UpDate - Vol. 15, No. 31, Page 1
May 9, 1996
Innovation Award project  receives national honor

     The work of a team of University employees recently recognized by
the UD for innovation has just received the 1996 Exemplary Model of
Administrative Leadership Award from the American Association of
University Administrators (AAUA).
     The AAUA award recognizes a project entitled "Graduate Admission
Processing on the World Wide Web."
     John Cavanaugh and Mary Martin, graduate studies, will give a
presentation about the collaborative project at the association's June
annual meeting in California.
     During the UD's annual service awards dinner April 29 in Clayton
Hall, the employees involved in the project were introduced as
recipients of the 1996 President's Innovation Award.
     Employees from the Office of Graduate Studies and Management
Information Services worked together on this innovative Web
application process, which is now in place. The new procedure replaces
paper documents with electronic work flow and meets the needs of the
46 departments offering graduate programs.
     The processing assists the University in reaching its goal of
recruiting the best possible graduate-level students, while reducing
delays in making admissions decisions.
     The new process uses the Web to both distribute information to
departments and return decision information to the Office of Graduate
Studies and the central administrative system. In many cases, a
process that once took weeks has been reduced to minutes.
     Team members are Cavanaugh, Martin and Praria Anne Stavis-Hicks,
graduate studies, and Susan Cover, Rajarao Surampudy, Nanette Reisor,
Roger Cole and Thomas McDonald, Information Technologies.
     According to Vice President Maxine Colm, employee relations,
seven nominations were submitted for consideration from such diverse
units as the library, Information Technologies, University development
and alumni relations, engineering and international programs and
special sessions.
     They ranged from efforts to educate students about alcohol abuse
to automated retrieval of alumni information.
     "We put a pilot program into place last year," Colm said, "to
recognize the major contributions of work groups and or departmental
units in promoting University-wide objectives. The program was greeted
with enthusiasm by colleges and administrative units.
     "I am pleased that the Innovation Award has become a permanent
component of the University's programs to recognize the meritorious
contributions of employees and employee groups. It is particularly
satisfying that the University's recognition of its employees has been
affirmed with the national award."
     According to Cavanaugh, "Receiving the AAUA award clearly
validates the campus selection and recognition for a very successful
team effort. The University is truly a highly respected national
leader in using technology to enhance the academic environment.
     "Winning these awards demonstrates that exciting and
groundbreaking results happen when academic and computing personnel
work together to solve problems. I am very excited about where future
partnerships may take us."
     Each of the 1996 President's Innovation Award recipients received
$250 and a certificate of merit.