MCS Staff Recognized from Near and Far at Virtual Awards Ceremony

On June 8, Mellon College of Science faculty, staff and administrators logged onto Zoom to celebrate their colleagues’ dedication and service to the college from afar.

Research Award: The Human BioMolecular Atlas Program (HuBMAP) Data Release Team, PSC

This sophomore award recognizes a MCS staff member or team for their substantial accomplishments and innovation in research. HuBMAP is producing tools and datasets to create an open 3D atlas of the human body at the cellular level. The Data Release Team played key roles in wrangling, standardizing, documenting, processing and publishing more than 450 complex datasets.

Merit Award: Brian Johanson, senior HPC system administrator, PSC

The Merit Award recognizes a MCS staff member who has maintained long-term outstanding job performance and has consistently made significant contributions to their department or center as well as the college. Johanson has been a key contributor and a top performer to PSC’s Advanced Systems and Operations group for more than 22 years and has been, by far, the most influential team member over the past two years.

Rookie Award: 

The Rookie Award recognizes MCS staff members employed by the college for less than two years who have exceeded all expectations in meeting the challenges of their job. This year, the award was split into two categories: junior and senior to recognize rookies who are at the beginning of their careers as well as those who come to MCS with years of experience.

Junior Rookie Award: Colleen Storm, senior administrative coordinator, Mathematical Sciences

Storm stepped into a job that had been held by her predecessor for more than 30 years. She took the foundation that had been created for the position and built on it, exceeding everyone’s expectations.

Senior Rookie Award: Ryan Sablosky, virtualization infrastructure engineer, PSC

Sablosky has made impactful contributions with his impressive skillsets, dedication and teamwork. He played a critical role in the deployment of Bridges-2, Neocortex and Vera.

Outstanding Achievement Awards

The Outstanding Achievement Awards recognize MCS staff members for their substantial achievement and outstanding job performance. This year, multiple awards were given out within the college:

BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES: Trina Goggins, glassware facility coordinator
Goggins has been a reliable presence in the department for many years. She helps keep the undergraduate labs stocked and ready, handling a large volume of glassware washing needs and facilities requests. After the departure of two longtime colleagues, Goggins helped train new staff, and while remote for part of the last year, she continued to work on her own professional 

CHEMISTRY: Robert Greco, instrument specialist
Greco is the beating heart of the chemistry department. He plays an instrumental role in maintaining the instruments and ensuring smooth operations for the undergraduate research labs and faculty research program. Greco is admired by colleagues who describe him as a passionate worker who pours his heart and soul into everything does. 

DEAN’S OFFICE: Ray Butko, Melissa Powell and Paul Smith, storeroom staff
The Mellon Institute storeroom staff were at the heart of MCS’s in-person operations during the pandemic. They worked hard to reopen the storeroom and provide essential services to the building’s labs while keeping each other and storeroom visitors safe through enhanced protocols and new operating rules. They inspired confidence in those coming back into the building that MCS could restart operations while mitigating COVID-19 risks.

MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES: Jeff Moreci, business manager
Moreci was the foundation that helped keep the office grounded during a great period of transition from in-person to remote operations. His nominators describe him as optimistic, upbeat and fun, adding that he has continued to be a guiding light for the department’s faculty, students and staff over the course of the last year.

PHYSICS: Patrick Carr, business manager
During the past 14 months, Carr stepped up to make sure the department continued to move forward and operate efficiently during the pandemic. He has his hands and eyes on all aspects of the department’s operations, helping keep track of its business needs and funding while also managing office space and supervising staff. Without him, the department would not function as efficiently as it does, say Carr’s nominators.

PITTSBURGH SUPERCOMPUTING CENTER: The BRIDGES-2 / Neocortex Deployment Team
PSC was tasked with deploying two world-class supercomputing resources, BRIDGES-2 and Neocortex, in the midst of the ongoing pandemic. Despite several challenges, delays and hardships, the BRIDGES-2/Neocortex team persevered and through extreme dedication and heroic efforts were able to field these two machines for the scientific research community.

Also during the ceremony, 18 staff members were honored with years-of-service awards, recognizing from five to 35 years with MCS and CMU.