By CSC COLLEGE RELATIONS
CHADRON – Chadron State College recognized employees for retirement, years of service, and several other awards Thursday during an annual luncheon in the Student Center.
Dr. Josh Ellis was named the recipient of the CSC Teaching Excellence Award. In addition to a $1,000 award and plaque, Ellis becomes a finalist for the Nebraska State College System Teaching Excellence Award to be announced later this year. Dr. Cassandra Ritzen was CSC’s other nominee.
Ellis, a professor in the Family and Consumer Sciences, has worked at Chadron State College since 2014. Ellis served as a Faculty-In-Residence during the program’s 2018-19 pilot and has continued in that capacity. As the Faculty-In-Residence, he has office hours in the Edna Work Hall Lobby and conducts monthly programming on a variety of topics.
“Each day I step on campus I smile because I find great joy and meaning in engaging with the students, my colleagues, and my course content. I consider it an honor and a privilege to have the opportunity to play a small part in so many student stories,” Ellis said.
He said a common thread that guides the instructional design of each course is a focus on presenting opportunities for students to engage in self-construction and flourish in life. Ellis said he encourages his students to be intellectually humble, curious, reflective, and kind, as they strive to find meaning and purpose in life. He said he designs courses with time to allow students to engage with the course content individually and then bring their thoughts, ideas, opinions, and experiences to class for discussion.
In addition to teaching, he has served on numerous committees and task forces, as an advisor for undergraduate and graduate students, attended more than 20 professional conferences and presented at six, and been a guest lecturer in his colleague’s classes and faculty forums.
Retirees honored at the event included Pam Anderson, Dr. Timothy E. Anderson, Joy Omelanuk, Sherry Douglas, Bruce L. Hoem, Lucinda Mays, and Don E. Watt.
Eagle Impact Award recipients were Dr. Jamie Wada, faculty, and Kimberly Hernandez, professional staff. The Eagle Impact Award provides CSC students the opportunity to honor and acknowledge employees who have positively impacted them during their time at CSC based on three criteria: Inspiring, Supporting, and Empowering. One winner was chosen by students comprising the Eagle Impact Committee for each group.
CSC Years of Service Award Recipients
35 Years
Dr. Scott Ritzen
30 Years
Tena L. Cook, Lorin Kuhnel, and Dr. Wendy Waugh
25 Years
Dr. Dawn Brammer, Cindi Walgren, and Steve Weber
20 Years
Todd Baumann, Kim Bradley, Dr. Matthew Evertson, Velinda “Val” S. Malone, and Stefani Van Vleet
15 Years
Dr. Ann Marie Buchmann, Kristol Cummings, Alex Helmbrecht, Malinda Linegar, Stacie Mittleider, Dr. Michael Stephens, Stephanie Stroup, Michael Vogl, and Dr. James Wada
10 Years
Colleen Brennan, Kim Clark, Jeremy Fry, Kari Gaswick, Brett Hunter, Kayla Junge, Jay Long, Lucinda Mays, Kay Mitchell, Dr. Cassandra Ritzen, Steven Rolfsmeier, Jennifer Schaer, and Alisha Scoggan