Recognizing Excellence

Staff Excellence Award (Non-Classified) Dave Treasure, Chair of the Trade & Industrial Department, is well known for his advocacy of the faculty. Whenever more resources are required, Treasure is in the thick of it working to make sure faculty and students have access to the best education possible. He cares deeply about student success and has even gone to a student’s home to help them find the drive to finish their studies. Treasure constantly volunteers his time and expertise to projects that need him. He has personally overseen the accreditation process of two new programs and is instrumental to yearly events such as Chrome in the Dome and the Skills USA Competition — all while he avoids micromanagement and instead pushes others to be their best. Treasure is an example to everyone he works with. Staff Excellence Award (Classified) A cornerstone is the block by which all other stones base their formation in the construction of a building. Gail Jorgensen, Administrative Assistant 2 in the Energy Systems Technology & Education Center, is a cornerstone of the College of Technology. She is always willing to learn and is already incredibly well-versed in the technology of her trade. Jorgensen handles a monumental amount of work for the department — much of which is essential to the continued accreditation of the programs within the College of Technology. This includes organizing over 25 program-curriculum meetings each year as well as Technical Advisory Committee meetings and organizing the course schedule of five programs. She is always willing to lend a helping hand and has rarely been heard to say no.

Professional Achievement Award In her time at Idaho State University, Jamie Bell participated in Track and Field while earning her degree as a Physical Therapist’s Assistant. She also served on the ISU board of Alumni and served as a volunteer with various community positions. Now she and her husband operate the Health Care management company TanaBell Health Services which operates throughout Idaho and Utah. This includes two facilities in Pocatello. She also owns and runs Kulak CrossFit which is a local gym and wellness center. The center has nine coaches that rotate between 42 weekly group classes that serve over 200 members. Bell exemplifies the success of ISU graduates.

Outstanding Faculty Awards Justin Serr is one of the best instructors to ever set foot in the Automotive Technology Program, according to his nominator. He is widely considered a rising star and has put in many hours of work to prepare for his duties. Serr is deeply knowledgeable in his field and is technically competent with the technology involved. He is tireless in his own education as he is determined to continue to improve his own teaching. His student evaluations are overwhelmingly positive. Serr uses a strong variety of methods to teach his students with an excellent balance of hands-on and classroom instruction. He is diligent in his efforts to maintain student safety and goes out of his way to help them find jobs once they graduate. It would be nearly as difficult to count the positive opinions of Serr in those who have worked with him as it would be to find a single negative one. Outstanding Student Award Andrew J. Hall was an exemplary student who boasted a 3.98 GPA in his Bachelor of Applied Science in Cyber-Physical Systems degree. He made the dean’s list and still made time for two extracurricular activities as he was a member of both the International Society of Automation and the National Information Assurance Training and Education Center of which he was the Cybersecurity Specialist. Hall also interned at the Idaho National Laboratory as a Control Systems Cybersecurity Analyst. This commitment to both extracurriculars and academia shows a powerful work ethic and suggests that Hall will see much success in the years to come.

Outstanding Faculty Awards With 20 years of Registered Nursing experience and seven years of instructing, you would be hard-pressed to find a more qualified clinical instructor than Jen Briggs. Briggs is largely responsible for the excellent reputation held by College of Technology Nursing students in the East Idaho region. She maintains a high standard of excellence from her students but balances it with an extraordinary sense of compassion that allows for students to reach their full potential. She has also been at the forefront of the planning and development of the new Health Occupations Simulation Lab. Beyond this, Briggs is ever-improving her own skills while never forgetting to support others. She is kind and considerate while boasting a ferocious work ethic that consistently improves the lives of the faculty and students in her program.