March 2019 President's Report
Spring is finally here and I hope you all are enjoying the sunshine in between all of the rain. This is a great time of year and as we know, spring is often associated with “new beginnings” but is also signaling the end of my term as Staff Senate President. As I reflect on this past year, the words friendship, collaboration, passion and dedication come to my mind immediately. This is how I will remember my time as Clemson University’s Staff Senate President as I have met many new friends, engaged in many collaborative efforts and witnessed an incredible amount of passion and dedication in what I think has been a very successful year working with University Officials, Faculty and our incredibly dedicated Staff Senators. It is also a time for some Senators to step off the Senate and for newly elected Senators to embark on what they will certainly remember as a rewarding experience. I would like to thank all of those Senators for their service and wish them nothing but the best in the future.
During my Presidency, the Staff Senate and our incredible Standing Committee members have been hard at work to achieve their goals for the year and they kept Staff Senate “On the Move” by progressing on many fronts. There have been many accomplishments but I have particularly enjoyed attending Football games with the President, participating at BOT meetings, Student Graduations, CU Foundation Board events and meetings and working with Human Resources on employee related issues.
I have always believed that none of us is smarter or more powerful than all of us and this year we have worked collaboratively on several initiatives that reflect that belief. We did make a difference for the Staff at Clemson University. We held multiple events that honored our First Responders and Emergency Personnel and our Military Veterans during Military Appreciation Week. Increasing Staff recognition was also important during my term and I was so pleased that after the ongoing efforts of our past president, Leigh Dodson, we were able to collaborate with Human Resources and the President’s office to hold the first annual Luncheon to Recognize Staff and Faculty for their Degree Achievements while working as full time employees of the University. We also collaborated with the Faculty Senate on a “joint resolution” that creates the framework for the establishment of the first “University Club” for Faculty and Staff to share time together.
These are all important events for our staff but I am most proud of the collaboration between Staff Senate and the CU Foundation in helping us to increase employee payroll deductions for the Staff Senate Scholarship and for helping us initiate a significant increase in the Staff Senate Scholarship benefit that help our staff and their children. We not only increased the number of annual scholarships 25% from 12 to 15, but in the interest of helping to “stem the rising tide” of increased annual tuition over the years, we increased our annual scholarship award amounts by 67% from $1,500 to $2,500 per year! This proposal was approved unanimously by the Staff Senate.
All of these incredible accomplishments have not gone unnoticed by the administration and my hope is that the momentum of this past year continues on so that we can continue to “Make a Difference” for the Staff at Clemson University for years to come.
It has truly been and honor and a privilege to serve and I will be forever grateful for the support and encouragement I received as the President of the Staff Senate at Clemson University Go Tigers!