2024 DOSA Awards

This is the fifteenth (15) year of presenting the DOSA awards and a wonderful opportunity to recognize students and staff from within the Division for exemplary performance this previous academic year.  We received numerous nominations recognizing various individuals and groups. A committee with representatives from across the division reviewed each of the nominations and made the difficult decision on the selection of the recipients, so many thanks to them.

Our first award category is the Promotion of Public Affairs Award.  This award is presented to an individual or team for promoting an appreciation, understanding, or celebration of the Public Affairs Mission through delivery of a program and/or through personal actions focused on the three pillars that created a positive impact on our campus. 

This year’s winner is the Bear Breaks Immersion Trips offered by the Center of Community Engagement for engaging students in meaningful experiences across the country. These trips focused on critical issues like hunger, homelessness, youth engagement, and foster care by partnering with 15 community organizations to complete over 1030 hours of service. Students immersed themselves in diverse cultures and learned to lead collaboratively.

The nominator stated, “This immersive experience allows the students to step out of their comfort zone and fully engage with public affairs mission… and grow as Citizen Bears in the process.”

The next Award is the Innovation by a Team, New Program, or Initiative. This award recognizes the combined cooperative efforts of a team or individual to develop and/or deliver an innovative response to student needs. 

This year, we have three winners for this award. First, we have the Residence Life Social Committee. Members from various departments joined together to plan intentional and inclusive events.

Mindful of varying schedules, the committee organized flexible and affordable opportunities to attend the Homecoming Parade and Missouri State Bears baseball games, “Roaming with ResLife” lunch gatherings, and countless other events for staff to connect.

Through these initiatives, the Residence Life Social Committee has significantly improved staff morale, cohesion, and appreciation.

Our second winner is, Magers Health and Wellness Center. This nomination stands out as it highlights the team's extraordinary efforts during a challenging time in Spring 2024 to transition the pharmacy and repair a third-party operation interruption. The interruption affected the ability to process insurance claims for six weeks. The team at Magers worked countless overtime to not only minimize the interruption but transition a new team in this department.

Their exemplary teamwork and dedication to going above and beyond for each other and the university make them deserving winners of this award.

Our third winner for this award is Multicultural Programs. In the past year, Multicultural Programs received a $25,500 grant from Springfield Black Tie, Inc., a premier fundraising event for LGBTQ+ charities in the southwest Missouri area. The funding expanded resources for the Transition Closet. Students can now submit requests to Multicultural Programs for specific shoes and clothing sizes and transition items like binders. Additionally, with PROMO and Ekklesia (Ek-LEE-cee-ah)) Campus Ministry, the grant assists students with the often challenging and emotional process of legal name changes. In total, six students have requested support and five completed the process. These initiatives provide LGBTQ+ students with community support and resources during a crucial time. Multicultural Programs exemplifies the Student Affairs mission of developing an integrated learning community that celebrates and meets students’ diverse needs. For these impactful initiatives, Multicultural Programs is truly deserving of this award.

The next award is the Outstanding Graduate Assistant Award.  This award recognizes a graduate assistant who has completed at least one semester of graduate work and demonstrated superior job performance.  As always, we have many wonderful graduate assistants.

Our winner this year is Reagan Mwenyi (Mwah-en-ee) from Residence Life and Dining Services. Reagan demonstrates a genuine commitment to students and staff by serving on-call for emergency situations, working with prospective students, and engaging in meaningful conversations with the Inclusive Engagement Committee.

Reagan’s nominator wrote, "His positive attitude, thoroughness, and genuine commitment to our students and staff are unparalleled… Reagan consistently demonstrates… a willingness to go above and beyond… he truly embodies the qualities of an outstanding graduate assistant."

 The Outstanding New Exempt Staff Member Award is presented to a new exempt staff member employed within the Division of Student Affairs for less than two years who has demonstrated superior job performance and displayed a positive attitude and commitment to the Division of Student Affairs and Missouri State University.

This year, Seigfred (Zeeg-freed) (Seig) Samala from the Bookstore was selected for this category.

His nominator stated, “Seig is intentional with getting to know his customers and does his best to fulfill special requests for products in the store. He excels at customer service and is a great asset to Division of Student Affairs… His nominator mentioned, “Seig is an advocate for students and always coming up with new ways to merchandise as well as promote the bookstore with new ideas. I am very proud of this gentleman and am grateful for him being on our team.”

The Outstanding New Non-Exempt Staff Member Award recognizes a new non-exempt staff member employed within the Division of Student Affairs for less than two years who has demonstrated superior job performance, displayed a positive attitude and commitment to the Division of Student Affairs and Missouri State University.

Joe Clemons from Residence Life is our award winner. Per his nominator, “Joe’s role involves complex processes like… student housing contracts… and meal plans, yet … he consistently goes above and beyond to improve … his position.

Beyond his technical skills, Joe’s willingness to help whenever needed demonstrates his dedication to the team. His positive attitude, approachability, and habit of sharing daily riddles and jokes have also made a significant positive impact on our office culture.

Joe has truly set a new benchmark for what it means to be a dedicated and collaborative team member."

The Outstanding New Part-Time Staff Member Award recognizes a new non-student part-time staff member employed by the Division of Student Affairs for less than two years who has demonstrated superior job performance and displayed a positive attitude and commitment to the Division of Student Affairs and Missouri State University.

This year's winner is Molly Grellner (Grell-ner) , Bears Lead Success Coach for the Access and Success Programs.

Her nominator wrote: “Molly has brought enthusiasm and energy to our team, reminding us of the importance of our work and enhancing our team’s companionship. Molly's proficiency with Excel and database management was a game-changer… She identified areas for improvement in our data management and worked with Computer Services to establish a new dashboard for Bears Lead. This initiative has greatly improved our data accuracy and efficiency, pushing our team to grow in our use of technology. In addition to that, her positive impact and dedication have made her an invaluable addition to Bears Lead.

The Outstanding Part-Time Staff Member Award recognizes a non-student, part-time staff member employed by the Division of Student Affairs for two or more years who has demonstrated superior job performance and displayed a positive attitude and commitment to the Division of Student Affairs and Missouri State University.

This year’s winner is Faith Giedd, Bears Lead Coach for Access and Success Programs.

Faith’s nominator wrote, "Faith joined our team a month into the semester, and despite starting later, she adapted quickly and made an immediate impact. Her infectious energy creates a welcoming atmosphere that students and staff are drawn to. Faith is always the first to acknowledge and celebrate the successes of others, no matter how small. She embodies the true spirit of student success, always going above and beyond to ensure everyone feels supported and empowered.

Thanks to her dedication, we’ve introduced new initiatives that celebrate student achievements, making them feel valued and appreciated.”

The Outstanding Non-Exempt Staff Member Award recognizes a non-exempt staff member employed by the Division of Student Affairs for two or more years who has demonstrated superior job performance and displayed a positive attitude and commitment to the Division of Student Affairs and Missouri State University.

Our winner is Tena Reel, Licensed Practical Nurse for Magers Health.

Tena's nominator wrote, "Tena is a true pillar of support at Magers Health and Wellness, especially during chaotic times. Her calm demeanor and willingness to share a smile uplift both staff and clients alike. Tena's passion for student well-being is evident in everything she does and doesn’t hesitate to step up, whether it’s offering to assist with projects like student preview day or represent Magers on a Student Affairs committee. Tena truly embodies the spirit of Magers Health and Wellness and is an outstanding representative of MSU."

 The Outstanding Exempt Staff Member Award recognizes an exempt staff member employed by the Division of Student Affairs for two or more years who has demonstrated superior job performance and displayed a positive attitude and commitment to the Division of Student Affairs and Missouri State University.

The winner is Raeleen Ziegler, director of Veteran Student Center.      

Raeleen’s nominator wrote, "Raeleen is a true advocate for veteran students, especially those navigating the complexities of returning to academic life. She embodies the essence of a 'champion of veteran success.' This commitment is evident in her continuous pursuit of professional development in veteran support services. Raeleen is the staff member who will always step up and say, 'I will do it,' taking on more responsibilities than others. It was her who kept everyone organized and on track during the VA Compliance Survey. When faced with a complex issue, Raeleen always brings forward the student perspective, advocating fiercely on their behalf."

The Outstanding Long-Standing Staff Member Award recognizes an exempt, non-exempt, or part-time non-student staff member employed by the Division of Student Affairs for ten years or more who has demonstrated superior job performance and displayed a positive attitude and commitment to the Division of Student Affairs and Missouri State University.

The winner is Konya Mueller (Mew-ler) with the Department of Campus Recreation.

One of the nominators wrote “Konya has worked within the Department since 2011 and has only demonstrated excellent work performance since…” She balances the budget … oversees all software updates for internal process systems and supervises the welcome desk staff which consists of training, scheduling, evaluating, and communicating. “While it is always apparent that Konya values hard work, it is also apparent that Konya has worked in this department for nearly 15 years because she values the impact she has on students and the impact they have on her… When anyone asks why we work at Missouri State University… Konya’s response is always, ‘because of the students.’”

The Outstanding Friend of Student Affairs Award recognizes an individual outside of the division that goes above and beyond to assist us with our needs. This award is given at the discretion of the Vice President.

Collaboration across divisions creates a partnership that is essential to the success of our students and our operations leading to more innovation, efficient process, increased success and improved communication.

This year’s recipient of the Outstand Friend of Student Affairs goes to  Allison Smith.

Per her nominator “Allison has been extremely helpful to me in learning tasks for my position and also for understanding the inner workings of many processes at MSU…Allison listened to any questions I had and took the time to understand what I was looking for as well as helping me understand how changes might affect this process for the 2024 end of year as well as the coming years.  Allison made changes and tested them as well as created reports to help me in my duties so I could pull the data quickly to keep my process run efficiently”