The Human Resources Department is pleased to announce the Employees of Distinction this year for the months of December, January and February.
Sandy McKenna was selected as the Employee of Distinction for December. At Canisius for about 15 years, Sandy currently works for the Physician Assistant Program as the Academic Program Coordinator. She was nominated for this award by Dr. Aimee Larson, who shared the following:
“I am writing to nominate Sandy McKenna for employee of the month recognition. Sandy has been consistently going above and beyond to help develop and maintain the physician assistant program since 2018. She is consistently our resource for any and all information about college matters for our entire faculty and is also a consistent source of support for other faculty and staff on campus. Since our students started in January, she has been wearing multiple hats in our program, as the administrative associate, academic program coordinator, and as our clinical placement coordinator. She helps with our extensive incoming correspondence with future applicants and has been a key figure in the success of our program. We would be lost here without her.”
Tyler Kron-Piatek was selected as the Employee of Distinction for January. At Canisius for a little more than four years, Tyler currently works in the Center for Online Learning and Innovation as the Academic Technologist. He was nominated for this award by Dr. Mark Gallimore, who shared the following:
“In his time in the Center for Online Learning & Innovation, Tyler has consistently put in excellent quality work, well beyond day-to-day requirements of his job description. With professionalism, patience, and compassion. Tyler helps faculty and staff with complicated technology problems during a particularly challenging time. His attention to detail and persistence have greatly improved our software administration and efforts to prepare Canisius IT resources for the 2020s. Tyler is truly a Golden Griffin and lives the Ignatian mission of the college every day.
He is a remarkably self-motivated, self-directed employee. I quickly noticed this after hiring him and accelerated the timetable for sharing and assigning responsibilities to him. He quickly learned how to administer D2L, Zoom, and other existing apps. I let him take the lead on deploying Panopto, a large, complicated, system-wide system essential for academics, and he directed the rollout with equal parts prudence and decisiveness. Well ahead of schedule, he has adopted all essential COLI responsibilities, so that if I was unable to work for some timeframe, COLI’s services would not stop.
Tyler has also earned the respect and favor of faculty in a remarkably short time. Professors praise Tyler’s attentiveness and courtesy. Many approach him for help as a habit already, and his tutorials are already a big chunk of COLI’s video traffic.
I cannot imagine how we could have made a better hire, and Tyler truly represents what we hope our Canisius graduates do and become.”
Joe Snodgrass was selected as the Employee of Distinction for February. At Canisius for a little over a year, Joe currently works as the Facilities Operations Manager and Safety Coordinator for Facilities Management. He was nominated by Scott Clark, who said the following:
“Time and time again Joe responds quickly and efficiently to issues that arise across campus. Whenever a work order is submitted he is immediately on top of it and follows through to get it resolved right away. His attention to detail and personal interaction is a great asset to the facilities department and greatly appreciated by the rest of the campus.”
Joe’s character has not gone unnoticed by all who come in contact with him – he serves as a great example to the Canisius community through his embodiment of cura personalis in every interaction he has, exemplifying a positive attitude, willingness to help, and the ability to resolve arising problems quickly.
Please join the Human Resources Department in congratulating Sandy, Tyler, and Joe on their well-deserved achievements!
To nominate a coworker for future Employee of Distinction, click here.
Submitted by: Bethany Vorhees, executive associate, President’s Office
