Zhihong Di Recognized With Staff Spotlight Award for April 2020

The Staff Council, in conjunction with the Human Resources Development, has kicked off a new initiative this year to recognize staff. One of the most important things the Chair of the Staff Council does is to help select the annual recipients of the Outstanding Staff Member Awards, but we can all agree we have coworkers who deserve this level of recognition, and we can do it more than just once a year. We are excited to announce our new Staff Spotlight Award that will recognize a hard-working, dedicated, and exceptional employee each month.

The first recipient of the Staff Spotlight Award is Zhihong Di, senior technical support specialist in Information Technology Services (ITS). She supports all of departments/schools on and off campus (with the exception of the College of Engineering, Technology, and Architecture). 

Di has been working for the University for over 15 years. In her current role, she acts as the primary resource to maintain and service technology diagnosis on campus. Her role involves problem resolving needs and troubleshooting software and hardware issues for faculty, staff as well as students.

 When asked what she likes most about working here, in summary, it was the people.  “The University work environment matched so well with my personal work ethic, enthusiasm, and even my interests and personality. From individuals within the different schools and Colleges, to the library, HRD, Public Safety, Administration, and Admissions, everyone I have worked with or met is extremely friendly, supportive, and professional,” says Di. Working with individuals who show appreciation makes Di not only enjoy doing her job, but also help her complete her jobs successfully, making her feel like a dedicated contributor to the University. Di is extremely grateful for the number of “thank you” e-mails she’s received, phone calls, thank you cards, and more that she has experienced over the past 15 years.

When asked what we do not know about Di, she shared some fun facts, including her outstanding memory. She admitted to knowing about seventy percent of people based on their computer models on campus. “This means if you give me a username, I will tell you about if she/he has a laptop, desktop, surface, MacBook pro or iMac,” says Di. Di also enjoys helping our international students in any needs beyond tech support on and off campus . She even worked as an interrupter when Chinese delegations visited on campus a few years ago and spent seven years instructing Chinese Classic Literature.

Please join the Staff Council, Human Resources Development, and entire University community in congratulating Di on this tremendous recognition. Her above and beyond work ethic and impact she's made on many individuals here on campus has not gone unnoticed, and we are thrilled to recognize her with the Staff Spotlight Award for April 2020.