Awards

The Professional Staff Senate Awards Committee solicits and reviews nominations for three awards:

Recipients of the awards are honored at the annual Professional Staff Senate Recognition Luncheon held in May of each year.

Congratulations to 2009 Award Winners

Recipients of the SUNY Chancellor’s Awards for Excellence and the PSS Outstanding Service Award were honored at a luncheon last spring. Congratulations to the winners and thank you for your service to the university.

Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Professional Service

The award recognizes individuals who have repeatedly sought improvement of themselves, their campuses, and ultimately the State University of New York and in doing so have transcended the normal definitions of excellence.   At all position levels, nominees should be those individuals who can serve as professional role models for a University system in the pursuit of excellence.

Eligibility

Nominations for the Chancellor’s Award must be drawn from individuals presently serving in full-time professional service capacities with more than 50 percent of the assignment in non-teaching services. Nominees must be current full-time professional staff employees and must have completed at least three years of continuous full-time professional (not classified) service in the position for which they are nominated. Prior award recipients should not be nominated again. Posthumous nominations are not eligible for consideration.

Award Criteria

  • The candidate must perform superbly in fulfilling the job description for the position held.
  • The candidate should demonstrate excellence in professional activities beyond the parameters of the job description.
  • The ideal candidate may satisfy the standards in a creative or innovative fashion while demonstrating flexibility and adaptability to institutional needs.
  • Consideration should be given to capabilities and accomplishments in the area of leadership, decision-making and problem solving.  Evidence in this category would include professional recognitions, initiation of ideas, development of proposals, committee activities.

Nomination Package

Nominators may be any member of the university community. They are responsible for preparing the nomination package which must include the following:

  • Completed Nomination Form
  • Nominee’s current vitae
  • Current position description and performance program
  • Maximum of five letters of support with at least one from a supervisor, one from a colleague, one from a constituent.
  • Nominator’s summary letter of support (maximum of five pages).

Nomination Forms

Nomination packets will be available after November 1 from Anna Kedzierski at (716) 645-2003.

Guidelines and Requirements for the Nominations Package

  • Select individuals to write letters of support who have specific knowledge of the nominee’s performance and who are in the best position to provide letters of support.  Strong dossiers describe varied aspects of the nominee’s service.
  • Letters should provide specific examples that show how the nominee has exemplified excellence.  Generalizations should be avoided.
  • The Nominator’s summary is the single most important part of the nomination.  It should address specific examples of how the candidate excels in each of the criteria for the award and list the candidate’s most outstanding qualifications and major achievements.
  • The Nominator’s summary may utilize information not included elsewhere, such as information from additional letters of support not included with the dossier
  • The Nominator’s summary is the only letter forwarded to Albany as this campus’ rationale for nomination of the candidate.
  • The Nominator’s Summary is limited to a maximum of five pages.
  • All award criteria and qualifications must be met; documents should be complete; guidelines should be met for the number and sources of the letters.
  • Incomplete or late submissions will not be considered.

Deadline for Nominations

Completed nominations with support files must be submitted to the Professional Staff Senate Office at 543 Capen Hall, no later than 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, January 20, 2010.

Outstanding Service Award

The award recognizes professional excellence and outstanding service of noteworthy scope and depth which is beyond that encompassed by the job description.

Eligibility

To be eligible for the Outstanding Service Award individuals must be current full-time professional staff employees of the University at Buffalo, the Research Foundation, the UB Foundation, or the Faculty-Student Association. They must have completed at least two years of continuous full-time professional staff service by January 2009. Previous winners of the Outstanding Service Award are ineligible for five years after receiving the award.

Criteria

  • Excellence within the professional position must be demonstrated with specific evidence and must exceed average expectations indicated in the job description.
  • The service must focus on the betterment of the community as a whole, but may be associated with university initiatives.
  • The service may include religious, charitable, scientific, educational, artistic, literary, or civic involvement that enhances the quality of life.
  • Grounds for distinction may include, but are not limited to, evidence of leadership, community involvement, commitment, creativity, and initiative

Nomination Procedure and Materials

Any member of the UB community may submit nominations for the Outstanding Service Award. For each nominee, the nominator must prepare a dossier in support of the candidacy.

Dossiers include the following materials:

  • Nomination Form
  • Nominee’s current vitae
  • Current position description
  • Maximum of five letters of support with one letter describing professional excellence and no more than four letters describing service
  • The Nominator’s overview (summary presentation, maximum of five pages)

Nomination Forms

Nomination packages will be available after February 1 by calling Anna Kedzierski at (716) 645-2003.

Guidelines and Requirements for the Nomination Package

  • Nomination materials must include clear and detailed examples of both community service and professional excellence.
  • Select letter writers who can specifically describe the role and contributions of the nominee.  Strong dossiers describe varied aspects of the nominee’s service.
  • Letters of support should provide specific examples that show how the nominee has contributed to the betterment of the community and/or the university.
  • Letters of support should be as concise and precise as possible.  Generalizations should be avoided.  The letter should contain the signature of the person writing it.
  • Letters of support should be addressed to the Nominator.
  • The Nominator’s overview must specifically address the selection criteria, listing the candidate’s most outstanding qualifications and major achievements.
  • The Nominator’s overview may utilize information not included elsewhere, such as information from additional letters of support not included with the dossier.
  • The Nominator’s overview is limited to a maximum of five pages and should be addressed to the Awards Committee Chair.
  • No attachments will be accepted (i.e. booklets, manuals, newspaper clippings).
  • All award criteria and qualifications must be met; documents should be complete; guidelines should be met for the number and sources of the letters.
  • Incomplete or late submissions will not be considered.

Deadline for Nominations

Completed nominations must be submitted to the Professional Staff Senate Office at 543 Capen Hall, no later than 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, March 17, 2010.

Outstanding Service to the Professional Staff Senate Award

The award recognizes an individual member of the Professional Staff (or a group of professional staff members) who has provided outstanding service to the Professional Staff Senate at the University at Buffalo as a member of the Executive Committee or as a member of a standing or ad-hoc committee or task force of the Professional Staff Senate.

Eligibility

Any member of the Professional Staff at the University at Buffalo is eligible.

Nomination Procedure

Any member of the University at Buffalo Professional Staff may submit a nomination.

Nomination Packet

  • Nomination Form
  • Nominee's current Curriculum Vitae
  • Current position description signed by the nominee's supervisor
  • Maximum of four letters of suppport
  • Nominator's summary no more than 3 pages

Nomination Forms

Nomination packages will be available after February 1st by calling Anna Kedzierski at (716) 645-2003.

Deadline for Nominations

Completed nominations must be submitted to the Professional Staff Senate Office at 543 Capen Hall, no later than 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, March 17, 2010.



For more information or questions about the awards, contact Stefanos C. Papazaharias, Chair, PSS Awards Committee, scp@buffalo.edu (NOTE: email contact only).

Last updated: 23 November 2009