Lone Star College-CyFair honors five of the college’s hard-working, dedicated and often behind-the-scenes employees with the Staff Excellence Award.
This year’s outstanding recipients are Ellena Franklin, Roy Holland, Sheryl SoRelle, Erika Taylor and Patricia Zdunkawicz.
“Being able to communicate vital information to students to aid in their success is the best part of my job,” said Franklin, who started in LSC-CyFair’s Admissions and Records Department in 2015 as a work study student worker and has been a part-time Student Specialist III since 2016.
Having successfully earned her LSC associate degree and graduated from the system’s Rising Star Institute, she hopes to obtain a permanent leadership position within LSC when she completes her bachelor’s from Prairie View A&M University.
Holland began working at LSC-CyFair in 2013 as a weekend employee who helped pressure wash campus grounds and became a full-time custodian in 2014.
“This honor means so much to me because it shows the college’s acknowledgement of hard work,” said Holland, who was a 2020 recipient of this award. “I love working with the custodial staff we have here because they are all professional and caring.”
SoRelle has enjoyed assisting with student success at LSC-CyFair for 15 years. She began in 2007 part-time in Dual Credit and Transcript Evaluation. By 2011 she was a Lead Transcript Evaluator and since 2016 she has served as Advisor II.
“My favorite part of being an advisor is telling students that they are ready to graduate,” she said.
Taylor, who also works in LSC-CyFair’s Admissions and Records Department, has served Dual Credit students first as Specialist III in 2019 before being promoted to Coordinator I in 2021.
“The most rewarding part of my job is helping students meet their educational goals and working with a team that shares the same vision and dedication to our LSC community,” she said.
Zdunkawicz has worked as Staff Assistant II at the LSC-Cypress Center since 2018, first reporting to the Associate Dean of Student Learning then reporting the Division Operations Manager beginning in July 2021.
“I am grateful to be surrounded by my peers who exhibit so much talent, commitment, dedication, professionalism, and most of all, respect with an abundance of kindness,” she said. “I came from oil and gas, so I was very excited to have the opportunity to be in and learn a new environment (at LSC) and I love it.”
These deserving award recipients were recently recognized at the campus convocation and will be honored again at the LSC system’s upcoming awards event.
Registration is still available for Next Start 12-week and 8-week sessions beginning in February and March. For information, go to LoneStar.edu/registration.
