Spotlight on Excellence Celebration

2023

A wide shot of many employees gathered and conversing in the Ballroom for the Spotlight on Excellence event.

At the inaugural Spotlight on Excellence Celebration, held May 15, 2023, University of Detroit Mercy acknowledged the contributions and achievements of our faculty, staff, administrators and retirees.

Photos

See the photos from the event in a shared OneDrive folder. (To preview the photos, you may need to use the view option button in the upper right to change to the Tiles view.)

Program

  1. Welcome – Pamela Zarkowski, Provost and VP for Academic Affairs
  2. Opening Prayer – Carrie Nantais, Interim VP for Mission Integration
  3. Presentation of Gifts to Retirees
  4. Presentation of Emeritus Awards
  5. Presentation of Years of Service Pins
  6. Announcement of Promotion and Tenure Achievements
  7. Announcement of 2023 Faculty Recognition Awardees
  8. Announcement of 2023 Jesuit Community Faculty Stipend Awardee
  9. Announcement of and Presentation to Mission Leadership Awardees
  10. Closing Remarks

Congratulations on your Retirement!

  • Dennis Barill, HVAC/3rd Class Refrigeration Mechanic/Boiler Operator Facility Operations (46 Years)
  • Jocelyn Bennett-Garraway, Associate Professor and Director, Counseling Program College of Liberal Arts & Education (15 Years)
  • Constance Burke-Schmidt, Associate Professor, Physician Assistant, College of Health Professions & McAuley School of Nursing (14 Years)
  • Rosanne Burson, Professor Emerita, College of Health Professions & McAuley School of Nursing (10 Years)
  • Laverne Bussey, Patient Services Assistant, School of Dentistry (34 Years)
  • Theresa Carson, Graduate Admissions Counselor, Enrollment Management and Student Affairs (15 Years)
  • Tracy Coleman, Work Lead, Materials Management, School of Dentistry (17 Years)
  • Margaret Costello, Associate Professor, School of Law (15 Years)
  • Jeanne David, Associate Professor of Accounting, College of Business Administration (34 Years)
  • Juanita DeLoach, Benefits Manager, Human Resources (13 Years)
  • Janiece Flores-Davies, Clinical Assistant Professor and Co-Director of Dental Hygiene Admissions, School of Dentistry (7 Years)
  • Norma Goodlett, Lead Dental Assistant, Periodontics, School of Dentistry (15 Years)
  • HeKyong Kang, Associate Professor, School of Dentistry (7 Years)
  • Karen Lane, Coordinator, Accelerated Program Clinic, School of Dentistry (15 Years)
  • Michael O’Brien, Work Leader, Electrician, Facility Operations (13 Years)
  • Debra Phillips, Assistant Budget Director, Budget and Financial Analysis (7 Years)
  • Carrol Reaser-Parris, Coordinator, Student Services, College of Business Administration (10 Years)
  • Theresa Richardson, Dental Assistant, School of Dentistry (26 Years)
  • Lasandra Ross, Clinic Manager, UHC, School of Dentistry (15 Years)
  • Robert Ross, Professor Emeritus, College of Engineering & Science (26 Years)
  • Patricia Rouen, Professor, College of Health Professions & McAuley School of Nursing (15 Years)
  • Annamaria Silveri, Director, Wellness Center (14 Years)
  • Thomas Stanton, Associate Professor, Communication Studies, College of Liberal Arts & Education (13 Years)
  • Pamela Rhodes Todd, Director, TRIO Upward Bound Program (11 Years)
  • Bruce Young, Manager, Payroll, Finance & Administration (8 Years)
  • Monica Young, Supervisor, Dispensary, School of Dentistry (26 Years)
  • Lawrence Zeff, Professor of Management, College of Business Administration (48 Years)

Emeriti Recognition

Professor Emeritus Posthumously Awarded

  • Gerald F. Cavanagh, S.J., Charles T. Fisher III Chair of Business Ethics, College of Business Administration

Professor Emeritus

  • Michael P. Dosch, Associate Professor, College of Health Professions & McAuley School of Nursing

Years of Service Recognition 

10 Years of Service

  • Maha Ahmad
  • Rahima Ahmed
  • Reem Al-Abbousi
  • Riyad Al-Qawasmi
  • Shadi Elaiyan Bani Taan
  • Howard Barton
  • Marguerite Buehner
  • Barbara Ciotta
  • Stephanie Craig
  • Juliette Daniels
  • Angela Davis
  • Joshua Duffy
  • Jennifer Hostetler
  • David Kacir
  • Sonya Kowalski
  • Julie La Tulip-Lazarevich
  • Robert Lessnau
  • Stewart Markofsky
  • Patrick Meyer
  • Maria Del Carmen Niedek
  • Kristina Okolisan-Mulligan
  • Ceara O'Leary
  • Kathleen Ostrovsky
  • Michelle Parker
  • Mary Serowoky
  • Christina Socha
  • Sandra Twymon-Anderson
  • Elaine Webber

15 Years of Service

  • Ablaye Camara
  • Anthony Cressey
  • Delanda Dixon
  • Jackie Elliott
  • Lori Glenn
  • P.J. Gradowski
  • Gregory Grobis
  • Simon Hendry, S.J.
  • Pamela Kelly
  • Darrell Kleinke
  • Bethsave Lozano
  • Jennifer May
  • Michael Neill
  • Junu Ojha
  • Nicola Price
  • Andrea Teitel
  • Marvin Thomas
  • Zachary Turk
  • Joseph Weglarz
  • Valerie Williams

20 Years of Service

  • Patricia Baker
  • Cheryl Baxter
  • Greg Bozimowski
  • Nancy Calleja
  • Timelia Davis
  • Dincer Gurun
  • Christina Heximer
  • Kenna Hill
  • Melanie Johnson
  • Sheroyn Jones
  • Jeffrey McNeil
  • Mostafa Mehrabi
  • Matt Mio
  • Jeffrey Nardecchia
  • Michelle Richards
  • Delonda Spearman
  • Linda Thiel, OP
  • David Vandelinder

25 Years of Service

  • Erick Barnes
  • Russell Davidson
  • April Davis
  • Gwendolyn Graham
  • Chuck Laird
  • Ahmad Maalhagh-Fard
  • Katherine Miller
  • Liz Roberts-Kirchhoff
  • Donyale Russell

30 Years of Service

  • Laureen Ilasenko
  • Xiaohui Zhong

35 Years of Service

  • Gregory Daniel
  • James Graves
  • Harry Manuel 

45 Years of Service

  • Suk Hi Kim, Professor of Finance

50 Years of Service

  • Justin Kelly, S.J., Associate Professor of Religious Studies

Promotion & Tenure

Promoted to Full Professor

  • Kristen Abraham, Ph.D., Psychology, College of Liberal Arts & Education
  • Claudia Bernasconi, M.Arch, Architecture, School of Architecture & Community Development
  • Mithu Bhattacharya, Ph.D., Business Administration, College of Business Administration
  • Jeffe Boats, Ph.D., Mathematics, College of Engineering & Science
  • Kendra Evans, Ph.D., Chemistry and Biochemistry, College of Engineering & Science
  • Katherine Lanigan, Ph.D., Chemistry and Biochemistry, College of Engineering & Science
  • Prasad Venugopal, Ph.D., Physics, College of Engineering & Science
  • Cara Cunningham Warren, J.D., LL.M., Law, School of Law

Promoted to Full Professor and granted tenure

  • Jennifer Ruel, DNP, Nursing, College of Health Professions & McAuley School of Nursing
  • Elaine Webber, DNP, Nursing, College of Health Professions & McAuley School of Nursing

Promoted to Associate Professor and granted tenure

  • Jonathan S. Finkel, Ph.D., Biology, College of Engineering & Science
  • Kristin Nelson, M.Arch., Architecture, School of Architecture & Community Development
  • Michael Santora, Ph.D., Electrical and Computer Engineering, College of Engineering & Science
  • Marlene Shaw-Gallagher, MS PA-C, Physician Assistant, College of Health Professions & McAuley School of Nursing
  • Nadine Wodwaski, DNP, Nursing, College of Health Professions & McAuley School of Nursing

Faculty Recognition Awards

2023 Faculty Excellence Award

  • Cara Cunningham Warren, Professor of Law, School of Law

2023 Faculty Achievement Award

  • Megan Conrad, Clare Boothe Luce Assistant Professor, College of Engineering & Science

2023 Jesuit Community Faculty Stipend

  • Diego Arias, Assistant Professor of Management, Business Ethics, College of Business Administration

Mission Leadership Awards

2023 Agere ex Missione Staff Award

  • Katherine Miller, Interlibrary Loan Technician, McNichols Library

2023 Agere ex Missione Administrator Award

  • Rodney Warren, Assistant Director, Facility Operations/Construction Management

2023 Agere ex Missione Faculty Award

  • Genevieve Meyers, Associate Professor of Political Science, Director of the Pre-Law Program, Department Chair, Political Science

2023 Mission Steward Award

  • Gilbert Sunghera, S.J., Associate Professor of Architecture & Community Development