Waldorf's IT Department workers honored



IT Department staffers (from left) are Matt Hernes, Eric Guth, Julie Eischen, Tammy Larson and Carolyn Sunde.

 The department that keeps Waldorf College’s computers humming, the Institutional Technology Department and its six employees, is the winner of the inaugural Department of the Month award.

The October award begins a tradition of honoring the workers of a department each month. Nominations for November’s award will be accepted through 5 p.m. Tuesday. E-mail nominees to Cindy Carter, assistant to the president, at carterc@waldorf.edu.

The IT Department was recognized for all the work its staffers do to keep computer systems and networks operating, Waldorf President Joe Manjone said. They were treated to lunch and received a trophy.

“Without the IT department, you would not be getting this e-mail,” Manjone said in an e-mail to students, staffers and faculty members. “The IT Department was given this recognition because of the exceptional job that they are doing in providing students, faculty and staff with outstanding Internet and e-mail service and for the round-the-clock work hours that they have been maintaining to provide us with this service, and also for the excellent job that they did and continue to do in setting up, distributing and maintaining student computers.”

The IT Department staff is made up of six full-time employees who work year-round to keep about 1,000 computer accounts of students, faculty members, staffers and online users working. They also maintain the laptops of more than 600 students.

The IT staffers are:

Tammy Larson, lead systems analyst.

Eric Guth, technical support representative.

Matt Hernes, network systems manager.

Julie Eischen, technical support specialist.

Carolyn Sunde, IT assistant/financial aid associate.



Ken Styron, chief information officer.

The IT Department is busy all year long.

“We spend the school year meeting the various needs of all users, continuing into the summer when we prepare to do it all over again,” Larson said.

The biggest task in the department comes at the start or end of a semester when equipment is checked in and checked out, Larson said. That is when staffers have to assess, repair and clean used equipment for new users.

Once nominees are received, they will be reviewed by the President’s Council and a Department of the Month will be announced at the final Friday Coffee of the month in which the department will be honored. November's winner will be named Friday.