Diversity, Inclusion, & IT Community

Auburn's Department of Human Resources temporarily offered the opportunity for members of campus to recognize those on campus who went Above and Beyond regarding their work during the COVID-19 pandemic and alternate operations. Here's what some campus members said about the OIT Staff:

• Gerry Hicks: In the earliest days of the University's alternate operations, Gerry spent many hours working to make sure employees across campus could effectively use VPN. He's spent countless hours talking to our vendor support and has worked into the early hours of the mornings so that campus operations could continue as normally as possible. We all owe much of what we can accomplish every day to Gerry!
• Gerry Hicks: The first days of Auburn's alternate operational status came suddenly and across campus there was scrambling to make sure that IT services were able to handle the load of so many work-from-home users. One of the most important devices is our VPN, which allows secure connections to the campus network for faculty, staff, and students. It was quickly apparent that the current VPN setup was not going to handle the load. Gerry spent the first few days and nights of the alternate operations working with Cisco to get the VPNs operating at an acceptable rate. The biggest of these came when Gerry worked all day and through the night until 3am. And then at 8am was back at it. He did this for several days in order to get our remote capabilities where they needed to be. He went far and above the call of duty and thanks to him, the VPN was able to handle 8500 remote simultaneous users within two days. This has been one of Gerry's shining characteristics - the ability and willingness to work early mornings updating firewalls or late into the night working to fix issues like the VPN.
• Taylor Lambert: Taylor Lambert has been instrumental in the success of our transition to remote instructions. From day one of our transition, Taylor has been a source of knowledge and expertise in creating the virtual labs that our students need within the College of Architecture, Design and Construction. Taylor has shown leadership, humility and most of all calmness while dealing with such an unprecedented endeavor. Thanks Taylor for all your help and training during this process.
• Seth Humphrey: Seth is our manager. More than likely the best manager at Auburn University. He cares for us as a team, and individuals. He is constantly working to ensure that we are comfortable in our positions, happy and motivated employees. So what I'm about to share is not a new found dose of awesomeness it's just him being himself. He made each of us a good bag filled with each of our favorite snack including his new favorite soft drink. Other than snacks this bag included fresh picked strawberries, a fidget spinner, an orange shaker, a four leaf clover (a REAL ONE), a hand made surgical mask, and a personalized note about what these items mean, why he gave them, and a paragraph about what we mean to him. He visited each of us at our home to deliver them. From a safe distance of course. What an amazing person. If anyone deserves recognition it's him.
• Seth Humphrey: Seth has gone above and beyond to make sure our team has the capabilities to get work done from home. He makes sure we are all doing well at home, both from the business side and our mental health. He fills us in with any new information so we are kept up to date on the pandemic and the processes Auburn University is taking. He was kind enough to make everyone one on his team a care package to let us know he was missing and thinking of us! It was very heartfelt and personal. He lets us know daily of how he appreciates us as a team, but we truly appreciate him more as a boss!!
• Jeff Stallworth: As COVID-19 advanced in early March, a professor/researcher and his GRA students needed a few more resources on Auburn's super computer; for direct COVID research. He had his team allocate the requested research computing power and compile programs to enable this research quickly. He consistently listens and makes measured decisions that won't hurt other researchers while optimizing resources while considering all research. This is a huge responsibility that takes quick decision while considering adverse outcomes. Overall, AU has a petabyte of research data at work on many things and an above average HPC utilization compared to most universities. (according to what I have seen and heard) He listens and provides AU's most powerful computing power while providing the tools to his employee's to get the job done. This is done while managing many other critical systems in OIT. Jeff should be recognized. He is someone every AU employee I know admires and should be recognized for hard quick decisions when it matters most.
• Kim Turner: If you've ever called Auburn's main phone line, chances are you've heard Kim's voice. She has reported to work every day during alternate operations so she can field calls from concerned students, parents, employees, vendors, and others. Although she's technically an Office of Information Technology employee, Kim provides an invaluable service across campus and has totally rocked through all these changes.
• OIT Support Groups: Tim Walker and James Petty...Thank you so much for your determination and hard work in getting our office prepared to go remote successfully. Your long hours of hard work has allowed SCPS to continue to take calls from our students in need of our services. Potentially a life-saving accomplishment! Clay Ritenbaugh and the entire SA OIT team...Even in the face of overwhelming requests and the constant exploration of possibilities, you always take my inquiries seriously and provide fast resolutions. Thank you for assisting in keeping SCPS functioning in a safe and secure manner! Ursula Sandefur and gang...You never cease to amaze! You and your team have more rabbits in your hats than any magician! Thank you for always finding "just one more" so that our staff can remotely provide the critical services of SCPS to our students. Last but not least, a big thank you to the entire AU OIT department! There has been so much that has been accomplished behind the scenes by so many in this department. I'm sure the entire campus agrees with me when I say, "we couldn't have done it without you!"
• Thomas Sawyer: We extend our sincere thanks to our manager Thomas Sawyer for choosing to become a 'Working Manager' of our team. In addition to his managerial duties, Thomas has chosen to help his team by participating in day to day project-related work commitments as well. He has consistently encouraged us to try new ideas and invest time in taking classes for professional development . He prioritizes the team's well-being over everything else. We thank you for your positive leadership style.
• Campus Web Solutions: We would like to express our heartfelt appreciation to the entire Campus Web Solutions Team (CWS) team of Web application developers (Drew McAuley, Hunter Westlund, Lindsey Rafalsky, Madison Austin, Noah Davis, Peyton Gasink) and their Technical leads (Stephanie Parrish and Danny Moody). COVID -19 forced our teams to switch to remote operations over a weekend. All student Campus Web Solutions Team (CWS) web developers adapted to the remote working style very efficiently. They have worked diligently to build a very high quality software product. The team used communication and collaboration tools effectively with a sole focus on keeping the project work moving. This would all not be possible without the support of two very dedicated and supportive team leads. Kudos and thanks for your hard work team!
• Misty Carroll: Misty is truly a light to those around her and we are so thankful to have an Associate Director who goes above and beyond for our team. She meets with us daily and always has an uplifting quote, story, or lesson. She advocates for us to grow professionally and personally every day, to create our stories, to define our purpose, and to be intentional in all that we do. She is great at bringing people together and has brought our team (EAS) to a new level. Because of her leadership, we continually work and strive to be better Auburn men and women. Because of her leadership, we are making positive changes across campus. Because of her leadership we are flourishing and growing as individuals and as a team. She is the definition of an Auburn Woman. Thank you for all that you do Misty. It does not go unnoticed.