Power & Class

Band members cited as UMass student employees-of-the-year

May 14, 2007

Each spring, commencement season approaches and the campus comes alive with a sense of renewal and anticipation for the future. During this time, students, faculty and staff are recognized for their wonderful contributions to the campus. This year, 10 student employees were honored for their exemplary efforts in their workplaces. Two happen to be members of the Minuteman Band:

David Prevost, a music major, works in the Campus Center Events Office. According to Ashoke Ganguli, director of Auxiliary Services, “David mastered the details of event and A/V setup while exuding a wonderful customer service attitude. David even stepped in to correct a shortcoming in the office’s scheduling software. Not only did David solve this problem, he improved the function of the program that has become central to Campus Center operations.”

Andy Whalen, a computer science major, works in the Advancement Communications office. Affectionately nicknamed ’sleek geek’ by Advancement Communications Director Lisa Perlbinder, she went on to offer many platitudes lauding Andy’s work on the UMass Amherst web site. “By any measure, Andy’s contributions have equaled or exceeded that which would be expected of a full-time employee. He routinely completes assignments to perfection and also takes them a step higher than anyone could imagine.”

The Student Employee of the Year Award program was first instituted during the 1987 academic year to recognize the many contributions student employees make to our campus. In 1991 the award was named for Gerald F. Scanlon, in memory of a man who was a staunch supporter of students throughout his UMass Amherst tenure. Without student workers, much of the work done by university staff would indeed be very difficult to achieve.