UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The College of Education recognized five of its own at its annual awards ceremony April 17.
Jerry Henry, the human resources (HR) strategic partner for the College of Education and the College of Arts and Architecture, is the recipient of the Cotterill Leadership Enhancement Award. The award recognizes a faculty or staff member in the College of Education for exemplary performance and leadership efforts. Made possible by Joan and David Cotterill, the award includes resources for professionally related activities, including participating in conferences, seminars and sabbaticals.
"Jerry Henry cares deeply about people and works hard to do everything possible within existing policies to support faculty, staff and students within the college," said Dean David H. Monk. "I have learned to count on Jerry for insightful advice. He is the first person I turn to when I'm faced with a complex human resource issue. He is knowledgeable and fair and works tirelessly behind the scenes to make the college a better place for everyone."
In addition to his work within the two colleges, Henry has been a leader at the University level to streamline and harmonize the numerous HR and administrative policies that exist at Penn State. He has also been in leadership roles as the University works to implement new HR and finance systems.
"Jerry has been an exceptional contributor to the transformation of HR at Penn State," said Susan Basso, vice president for Human Resources. "As one of the University's first strategic partners, Jerry has provided outstanding HR leadership both in the College of Education and the College of Arts and Architecture. His competence within the discipline of HR, his care and compassion for the employees he serves, combined with his spirit of collaboration, makes him an exemplar for the future of HR at Penn State."
Henry has been with Penn State and the College of Education since August 1998. "I actually started as a financial analyst in the private sector," he said. "I made a career switch to HR almost 30 years ago and have never regretted the move."
In his role as a human resources strategic partner, Henry juggles many competing priorities to get the job done efficiently, keep costs low and maintain the highest standards of quality. "I like to confront problems and deal with issues, rather than ignore them – being willing to endure difficulty, taking risks and putting myself in uncomfortable situations in standing up for our employees," he said.
Significant accomplishments include providing college leadership advice on complex employee relations and legal issues, digitizing college personnel files, undertaking the Human Resources Service Delivery Model Pilot between two colleges and leading the University HR policy harmonization efforts.
Career Achievement Award: Richard Hazler
The Career Achievement Award is designed to celebrate the career of a tenured faculty member within the college. It is granted in recognition of superior leadership, scholarship, teaching and research in education. This year, the award goes to Richard Hazler.
Hazler is professor of counselor education in the Department of Educational Psychology, Counseling and Special Education. He serves as professor-in-charge of the counselor education program and coordinator for the elementary school counseling program, positions he has held since he arrived at Penn State in 2003. One area of his research focuses on the impacts of bullying, harassment and ostracism on social, emotional and behavioral development in children and later in life. Throughout his career, he has published more than 50 peer-reviewed articles and eight textbooks.
In the nomination letter she wrote in support of her colleague, Associate Professor Deirdre O'Sullivan said: "While I am surrounded by impressive people every day, I don't know anyone who works as hard as [Richard] does, for as long as he has, and done it so well and so successfully with generosity, modesty and genuine concern for the success of others."
He is held in high regard by his colleagues and students (past and present), O'Sullivan wrote. This claim is validated by the 11 letters of support submitted with Hazler's nomination. Here are a few comments from those who admire and respect Hazler as colleague, mentor and friend.
— "My words are not enough to capture Richard's priceless contributions to our program, department, college and university, as well as to our profession." – Julia Bryan, associate professor of counselor education.
— "Richard is an incredibly caring individual. The sensitivity and compassion he has for others extends beyond his peers, it is the effort he makes in teaching students and those who are new to the counseling profession that make him so special." – Richard Yep, chief executive officer, American Counseling Association.
— "What may truly distinguish the career of Dr. Richard Hazler is his overall commitment to the mentoring of others, both his students and other professionals. I consider myself to be fortunate to be one of those individuals." – Jamie Carney, former student and colleague, and current Humana Germany Sherman distinguished professor at Auburn University
— "As I enter my 20th year at The Ohio State University, I can honestly say I would not be the counselor educator that I have become without [Richard's] direct influence, mentorship and caring support. Through [Richard], I learned what it was to be an academic with integrity to one's beliefs." – Paul Granello, former student and current associate professor at Ohio State.
Outstanding Staff Award: Joshua Miller and Cathy Hipple
The Outstanding Staff Award recognizes the accomplishments of staff members in the College of Education for outstanding service and commitment to faculty, staff and students of the Penn State community. This year, there are two recipients.
Joshua Miller is the Apple-certified Mac systems administrator for the college. When he first joined the college, he was tasked with managing the Mac client base and servers, and was responsible for integrating these with the current Windows-based enterprise. Since then, the college's Mac user-base has grown to more than 53 percent among faculty and staff.
IT Manager David Cochrane said of Miller: "He has improved [the college's] workflow… by adding licensed software. MacOS clients can now add and delete applications without requiring administrative access. This process alone has saved numerous hours of ticket entries, walk-ins, phone calls, emails and the subsequent time and effort by our team to bring software requests to a satisfying resolution."
Greg Kelly, associate dean of research, outreach and technology said, "Many users are unaware of the work behind the scenes that make the technologies work so well. Joshua has been responsible for designing and implementing enterprise level systems for use with MacOS and iOS devices in the college. This includes implementing and administering the Managed Software Center."
The second Outstanding Staff Award recipient is Cathy Hipple, administrative and certification assistant in the Advising and Certification Center. Hipple is the point-of-contact for all University faculty and staff who have questions regarding Pennsylvania Department of Education certification.
"To say that Cathy is deserving of the Outstanding Staff Award is an understatement," wrote Greg Mason, director of advising and certification. "She is the glue that has held together the day-to-day operations of the Advising and Certification Center through changes in leadership, staff and teacher certification requirements."
On June 30, Hipple will retire after more than 20 years of service to the College of Education. During that time, she has built relationships with faculty, staff and students across the University and with PDE staff.
"Cathy takes her work seriously, but also cares about the people who are doing the work," Mason wrote. "When Cathy calls PDE to ask about a certification issue, she not only discusses the issue at hand, but also checks in to see how their children and grandchildren are doing."
Graduate Student Recognition Award: Courtney Lynch
The Graduate Student Recognition Award honors a graduate student for his/her outstanding scholarship, research, dedication to education, and the promise of professional excellence. This year's recipient is Courtney Lynch.
Lynch is a doctoral candidate in mathematics education and plans to graduate in August. She also serves as a professional development associate for the college's Professional Development School. Her research interests include how collaborative relationships among student teachers, mentor teachers and supervisors can encourage professional learning.
"From our earliest encounters, I was struck by the awareness and inquisitiveness with which Courtney articulated and embraced challenges in her transition from teacher to teacher-educator," said Gwendolyn Lloyd, her adviser and nominator.
Lynch also is a graduate assistant for MTHED 420: Teaching Mathematics in Elementary Schools. Between 2012 and 2016, she has taught 10 sections of the course and has received praise from students and faculty.
"Courtney is a really good teacher for seniors," one student wrote on a recent SRTE. "She is comforting and helps us with anything we may need as we are ending our time here at Penn State … One of the best teachers in our block!"
Andrea McCloskey, associate professor of mathematics education, said, "Courtney cares deeply about the experiences of the students in her classes. She wants them to become the best teachers they can be, and she treats them as fellow professionals in the field of education."