June 6, 2017
Faculty, staff and students receive K-State Global Campus awards
Kansas State University Global Campus presented awards to university faculty, staff and students at the 2017 K-State Global Campus Honors and Awards Reception May 3.
Douglas Chun, online master's student in engineering management, received the Extraordinary Student Award. This award is given to a currently enrolled distance student who has overcome obstacles in their educational path and demonstrates academic excellence, focus and career ambition.
While it's not uncommon for distance students to juggle personal and family life while working on a degree, Chun has overcome many obstacles in pursuit of his education. The father of twins with a third child on the way, Chun also was charged with the care of his wife, who required hospitalization. Chun is currently deployed with the U.S. Air Force and was unable to receive the award in person. Through all of these obstacles, Chun maintained a 3.89 GPA and graduated in May.
Vicki Sherbert, assistant professor of curriculum and instruction in the College of Education, received the Excellence in Online Teaching Award. The award recognizes an online instructor or faculty member who has provided outstanding online teaching, course development, mentoring of students and service to the field of continuing education.
Sherbert works with students pursuing the new Master of Arts in teaching degree, which allows students with any bachelor's degree to apply for teacher licensure in Kansas after completing the one-year master's program. Sherbert goes out of her way to work through issues with students, making sure instructions and expectations are clear. The students who nominated her for the award cited Sherbert's dependability and willingness to advocate on their behalf as her distinguishing qualities.
Abbey Nutsch, assistant professor of food safety and security in the College of Agriculture, received the Outstanding Advisor Award, given to a K-State faculty or staff member demonstrating exceptional efforts in assisting and advising distance students.
Nutsch sets aside time to get to know each new graduate student advisee when they are admitted to the university, and again to meet with them when they travel to Manhattan for their graduate seminar and oral defense. She also has taken a leadership role in assessing alumni feedback for the improvement of the food science graduate experience.
Sarah Reasoner, distance program coordinator with animal sciences and industry, and Bruce Snead, director of the engineering extension service, both received the Friend of Global Campus Award for significant contributions to advance K-State Global Campus programs and services.
Reasoner works with faculty to create new courses and update existing on-campus courses for online delivery. She also facilitates several online courses and is a direct contact for both students and faculty experiencing technical problems with their online courses. Reasoner also was instrumental in realizing a need and developing a system for test proctoring within her department.
Snead began working with K-State Global Campus in 1989 when his office became part of the Midwest Universities Radon Consortium that serves as an EPA regional radon training center. Since that time, the Kansas Radon Program has provided design and delivery of hands-on radon reduction and measurement training and served as an information source for radon issues in homes and public buildings. In 2012, Snead began online training and in 2016, partnered with K-State Global Campus to open two new training classrooms.
Theresa Toler, a student employee in the K-State Global Campus academic and professional programs office, received the K-State Global Campus Star Student Award. The award recognizes a student employee who consistently goes above and beyond the requirements of their position to make meaningful and positive contributions to K-State Global Campus.
Toler is a senior from St. Marys majoring in accounting. In her four years at K-State Global Campus, she has consistently shown a positive attitude, dependability, and the ability to work independently and effectively.
Ashley Nietfeld, communications coordinator for K-State Global Campus, received the Lynda Spire Positive Focus Award. This award honors the positive leadership of Lynda Spire, retired assistant dean of K-State Global Campus.
Nietfeld, who has worked at K-State Global Campus for nearly five years, develops content for marketing efforts for K-State Global Campus programs, with a focus on programs developed through the College of Education. She also has played a leading role in the adoption and rollout of a new customer relationship management system for K-State Global Campus. Nietfeld is supportive, reliable and routinely goes above and beyond in taking on additional tasks.