The U.S. Department of Defense honored Marie Scoggins, administrative financial director of the UGA Marine Extension, with the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve Patriot Award. The award recognizes extraordinary efforts to provide a supportive work environment to National Guard or Reserve members through measures such as flexible schedules, time off prior to and after deployment, caring for families and granting leaves of absence.
Scoggins was nominated for the Patriot Award by Clayton Holloway, a maintenance foreman at the UGA Marine Education Center and Aquarium on Skidaway Island. Holloway, who is also a master sergeant in the Georgia Air National Guard, currently is serving a six-month deployment overseas.