Susan Dumais, Linda Noon, Jillian Ketchen, Chris Clement, vice president for finance and administration, Larry Barker, Jeanne Sokolowski
Two Cooperative Extension employees are among the five staffers to have received the 2016 Presidential Award of Excellence, presented annually in recognition of outstanding performance and distinguished service to UNH.
Recipients include:
- Larry Barker, Extension field specialist, youth and family, and county office administrator, Cooperative Extension, Coös County
- Susan Dumais, communications coordinator, Dean’s Office, College of Liberal Arts
- Jillian Ketchen, administrative assistant, Cooperative Extension, Hillsborough County
- Linda Noon, senior academic student assistant, Recreation Management & Policy, College of Health and Human Services
- Jeanne Sokolowski, director, Office of National Fellowships
Barker joined Cooperative Extension in 1987 as the Coös County’s 4-H Extension educator, working with thousands of North Country youth and volunteers to enhance the agricultural integrity of the county, bolster the area’s economy and inspire adolescents and their mentors to become actively engaged with their natural surroundings. He has been the county office administrator since 1997, managing a staff of seven while advocating for Cooperative Extension with community stakeholders.
Dumais has been the communications coordinator for COLA since 2007. One of her colleagues noted, “She is a gifted writer and artist …. and her ability to match the messages that she sends out on the college’s behalf to the occasion is really quite remarkable.” Dumais is known for her ability to creatively research and craft information, presenting it in a way that showcases COLA and UNH. Her writing about UNH’s student and faculty musicians has resulted in increased programmatic support from donors.
Ketchen joined the Hillsborough County Extension office in 2013. Since then she has channeled her energy into spotlighting the people and resources of the county. Her contributions to the county office and to New Hampshire’s greater Extension network are evident in the marketing efforts she has implemented using new digital media. From transforming text-heavy reports into visually engaging, user-friendly documents, to live-Tweeting at Extension events, Ketchen is creatively and dynamically elevating Cooperative Extension’s work and visibility.
Noon has been called “the glue that holds the (Recreation Management & Policy) department together,” a result of her organizational skills, grace in keeping multiple demanding projects moving forward and dogged commitment to modernizing departmental systems through the introduction of new technology. Known for always taking the time to help students, one student said, “Linda has always been willing at a moment’s notice to help me figure out how to make the seemingly impossible, possible.”
Sokolowski arrived at UNH in 2012 and immediately set UNH on a new trajectory via vigorous marketing of competitive scholarships and fellowships, broad recruitment of student applicants from diverse backgrounds and superlative support of students and faculty through every stage of the application process. A student noted: “Jeanne worked tirelessly to help me secure one of 32 national Environmental Protection Agency fellowships worth $50,000, including two years of tuition coverage, an internship and other benefits.”
