Cole Carter, Tina Dadio, Solomon Franklin and Kurt Richter are the 2015 Employees of the Year. They were honored at the annual Staff Recognition Luncheon, held Wednesday, March 11, in the Student Union Multipurpose Room.
Carter, office manager and assistant to the chair of the Department of Aerospace Studies, was honored in the category of human relations. A nominator noted that Cole has been “the face of this department since August 2000 and wears many hats.” Also, she was lauded for her ability to build relationships with University personnel as well as the military staff at the Air Force ROTC headquarters. “This year, she performed particularly well as three personnel departed and four personnel were new, including the department chair,” wrote another nominator. “She has been the foundation and glue that keeps the department running like a well-oiled aircraft.”
A member of the Office of Legal Affairs, Dadio was recognized for devotion to duty. Nomination materials described Dadio as a hard-working team player since joining the University in July 2010. “2014 was an exceptional year for Tina,” stated one nominator, outlining how Dadio began presenting sessions at New Employee Orientation every two weeks and that she volunteered to serve as a Giving Green champion for a second consecutive year. She also assumed additional duties and responsibilities for half a year during the hiring process for the executive assistant to the general counsel, and she handled a significant increase in the number of public records requests. Additionally, Dadio acquired supervisory duties for a new administrative assistant. “Despite the numerous examples of Tina’s work ethic, positivity and diligence provided, it would take reams of paper to adequately convey her invaluable and irreplaceable contributions to this office,” one nominator wrote.
Franklin, development and education coordinator for the Facilities Management Department’s Building Environmental Services and Recycling programs, was named an Employee of the Year in the community/public service category. According to nomination materials, Franklin is an “extraordinary individual who cares deeply about making the right things happen for the good of his employer, community, and, in fact, all people.” He is involved with a number of public service projects, including being a member of the 100 Black Men of Greater Charlotte Inc. and a charter member of the National Museum of African American History and Culture Smithsonian. On campus, he is advisor to the Collegiate 100 organization and has assisted members of Students in Free Enterprise. Additionally, he has worked with students in the Multicultural Academic Services Office’s UTOP and B3 programs. In 2015, Franklin was selected as one of 28 “success leaders” in the greater Charlotte community by the YBM Leadership Alliance. He received the Distinguished Member Award from the National Society of Collegiate Scholars, UNC Charlotte chapter, in 2014.
An instructional technology specialist in the Center for Teaching and Learning, Richter was honored in the innovation category for “demonstrated exceptional innovation and leadership this year through his work conceiving and heading the Active Learning Academy, a faculty development program.” The academy provides in-depth, sustained training, support and coaching for the use of new teaching spaces to their fullest potential. A colleague noted that while the academy was in its second semester, it has had a major impact on campus “as seen in the hundreds of students who are benefiting from a more engaging classroom experience. It is no exaggeration to say that his work is transforming teaching and learning at UNC Charlotte.”
Other staff members nominated for Employee of the Year were Barclay Brantley, Tiffany McAfee, Warren Monk, Sandra Mullins, Ernest Purifoy, Lyndsay Richter, Becky Smith, David Smith, Henrietta Thomas, Kimi Tippett, Nathaniel Washington and Joanne Zhang in the devotion to duty category; Erik Anderson, Bart Davis, Gary Edwards and Nancy Garland in the innovation category; Paul Taylor in the human relations category; and David Landrum in the community and public service category.
Starting in 2014, the University changed its Employee of the Year program; one staff member could be named Employee of the Year in each of these categories: devotion to duty (outstanding state government service), innovation, human relations and community/public service. In the safety/heroism category, multiple individuals could be recognized.
The Staff Recognition Luncheon, organized by the Human Resources Department, also acknowledges employees who achieve five-year anniversaries of service with the state.
Photo: Chancellor Dubois (right) congratulates the 2015 Employees of the Year Kurt Richter, Solomon Franklin, Tina Dadio and Cole Carter (left to right).