstrong, Berkeley IT 

  • Doug Au, Office of the Registrar

  • Rosemary Kim, Division of Finance Immediate Office

  • Anna Meister, Finance Systems

  • Crystal Parkinson, Payroll Office

  • Teal Sexton, SHARE Region

  • Leslie Wills, Berkeley IT

Summer Salary Process Streamlining & Automation Team

  • Arliss Nakken, Division of Administration

  • Isabel Nguyen, Business Project Management Office

  • Janet Speer, People, Performance & Culture

View the full list of COSA recipientsin the program from the award ceremony held yesterday at Sibley Auditorium.

One IT In Action

The COSA awards are among the highest honors bestowed by the Chancellor, and the work of these individuals and teams exemplifies the collaborative spirit that drives our One IT efforts, for which we can collectively be proud

Do you want to recognize a colleague for being awesome? Here are a few ways you can highlight great work:

Congratulations again and a sincere thank you to all the award winners for their contributions and to everyone who nominated them!

Warm Regards,

Jenn Stringer, Associate Vice Chancellor for IT and Chief Information Officer

Related Links: One IT | EIM Awards | COSA Info & Past Recipients | Pay IT Forward