Dear colleagues,
I am excited to share with you the results of the inaugural Chancellor’s Innovation Awards.
This program, which I announced last February, was created as a vehicle for recognizing and rewarding staff members who develop innovative ideas designed to benefit the campus through enhanced efficiencies, custom services and operational excellence.
Since UC Merced’s founding, the campus has been a center for innovation. While much of the focus has been on the academic side of the house, through Merced’s teaching and research innovations, it is important to also recognize innovation across the entire campus. That was part of the inspiration for establishing the Chancellor’s Innovation Awards.
In March, we issued a call for proposals in four categories. We received 43 proposals from individuals and groups from across the campus. A screening committee read all of the submissions and identified 10 finalists based on the established criteria. Voting scores were determined by a combination of popular vote and votes by an appointed panel with appropriate expertise in areas such as technology and finance.
I was pleased both by the level of staff participation and also by the quality of proposals we received. And so, with that, I am delighted to announce the results of the 2015 Chancellor’s Innovation Awards:
First place and a $5,000 prize went to graduate student Michael Sanfilippo for his CatVax proposal. Michael came up with a great idea that uses an automated system to process and validate student immunization records. Students upload an image of their immunization record and CatVax scans and records the information. The data is sent back to the student, either validating their immunization compliance or notifying them of additional requirements.
In addition to saving time by eliminating the manual validation process, it can be easily replicated across the entire UC system, saving approximately $600,000 within its first year of implementation. Michael’s idea is especially timely because by 2017, all UC campuses will require incoming students to show documentation verifying they’ve received the required vaccinations. This proposal could help UC Merced and our sister campuses establish a best practice in public health.
The second place prize of $2,500 was awarded to Jessica Johnston of the Administration Coordination Team (and formerly of Facilities Management) for Where’s the Bus, which assists efforts to promote sustainable transportation. By adding GPS software on CatTracks buses, riders would be able to install an app on a mobile device that allows them to track buses, view occupancy levels and receive other pertinent information.
Third place and $1,000 went to Varick Erickson of Facilities Management for his Smart Scheduling proposal, which allows scheduling of lighting, heating and cooling to automatically correspond to an occupancy calendar (Astra) for specific rooms. Facilities currently uses Astra to schedule those resources by floor. Narrowing the provision further by room provides greater energy savings and reduced costs.
Five proposals earned an honorable mention and $500 each:
- Access, submitted by Ross Anastos, Sara Anastos, Dulcemaria Anaya, Jessica Duffy, Miguel Lopez and Antonio Valero
- Centralized Media Production Unit, Jürgen Gottschalk
- ICE iCatCard Check in and Event, Abraham Cereno
- Streaming Processes Through QR Code Scanning and Room Dashboard, both from Varick Erickson
Two proposals received certificates of recognition:
- Focal Point, submitted by Elizabeth Boretz, James Barnes, Alejandro Delgadillo and Hector Sambolin
- Mailstops – We Need Them!, by Peggy Collins
Please join me in congratulating this year’s recipients. For those who have not had an opportunity to review the proposals, I encourage you to do so. It’s not too early to begin thinking about good ideas for the next round of innovation awards that will be launched early 2016!
Awardees will now have the opportunity to participate in work groups to explore options for implementation of the winning proposals. This will provide a new kind of professional development opportunity for participants, who will be on the ground floor of bringing innovation to our young campus.
In closing, I want to thank everyone who participated and helped facilitate this initiative. I hope this program continues to inspire and encourage others to invent and submit ideas that will continue to drive innovation at UC Merced.
Best regards,
Dorothy Leland
Chancellor
