Angelo State University Honors Five Staff Members with Excellence Awards

SAN ANGELO, TX - Four Angelo State University staff members - Marla Daugherty, Cecilia "Ceci" Hernandez, Dr. Aubrey Madler and Sonia Ramirez-Munoz - have earned the 2025-26 President's Awards for Staff Excellence, and another - Angela Eaton - has received the annual Chancellor's Award for Staff Excellence.

The honorees were recognized during a recent awards ceremony on campus. The President's Awards for Staff Excellence recipients were selected from 69 nominees, and each received $2,500 and a presentation piece. The Chancellor's Award for Staff Excellence recipient was chosen from seven nominees and received $1,500.

Daugherty, office coordinator and events & communication coordinator for the Department of Visual and Performing Arts, received the President's Award for Excellence in Customer Service. Charged with coordinating, scheduling and promoting all the campus and public art, music and theatre events hosted by her department, she employs her knowledge, experience, work ethic and calm demeanor to help ensure that each concert, recital, art exhibit and theatre production runs smoothly. She is also in charge of coordinating travel and contracts for visiting artists and musicians. She performed double duty this year while her department was short-staffed, and she has even reupholstered chairs for the Modular Theatre make-up room. Additionally, she oversees the student staff in the Arts at ASU Ticket Office, often manning the ticket office herself after regular work hours. She also coordinates with the Office of Communications and Marketing on external promotion efforts through news releases, the university's online calendar and a new departmental digital newsletter. Outside of her department, she also coordinates the annual Graduation Recognition Ceremonies for the ASU College of Education.

Hernandez, assistant director of admissions, transfer and military-affiliated programs, received the President's Award for Commitment to Excellence. Known for possessing a strong understanding of admissions operations, recruitment strategy and student engagement, she applies that knowledge effectively across her multiple responsibilities. She is also proficient in multiple campus systems, including Banner, Salesforce, Navigate and Degree Works, which allows her to provide a high level of service not only to students, but also to internal campus partners who rely on accurate and timely admissions information. Also willing to step in when needed, she covered staff shortages among traveling admissions counselors by hitting the road to cover recruiting events in the San Antonio and Austin areas, as well as to help represent ASU at the Texas Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (TACRAO) Conference. Additionally, she is committed to sharing her knowledge and providing professional development opportunities to her Admissions co-workers. In the community, she is a member of the Goodfellow Air Force Base Honorary Commanders program, helping strengthen relationships between the university and the military community.

Madler, director of library services in the Porter Henderson Library, received the President's Award for Excellence in Leadership. As the head of the library staff, she has a proven track record of cultivating teamwork through intentional, consistent practices that foster communication and shared ownership. She meets both individually and collectively with all unit managers to ensure alignment across the library, creating space for open dialogue and unified direction. She holds monthly all-staff meetings to keep the entire team informed and engaged, and also incorporates monthly birthday celebrations to ensure every staff member feels personally acknowledged and valued. She invited the whole staff to collaborate in formulating the library's Mission Statement and Library Code of Civility, and she introduced a voluntary "Day in the Life" presentation series where staff members share aspects of their lives outside of work. As chair of the University Library Committee, she hosts monthly meetings to provide library updates, and she regularly attends Faculty Senate meetings to share updates and solicit feedback. She strives to provide professional development opportunities for library staff, and is also not afraid to pitch in when extra work needs to be done or to cover for staff shortages.

Ramirez-Munoz, student organizations & activities coordinator in the Office of Student Life, received the President's Award for Excellence in Innovation. By routinely treating challenges as opportunities, she is able to strengthen collaboration, improve shared understanding, and generate results that endure beyond a single project. Examples of this include her redesign of Student Organization Leadership Fund applications for both events and travel, fully digitizing the application, evaluation forms and scoring process for the annual Rammy Awards, and creating a roster submission form via Microsoft Forms to make it easier for student organizations to submit their spring updates. She also streamlined the volunteer-hour reporting and request forms and redesigned the Registered Student Organizations Newsletter for improved readability. Collaborating across campus, she developed student activity request forms with the director of university and risk management, student conduct and Title IX check forms in partnership with those offices, and hazing prevention materials for Greek Life and the Dean of Students. Together, these and other actions demonstrate how she researches, pilots, refines and then disseminates new methods to spark sustainable innovation.

Eaton, office coordinator for the Department of Security Studies and Criminal Justice, received the Chancellor's Award for Staff Excellence, which annually recognizes a staff member who has gone above and beyond the call of duty in carrying out a major project during the last academic year. Tasked by her department chair to execute an enhanced student recruiting campaign, Eaton worked with ASU offices of Communications and Marketing, Purchasing and Contacting, as well as external vendors, to put together a strategic approach that stayed within budget and upheld ASU's mission and branding. She then completed more than a dozen distinct advertising campaigns to promote her department's academic programs, including digital billboards outside Fort Cavazos in Killeen; magazine, website and digital display advertising at Fort Huachuca in Arizona; and print advertisements in Foreign Affairs, Journal of Emergency Management, Fraternal Order of Police Journal, Combined Law Enforcement Association of Texas (CLEAT) newsletter, and Department of Public Safety Officers Association newsletter, among others. As a direct result of her efforts, her department enrolled 1,804 students for the spring 2026 semester, more than triple the number of students enrolled in spring 2025.

In addition to the overall President's Awards for Staff Excellence winners, four semifinalists in each category received a $500 award.

For Excellence in Customer Service, the other semifinalists were: Jody Casares, Physics and Geosciences; Tiffany Ellwanger, Information Technology; Lee Halfmann, Print Shop; and Joyce Reed, Freshman College.

For Commitment to Excellence, the other semifinalists were: Trey Biggar, Information Technology; Aaron Carrillo, Print Shop; Amy Rust, Communications and Marketing; and Michele Walls, Accounts Payable.

For Excellence in Leadership, the other semifinalists were: Dara Anderson, Information Technology; Amber Pabon, Housing and Residential Programs; Jaelynn Salisbury, Admissions; and Vianey Sanchez, Freshman College.

For Excellence in Innovation, the other semifinalists were: Alec Drennan, Communications and Marketing; Mary Moreno, Multicultural Center; Janice Trees, College of Graduate Studies and Research; and Ty Walden, Information Technology.

Other nominees for Excellence in Customer Service were: Kevin Bayley, International Studies; Gary Calder, Facilities Management; Monica Castillo, Student Accounts/Bursar; Julia "D" Chandler, Information Technology; Jared Cullins, Information Technology; Jill Daniel, College of Education; Jackie Droll, Information Technology; Angela Eaton, Security Studies and Criminal Justice; Amanda Gibson, College of Education; Megan Hernandez, Admissions; Rudy Jaques, Health Science Professions; Lisa Lewis, College of Education; Farrah Lokey, Housing and Residential Programs; Kim Marshall, Controller's Office; Riley Mashburn, Information Technology; Klarissa Morales, College of Education; Colt Owen, Counseling Services; Jaelynn Salisbury, Admissions; and Kolten Sinclair, Regional Security Operations Center (RSOC).

Other nominees for Commitment to Excellence were: Becky Bray, RSOC; Jody Casares, Physics and Geosciences; Olivia Castro, Engineering; Jennifer Fischer, Communications and Marketing; Rudy Jaques, Health Science Professions; Jessica Johnson, Freshman College; Nicholas Lambert, Athletics/Management and Marketing; Katie Plum, Sponsored Projects; Yulia Priest, History; Christian Salamina, Information Technology; Emily Smith, College of Science and Engineering; Janie Soupiset, College of Education; Kim Stephens, Norris-Vincent College of Business; Micah Tischler, Admissions; and Rose Wilhoyt, Biology.

Other nominees for Excellence in Leadership were: Jason Brown, Digital Learning and Instruction; Caitie Dyer, College of Education; Russell Ezzell, RSOC; Haley Hawley, Enrollment Management; Jessica Johnson, Freshman College; Matthew Johnston, Special Events; Wendy Sklenarik, College of Education; and Courtney Wilson, Registrar.

Other nominees for Excellence in Innovation were: Faustino Aguilar, Information Technology; Jody Casares, Physics and Geosciences; Brit Heppler, Communications and Marketing; Breanna Huff, College of Graduate Studies and Research; Grace Kerestly, Prospective Student Outreach & Access Communications; Elizabeth Schwartz, Financial Aid and Scholarships; and Joshua Strickland, Information Technology.

Other nominees for the Chancellor's Award for Staff Excellence were: Candace Aguirre, Housing and Residential Programs; Margaret Alexander, Library; Rudy Jaques, Health Science Professions; Peggy Speetzen, Counseling Services; Ashley Thomas, Admissions; and Mayra Torres, Visual and Performing Arts.