Christina Allen-Wise, a program operations coordinator with the J.W. Fanning Institute for Leadership Development, was surprised with the Public Service and Outreach Employee Spotlight Award on February 5 during the Community Leadership Conference luncheon.
Allen-Wise, who helps coordinate the CLC for the Fanning Institute, was busy working to make sure the conference was running smoothly and had to be coaxed into the luncheon for her surprise award.
“The best way to sum up everything Christina does is the fact that we kept trying to get her in here for the surprise, and she kept trying to work,” said PSO Vice President Jennifer Frum. “She helped make this conference happen and is critical to the success of the Fanning Institute.”
The fourth winner of the PSO Employee Spotlight Award, Allen-Wise has worked with the Fanning Institute since 2015, where she coordinates numerous leadership conferences including the CLC and Locate South Georgia Leads. She also added the Vivian H. Fisher PSO Leadership Academy to her responsibilities in 2019.
Fanning Institute Director Matt Bishop personally nominated Allen-Wise for the award.
“Whether it is preparing refreshments for a program or assisting faculty with budgeting and contracting programs, Christina plays a vital role in ensuring the institute promptly and effectively responds to clients to ensure they receive the best program experience possible,” Bishop wrote in his nomination. “She always ensures that programs run smoothly, the clients and participants have a positive experience and the institute faculty are supported in every way possible to allow them to focus on their work.”
The Employee Spotlight Award was created as a way to acknowledge and celebrate the achievements and contributions of PSO employees throughout the year. The award highlights employees who go above and beyond their normal responsibilities, who produce outstanding work and who contribute significantly to the strategic mission of the division.
Any full or part time employee of the Office of the Vice President for Public Service and Outreach, the eight PSO units, and the Atlanta economic development office are eligible for the award. Employees can nominate themselves or someone else.
For more information or to nominate someone for the award, go to outreach.uga.edu/awards/pso-employee-spotlight/.