UWF staff nominated for 2026 Distinguished Staff Award

Twenty-two UWF staff members were nominated for the DSA. We asked them to share a few insights about what they do and what motivates them. All interviews have been edited for length and clarity.

Individual nominations:

• Ann Wold, Senior Business Systems Analyst, Finance
• Brandon Karlson, Senior Computer Specialist, Business Innovation & Technology 
• Cindy Magruder, Assistant Director, Project Delivery Group
• Katie Savoie, Assistant Director of Payroll, Partner Resources
• Patricia Colaizzo, Director, Partner Resources
• Paula Lukaszek, Plumber/Pipe/Steamfitter Lead, Maintenance & Construction
• Yusuke Ishiguro, Assistant Manager of Events, Transportation Services

Team nominations:

• Front End Community of Practice Leadership: Andy Krikawa
• UW Facilities Payroll: Anne Marie Marshall, Katie Savoie, Patricia Colaizzo
• UW Shuttles Dial-A-Ride and Health Sciences Express: David Williams, Effran Davis, Eyob Tamir, Geryna Savage, Janice Berlin, Jerry Stephens Jr., Josh Nollette, Mark Berkey, Simon Yu, Thomas Gobich, Tiffany Walker, Wei Lei, Yohannes Mender

Ann Wold and Jita Pandya Buño, CEO of UW Medical Center, at the Distinguished Staff Awards reception on Feb. 18. Mama Kat/University of Washington

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What’s your job in one or two sentences?

I feel like I spend a lot of time helping people get “unstuck.” Regardless of my specific job duties, I end up solving complex, difficult problems as they arise. A few of the larger projects I’ve worked on include the implementation of the T2 Parking solution with Transportation and wrangling Finance Transformation on behalf of Facilities.

What's your favorite aspect of of the job, or working for the UW in general?

I appreciate having the opportunity to do different things. I am not one of those people who only likes to do the same thing over and over. I like being presented with new challenges. I feel like I do well at being thrown into situations where I don't necessarily have experience. I can very quickly figure things out and bring order to chaos, and I appreciate having earned that level of trust

What motivates you in your job?

I get a sense of satisfaction out of being successful doing things that either other people don't want to do or things that are very complicated, especially where the only other option might be to hire an outside contractor or consultant. That provides the continuity of somebody who has institutional expertise, but can also quickly pivot, change and figure things out within the context of the existing organization. 

There are several groups, for example PDG and Finance, that I have worked with since my first day on the job in 2017. Since that time I have done several different jobs which have allowed me to continue working with many of the same people and branching out to other parts of Facilities, such as Transportation and the shops. 

You were nominated in the collaboration category. What's been the key to successful collaborations?

It's being able to leverage existing relationships and understand the work that people do. I'm not a specialist, I don't know everything that every person does. However, I've spent my entire career in higher ed and nonprofits, and I've spent enough time in Facilities to hopefully understand some of the things that block people from being able to do their job successfully, or the pain points that people might have, and understand how all of that interacts between the different roles. 

A lot of times people, for good reason, know what they do, but they don't necessarily know how what they do affects what somebody down the line does or what somebody in front of them does — which is absolutely understandable because everybody has a lot on their plates. So to be in a position where I can kind of see the big picture and bring all that together and provide that overall perspective to help people work more efficiently and also with greater satisfaction goes a long way in successful collaboration.

Brandon Karlson and UW Bothell Chancellor Kristin Esterberg at the Distinguished Staff Awards reception on Feb. 18. Mama Kat/University of Washington

What is your job in one sentence?

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I’m a systems administrator for the Facilities work management platform AiM. That includes the report development process implementations, being the all-around technical rep for the platform itself. There are other platforms that I support too — not just AiM — but that's about 80% of my job.

What's your favorite aspect of the job or working for the UW in general?

I think optimizing technology use through operations. How do we take something that could be a simple question from somebody — an executive to a manager, or somebody at a leadership level — and answer the question through data that’s developed? And then, alternatively, through the user, limit their interactions with these systems to stuff that's necessary and valuable and optimized?

What motivates you in your job?

Making it more optimal around the Facilities organization with their uses of technology and data. You know, everything we do these days creates data. We introduce these systems into our working practices, but it's not necessarily what performs the work. So being able to make it valuable for decision making and, in the data collection process, not putting processes down that make it so people are ineffective in their jobs. It should increase their performance and their job and help the organization better manage itself.

You were nominated in the innovation category. Can you talk more about the innovation that you've shown in your work?

We really changed a paradigm here in implementing the ReADY platform. That's our intake platform for any operational thing, like changing the light bulb, repairing a room or painting a wall. All the work that's taken in from the rest of campus has to flow through this platform. Design characteristics that I was really working towards was trying to decrease the administrative burden to get to assignments and having them go directly to the staff who actually perform the work.

Options for designing a solution set for this, with low levels of overhead, were very limited. We had to figure out: What kind of questions do we have to answer to be able to identify where this needs to go from the user perspective? And then how do we design the platform in such a way that it really decreases the time it takes to respond to an event? 

Between the two people who are supporting it — me and another person — we can pretty much administer that whole application, and it's serving its purpose. A request doesn't have to be processed and waiting in somebody else's queue for them to interpret it to get off to somebody else. It goes direct, based off the questions that are being answered. 

Cindy Magruder and UW President Robert J. Jones at the Distinguished Staff Awards reception on Feb. 18. Mama Kat/University of Washington

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What's your job?

As Assistant Director of Capital Procurement and Contracting for the Project Delivery Group, I oversee a team of phenomenal contract administrators. Together, we manage most procurement needs on capital projects, including contractors and consultants. We ensure procurement is compliant with statutes, UW policy and procurement best practices. I collaborate with other state agencies on legislative issues in addition to the collaboration with other UW units such as risk management, the Attorney General's office and Procurement Services.

What's your favorite aspect of the job or working for the UW in general?

The projects — knowing that our work makes possible the research, the teaching, the medical care and student life experience is a great feeling. And the collaboration — working together to come up with a solution is rewarding.

What motivates you in your job?

PDG and my team of contract administrators keep me motivated. There is value to what we do, an appreciation of our work and a desire to be of service.

What does this recognition mean to you?

I appreciate the acknowledgement that I have made a difference in my career here at the UW, that there is value to my efforts and recognition of my contributions, that I am supported and appreciated. We all deserve that.

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What’s your job in one sentence? 

I support all things related to Workday and payroll, ensuring processes run smoothly and employees receive accurate and timely pay and assistance.

What’s your favorite aspect of the job or working for the UW in general? 

My favorite aspect is the opportunity to work with so many great people across UW Facilities and the broader campus.

What motivates you in your job? 

I’m motivated by the opportunity to help others and ensure everyone is paid on time and accurately. 

You were nominated in the innovation category. Can you describe moments of innovation in your job that most stick out to you? 

My life at work is all things Workday, and in the last seven months, Workday Recruitment was the new module rolled out. This launch has kept me on my toes and given me the opportunity to problem solve, develop training materials and create processes to make this new module work within UWF.

pc

What’s your job in one sentence?

Overseeing an amazing team of dedicated professionals who support 1,100 employees in HR, payroll, leave and training matters.

What’s your favorite aspect of the job or working for the UW in general?

Serving and supporting a diverse community of employees, from all walks of life, backgrounds and beliefs. It’s not always an easy job, but it is fulfilling and enjoyable, plus I get to partner with amazing co-workers every day. I am constantly learning from them, and I am so honored to have this opportunity to be a part of this team.

What motivates you in your job?

I am so fortunate to work with a team of devoted and truly kind people. We have worked together and supported one another for quite a long time — many for almost 18 years! We have been there for each other through life’s triumphs and challenges, caring for parents, pets, personal health issues, the pandemic, national crises and simply daily ups and downs of everyday life. A sense of humor always helps, and we are able to make one another smile and brighten each other's days. We all look at the world through different optics, and that helps us grow as people and to better serve our UW community.

You were nominated in the collaboration category. What's the key to a successful collaboration?

Keeping an open mind. You won’t always agree with everyone else, and they won’t always agree with you and that is OK. But the key is being respectful, non-judgmental, assuming positive intent about others and simply just being kind.

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What’s your job in one sentence?

I am the plumber lead for the NE Zone.

What’s your favorite aspect of the job or working for the UW in general? 

Getting to know the clients and figuring out ways to work together for a good outcome and to meet their needs.

What motivates you in your job?

My parents always said to do the best job that you can and never turn down any job.

You were nominated in the impact category. Can you describe moments of impact that stick out to you?

Getting safety issues resolved and, through my work as a shop steward, getting employees working conditions upheld.

Yusuke Ishiguro

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What’s your job in one sentence?

Assisting both internal and external event organizers and making sure their parking needs are met to the best of our abilities in order to ensure a smooth parking experience for their attendees.

What’s your favorite aspect of the job or working for the UW in general?

Working and spending time with my team. Both Jacob [Chlipala] and Kimberly [Honniball] have been amazing to work with, and the students always keep the atmosphere in the office fresh and fun. I hear a lot of horror stories from friends about negative work environments, and I just feel very fortunate to have the team that I do.

What motivates you in your job?

First and foremost, supporting my wife as she goes through Physician's Assistant school here at UW. Second to that would be seeing our student staff grow as they spend more time with us. Working with us is often a student's first job, and I think it's really important for the students to learn how to work on a team and get a glimpse of life after graduation, while also enjoying work as much as possible. 

You were nominated in the Inclusion and Belonging category. How have you implemented these concepts in your work?

Our team employs over 50 student staff at any one time, so we have a very diverse group of staff, and it's really important to make sure all our staff feel comfortable to be themselves when they're at work. Doing so has really helped our team bond and create a strong work culture among our students.

Andy Krikawa

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Andy Krikawa

What's your job in one sentence?

I manage the content and design of our UW Facilities websites by working with stakeholders, who are the subject matter experts, to present their content in a succinct, clear way — often accompanied by visuals.

Describe the team you were nominated as part of.

I organize and run a community of practice for front-end website technology with three other staff members from departments outside of UWF. Together we build community and knowledge around the topic of front-end technology. Every time you go to a website and perform a task you’re interacting with front-end technology, whether it’s using a navigation menu or filling out a form. There are a lot of technical aspects to it along with aesthetics all geared toward helping users accomplish tasks. 

Our community of practice meets monthly to discuss topics related to front-end technology. We recruit guest speakers, prepare presentations ourselves and put together study series to learn new techniques. We were nominated for our efforts to maintain this space for developers to share knowledge and provide opportunities for professional development. For the study series, we will drill into a topic and use that topic as the subject for several meetings. We’ve even run summer camps during the summer months, which are study series meant to be low-stress and mostly asynchronous.

What was your favorite aspect of working with this group?

My favorite aspect is simply the opportunity to collaborate with the three other co-organizers: Jeane Marty (UW-IT Accessibility Consulting & Engagement), Teri Shelton (UMAC Web Engagement), and Tiffany Sevareid (UMAC Web Engagement). They are each really smart, open, creative and supportive. We all work in different parts of the University, and it’s fascinating to learn from other people outside of Facilities doing similar work. You're not really working in an organizational structure, you're working as individual contributors towards a common goal extending beyond your individual organization. 

Take, for example, the summer camps we run. We call them “summer camps” because we wanted to get people together during the summer, yet have it be a little less rigid than a monthly meeting structure. Since the first camp we offered in 2023, we’ve followed through on the vibe of summer camp, each of us sharing topic and theme ideas to pull it off. 

We call ourselves the camp counselors. As camp counselors, we aim to be as approachable as possible to anyone attending the camp. During planning, we feed off each other’s creative energy and curiosity to create an executable, fun plan for study. Working with these three co-organizers and coming up with ideas that encourage engagement around a topic area and then spinning the ideas into a tangible curriculum with an outcome in mind is what I love about working with the group.

What has been the key to a successful collaboration for you and the team you were nominated with?

Our success is driven by listening to each other and having a willingness to step in so that no one person is carrying the full burden. We cultivate this community of practice on top of our daily responsibilities, so it can be challenging at times to execute. We each recognize when one of us has been working hard at a given aspect. Another one of us will step in and say, “Hey, let me take that over, because you just did X.” This style of collaboration comes naturally to the four of us.

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Anne Marie Marshall, Katie Savoie, Patricia Colaizzo

Describe the work of your team.

Patricia Colaizzo: The nomination for this particular team was relative to helping a UWF co-worker navigate a difficult situation and to provide them with the best information to support them in making important decisions for themselves. Anne Marie and Katie were the key connections in this collaboration with the UWF team member. As they always do, they shared expert knowledge, brainstormed ideas, supported the employee in feeling comfortable with complicated processes and were (and remain) continually available for follow up.

What is your favorite aspect of working with this team?

Anne Marie Marshall: I really love that we don’t do this work alone. A lot of what we handle feels like putting together a puzzle. There are policies, personalities, history and a bunch of moving pieces, and it makes the work much easier knowing you have a team you can call and say, “Hey, can I run this by you?” HR can be heavy at times, but having that trust and respect on the team makes all the difference. We’re not just trying to get it technically right but also trying to get it people-right.

Katie Savoie: The team works seamlessly together to make sure employees that have questions receive an answer and know what options they have available. 

What motivates you with the work you do with your team?

Anne Marie: It’s really the impact of the work for me. Being able to support employees at all levels is what matters. We don’t always get to see the long-term ripple effects, but I know they’re there and that’s what keeps me engaged.

Patricia: The great respect that I have for the Partner Resources team experts and knowing that everyone is doing their very best to do their work in a positive and professional manner.

You were nominated in the collaboration category. Can you describe a moment of collaboration with this team that sticks out to you? 

Katie: A meaningful example of collaboration is when our team comes together to support employees navigating unexpected life challenges. We work collectively to ensure they understand all the resources and options available to them as UW employees, providing guidance and support during what can often be difficult times.

Anne Marie: A lot of the situations we deal with are pretty complex. There are different perspectives, emotions and rarely a simple answer. Instead of one person carrying it alone, we talk it through and figure it out together. It’s never about being right. It’s about landing in the best place for everyone involved. We show up for each other and for the organization.

Patricia: The interesting part of our departmental partnership is that on a daily/weekly basis we collaborate with so many UWF employees and managers and so many UW departments that help us to support one another to improve the UW community. We have wonderful relationships with our Campus HR team, UW Labor Relations, UW Benefits Office, Internal Audit, Risk Services, Office of Public Records, UW Attorney General’s Office, Disability Services and Civil Rights Office just to touch on a few. 

Thomas Gobich, Bonnie Meneese and Geryna Savage at the Distinguished Staff Awards reception on Feb. 18. Ina Stap/University of Washington

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David Williams, Shuttle Driver; Effran Davis, Eyob Tamir, Geryna Savage, Janice Berlin, Jerry Stephens Jr., Josh Nollette, Mark Berkey, Simon Yu, Thomas Gobich, Tiffany Walker, Wei Lei, Yohannes Mender

Questions answered by Shuttles manager Bonnie Meneese

What does your team do?

We transport students, staff, faculty and patients to and from UW Medical Center to Harborview Medical Center. We also serve the Collegiana and the Roosevelt clinics. 

You were nominated in the collaboration category. How do you all collaborate with each other?

Drivers stay connected with dispatch through radios, tablets or onboard systems. This is the backbone for real‑time updates, route changes and incident reporting. We post reroutes on the board so all the drivers can be aware of any changes. 

What’s the key to a successful collaboration?

The key to successful collaboration is clarity + trust + consistent communication, adapted to the realities of how our team actually works day to day. For a driver‑based workforce, that means keeping things simple, predictable and respectful of their time on the road.

What does this recognition mean to your team?

It signals value and pride. Recognition reinforces that leadership sees them as professionals, not just positions on a schedule.