By John Baker Brown, Campus Life Communications

A Campus Life tradition will celebrate a quarter of a century of formally recognizing outstanding staff in its own ranks – as well as honoring faculty and staff throughout the university community – during the annual Campus Life CLASS Awards banquet in May. The program invites nominations through March 26 from Emory students, faculty, and staff.

Established in 1994, the Campus Life Awards for Superlative Service, or CLASS Awards, recognize one or more Emory employees in each of eight categories. Six of those categories – spanning service, collaboration, ethics, and scholarship – honor Campus Life regular staff from support roles to leadership positions. The two remaining awards are designated for faculty and staff from other Emory units.

Above: Helen Jenkins (right) presents the Lifetime Achievement Award named for her to colleague Sandy Tillman, associate director of athletics and recreation, at the 1997 CLASS Awards. Tillman retired from Athletics in 1998 and worked for Alumni Relations before retiring from Emory with nearly 35 years of service. She was inducted into the Emory Sports Hall of Fame in 2004.

“The goal of the CLASS Awards is to recognize the professional excellence and commitment of our award recipients in serving Emory and its students,” says Dona Yarbrough, senior director and senior associate dean for Learning and Innovation in Campus Life.

“In addition, the program acknowledges and appreciates the outstanding work of all Campus Life employees and encourages each of us to continue pursuing professional excellence,” adds Yarbrough, who chairs the nominations committee, which is composed of the previous year’s award recipients.

When Joyce Jaleel was recognized in 1995 with a Distinguished Service Award as a member of the support staff in Athletics and Recreation, she recalls, the recognition further inspired her commitment to serving Emory and its students.

“When I joined the university, I knew this was an exceptional place,” says Jaleel, now senior director for athletics with the highly ranked Emory Eagles UAA and NCAA Division III program.

“Serving others has always been important to me and helping to make a difference in the lives of students is truly something special,” she adds. “I am constantly inspired by our students and by all the great work of my colleagues to ensure that the Emory experience is a positive one for our students.”

While encouraging professional excellence and growth are high priorities, there are also other important program goals, according to Mekeshua North, senior manager for human resources for Campus Life. One is building community by bringing together the majority of the Campus Life team, which numbers almost 300 regular staff across more than 20 departments. Each spring, the CLASS Awards banquet draws more than 200 people to help recognize colleagues and collectively recommit to professional excellence.

The awards program also acknowledges longevity, adds North, who heads the Campus Life Staff Enrichment Committee, which is responsible for theme, décor, and menu for the CLASS Awards banquet and other signature events.

“In addition to the eight categories honoring outstanding service, the CLASS Awards program also recognizes length of service for Campus Life staff, beginning at the five-year mark and repeating every five years thereafter,” says North. 

Yarbrough agrees, pointing to one CLASS Award that recognizes both professional excellence and longevity of service.

The Helen W. Jenkins Lifetime Achievement Award is named for Campus Life’s distinguished former senior food service liaison to recognize her 60 years of outstanding service to Campus Life, the university, and Emory students,” Yarbrough says. “Each year, this award recognizes a recipient for a lifetime of excellence as an Emory Campus Life employee.”

Jenkins joined the university in 1945 as the first woman hired as an administrator by Emory College. She served as assistant director, later as director of food service, and finally as senior food service liaison, administering the university’s food service budget and contracts. Jenkins became the first recipient of the award named in her honor in 1994 and retired in 2005.

Over the past quarter century, more than 260 CLASS Awards have been bestowed, most to Campus Life staff. However, the total includes two award categories for supporters outside the organization. Since 1994, 45 Emory faculty members have been honored with the Friends in Faculty Award. Since 2007, the Campus Life Champion Award (formerly Campus Life Support Award) has been presented to 10 Emory staff members outside Campus Life for their support of the organization’s work and its commitment to serving Emory students.

“We have always welcomed nominations from the larger campus community,” Yarbrough says. “This year, we are extending a special invitation to the Emory community to help us expand the number of nominees and the opportunities to recognize the best of the best in Campus Life and across the university.”

As the CLASS Awards program celebrates its first 25 years, Campus Life looks forward to its next quarter century of service to the university and its students. As Yarbrough notes, some members of the audience at this year’s event are likely to be in the audience attending the 50^th anniversary celebration.

“Many more of our colleagues will have received CLASS Awards by then,” she says. “And, who knows, someone may even match Helen Jenkins’ record for longevity in outstanding service to Campus Life and Emory University.”

The deadline for 2018 CLASS Awards nominations is 5 p.m., Monday, March 26. To learn more about the CLASS Awards, who you can nominate, and in which awards categories, please visit:  http://www.emory.edu/CAMPUS_LIFE/employeeportal/recognition/index.html.