The Eberly College of Science community
honors these extraordinary people
At the Eberly College of Science, the people within our community represent the critical anchors that allow us to succeed with respect to our mission and core values. Your exemplary contributions deserve recognition, and we invite nominations for “kudos” to amplify the visibility of our extraordinary community.
The Kudos series recognizes faculty, staff, postdocs, and graduate and undergraduate students for college-related work they’ve done that goes above and beyond their job duties (for employees) or their academic responsibilities (for students). Kudos nominations are based on the college’s Code of Mutual Respect and Cooperation.
How to Nominate Someone for a Kudos
To nominate someone for a kudos, please fill out the submission form.
Kudos Guidelines
Following are the guidelines for the Eberly College of Science’s kudos nomination and selection process:
- Nominators must provide their names so that, if needed, they can be contacted to confirm the information. Nominators also must provide the full name of the nominees.
- Nominations cannot be used to promote commercial products.
- Each kudos should recognize an individual or a group/team/unit for the college-related work they've done that goes above and beyond their job duties (for employees) or their academic responsibilities (for students). One name will be accepted per nomination form.
- Kudos should not be reflective of personal favors or activities not related to the college.
- Accepted submissions will appear on the college’s Kudos web page, and the college’s diversity and inclusion, communications, and human resources offices will work together to select occasional submissions to highlight in Eberly Pulse and/or submit to Penn State’s “We Are!” shout-out series.
- Please note: only individuals (not groups/teams/units) are eligible for Penn State’s “We Are!” shout-outs.
- While we aim to publish as many kudos as possible, and in a timely fashion, we cannot guarantee that every submission will result in publication.
Nomination Categories
- Goes above and beyond (Principles: 4, 7, 8, 12)
- Fosters an inclusive work environment (Principles: 1, 6, 7, 9, 10)
- Advocates on behalf of others (Principles: 1, 4, 5, 11)
- Effectively communicates to support the team and manage change (Principles: 2, 3, 5, 6, 7)
- Demonstrated commitment to supporting the team’s success (Principles: 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 10, 11)
- Other [Fill in the blank – 10-word limit]
Monthly Recognitions
Xiaoyi Hou
Goes above and beyond, Fosters an inclusive work environment, Advocates on behalf of others, Effectively communicates to support the team and manage change, and Demonstrates commitment to supporting the team’s success (principles: 1-12).
She went above and beyond her job as a Biology Lab TA, making videos for students, and volunteering her personal and research time to help other TAs (especially first-semester TAs). I am convinced the Biology lab coordinators could not have done their jobs as successfully without her. She is definitely the best TA/instructor the Biology Department has ever had and deserves to be recognized for her efforts.
Nominator: Mei-Ling Liber
Chris Nebgen
Demonstrated commitment to supporting the team’s success (principles: 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 10, 11)
Sending a big kudos and thank you to Chris Nebgen, applications developer and Drupal expert in the college, for months of tedious work on the college website. He has edited and refined more than 210,000 lines of code and updated well over 120 files. While this work is unseen by most in the college, it is creating consistency as well as more security to set us all up for future, more visual success down the road.
Nominator: Heather Robbins
Cathy Lutz and Grace Donahey
Demonstrated commitment to supporting the team’s success (principles: 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 10, 11)
Both Cathy and Grace continually strive for excellence. The effectively support the college and our team to ensure that we are meeting the needs of our customers. There isn't one-day that goes by that they aren't asking how they can do more to support the unit. We are a small, but mighty office! I appreciate all that they do for the me, our team and the college!
Nominator: Adrian Weaver
Kelsea Smith
Goes above and beyond (principles: 4, 7, 8, 12)
After attending our recent University Brand Review workshop, Kelsea reached out to the communications office with a request to review a set of flyers for upcoming, fall-semester talks in the biology department. She quickly picked up the branding guidelines, and once we'd revised and approved one of the flyers, Kelsea used it to make a template that she applied to all the others, making the reviews quick and easy. Already, she's thinking ahead and applying what she's learned to improve products and processes for the long term. Kudos, Kelsea!
Nominator: Seth Palmer
Megan Holmes
Demonstrated commitment to supporting the team’s success (principles: 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 10, 11)
I was referred to Megan when key donors asked for a tour of Eberly College of Science for their daughter. I thought she would just help with scheduling a tour, but instead, she went much further - arranging for time with a faculty member/advisor and providing a detailed schedule that included their other scheduled activities with the university Admissions office. Not only has she helped arrange that initial tour, but several since. She has become my 'go-to' to arrange tours for our alumni/donor's children and grandchildren, and I am grateful for her expertise and flexibility.
Nominator: Jenny Miska
Evan Yarnell
Goes above and beyond (principles: 4, 7, 8, 12)
Evan Yarnell assisted with the logistics for the 2024 Eberly College of Science Ethics Workshop held the week of May 13-17, 2024. He helped deliver snacks and food in a timely manner to the workshop and he broke down the setup after the workshop was over.
Nominator: Stephen Schaeffer
Kelsea Smith
Goes above and beyond (principles: 4, 7, 8, 12)
Kelsea Smith was instrumental in handling the logistics for the 2024 Eberly College of Science Ethics Workshop held May 13-17, 2024. She handled ordering snacks and food for the workshop and made sure that it was delivered to workshop, which was in separate building on campus. She also broke down the room after each day's activities were done. For this, the instructors and participants were grateful because it contributed to the success of the workshop.
Nominator: Stephen Schaeffer
Carly Sjogren
Goes above and beyond (principles: 4, 7, 8, 12)
In her first year at Penn State and as FRI Coordinator, Carly Sjogren has gone above and beyond to make the FRI program an inclusive environment for faculty and undergraduates alike. The first thing you notice when you walk into the FRI lab teaching space is a colorful rainbow of bins, signage, and lab coats, set up during her own summer time before the fall semester began. During the first couple weeks of the semester, Carly encouraged all faculty working in FRI to consider joining the Rainbow Science Network with her and/or to set an intention to increase inclusivity in some way in each of our lab sections. Teaching assistants (TAs), who are former FRI students, were also encouraged to consider how to make the FRI teaching lab space feel more inclusive after reading some articles on evidence-based teaching. For the undergraduates in the program, Carly was regularly booked for meetings as they seemed to feel comfortable and supported by her as challenges arose during their first year of college. The list could go on. Most recently, the FRI program, which is a two-semester sequence for first-year students, culminated in a well-attended research symposium featuring undergraduate research. Carly put even more time than she already does in the weeks leading up to this event to help students and their partner faculty have success. At the research poster symposium, the vibe in the room was one of accomplishment and pride in the work accomplished together by first-year undergraduates and their partnering faculty and TA teams.
Nominator: Glenna Malcolm
Claire Harlow
Effectively communicates to support the team and manage change (principles: 2, 3, 5, 6, 7)
Claire has helped support our faculty and students through helping me interview and write letters of support for awards for them. She has also supported our Department through planning multiple awards ceremonies. Claire is always organized, proactive, and in the know!
Nominator: Philip Bevilacqua
Ed Hilvano
Goes above and beyond (principles: 4, 7, 8, 12)
Ed is the most impactful, inspiring TA I have ever had. As part of his TA responsibilities, Ed creates well-designed, challenging questions that require students to think deeply and richly about the course content. (Ed is much better at question design than I am!) Students are allowed to work on these questions during student hour sessions, where students become teachers to one another! It is truly the ultimate collaborative activity I have ever witnessed in my lecture courses. Ed has inspired me to challenge my students to the next level and beyond. Thank you, Ed, for your dedication and care for student learning. I am blessed to have you as my colleague. Kudos!
Nominator: Kate Masters