Posted on January 30, 2023 by Wendy Frost
The Carlos Alvarez College of Business at UTSA recognized the outstanding contributions of staff members in 2022 during the annual awards ceremony in January.
Five staff members were recognized for making significant contributions to the college through leadership, service, innovation and extra effort.
Krishna Garza-Baker, assistant director of experiential learning, received the Rising Star Award for new employees with less than three years of service. Garza-Baker’s excellent work ethic and innovative ideas have allowed the college’s Student Success Center to provide more efficient and effective programming for business students.
Leading the college’s experiential and global programs, she is a true team player who collaborates not only within the college but also throughout UTSA. She has made a huge impact on the college during her short tenure. Garza-Baker is always willing to go out of her way to help a colleague or an Alvarez business student.
Cerise Edmonds, associate director in the Center for Professional Excellence (CPE), is the recipient of the Leadership Award. This award recognizes supervisors for promoting the college’s goals through their leadership and job performance.
Edmonds joined the CPE in 2016. Since that time she has grown in her role and increased her capabilities and effectiveness as a leader. She incorporates members of her team into projects and guides them while still allowing them latitude in the decision-making process. Excelling in her role, her dedication to her job includes not only the CPE but also the college and the Executive MBA students that she serves.
The college had two recipients in the Extra Mile award category. This award recognizes a staff member who demonstrates extra effort in their accomplishments, willingness to help fellow employees and exemplary customer service.
Lisa Ho is the assistant director of doctoral programs and fiscal administration in the Office of Graduate Studies. Since joining the college in 2018, Ho has distinguished herself as a valuable member of the team. She is intelligent, diligent, disciplined and displays great enthusiasm for her work.
Her first two roles with the college required her to build news programs from the ground up as a research program coordinator for the college’s Intelligence Community Center for Academic Excellence and a manager of strategic initiatives focused on research as well as the college’s Data Analytics Center. She is always willing to go out of her way to support the needs of the college.
The next Alvarez Extra Mile recipient is Sharon Stevens, business service center specialist III. Stevens is a dedicated and motivated employee. Her role within the Business Service Center is crucial to the center’s operations. She does not hesitate to take on new challenges and is always there to assist fellow colleagues.
Stevens’ command of UTSA business processes and her willingness to assist and teach others to navigate business operations make her an invaluable asset to the college.
The highest honor awarded to Alvarez College of Business staff members is the Order of the Roadrunner Award. This award is presented to individuals who increase productivity and efficiency by developing creative solutions and providing outstanding and ongoing excellence.
This year’s recipient is Wendy Frost, director of communications. Working in the college since 2001, Frost’s continuous leadership and her institutional knowledge make her an invaluable asset to the college. She has quietly led and improved the college’s communication strategies over the years.
Under her leadership, she was instrumental in a complete redesign of the college’s website and was critical in centralizing student communications. Her work impacts not just internal constituents, but also external stakeholders like our alumni, donors and board members. Her exemplary service and commitment to the college make her a well-deserving recipient.
— Wendy Frost
