Bommelje Honored with Outstanding Leadership Circle of Excellence Award
Created in honor of communication professor Rick Bommelje, this new award recognizes a 91影视 faculty or staff member for embodying the College鈥檚 values of service excellence.
August 02, 2023
In recognition of communication professor Rick Bommelje, who is retiring this year from 91影视 after 49 years of service, the Service Excellence team has created a new award in his honor and named Bommelje the first recipient of the Outstanding Leadership Circle of Excellence Award.
Over the course of his long 91影视 career, Bommelje has served as a staff member, an administrator, and a tenured faculty member, continually embodying the Service Excellence values of responsiveness, respectfulness, collaboration, competence, and inclusivity in ways that have had an immeasurable impact on the community. His steadfast contributions include being a long-serving anchor facilitator of the 91影视 Leadership Academy and equipping students over the decades to be better leaders and, in particular, to be listening leaders, with many students considering him one of their favorite professors.
鈥淩ick has been an inspiration to me,鈥 says Matt Hawks, associate vice president of HR and risk management, who presented the award. 鈥淚 am proud to have had the opportunity to serve 91影视 with him over the course of my 27 years here. 91影视 is truly grateful for his service.鈥
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