Athens, Ga. – Janet Sharik, Web manager for the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, has received the college’s 2007 Vera Penn Staff Award for Excellence.
This year, the award was dedicated in memory of Penn, Grady’s retired former assistant to the dean for student affairs. Penn, who died in March, personified excellence and was a valued colleague and friend to many.
Sharik, a resident of Athens, was presented a plaque and $500 during the Faculty-Staff Convocation held April 30 on the Grady College lawn.
The work that Sharik does allows Grady to put its “best face” forward on the Web for all the world to see, noted Sherrie R. Whaley, Grady’s assistant to the dean for external affairs. “Keeping the Grady Web site updated and maintained is no small undertaking. Janet adds both text and graphical images to the page and must be extremely proficient at handling various content formats such as audio, video, text and graphics.”
Sharik makes the job of many Grady individuals, both faculty and staff, easier. She maintains Grady listservs, archives information and works on faculty Web pages, student forms, business office requests, departmental home pages, periodic Web surveys, etc. She juggles a multitude of requests from throughout the college on a regular basis.
“Janet is also responsible for a growing number of Web sites related to Grady’s public service and outreach efforts such as the McGill Lecture, Osborne Film Festival, Specialized Reporting Conferences, and Knight Chair programming,” said Whaley. “Her calmness and ability to multitask is a great asset. Janet Sharik is a shining example of the professionalism, dependability and good attitude that the Staff Award of Excellence seeks to honor.”
Four finalists for the Staff Award for Excellence were also recognized and received awards of appreciation. They included Donna LeBlond, administrative associate in the Department of Advertising and Public Relations; Terri Baker, personnel specialist in the Grady College Business Office; Tom Hoover, program coordinator with the Peabody Awards Program; and Cletus Stripling, information technology manager for the college.
In addition to the Staff Award for Excellence, two staff members were recognized for years of service to the college. Myrna Lee Powell, information technology professional specialist, was recognized for 20 years of service while Shanna Jackson Bramlett, Grady’s assistant director of alumni and development, was recognized for five years of service.
Established in 1915, the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication offers seven undergraduate majors including advertising, broadcast news, magazines, newspapers, public relations, publication management and telecommunication arts. The college offers two graduate degrees, and is home to the Knight Chair in Health and Medical Journalism and the Peabody Awards, internationally recognized as one of the most prestigious prizes for excellence in electronic media. For more information, visit www.grady.uga.edu.