Thursday, March 25, 2021 (GUELPH, Ont.) - The University of Guelph, Department of Athletics presented their employee awards in a virtual ceremony. In recent years, the ARC award banquet has become a bright spot on the annual calendar celebrating the hard work and dedication of all of our part-time staff that contribute to the success of the Department of Athletics. Especially this year, opening with COVID-19 protocols we saw the ARC awards banquet as especially important to acknowledge all that our team have done to keep us open and members safe. We had 77 staff join us and cheer along their co-workers who were recognized.
The Directors Award was given to Meaghan Walsh from both the Facilities and Events unit. This award is presented to the part time employee who exemplifies the true nature of the department of athletics. This person is an individual who conduscts themselves as an ambassador of athletics at all times. The characteristics of this employee are:
• Ambassador for athletics throughout the campus and city communities
• Excellent leadership within the department
• Goes above and beyond and conducts themselves with maturity
• Creates a sense of team work within their units
• Has worked a minimum of 3 semesters for the department
The Service and Dedication award was given to Garrett Watkins from the Fitness unit. This award is presented to the part time employee who puts service first in their daily job tasks. This person understands the value of excellent customer service for both internal and external customers. The characteristics of this employee are:
• Displays enthusiasm and dedication to their work unit and the department as a whole
• Greets all members and customers with a smile and takes the time to get to know them
• Extremely reliable
• Presents themselves in clean, presentable uniform
• Interacts with other campus organizations on behalf of the department
The Matrix Fitness Student Leadership Award was presented to Zane White from the Fitness unit. The winner receives a $1,000 scholarship from Matrix. This award is presented to the part time employee who is a current full time post secondary undergraduate student and acts as a role model for their peers. This person is a leader within the department and demonstrates the following qualities:
• Someone who makes coming to work enjoyable
• Motivates their coworkers
• Takes on a mentorship role among their peers
• Looks for ways to improve their work environment
• Leads by modeling a friendly, inclusive and professional attitude
• Encourages cross-unit co worker bonding and development
• Supportive and encouraging of the spirit of arc (athletics and recreation committee)
• Has worked a minimum of 2 semesters for the department
Major Award Nominees. This group of individuals were nominated by their Supervisors and peers for all that they contributed this year.
Congratulations to all our Unit Award winners:
FITNESS – ROOKIE OF THE YEAR AWARD 2020-21 Tanner Rankine
FITNESS CENTRE STAFF OF THE YEAR 2020-21 Nick Ritchie
FITNESS - HEART AWARD 2020-21 Nik Towsley
FITNESS – GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT AWARD 2020-21 Emilie Nicholl
FITNESS INSTRUCTOR OF THE YEAR AWARD 2020-21 Stewart Trail
PERSONAL TRAINER OF THE YEAR AWARD 2020-21 Garrett Watkins
Fitness MVP OF THE YEAR AWARD 2020-21 Austin Rose
FIELDS/FIELDHOUSE ROOKIE OF THE YEAR 2020-21 Matthew MacNeill
FIELDS/FIELDHOUSE MVP 2020-21 Meaghan Walsh
GGAC mvp AWARD 2020-21 Kyle Robinson
GRYPHON CENTRE ARENA MVP 2020-21 Patrick Nyman
CLIENT SERVICES ROOKIE OF THE YEAR AWARD 2020-21 Alyssa Wensing
CLIENT SERVICES MVP AWARD 2020-21 Paola Varela
CLIENT SERVICES TEAM PLAYER OF THE YEAR AWARD.2020-21 Olivia Gurtner
CLIENT SERVICES PLUS-MINUS AWARD 2020-21 Kaley Pilon
Rookie MONITOR/Official of the Year Award 2020-21- Zenovia Diakoloukas
THE Intramural Administrator of the Year Award 2020-21- Isaac McCutcheon
AQUATICS ROOKIE OF THE YEAR 2020-21 Emily Eybergen
AQUATICS INSTRUCTOR OF THE YEAR 2020-21 David Rodal-Rivera
AQUATICS INSTRUCTOR OF THE YEAR 2020-21 Kristen Lutz
AQUATICS LIFEGUARD OF THE YEAR 2020-21 Justice Luddington
AQUATICS LIFEGUARD OF THE YEAR 2020-21 Dan Lencki
ACTIVE KIDS TRAILBLAZER AWARD 2020-21 Ali Primm
GRYPHON ACTIVITY CAMPS STAFF “PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARD 2020-21 Burke Bechard