October Students First Award winners announced
By Megan Lewis
Students nominated two UT employees for the October Students First Award for their commitment to helping students succeed.Della Croci, director of student affairs and director of student life on Health Science Campus, and Charlene Hansen, administrative secretary in the Chemistry
Department, were honored for embodying the University’s mission as a student-centered institution.
Croci oversees all the student organizations on Health Science Campus and provides career counseling for medical students applying for residency programs.
Her nominator wrote that Croci helps students through each phase of their education. “Students go to Della for everything,” she wrote.
“I will never be able to express the overwhelming feelings of being so appreciated by the most gifted individuals I know. I am privileged to have been a part of the lives of our students and young people who are the future of our great world,” Croci said.
Hansen’s nominator wrote, “Char is friendly, courteous and professional. She doesn’t pawn me off to someone else when I have question; instead she helps me find the answers to my questions and always wears a smile.”
Hansen said she was surprised when finding out she had been selected for the award. “While my job encompasses a lot of various activities throughout the course of a day, I feel as though all constituents dealing with the department, in person or on the phone, should receive the best customer service I can provide for them.”
The contest winners received a $75 gift certificate to the UT Bookstore and a $25 gift certificate to Starbucks. They also will be eligible to win a $1,500 cash prize when the student-centered employee of the year is selected next spring.