Chelsea Speas of DeWitt chosen as Olivet's 2013 Student Employee of the Year

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Chelsea Speas, Olivet's Student Employee of the Year, with her supervisor Matt Smith, director of recreation services

BOURBONNAIS, IL (04/17/2013)(readMedia)-- Olivet Nazarene University recently recognized Chelsea Speas, a senior from DeWitt, as the Student Employee of the Year for the 2012-2013 academic year. A family and consumer sciences education major, she works as the student office manager for Olivet's recreation services office.

As part of her job duties, Speas manages the day-to-day operations of the intramural sports program in which more than 1,300 students participate. She oversees event scheduling and schedules staff members to cover the events. During her four years as a student employee, she was on the ground level of planning for the new Student Life and Recreation Center. Since the facility opened in December 2012, she has transitioned into the role of facilities coordinator, overseeing 120 student employees.

"Chelsea is supremely reliable and professional," said Matt Smith, director of recreation services and Speas's supervisor, in his nomination of her. "I know that any job I give her will be done with excellence and, most of the time, will exceed my expectations. She is always thinking a step ahead. Many times, she has walked into my office with new ideas, and those ideas have become the 'normal' for how we operate. She is by far one of the best things to happen to our team."

There were a total of 14 nominees for this award from the 968 students employed by Olivet with a student employment payroll of $1.9 million. Four staff and faculty members served as the judges.

Mary Anderson, director of career services, and Cathy Lundmark, assistant director for student employment, oversaw this year's competition.

"Contributions of our student employees are significant," said Dr. Woody Webb, vice president for student development. "Their work helps to make campus life and our students' lives better."

Criteria for this award include: reliability, quality of work, initiative, professionalism and uniqueness of contribution. The award is presented at Olivet in conjunction with National Student Employment Week, sponsored by the National Student Employment Association–Midwest Association for Student Employment Administrators.

Olivet Nazarene University is an accredited Christian, liberal arts university offering more than 100 areas of undergraduate and graduate study, including the Doctor of Education in ethical leadership. Olivet has one main campus in Bourbonnais, Ill. - just 50 miles south of Chicago; three additional sites: Rolling Meadows and Oak Brook, Ill., and Hong Kong; and more than 100 School of Graduate and Continuing Studies learning locations throughout Chicagoland and the Midwest. From Oxford to Tokyo, hundreds of Olivet students also experience the global classroom each year, whether through study abroad opportunities or worldwide mission trips.

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Contact:

Laura Warfel

Public Relations Specialist

Olivet Nazarene University

Bourbonnais, Ill.

www.olivet.edu

815-928-5403

lwwarfel@olivet.edu