As part of National Student Employment Week, SPU recognizes student employees who have been nominated by staff members who appreciate their extraordinary work.
Off-Campus Students of the Year
Sabrina Alvarez, for her work at Queen Anne Helpline
As an office and communications assistant at Queen Anne Helpline — a social service nonprofit — Sabrina is responsible for client reception and assistance, scheduling, client intake, answering phones, maintaining the clothing bank and food pantry, data entry, and other tasks. She also assists with educational and informational print materials, social media outreach, and electronic newsletter production.
A nomination letter stated that Sabrina brings passion and compassion to her social services work, and is driven by curiosity and a desire to learn. “We recently made an exception to our office policy, and now allow Sabrina to open up the office early and spend one to two hours alone in the office preparing for the day.”
Sabrina was also noted for her service to the organization’s diverse clientele, which includes individuals who may be homeless or struggling with mental illness. “Sabrina has a calm and confident demeanor even in difficult situations, and her compassionate ear and reflective listening make everyone feel welcome.”
Sarah Jodway for her work at MassMutual Financial Guides
Sarah Jodway’s work as a production assistant for MassMutual involves managing client service and communication; acting as a liaison with their broker-dealer’s national office and numerous product vendors; helping produce presentations and illustration materials for client meetings; and handling parts of scheduling, business processing, and tracking.
A nomination letter stated: “This is a complex and high-pressure environment and she has proved capable of operating at an extremely high level during time periods that are busy enough to overwhelm most employees. She is intelligent, strong-willed, and completely reliable. Customers and business partners are ‘shocked’ to find out that Sarah is a college student because of her maturity and competency. It is probably fair to say she has set a new standard for what we believe a college student can accomplish in this position.”
On-Campus Students of the Year
Michelle Bester, for her work in SPU’s Student Academic Services
Michelle Bester works as an international student coordinator, assisting in planning and implementation of activities, training, and orientation for SPU’s international students. She meets students’ needs with particular expertise because she is an international student herself.
Lori Honts Tongol, SPU’s Coordinator of International Student Records, says “Michelle is literally my ‘right arm.’ She is extremely responsible and works with professionalism and grace. She has helped the team of student orientation leaders become stronger and more effective, and has displayed love and support during difficult moments.”
In September, Michelle spent 10- to 12-hour work days helping prepare SPU’s biggest-ever international student orientation. “Michelle effortlessly moved into the lead role directing students and staff in their duties, answering questions, and ensuring our biggest event was flawless,” says Lori.
Sophie Nelson, first runner-up for her work in SPU’s Student Financial Services
As a program assistant and office intern for Student Financial Services (SFS), Sophie Nelson assists with program processing, and serves as an initial point of contact for students, parents, and outside agencies. She handles questions regarding federal, state, and institutional policy and procedure, as well as complex financial aid and student account systems. She analyzes detailed reports, creates and processes documents, receipts, and payments, and has assumed responsibility for projects when full-time staff are out.
The SFS staff members who nominated her say.“Sophie has a positive attitude towards the tasks she is given, no matter how tedious or lackluster the project may be. She works with so much speed, efficiency, and accuracy, that we have a hard time keeping up with her at times.”
Sophie has become such an expert that she often responds to customers frustrated by confusing financial aid regulations or overwhelmed by the process. In these situations, she resolves the issue without a supervisor. The SFS staff members say, “If she is ill, she works remotely as much as possible. We often joke that we do not know what we will do without her once she graduates. We will need to clone her several times so that we can just keep hiring new Sophies for the internship position.”
Posted: Friday, April 15, 2016