Three exceptional VCU Libraries employees received 2021 awards from the VCU Staff Senate. Congratulations go to Will Bailey, Isabella Pence-Lanctot and Jeanne Scott. 

“VCU Libraries is composed of amazingly talented and committed individuals,” said Interim Dean and University Librarian Teresa L. Knott. “It is exciting to see their individual excellence being recognized beyond the walls of the libraries by colleagues across the University. It is well deserved and I very much appreciate their many contributions to advancing our mission.”

Added Gregory Kimbrell, incoming president of the VCU Staff Senate for 2021-22 and himself a VCU Libraries employee: “It’s extremely gratifying to see these three VCU Libraries staff members recognized as exemplary university employees, especially during a year that strained and transformed our normal working lives. These three demonstrate a personal commitment to excellence that transcends challenges and they have been instrumental in the libraries continuing to provide our communities with outstanding service throughout the pandemic.”

Professional Integrity Award: William "Will" Bailey

The VCU Staff Senate Professional Integrity Award is an honor bestowed to an individual who exemplifies VCU’s ethical standards. The recipient is recognized for their extraordinary performance and dedication in their position and their demonstrated leadership to the university through their distinguished efforts to enhance excellence in their fellow staff members, students or faculty. The honor credits the recipient with outstanding performance related to the Staff Senate’s ethical pillars of respect, honesty, excellence, responsibility and accountability, stewardship, and compliance to VCU’s policies and procedures. 

Among the recommendations submitted on behalf of Bailey’s nomination was the following testimonial:

“Mr. Bailey has consistently shown professional integrity and a commitment to the  broader VCU community. He clearly communicates goals and timeframes when working with everyone in his role  as Desktop Support Team Lead. His work in stewardship of state resources, including desktop hardware and software, cannot be understated. Mr. Bailey has been honest and forthright in his interactions with purchasing equipment and makes best use of state funds with every transaction. He serves as a role model for his team, taking ownership of the various areas the desktop support team is tasked with administering and taking  pride in excellent customer service.” 

The Exceptional Customer Service Award: Isabella Pence-Lanctot

The VCU Staff Senate Exceptional Customer Service Award is an honor bestowed to an individual who promotes and exemplifies VCU’s customer service. This award recognizes the performance of staff members who work well with customers and exhibit a natural ability for customer service. The recipient is further recognized for their extraordinary dedication in their position through their outstanding customer service efforts to their fellow staff members and the University community. These actions are applicable to services provided to both internal and external customers of the University. The nominees demonstrate creativity and resourcefulness in assisting a diverse variety of customers through positive interactions. The honoree provides assistance that helps keep customers satisfied beyond the call of duty and eliminates barriers for customers by effectively and efficiently communicating, collaborating and addressing customer needs.

The nomination for her included these words from a fellow staff member:

“As a coworker, I can unequivocally state that Isabella frequently exceeds her expected job requirements to assist patrons and accommodate their specific needs. Often, she will actively seek out creative and compassionate ways of solving software and hardware conflicts to enable students’ access to materials and computing needs. Such efforts are always performed with the genuine intention of assuring the students’ peace of mind and a sense of feeling that their needs are being taken seriously."

The Guiding Star Award for Career Achievement: Jeanne Scott

The VCU Staff Senate presents this award to a long-serving staff member who has dedicated the vast majority of their professional career to providing exemplary support or service to the VCU community. Awardees will be individuals who are NOT in a senior leadership position, but who provide, or have provided, direct support or service in an administrative, front line or service position. The Awards & Recognition Committee bases the honor on evidence of providing outstanding service to their department or school or to the broader VCU community for many years.

In the nomination package for Scott, this is just one of the glowing statements about her:

“Jeanne has been an outstanding leader at the VCU Libraries Information Desk. She has always been diligent and committed to excellence, ensuring that our users get the information they need, be that library materials like books, or information on how to use library services in general. In the past decade in particular, Jeanne has embraced service excellence to our users with a renewed gusto. She is truly an exemplar of exceeding expectations of library users, looking for ways to make their day as they engage with our collections and services. In doing so, she has immeasurably impacted the culture of her entire  department, modeling this behavior for others, including those she supervises, and anyone else who has a chance to see her in action.”