Extra Effort & Team Effort Awards
Virtual Extra Effort Nomination Form
Virtual Team Extra Effort Nomination Form
Click here to Jump to Team Effort Awards
The EXTRA EFFORT AWARD goes to:
February 2026
Sara Anderson, Program Manager, College Now – nominated by Deb Elder
The College Now team sought a more efficient system of data collection and processing to meet accreditation requirements and improve communication. Sara led the project as lead communicator with the solution company representative, managed department trainings, and led implementation of the software solution. Her efforts resulted in improved internal and external communication, improved recordkeeping accuracy, and improved reporting process efficiency.
Melissa Nemmers, Print Production Technician, Printing Services – nominated by Lisa Turner-Hernandez
The entire Printing Services team consistently provides outstanding support to the Admissions team, ensuring we have everything we need to effectively recruit prospective students to JCCC. Our annual Junior/Senior Day on February 16 would not have been possible without their partnership, and Melissa truly went above and beyond.
With unexpected last-minute registrants and record-breaking attendance, we needed several additional pieces printed with very little notice. I submitted two tickets before Printing Services even opened Monday morning, and Melissa immediately sprang into action to ensure everything was printed and ready in time. Her flexibility, responsiveness, and willingness to shift priorities played a critical role in the success of our largest event of the year.
Thank you, Melissa, for your kindness, professionalism, and unwavering support — we truly appreciate you!
C’ierre Evans, Student Staff, WDCE – nominated by Molly Salisbury
Recently C’ierre presented on a student panel for the NEJC Chamber Leadership class that was on campus. It was her first time public speaking and did a wonderful job. C’ierre spoke beautifully about the college and our WDCE department, emphasizing how welcoming JCCC has been for her and shared openly about being a non traditional student learning alongside more traditional students, including the challenges of intergenerational communication and the learning that has come from it. Her reflections were insightful and incredibly relatable.
Brett Robertson, Lead Enterprise Desktop Engineer & Support, Information Services – nominated by Lori Shank
Brett serves as our primary liaison and support for Examplify, the testing software used for all proctored Registered Nursing exams, ensuring seamless implementation and functionality. From managing updates to providing real-time troubleshooting before, during, and after exams, his responsiveness and expertise keep our high-stakes testing environment running smoothly. While vendor support exists, Brett’s abilities supersede this option, as his accessibility and commitment are essential to our success, and his extraordinary efforts truly exemplify extra effort.
Colab Center Staff – nominated by Angie Cordero-Pavon
- Jodie Dietz, Coordinator
- Day Crew: Cheyenne Holst, Arika Ledom, Mike Woller, Ryan Stovall, Kit Bunselmeyer
- Evening Crew for special event coverage: Isaiah Reasby, Michelle Nevrkla Rinck
“Dear Colab Team,
I wanted to take a moment to express my heartfelt appreciation for you all . The Colab is truly a fantastic space that benefits our students, employees, and the community, and it’s your dedication and hard work that keep everything running so smoothly. Your support for Employee Engagement and Development has been invaluable. You not only create a welcoming environment for events but also bring both efficiency and fun to everything you do. Our recent 12 Days of Wellness and Holiday Hangout events were a huge success. Your hard work does not go unnoticed, and we are truly grateful to have such a wonderful team supporting us at JCCC.”
Catherine Frazier, Writing Tutor, Writing Center – nominated by Kara Kynion
The Writing Center has taken on new classroom initiatives, which have caused an unforeseen scheduling issue. Catherine has been left as the only tutor in the Writing Center some mornings and has worked with multiple students (sometimes at once). While we solved the issue, Catherine has supported students with a helpful, kind, and patient demeanor.
January 2026
Justin Cline, Course Materials Buyer, Bookstore – nominated by Kate McNeil
We had an issue with a text, after the semester started and the publisher wasn’t able to address it. Justin jumped in and quickly found an alternative solution to ensure our students’ needs were met. He was incredibly responsive, creative, great to work with, and made sure our students could start the semester off well.
Jennifer Kennett, Faculty, Mathematics Department – nominated by Mark Gordon
Math faculty receive a roster report each semester from the IR Department. It also gives information on those repeating the course. I asked Jennifer how she uses it and she told me that she invites those repeating for the 3rd or 4th time to come talk with her. She then asks them why they think things did not go well. Then she talks to them about different study techniques; using the MRC for help; setting up time with the Math Coaches; possibly taking a Learning Strategies class; and setting specific times to do homework/study just like it was a job they had to go to. This is excellent. She well deserves an extra effort award.
Note: I’m sure other math faculty are just as diligent in ensuring the success of their students too.
Jocelyn Devaney-Prasad, IISS Coordinator, International and Immigrant Student Services (IISS) – nominated by Kim Steinmetz
Jocelyn ran IISS orientation like a boss! She had to cover all parts at the last minute due to an unexpected illness on our team, and she handled it all with positivity, flexibility, and adaptability. She took everything in stride, provided excellent service, and did a fantastic job welcoming our new international students.
Grant Carlson, Program Coordinator, WDCE – nominated by Leslie Dykstra
Grant volunteered his time to serve on the awards selection committee for the Kansas Adult Education Association 2026 awards. He reviewed nominations and scored them according to a rubric. He then sent his selections to me for review. I appreciate him taking the time to support KAEA.
Kayla Harrity, Director of Operations, WDCE – nominated by Leslie Dykstra
Kayla volunteered her time to serve on the awards selection committee for the Kansas Adult Education Association 2026 awards. She reviewed nominations and scored them according to a rubric. She then sent her selections to me for review. I appreciate her taking the time to support KAEA.
Liz Albers, Business Liaison, WDCE – nominated by Leslie Dykstra
Liz volunteered her time to serve on the awards selection committee for the Kansas Adult Education Association 2026 awards. She reviewed nominations and scored them according to a rubric. She then sent her selections to me for review. I appreciate her taking the time to support KAEA.
Dale Roussel, Technical Support Technician, Client Support Services/Information Services – nominated by Ashley Rader – on behalf of Master Teacher Workshop Faculty Committee (Ashley Rader, Michael Carriger, Anne Dotter, Chrystal Tatum, Jamie Cunningham, and Doug Patterson)
During our Master Teacher Workshop retreat during PLD week, our committee discovered that our retreat center in Leavenworth no longer had a portable projector for our use (a CRUCIAL need for teaching demos). We scrambled and I drove to campus trying to find anyone to loan us one and no one in multimedia services was in their office at the time and Ed Tech didn’t have one. I stopped in Information Services on a whim to see if they had any idea on where to go and Dale saved the day! He was incredibly gracious, quickly found one (these aren’t around much anymore on campus apparently); made sure it worked; helped me with the paperwork; and got me back on the road. I returned to the retreat center within minutes of needing the projector and everything went smoothly and on time from there. He was friendly and clearly WANTED to help us in a pinch. I don’t even know if any of this was within his normal job duties. So, thank you, Dale on behalf of all the faculty on this committee and the participants!
Natalie Medina, Senior CAV Leader, Admissions/New Student Recruitment – nominated by Ryan Weber
Natalie stepped up as a leader when there was a miscommunication on the team. Her rational and on-the-fly decision making helped the team to succeed and we are truly a better team because of her!
Megan Ullrich, CAV Leader, Admissions/New Student Recruitment – nominated by Ryan Weber
Megan stepped up and promoted our wonderful campus to a group of 40 high school students. She excels in leadership and positivity, and we are a much better team for having her!!
Vickki Jo Powers, AP Manager, Accounting – nominated by Leslie Dykstra
Vickki Jo worked on the weekend to reconcile JCAE’s WIOA grant for a KBOR deadline. We appreciate her working extra hours to ensure we could submit our quarter 2 reports on time.
December 2025
Hanna Tiruneh, Marketing/Print Administrative Support Coordinator, Printing Services-nominated by Anne Rubeck
As most people know, JCCC is working diligently to meet Title II requirements for accessibility on our digital properties. This very often includes making documents (Word, PDF, Excel, etc.) accessible to post on the JCCC website. Many times these documents aren’t necessarily created with the requirements in mind.
One such document was the 2023 JCCC Annual Report to the Community. It’s a beautiful and informative print piece, but not at all accessible for the visually impaired. We use a web-based program to remediate such documents and it is a very time-consuming and often tedious process.
Enter Hanna – when we were strapped for staff time to accomplish this, Hannah stepped up. She learned the remediation process from scratch and spent many, many hours to make sure the College is in compliance with the accessibility requirements. She did this in addition to her regular duties which keep her very busy.
Hanna did a phenomenal and thorough job. This wasn’t part of any of her regular duties, but she agreed to help and definitely went way above and beyond. We can’t thank her enough!
Jennifer Schrowe, Technology and Testing Specialist, JCAE-nominated by Carol Souders
Jennifer does everything she can to get our students tested. She will re-arrange her days just to fit our needs. She is always cordial, even when we ask so much of her time.
Team Effort Award Nomination Form
The Team Effort Award recognizes a group accomplishment related to achieving goals in the Strategic and/or Operational Plans of JCCC. It may be a task force or cross functional team representing multiple departments or may be for an outstanding accomplishment by a single department or workgroup.
The TEAM EFFORT AWARD goes to:
- Tanya Kelley, Faculty, Foreign Language
- Yue Pan, Faculty, Foreign Language
- Inna Verzhbytska, Faculty, Foreign Language
- James Hillen, Tutor, Academic Achievement Center
- Claudette Williams, Tutor, Academic Achievement Center
- Kotoko Grass, Faculty, Foreign Language
- Yosei Sugawara, Faculty, Foreign Language
- Luz Alvarez Faculty, Foreign Language
- Christina Wolff, Faculty, Foreign Language
- Amelia Milldyke Gifford, Sr Videographer / Editor, Video Services
- Miho Kawashita, Japan Outreach Initiative (JOI) Coordinator, Global Engagement
- Junxian Xie, Program Coordinator, Global Awareness
- Ana Marmolejo Duque, Administrative Assistant II, Academic Achievement Center
Nominated by Christina Wolff, Faculty, Foreign Language
Accomplishment:
“Informational videos for each language can be found on the Chinese, French, German, Japanese and Spanish pages. This was the initial idea of Kotoko Grass who coordinated and participated in the first Japanese, Spanish and German videos in addition to all the other Japanese events she coordinates on campus while shadowing me as the FL co-chair. I took over the project and completed the French and Chinese videos as chair of the FL department. The names of anyone who participated in the video when asked or helped coordinate student participation in the videos was included. Amelia and her team created the wonderful videos you see on our websites:
https://www.jccc.edu/academics/credit/foreign-language/chinese/
https://www.jccc.edu/academics/credit/foreign-language/french/
https://www.jccc.edu/academics/credit/foreign-language/german/
https://www.jccc.edu/academics/credit/foreign-language/japanese/
https://www.jccc.edu/academics/credit/foreign-language/spanish/”
Ties in with JCCC Strategic Goal(s):
Student Success
S2 – Recruiting: Attract and ensure access to learning for all individuals, regardless of background.
Employee Engagement
S2 – Organizational Culture: Foster an environment of belonging and support a positive campus culture.
Community Connections
S3 – Community Needs: Serve as a convener for focused community engagements, responding to the shifting demographics of Johnson County.
Community Connections
S4 – Cultural Enrichment: Serve as a cultural hub for our community by facilitating lifelong learning through educational programming and world-class art experiences.
The TEAM EFFORT AWARD goes to:
- Julie Sisk (IISS Navigator)
- Rabeh Ghadiri (IISS coordinator)
- Bianca Melchor-Guidel (IISS admin)
- Eskedar Terefe (IISS Admin)
Nominated by Kim Steinmetz, Program Director, International & Immigrant Student Services
Accomplishment:
“The IISS admissions team had a truly outstanding spring admissions cycle. Despite encountering numerous external challenges—including travel bans, visa delays and closures, and an increasingly difficult immigration climate—they worked tirelessly to support and onboard 32 new students.
It has been incredibly encouraging to see the team pour their hearts into helping students arrive, ensuring they have a positive experience from the start, and representing the college with such dedication and professionalism. Their commitment directly contributes to bringing new students to our campus, and they are deeply deserving of recognition for all they do.”
Ties in with JCCC Strategic Goal(s):
Student Success
S2 – Recruiting: Attract and ensure access to learning for all individuals, regardless of background.
The TEAM EFFORT AWARD goes to:
- Janette Jasperson – Global Engagement
- Jocelyn Devaney-Prasad, IISS
- Suzanne Maheu – IISS
- Cassie Jordan – Student Engagement
- Mya Lawrence – Student Life
- Farrell Jenab – Faculty Development
Nominated by Kim Steinmetz, Program Director, International & Immigrant Student Services
Accomplishment:
“This group collaborated for months to plan an incredible International Festival. Their goal was to bring people together, raise awareness about global opportunities at JCCC, and showcase the impact of international experiences. Through their hard work, they organized more than 22 tables and groups representing diverse cultures and programs. They also partnered across campus and various departments to ensure global opportunities—both inside and outside the classroom—were highlighted”.
Ties in with JCCC Strategic Goal(s):
Student Success
S1 – Programming: Offer relevant academic programming to meet the shifting needs of our students, communities, and the industries we serve in career and technical and transfer programs.
S2 – Recruiting: Attract and ensure access to learning for all individuals, regardless of background.
Employee Engagement
S1 -Recruitment & Retention: Encourage employee growth. Leverage total compensation strategies to attract exceptional talent and retain employees while advancing the mission of the College.
The TEAM EFFORT AWARD goes to:
- Seth Mullis, Chief of Police, Police Department
- Dixie Johnson, Emergency Management, Emergency Management
- Sam Tady, Video Production Specialist, Video Services
- Lolo Collins, Sr. Videographer, Video Services
- Suzanne Maheu, IISS
Nominated by Kim Steinmetz, Program Director, International & Immigrant Student Services
Accomplishment:
“This group collaborated to create a video for new international students, introducing them to campus safety at JCCC.
The video covers essential topics including weather preparedness, gun safety, campus police, and emergency protocols. It’s designed to help students feel more confident and informed as they prepare to join our community.
Their hard work and dedication truly shine through in this project. They did a wonderful job, and their efforts will make a meaningful difference in helping students engage with campus life in a safer and more informed way.”
Ties in with JCCC Strategic Goal(s):
Student Success
S1 – Programming: Offer relevant academic programming to meet the shifting needs of our students, communities, and the industries we serve in career and technical and transfer programs.
S2- Recruiting: Attract and ensure access to learning for all individuals, regardless of background.