Congratulations, Mary Ellen!

Mary Ellen Heiner is well-known to the students who attend her interdisciplinary disability awareness class. She is indispensable to the Institute for Disability’s grant writers. Many of the IDRPP’s publications have benefitted from her editing skills. And now, she is the USU Staff Employee Association’s Employee of the Month.

Her award was presented to her in her office on October 16 by USU Staff Employee Association President-Elect Andy Allen.

“Mary Ellen consistently demonstrates exceptional productivity, quality of work, creativity, and innovation,” Audrey Juhasz, Ph.D, wrote in her nomination letter. Her nomination was influenced by Heiner’s help in pulling an especially complicated research proposal together. “She is the person everyone turns to for grant-related questions and support. When she reviews a proposal, document, or process, it invariably comes back significantly improved, reflecting both her attention to detail and her commitment to excellence.”

“Mary Ellen is really the heart of the IDRPP,” said IDRPP Executive Director Matthew Wappett. “Mary Ellen’s entire 42 year career at the IDRPP has been a journey of growing from strength to strength, and she has become an indispensable part of our team.  There are few staff who have the skills to navigate the complex bureaucracy of grant and contract work in a university, and Mary Ellen has become a trusted and authoritative resource within the university as a whole, as we continue to grow in our mission as a Research 1 institution.  

“She’s not only a support for us at the IDRPP, but has become a resource for the campus as a whole when it comes to the vagaries of preparing and submitting grants.  Her organizational skills and her keen editorial eye have also been essential in our federal reporting and publication efforts, and she ensures that the data we submit and the publications that we put out meet the highest standards of accuracy and professionalism.  I know if probably seems like I’m gushing here, but we rely on Mary Ellen for so much; her commitment to our mission and to supporting our staff and researchers is truly a model for others to follow.  We are lucky to have Mary Ellen on our team, and it’s a genuine privilege to call her a colleague and a friend.”