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I have said it before and I will say it again: I love what I do, and I love working with this team at Queen’s.

However, it is also true that, sometimes, I become focused on what is wrong (in my humble opinion) or how to make things better. (Or, as Peggy Shanks reminded me, we can focus on all the work that is left to do or still incomplete.) Another manifestation of this practice is from an adviser who recently told me that survey results with 80- to 90-per-cent positive responses are to be celebrated but cautioned against ignoring the two- to seven-per-cent negative responses. (Isn’t that the equivalent of a child coming home with an A grade, and the adult asking why it wasn’t an A+?) 

It is noble to commit to continuous improvement or get something off our “to-do list.” However, I am certain that focusing on what is wrong or outstanding also obscures what is going well or progress that has already been made.

While I will never shut down conversations of how we can be better or what we need to accomplish, we also need to take stock of and celebrate the positives. Think about why you love your job. Why do you work in Advancement, and why do you stay at Queen’s rather than pursuing a new job with another employer hungrily looking for human resources? I would love to hear positive reflections from anyone who is willing to share them because I know there are people on this team who also love what they do, and love working with this team at Queen’s.

by the end of the day on Monday, Oct. 31, and we will share the results in ALTogether Now the week of Nov. 7, so we can acknowledge and celebrate all that is positive, together.

And, before anyone raises it, I acknowledge that everyone is busy in the lead up to Homecoming this weekend. So yes, we could consider leaving this survey open until Nov. 14, but we’d be missing the point. Perhaps, taking the time to reflect on why we do what we do is something that should be prioritized this week.

Last week for Heney Award nominations

With Homecoming around the corner, this is an incredibly busy week. Try to take some time to recognize someone who has consistently gone above and beyond the regular call of duty in their work or who exemplifies our Advancement values.

A reminder that the nomination deadline for the Heney Award closes on Tuesday, Nov. 1, 2022, at 11:59 pm ET. 

Any staff member in the Office of Advancement may submit an .

Here’s what past award recipients have shared about their experience receiving this honour:

“Receiving the John J. Heney Award was an absolute honor. I had the pleasure of working with Mr. Heney many years ago and I can honestly say he was one of the nicest people I have ever worked with. There are so many talented and dedicated workers in Advancement, so to be nominated by my peers for this award was truly meaningful.” Jeanna Faul

“I was so honoured to win the John J. Heney Award! It meant so much, and still does, to have been recognized by my colleagues in this way.” Barb Lindsay

Please take some time to nominate today. Reach out to any of our past award recipients with questions.   

Impressive initiatives honoured at the CASE awards last week

The Council for Advancement and Support of Education announced their Best of District II Awards last week and it will come as no surprise that initiatives from the Office of Advancement were once again among the best of the best.

But even though we were acknowledged yet again, we have never before received as many accolades at the District level, which includes all of Ontario and Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, and West Virginia. It should be a point of pride to everyone that we brought home 12 in all, especially given that we were up against some excellent competition from much bigger institutions. These awards are in addition to what we already received in the CASE Circle of Excellence Awards, a separate program. 

The Best of District Awards pull from entries submitted to the Circle of Excellence Awards, but these nominations are then separated by district/region and reviewed for another opportunity to receive local recognition. Nominations receive recognition as Best of District in their respective categories and this year we were honoured in the following categories:

• Advancement Services Initiatives (More than 25 Staff), for our Special Email Project, coordinated by Alex Beshara and Yeshi Dolma
• Podcast, for Cause & Effect, produced by Callum Linden and Deborah Melman-Clement, who is also the host
• Design, Specialty Pieces, for The Notebook, designed by alumna Alissa Sokolski and coordinated by Ben Seewald
• Fundraising, Donor Relations & Stewardship Initiatives, for With Love from Queen’s, coordinated by Jodi Snowdon and Marnie Girard
• Leadership: Talent Management Initiatives, for Building a Better Workplace, coordinated by Deanna Bennett, with thanks to Lisa Sansom
• Publications: Annual Reports and Fund Reports, for our Digital Fund Reporting, coordinated by Julia Bryan, Madelaine Johnson, and the Donor Relations team of Jeanna Faul and Michelle Lean and designed by Wendy Treverton
• Video: Promotional (Short), for our Queen’s Day Video, produced by Callum Linden, Yeshi Dolma and Alex Beshara

The Queen’s Alumni Review, which was reimagined from top to bottom last year by Alex Beshara, Ruth Dunley, and Wendy Treverton, received five nods. The Review was named in the Design category for Magazines and Periodicals, the Magazine category for the Alumni/General Interest and Publishing Improvement, again in Design for Wendy Treverton’s Illustrations for the “If These Walls Could Talk” series about homes in the University District as remembered by our alumni, and also in Photography (Series or Collection of Related Photographs) for “Operating Behind the Lens,” a photo essay by alumna Dr. Heather Patterson.

Congratulations to all who were involved in these superb initiatives. It was especially wonderful to see two of our alumnae involved in this year’s accolades. Alissa Sokolski, Artsci'09, was central to our nomination in the Specialty Pieces category, and Heather Patterson, Artsci’01, Med’05, won our nomination in the Photography category. 

Not only was the Office of Advancement recognized for outstanding work, but it did so by living up to one of our values: collaboration. And through involving the very alumni we serve, we also adhered to our vision: to inspire exceptional support through exceptional performance.

Jobs with Advancement 

We need your recruitment help. Know great talent that would be a good addition to our team? If so, please promote the vacancies below with your networks and let’s find some amazing new team members.

Applications (including a cover letter and résumé) must be submitted through CareerQ. For additional information on this posting, please reach out to either Carla Ferreira Rodrigues or the hiring manager for the position you are interested in.