By Rebecca Bigelow
The University of Illinois blended two former award programs—the Chancellor’s Academic Professional Excellence (CAPE) award and the Chancellor’s Distinguished Staff Award (CDSA)—into one program: Chancellor’s Staff Excellence Awards (CSEA). Campus wanted a program with a single set of rules and protocols that recognizes the contributions of all university staff members.
Read the Illinois News Bureau story about all the 2024 winners here.
Letters of recommendations were collected, and the committee once again ranked the finalists and presented the top 16 (two in each category) to the Chancellor. For complete details of the award process, visit: https://humanresources.illinois.edu/employees/current-employees/chancellors-staff-excellenceaward/program-procedures.html.
F&S was proud to note two F&S employees had won: Brad Frantz, an electrical maintenance supervisor at Abbott Power Plant, and Donna McClure, an architect in Engineering Services. Both were honored in the crafts & trades category.
Brad Frantz
Frantz was nominated by Chief Utility Plant Operating Engineer, Utilities & Energy Services, Russ Reynolds. He notes that Frantz is “directly responsible for supervising Abbott Power Plant’s electricians as well as electrical contractors and engineering firms that we have on-site.” Frantz “cares for people while fostering teamwork.”
Reynolds adds, Frantz “develops his employees and builds their skillsets by creating an environment conducive to on- the-job learning in addition to facilitating training opportunities, setting clear and measurable employee goals, and by providing regular, productive feedback to his employees. Brad’s willingness to assist and his dedication to his employees and to the university’s and Abbott’s vision and mission make Brad standout as a positive role model for others to follow.
“Brad is a person that consistently supports maximizing output while minimizing input and reducing waste, inefficiencies, and unnecessary costs,” Reynolds said. “He makes the most out of the resources available including, but not limited to, time, money, and labor… In short, Brad regularly identifies areas of improvement, implements changes, measures results, and makes adjustments to ensure that Abbott Power Plant’s services to the U. of I. are improving and that the improvements are sustainable.”
Donna McClure
McClure was nominated by Associate Director of Engineering Services Kelly Jo Hoffmann. She wrote, “One of my favorite qualities of Donna is her fearlessness and sense of ‘architectural adventure.’ I say this in admiration as she has so much energy and ability to crawl under, through, and above many spaces that would intimidate other people.”
Hoffmann added that McClure always “comes back to the office with valuable photos and notes to share.” Hoffmann noted that McClure has a “natural manner of teaching and instruction. As she comments on projects or answers a question, she leads with the reason why first, before proceeding with the comment or detail. She is most vocal about sharing what does not work or has previously failed so we can learn from those past mistakes without making them ourselves.”
McClure, Hoffmann concludes, “has been known [since 2001] as a person that is willing to get a little dirty and put in the time and effort to get things right. Her unassuming manner helps her to engage with all parties in a project. She values being able to help clients, project managers, and planners to scope renovation projects sharing her decades of architectural and institutional knowledge.”