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Staff member recognized with award |
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Tuesday, 24 July 2007 |
 | Koehn
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by CLAIR BAXTER
Editor-in-Chief
Appalachian State University staff member Jenny Koehn was awarded this year’s statewide Professional of the Year Award from the North Carolina Campus Compact.
Koehn, Appalachian’s community service coordinator of the Appalachian and the Community Together Office, received the award during a NCCC Community Service and Service Learning Conference in June.
“I knew I was nominated but I was very surprised to hear that I won,” Koehn said.
The award, presented to a staff member in North Carolina who has worked
towards the institutionalization of service, created and strived
towards a vision of service on their campus, supported faculty and
students, and formed innovative campus community partnerships, was
first presented last year.
“Koehn joined Appalachian’s ACT Office in 1999. During that time, she
has assisted students in developing and promoting Hunger and
Homelessness Week, Raise Your Voice forums, Earth Day
Celebration, and the Don’t Throw it Away/Big Sale event,” according to a press release from Appalachian State University.
The national committee, made up of representatives from colleges and
universities in Pennsylvania, Arizona and Rhode Island, as well as the
executive director of the NCCC, judged the nominations.
It is really a “nice honor to be recognized by my peers,” said Koehn,
who was nominated for the award by student programs colleagues Todd A.
Mortensen and Shari L. Galiardi.
“She’s everything that a community service coordinator should strive to
be,” Galiardi said. “The nomination just had her name on it.”
NCCC Assistant Director, Leslie Garvin said, “The impact that she’s had on students was clearly demonstrated” in her nomination.
Two finalists were selected from the 28 campuses across the state and
“Jenny and the work from Appalachian State continued to stand out,”
Garvin said. “Appalachian in considered one of the more advanced
campuses” and “other schools are often asking what App State is doing.”
“With ACT we are fortunate enough to have a solid foundation and lots
of energetic students working for the cause,” Koehn said. It’s great
when we can “help with smaller campuses…and we always have plenty to
learn from them.”
Koehn’s colleagues agreed that she assisted in bringing Appalachian’s
service to a new level and managed to push other campuses all the while.
“I know that other schools have replicated the MLK challenge idea and
she has shared papers and packets and lots of inside information on the
topic…she’s even invited people up [to Boone] to see it themselves,”
Galiardi said.
“She’s innovative and inspirational…It’s not work for her, its her
life. I have no idea how she manages to do anything else,” Galiardi
said.
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