��ݮ��Ƶ

It will always be known as The Dr. Jean A. Scott Staff Award for Distinctive Service, but following the announcement of the first recipients there were those who were already calling it something else.

“It’s the Lindas Award,” says a joking President Bill Ruud after presenting Linda Roesch and Linda Showalter ’79 with the inaugural award during ��ݮ��Ƶ’s 2019 Founders Day on February 12^th.

“It takes dedicated and hardworking employees who go above and beyond their daily work assignments to receive this honor,” Ruud says. “Linda Roesch and Linda Showalter are shining examples, and they are deserving recipients.”

The Dr. Jean A. Scott Staff Award for Distinctive Service was established through the generosity of donors who wanted to honor the College’s 17^th President upon her retirement in 2012. Scott played an integral role in establishing the criteria for the award. They include cross-campus collaboration, service to students, service to the community at large, implementation of new ideas and initiatives, and exceptional job performance.

The award was so unexpected and meaningful that Showalter struggled to express her appreciation for being one of the first winners.

“I was truly astonished, grateful and honored to be the co-recipient of the Jean A. Scott Staff Award for Distinctive Service,” Showalter says. “My work in preserving and sharing the history of ��ݮ��Ƶ and the Marietta community is a joy and privilege that would not be possible without the support of the entire library staff. We are a team that strives to provide faculty with resources to teach and students with resources to learn. The award recognizes the efforts of all of us and will inspire us to move forward with new programs and services.”

Showalter, who has been in Special Collections since 2005 and is currently the Special Collections Manager, has a long history with the College dating back to 1975 when she arrived on campus as a first-year student. She started working at the College in the Alumni Office in 1981.

“The campus feels like home, and the people are like family,” she says. “The manuscripts, rare books and artwork I care for are like family treasures.”

Over the past three years, Showalter has helped Pulitzer Prize-winning author David McCullough as he researched his new book, The Pioneers.

“From the very first time I arrived on the ��ݮ��Ƶ campus to start research on my book, The Pioneers, I felt the archivists and librarians at the Special Collections Department were among the best I’ve ever worked with,” McCullough says. “Preeminent, however, is the remarkable keeper of the treasures, Linda Showalter, whose help, guidance and immense knowledge of the early pioneers and the history of the Northwest Territory and Ohio have been of such great importance from the very beginning.”

Showalter adds, “Helping writers, students, alumni and community members discover the amazing stories of our past is always a pleasure, and
receiving the Jean A. Scott Award makes my job even more fulfilling.”

Roesch, who has been the Instructional Technologist at Marietta since 2009, works well into the night at the Worthington Center for Excellence because she wants to make sure students and faculty members have their technology needs met daily.

“An award like this is never won alone. It is won because of wonderfully
collaborative colleagues from all over campus,” Roesch says. “That I was
nominated by one of these colleagues is a testament to how much we truly care about each other and how we work together to serve our students and each other.”

Roesch says she appreciated President Ruud’s comments about the long hours she works when he was presenting her the award in February.

“Working this much is not done because I have to, but because I want to,” she said. “I truly love what I do and truly enjoy working with my colleagues and enjoy the reward of seeing students succeed. In all honesty, I could not feel more honored and appreciated in receiving this award, and I have the entire campus to thank for that.”

Dr. Janet Bland, Provost and Dean of the Faculty, says Roesch is the type of employee that this award was designed to recognize.

“As our Instructional Technologist, Linda provides amazing levels of support for faculty when it comes to teaching with technology and media,” Bland says. “She is available far too late into the night via phone and text and supports pedagogy with great expertise and enthusiasm. Our use of Moodle, our online instruction, and the Worthington Center for Teaching Excellence are all greatly enhanced by Linda’s hard work and dedication. … She mentors academically at-risk students, and her work study students. She is an outstanding
employee, and so worthy of this award.”

- Tom Perry