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| Stephen Colella received the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Community Service. | |
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| Elaine Martin received the Chancellor’s Award for Advancing the UMMS Mission. |
Elaine Martin, MSLA, DA, director of the Lamar Soutter Library, and Stephen Colella, disability evaluator for Commonwealth Medicine’s Disability Evaluation Services unit, have been honored with 2014 Chancellor’s Awards.
Dr. Martin received the Chancellor’s Award for Advancing the UMMS Mission, and Colella received the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Community Service. Chancellor Michael F. Collins presented them at the annual Employee Recognition Dinner held Thursday, Nov. 13 in at UMass Medical School.
The Chancellor’s Award for Advancing the UMMS Mission recognizes an individual staff member or team whose actions make a substantial impact in advancing the mission of the medical school through public service, research, teaching and health care delivery. The honorees do so with commitment to the vision and mission of UMMS; dedication to always supporting what is in the best interest of UMMS; initiativeto accomplish goals using new and improved methods; vision to see opportunities for change and develop innovative solutions; and passionfor achieving UMMS goals and mission.
Martin has demonstrated these qualities since joining UMMS in 1998 to run a library that at that time offered limited services and resources. Since then her tireless efforts have transformed the library to meet the goals and mission of UMMS.
“Today, our library is an educational and cultural hub for our academic community that seamlessly reflects and adeptly melds the best traditions of the medical library with the essential conveniences and resources of the modern internet age,” said Chancellor Collins.
In addition to lauding her for transforming the library with expert management, principled leadership and innovative strategies, the Collins enumerated Martin’s many other contributions to UMMS. These include lending her expertise to help the University of Liberia’s College of Medicine rebuild its main library, and extending her leadership to groups and initiatives including the Women’s Faculty Committee and the Women’s Health Resources Dissemination and Outreach grant.
“Your stellar leadership of the Lamar Soutter Library demonstrates a superior commitment to our mission areas and has earned you the respect of your colleagues, the trust of your employees, the admiration of your peers and the appreciation of this campus community,” Collins said. “You are a nationally recognized leader in the field of health science librarianship, and our library has emerged as a model for other institutions to emulate.”
The Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Community Service honors an individual UMMS staff member or team that provides service to the community that reflects dedication to a spirit of commitment to those in need of assistance; passionateengagement resulting in a meaningful impact to our community; and strengthenedrelationships within the community.
Colella fulfilled these criteria by establishing, entirely on his own time and with his own money, Job Club Rhode Island to help the long-termed unemployed in his hometown of Warwick, R.I., particularly middle-aged workers who previously held well-paying jobs, a population that has been underserved by traditional unemployment programs. The program has been recognized by the White House for helping two-thirds of its almost 800 participants obtain employment at an average salary of $23 an hour since its inception in 2009.
“Your incredible journey from West Warwick to the White House demonstrates the true content of your character and the true extent of your commitment to the local community. While unassuming by nature, you have assumed responsibility for helping Rhode Islanders get back to work,” Collins said upon presenting the award to Colella.
“Given this medical school’s special public mission to serve the communities in which we live and work, we take great pride in the fact that one of our employees is serving his local community so superbly.”
Read about the 2013 Chancellor’s Awards:
Luippold, Tsaknopoulos honored with Chancellor’s Awards
