Maurice Jones Rookie of the Year 2021 - Creighton University

2021
Rookie of the Year
Maurice Jones

2020/2021 Nominees
                   Maurice Jones, Public Safety Officer*
                       Dan Pfeifler, Medical Education
                 Steven Walton, Recreation and Wellness
                         Sarah Valdivia, Financial Aid
                     Dillon Simon, Public Safety Officer
                         Sara Cory, Alumni Relations
        Jennifer Bragg, Student Health Education and Compliance
                   Cameron (Cam) Alden, Residential Life
                                Vicki Ethier, IT
                         Phebe Jungman, HS-MACA
                      Ursula Magsayo, Residential Life

                             *Indicates 2021 Awardee

Congratulations and thank you all for your outstanding contributions to Creighton
 University. The Staff Advisory Council and your colleagues are proud to have you
                          as part of the Creighton Family!

What is Rookie of the Year?
The annual "Rookie of the Year" award recognizes a rookie staff member for out-
standing contributions to his/her workplace.

To be eligible for a nomination, nominees of this award must meet the following cri-
teria:
   1. Have been employed at Creighton University for no more than two years,

   2. Be enthusiastic about his/her work,

   3. Made significant contributions to his/her area or
      department,
   4. Embody the Creighton Credo in his/her workplace, and

   5. Be classified as E-M staff position.

Awardee Selection
The Staff Advisory Council’s Nominating Committee compiles nominations and re-
views candidates' eligibility via Human Resources. Once eligibility is confirmed, the
winner is voted on by the entire Staff Advisory Council based on the above criteria.
The SAC chair and others present the Rookie of the Year certificate to the awardee
and the winner is announced to the University community.

How does this person show enthusiasm about his or her work?
Since becoming a Public Safety Officer, Maurice has consistently
gone the extra mile to provide follow-up to members of our com-
munity who were impacted by the cases he investigates. He is al-
ways one of the first volunteers for any additional work and is eager
to learn new skills. His outgoing and engaging personality allows
him to quickly establish rapport with students and other members
of the community during his patrols of our campus. Maurice imme-
diately volunteered to become a Public Safety Liaison Officer, where
he was matched with Deglman Hall, becoming the face of the de-
partment for those residents. He embraced this role, which is a nat-
ural fit for his personable and conversational approach to engaging
with the students he protects.

Maurice comes to work every day excited and ready to help. He is
cognizant of what is going on on-campus and makes sure that his
there to help others. His positive attitude is infectious and you can
tell that he really loves to work at Creighton! Even though he is new-
er, his enthusiasm for Creighton made him an easy choice to "star"
in a video that Public Safety put together: https://
www.youtube.com/watch?v=aG3qWwvKk3Y

What significant contributions has this person made to his or her area or depart-
ment?
The significance of Maurice's contributions to the safety and security of
our campus is best illustrated by the way he handled an event in Octo-
ber 2020 while he was working as the dispatcher. After a high-stress in-
cident in a residence hall that resulted in an arrest by Omaha Police,
Maurice spoke with worried parents who called with concerns about
how the situation affected their student. As the event progressed, Mau-
rice called them back several times with updates. After the successful
resolution of the situation, these parents wrote a lengthy thank you
note to DPS leadership, including multiple commendations for Maurice:
"When Maurice came back on the phone he immediately calmed our
fears. He explained the situation, how there are cameras at the dorms,
how officers were dispatched quickly, that the suspect was located,
Omaha police were called and the suspect was in handcuffs. We hung
up very satisfied and finally relaxed. Maurice called back a second time
to tell us that he would address {the issue}...He called back a third time
to make sure we were comfortable...We assured him we were more
than comfortable of how the situation was handled and we were glad it
was handled in a quick manner and had a positive outcome. We want
you to know that your staff is outstanding." This is just one example of
the excellence Maurice has shown in his short time as a member of our
team! He is most deserving of recognition as Creighton's Rookie of the
Year!

Besides bringing a helpful attitude on his calls for service, Maurice is a
Public Safety liaison officer for Deglman Hall. In this role, he assists the
employees and students in the building in many ways. One of these
ways is by assisting the Resident Director with special projects.

In what way does this person embody the Credo of Creighton?
Maurice is a full-time Creighton employee AND a full-time student at
UNO, nearing the end of his junior year as a criminal justice major. Not
only is this a testament to his strong work ethic--this also exemplifies his
"relentless pursuit of truth," which is motivated by his desire to become
an officer in the Omaha Police Department, where he can influence that
agency toward the Credo of Creighton's goal of a "human community of
justice, mutual respect, and concern." His passion for improvement to
the criminal justice system embodies the credo of "We believe that laws
exist for the benefit and well being of individual persons, that legal sys-
tems must express the common good, and that all government must be
subject to the courageous, though respectful and loyal, criticism of intel-
ligent and responsible citizens."

Maurice comes to work every day with the attitude that he is going to
help someone. This is in line with being "for and with others." He has re-
ceived compliments from students and parents about his handling of
certain matters that he has responded to. The first thing he thinks of is
how is he going to help people! And he treats everybody fairly and
equally, no matter who that person is.

Past Awardees
 2020: Sadie Bohnenkamp, Physician Assistant Program
 2019: Kelly Spaan, Office of Equity & Inclusion
 2018: Jodi Jones, Dean’s Office, College of Arts & Sciences
 2017: Saulang Gawmaw, Facilities Management
 2016: Angie Wayman, Heider College of Business
 2015: Stephanie Jones, Student Activities Office
 2014: Jeff Peak, Center for Service and Justice
 2012: Joe Moore, College of Arts and Sciences
 2011: Annie Hergenrader, Marketing and Public Relations
 2010: Eric Immel, Asst. Dir. of Student Activities for Greek Life
 2009: Tabatha Marion, Pediatric Clinic
 2008: Robby Daniels, University Relations/IT
 2007: Judith Gunter, School of Medicine
 2006 Dr. Joy (Voltz) Doll, School of Pharm. and Health Prof.
 2005: Becky Messenger, Multicultural and Community Affairs
 2004: Taunya Plauter, Psychology Department
 2003: Matt Schill, Registrar's Office
 2002: Lisa Barrientos, Department of Pathology
 2001: Nancy Walker, Creighton Medical Associates
 2000: Shirley Walker, Mail Services, Kiewit Hall
 1999: Gabriel McGrath, Registrar's Office
 1998: Carol Knaub, Mail Center
 1997: Amy Peyton, Osteoporosis Research Center

Creighton University
      Staff Advisory Council Mission Statement

The Creighton University Staff Advisory Council (SAC) serves as an advocate for
University staff. The SAC is committed to fairness, justice, respect, and promo-
 tion of service in harmony with the Mission of Creighton University. The SAC
  advises and makes recommendations to the University President in matters
   affecting the general welfare and working environment of University staff.