Early Bird

Kudos

Applaud MSU Denver faculty, staff, students and alumni sharing their talents and energy.

By Lindsey Coulter

March 4, 2019

In addition to Faculty Citings, the Early Bird shines a spotlight each month on the accomplishments of Metropolitan State University of Denver faculty and staff. This month, we’re recognizing outstanding examples of teamwork and Roadrunners sharing their talents across the globe.

Outstanding accomplishments

Join us in a well-deserved round of applause for Nancy Sayre, associate vice president of Innovative and Lifelong Learning, who recently received a Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program award to teach Cultural Competency in Business Leadership in Spain. Sayre will teach at the Universidad Polytecnica de Madrid as part of her award.

“I am grateful to the Fulbright Commission for giving me this opportunity to teach in the beautiful city of Madrid,” Sayre said. “With the recent confirmation of MSU Denver’s HSI status, I hope to return to Denver and explore new ideas to help our growing Hispanic population use education as a way to thrive in our great city.”

Sayre is one of more than 800 U.S. citizens who will teach, conduct research and/or provide expertise abroad for the 2018-19 academic year through the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program. Recipients of Fulbright awards are selected on the basis of academic and professional achievement as well as record of service and demonstrated leadership in their respective fields.

Terrific teamwork

Congratulations are also in order for the hardworking faculty and staff of the Department of Management, which is now certified by the Colorado Society for Human Resource Management. The department’s Bachelor of Science in management with a Human Resource Concentration degree program now fully aligns with the SHRM HR Curriculum Guidelines. This alignment allows eligible students enrolled in the program to apply for the SHRM Certified Professional exam. The University is now certified for five years and will be listed on the Colorado SHRM website as a certified university thanks to the efforts of Professors Whitney Traylor, J.D., and Apryl Rogers-Brodersen, Ph.D., as well as Professors Bill Carnes, Ph.D., and Lynn Hoffman, Ph.D., who teach Human Resources-related courses. As a result of the certification, Professor Cindy Sutton, Ph.D., is working with student Henry Le to start a Human Resources Student Club/Organization.

MSU Denver’s Sport Management Program in the Department of Human Performance and Sport also has something to celebrate. Faculty and staff were notified in January that the program has been listed as one of the Top 25 Best Value Sport Management Degrees 2019 by Value Colleges. Congratulations to program faculty and staff for developing a high-quality, high-value program for emerging sport-management professionals!

The MSU Denver Department of Human Services & Counseling is also celebrating its inclusion in the HumanServicesEdu.org list of most affordable bachelor’s degree programs in human services for 2019-20. The MSU Denver program was selected on the basis of accreditation, quality and diversity of course offerings and instruction – as well as its high value. Read the selection committee’s review of the program, and don’t forget to send your own personal kudos to its hardworking faculty and staff.

The hard work and professionalism of the Enrollment Services Call Center employees and student staff members also earned a Kudos shout-out this month. A fellow Roadrunner wrote the Early Bird recently to commend the Call Center’s ability to troubleshoot complicated processes and maintain poise and a high level of customer service through any issue. Well done!

And finally, Opening Day for the Colorado Rockies is still weeks out, but Roadrunners are already showing up big-time for the annual 50/50 Raffle. The MSU Denver Alumni Association has more than 1,000 volunteer slots filled for 50/50 Raffle ticket sales at Rockies home games, which is more slots than were filled in all of last season’s games combined. All April home games are already at capacity, so those interested in volunteering from May through September are encouraged to sign up soon!

Roadrunners join in critical conversations

Megan Jones, policy administrator, was featured last month on the Association of College and University Policy Administrators website. Jones contributed a blog post on the organization’s Policy Matters page, “Policy and Political Activism: Supporting Dreamer Students.” Visit the ACUPA website to check it out.

Last, but certainly not least, Douglas Mpondi, Ph.D., associate professor and chair of the Department of Africana Studies, will serve as a Global Dialogue Partner for the NAFSA: Association of International Educators in the 2019-20 Global Dialogue Fellowship Program. Mpondi will join other university leaders from across the country to serve as a peer professional for the incoming cohort of Global Dialogue Fellows, this year representing Ethiopia, Nigeria, Senegal, Uganda and Zimbabwe.

If you know Roadrunners doing fantastic work to advance University goals and student success, or those doing great work in the broader community, remember to share it with the Early Bird!