UWF staff nominated for DSA

Along with Mike, eight other individuals and two teams from UW Facilities were nominated for the DSA. We asked the UWF nominees to share a few insights about what they do and what inspires them. All interviews have been edited for length and clarity.

• Melissa Brown, Transportation Demand Management Program Development Specialist, Transportation Services
• Uma Dutt, Project Manager, Maintenance & Construction
• James Hardwick, Motor Equipment Mechanic, Transportation Services
• Alan Horne, Power Plant Mechanic Lead, CEU&O
• Cindy Magruder, Project Integrator Manager, Asset Management
• Stephanie Parker, Executive Assistant to the Vice President
• Mark Pekarek, Senior Project Manager, Maintenance & Construction
• Steven Vasquez, Sheet Metal Mechanic Lead, Maintenance & Construction
• UW Recycling Operations Team, Building Services Department: 
  Franklin Becker, Chris Forbes, Hector Martell, Dean Seaman, David Speed, Mike Westerberg, Vinnie Yok
• UW Tower Team, Building Services Department and Maintenance & Construction: 
  Nate Cienfuegos, Adam Diriye, Square Donaldson, Alfonso Escobar, Steven Garcia, Asefash Gebrea, Peter Gorokhovskiy, Saba Hadgu, Tsege Hailu, Bart Hermes, Hayat Mohammed, Okyong Kim, Teresita Perry, Mark Pruitt, David Record, Jovanny Rivas, Mouang Saelee, Ivan Tupis

Distinguished Staff Award winner

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Mike Morris, Program Support Supervisor 2

What’s your job in one sentence?

We move lab equipment and offices, pick up surplus items from departments, and bring them back for resale or recycling.

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

With the atmosphere of universities, there’s the policy of acceptance of people with diverse backgrounds. When I first came to the University with Housing and Food Services, I worked in custodial in the dorms and worked with people who immigrated to the United States. It's kind of like taking a trip around the world without having to leave Washington state. 

With the current job, I like needing to be flexible. We have a lot of emergent moves that come up that deal with re-coordinating schedules to fit people's needs. The pandemic brought that up: How do we do our job within the scope of the pandemic with the kind of requirements we needed to meet? 

It's a teamwork effort. My job means nothing if I didn't have the truck drivers and movers doing the actual hands on-work and the office staff doing their job.

What motivates you? Any word of inspiration or advice you’d like to share?

The motivation is the wonderful work that happens at the University. It's world-class, and that's our goal: to be a world-class department in providing the service that we can.

What does this recognition mean to you personally or professionally? 

I always say, you have to pat yourself on the back and not expect it to come from certain recognition. But I've been here 40 years, and I appreciate the recognition that I've gotten.

But I think most of all I appreciate the fact that I've done my best while I'm here at the University, and I can go home proud of the work I do, the people I work with and the culture we have here.

Distinguished Staff Award nominees

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Melissa Brown, Transportation Demand Management Program Development Specialist

What’s your job in one sentence?

I develop programs to support people in their commutes to and from the University, including supporting the U-PASS program, our bike programs and coordination with our transit partners.

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

I think my favorite part has been the broad scope of the work. I started doing program development and being very much transportation-focused. But that work has included getting to manage contracts, managing U-PASS program operations and learning more about how that technology works, and getting involved in budget processes. This is my second job out of college. I came here wanting to just learn more how transportation and higher education work, and how to support mobility as a major employer. I've gotten exposure to so many elements of the transportation field, and it's been invaluable to setting me up for a career in the transportation sphere.

What motivates you each day? Any word of inspiration or advice you’d like to share?

I'm really motivated by my co-workers in the Commute Options and Planning team. We're a small team of five people, and each person has their own area of expertise that they focus on. So it means that in all projects we have to work closely together. Getting to incorporate elements from everyone's subject matter expertise is a fun aspect of the job.

A piece of advice I’d give people — especially here at the University — is to embrace change. A joy of my job is that no day ever looks the same.

What does this recognition mean to you personally or professionally?

It’s an honor to be recognized by my colleagues in this way. Something like the U-PASS — that's just a small element of how people get to work each day. They expect it to work, and it does. It's very kind to be recognized for the behind-the-scenes work that I do and that my team does here at Transportation Services.

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Uma Dutt, Project Manager

What’s your job in one sentence?

I organize logistics, oversee project work, keep track of spending and ensure that Maintenance & Construction projects are completed on time and within budget.

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

I am delighted to be a member of UW Facilities team and have the opportunity to interact and collaborate with everyone. I love the combination of variety, culture and challenges that brings us all closer to knowing, understanding and respecting each other, which makes me feel like a part of this bigger family where I typically spend the majority of the day.

What motivates you? Any word of inspiration or advice you’d like to share?

Mostly considering how people and work fits in my life cycle — which enables me to have work–life balance — and also understanding when I am most productive. Sharing my work experiences while always learning new skills and talents from my co-workers is satisfying and motivating.

What does this recognition mean to you personally or professionally? 

This is a big thank you to my colleagues for taking the time to provide this positive feedback. The confidence and value you all showed in me and my work is highly appreciated.

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James Hardwick, Motor Equipment Mechanic

What’s your job in one sentence?

I get UW Fleet vehicles repaired quickly and correctly so that my university co-workers can get their vehicles back in great working order, so they can return to their work too!

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

This is the best job I ever had. I know that when I show up to work, I have a purpose. I love working at the University and making a difference on campus.

What motivates you? Any word of inspiration or advice you’d like to share?

The workflow here is much more hospitable than my previous work in the private sector. I know that I can work hard and get my job done right in a timely matter, which is hard to find outside of the University. The shop I work in has very little stress. Everyone gets along well. We work together and help each other through the workload.

What does this recognition mean to you personally or professionally? 

I was surprised and honored to find out I had been nominated. At first, I thought it wasn’t real. I thought only the upper-level employees were given these honors. It really means a lot to me and my whole team. When we were informed I was a finalist, my co-workers were all coming over and shaking my hand to congratulate me. It’s been a wonderful experience to be honored like this.

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Alan Horne, Power Plant Mechanic Lead

What’s your job in one sentence?

I am responsible for maintaining the equipment in the Power Plant.

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

I get to come in and see a job through from beginning to end. I'm not the guy who comes in and fixes one little part and goes away. Like with the Reliability Enhancement Project [replacing old equipment in the Power Plant], I get to watch projects go from the beginning to the end, and that gives me a lot of satisfaction. 

Another part that gives me satisfaction is being able to advise and guide my guys. I love being in that role. I get stumped like everybody else, but the majority of the time I can feel very confident in my role because I've been here for over 22 years.

What motivates you? Any word of inspiration or advice you’d like to share?

What motivates me is the need to sustain our mission statement. What we're here to do is supply the campus with utilities to operate every day of the year. We make steam and compressed air all year. We make chilled water in the summertime. Our job is to make sure that that campus stays heated and stays cool. 

Another thing that motivates me is that you never know what you're gonna walk into with this place. You know, we come in every morning, we look at what happened in the last 16 hours and we address whatever needs to be done. This job is never the same — it's never static — and that's really what keeps me interested.

What does this recognition mean to you personally or professionally? 

I’m in my 23rd year here at the University of Washington Power Plant. I was hired as an entry level operating engineer. I'm honored that my peers have recognized my efforts over the years. I believe this is proof and incentive to the newcomer. Dedication and constant effort don't go unnoticed.

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Cindy Magruder, Project Integrator Manager

What’s your job in one sentence?

The procurement and contract administration of capital projects on behalf of UW Facilities.

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

Throughout the last 35 years, everything has changed: processes, software, statutes, best practices, leadership, mission and vision statements. There's been so much change, but throughout the years there's been awesome people who just enrich your day and make the work life rewarding. The Project Delivery Group (PDG) is a tight team. We support each other, we mentor each other and I so appreciate the culture that defines us. It makes work fun. I'm not saying that sometimes the work and people don't frustrate you, but when you assume positive intent, it's a great foundation on which to build work relationships.

What motivates you? Any word of inspiration or advice you’d like to share?

For the last 35 years, I've been involved with the contracting on public works on every capital project delivered by PDG. Our projects have been diverse and interesting, they support the UW’s mission, and they include education, research, the arts and enriching student experiences. I have touched every single discipline on campus and have been a small part of the teams that provide the facilities, spaces for research, spaces for student engagement and more. It’s something I'm proud of.

To be challenged, to be tasked with finding ways to be more efficient and effective, to understand and implement statues, and to contribute to the success of PDG also motivate me.

As far as career advice goes, I would say: Find a position that interests you and that you find rewarding, and a team that you enjoy working with, and then fully engage in your job. Take advantage of opportunities, educate yourself with training. Speak up and share your ideas, and work to build an inclusive and respectful unit. Mentor others. Make yourself knowledgeable and be a resource for others.

What does this recognition mean to you personally or professionally? 

I sincerely thank those who took the time and effort to write the nomination. I appreciate the acknowledgement that I've made a difference, that I've contributed, and that the knowledge and experience gained and shared is valued. Just as I have benefited from my mentors, I enjoy passing along my knowledge, experiences, mistakes and efforts to make PDG a successful unit, and to ensure that we appropriately procure and administer public work projects.

I am proud to have called the UW my employer and home for the past 35 years. 

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Stephanie Parker, Executive Assistant to the Vice President

What’s your job in one sentence?

My role provides executive level-project management and support to the VP, supporting the initiatives, programs and strategic goals of the Facilities executive office and senior leadership teams.  

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

I love working for the UW and for Facilities! It’s incredible to work somewhere where you can fully stand behind the mission and values of your organization and have the privilege to see how the work that we — every Facilities employee — do each day helps the University excel and advance in our shared mission. 

I love walking across campus at transition time and feeling the energy of students, faculty, staff and visitors bustling though the physical spaces and places that we all work so incredibly hard, each in our own way, to ensure are maintained, safe, accessible and providing a beautiful backdrop for the world’s most brilliant minds to come together and dream up the next great thing. It makes me proud to be a Husky and even more proud to work in our Facilities organization.

What motivates you? Any word of inspiration or advice you’d like to share?

Each day, I just do my best to help my team, my colleagues and my boss Lou to be closer to helping the University achieve its goals. I think that’s all we can ask anyone to do — to just do your best. On any given day, your best might vary, but as long as you can look back and say, “I gave it all that I could today, and I can be proud of what I did,” it keeps me roaring forward. 

What does this recognition mean to you personally or professionally? 

It makes me feel grateful. The work I do puts me in touch with every corner of our organization, and I’m so thankful to work with such dedicated, intelligent and just delightful individuals. In particular, I’m grateful for a compassionate and determined executive team, as well as all of the administrative all-stars who help all our leaders keep driving the ship forward. I wouldn’t be where I’m at without the amazing mentors, trainers and kind-hearted colleagues that have and continue to educate and inspire me each day. 

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Mark Pekarek, Senior Project Manager

What’s your job in one sentence?

We manage remodel and refresh construction work — where projects costs don’t exceed $90,000 for labor and materials — across the Seattle campus, Health Sciences, UWMC and occasionally at UW Bothell. 

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

I started working at the UW in 2011. Since then, I’ve been able to build strong positive relationships with some truly amazing people — not just my immediate project management team, but everybody within Facilities Maintenance and Construction and all the departments across campus.

I like that my work keeps me incredibly busy. Never a dull moment. I actually prefer to be so busy I can’t possibly get everything done, kind of like trying to manage organized chaos and barely able to keep my nose above the water line.

What motivates you? Any word of inspiration or advice you’d like to share?

My dad was born and raised on a family dairy farm. His youngest brother had a family dairy farm two miles to the west. When I turned 11, at the end of the school year, my parents sent me to work on the two farms during the summer. I developed my work ethic on those two farms. We worked long hard hours: milking cows twice daily, all the field work, daily chores like feeding the calves and chickens and so much more. 

My uncle had a knack for making all the work fun. It didn’t matter how nasty some of the chores were — it was always fun and rewarding work. There was never a shortage of work and it all had to get done. 

I kept that work ethic: Work hard and make it fun. And no matter where I’ve worked, I’ve always found things to do to stay busy and do my best to make the work enjoyable for myself and the people around me.

What does this recognition mean to you personally or professionally? 

I’m truly honored my colleagues feel I deserved this award. I very much enjoy doing whatever I can to assist anyone in any way so they can be successful. You know, it's not limited to my immediate staff. It's all the amazing people that I get to work with. If there's something I can do to help them to be more successful, I do it. This is recognition that I’ve done that.

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Steven Vasquez, Sheet Metal Mechanic Lead

What’s your job?

I'm part of Shop 41 night maintenance, and what our crew does boils down to changing light bulbs and changing air filters. I service our Magnehelic gauges, which is a specialized device for measuring pressure differences so that our crew has a data-driven metric to know when it's time to change filters.

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

The people I get to work with. I know that by doing the best I can in my job for our crew helps them do the best they can for the institution at large. Another aspect would be some form of civic pride that working in the public sector can give you. I know that the job was going to get done whether it was done by me or not, but since it's my job I have the opportunity to do it in a way that helps others.

What motivates you? Any word of inspiration or advice you’d like to share?

Something I think about when I come to work is that institutions are made of people. Just as much as this place is the institution, the people in it are the functioning, working parts that affect the experiences of others that move through the institution. I think that institutions are simultaneously the best and worst of us that we bring to work. Trying to improve on that best and worst lets me help the institution continue as a positive organization. Just like you see in politics or community organizations, the people who shows up every day and what they do every day really determines what the culture is going to be.

What does this recognition mean to you personally or professionally?

I think UW, or at least the part I’m involved with, is really poised to go through a big transformation with a large wave of retirements coming soon. And knowing that, getting this award makes me feel like the University as an institution has the ability to continue in a direction that I feel will build a positive workplace culture. The recognition is an honor that means the effort I’ve put into my job and my time here has been noticed. I feel validated in knowing that someone was positively impacted by my actions enough to recommend me for recognition.

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UW Recycling Operations Team

Answers by David Speed, waste collector lead.

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

The job is a mixture of fun, frustration and satisfaction with a dash of the unknown, all of which can occur in one shift. For the most part, every day is unlike the previous day.

It's nice to be able enjoy the outdoors while you work, even when the weather is not so agreeable. It's a mobile job so we are in constant motion, traveling throughout campus and taking in different experiences.

What motivates you? Any word of inspiration or advice you’d like to share?

The answer at its most basic is providing for your family, but also providing a service that is essential to the functionality of the University — doing our part behind the scenes to keep the campus clean as we work toward zero waste solutions and a healthy campus. It's truly a team effort.

What does this recognition mean to you personally or professionally?

It's a validation of our contribution to the University. It gives all of us a sense of pride knowing that what we do counts and is appreciated as well. Everyone has at least a basic sense of pride in the work they perform, so it's rewarding to be recognized for what we do.

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UW Tower Team 

The Tower team is big, so we've divided their answers into two groups. Manager Yirgalem Tesfaldet answered questions for the custodial team over email, while the daytime maintenance team answered questions in person at a team meeting.

Custodial team

What motivates you? Any word of inspiration or advice you’d like to share?

When all the team shows up to work in the morning, the work is accomplished. Our customers, staff and visitors are happy with the results and well-done job. When we receive positive compliments for the hard work we do on a daily basis, it motivates us to do more to satisfy customer, staff and visitor needs in the Tower. We’re also motivated by the clients’ well-being and being fortunate enough to have been employed, especially during the pandemic.

What’s an interesting aspect of your job that people would be surprised to learn?

There are deep cleaning projects that we do during breaks, such as restrooms, carpets, upholstery and floor work using special tools and equipment, as well as maintaining the locker rooms and disinfecting touch points daily. Customers are surprised that all tasks are completed in a timely manner between 5 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. during business hours. We do it by prioritizing the tasks that need to get done early in the morning versus in the afternoon. 

What’s the secret to working well together as a team?

We communicate in a respectful way and delegate the work that needs to be done in the Tower between the team in a fair way. We are always willing to help each other when needed.

What does this recognition mean to you personally or professionally?

We are honored and feel great appreciation from the staff that sees and understands how hard we work and have been working during these difficult times.

Maintenance team

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

Nate Cienfuegos: I graduated from the UW this past June. This is my first actual, real full-time job after graduation. And I have gotten a lot of experience with a lot of different things, like helping with onboarding and interviews. And I would have never thought that I would have done that within the span of eight months. I just appreciate all the experience I'm able to get so quickly. It looks good for the future.

Bart Hermes: I was in charge of 4 million square feet at Harborview. I was the director of facilities there for three years. Keeping a trauma center is a lot different than keeping an office running. This is a very enjoyable environment to be in. It's very easy, very mellow compared to that.

Alfonso Escobar: I've been here for almost 15 years. I'm glad to be here.

Jovanny Rivas: My favorite aspect is teamwork and communication. Everyone here has a different role, but we all have radios and we kind of overlap with each other and help with different crises that we have. And then also all the tenants who are here — a lot of the event staff, which is pretty much just us, work alongside them to get things going, and they're all pretty friendly. 

Mark Pruitt: Like everybody else said, it takes this whole team to make this building run. There’s not a one-person star in here. Sometimes, we all have our sleeves pushed up, vacuuming water off the floor. To make it better and react to a problem, everybody jumps in and helps out. That's a fantastic thing to have: to know somebody's got your back immediately when you call on the radio, like “Here they come, the cavalry.” And that's great to know you got them behind you when you're standing in water. A team atmosphere has got a value that you can't put a price on. 

At one point we had 2,700 people that came here every day. Since a pandemic it's been way less than that. But Bart's taken over the LED light conversion of this whole building. This crew right here does all that work. We converted the toilets to automatic flushes — that saved a lot of water. Things like that have always moved the building forward, whether the customers are here or they’re home.