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More than 100 staff in the Office of the Vice-President, Operations and Real Estate Partnerships (OREP), and other vice-presidential portfolios were honoured recently for their outstanding contributions to the University of Toronto – from improving ventilation in the fight against COVID-19 to accelerating a next-generation firewall to guard against cyber-attacks.

The annual OREP barbecue and awards event saw 15 staff members recognized with Outstanding Individual Employee awards for achievements that ranged from helping students get home to family when the pandemic began, to launching a merchandise collaboration with OVO. The winners are:

• Alim Alarakhia
• Silvestre Amaral
• Brooke Gregoire
• Karolina Grujic
• Michael Jeronimo
• Kristina Kazandjian
• Song (Sirichai) Limpanapongpan
• Katie Muir
• Praveen Narayanaswamy
• Patsy Rampersad
• Susan Shen
• Russell Smith
• Jelena Vulovic-Basic
• Robin Wilcoxen
• Liza Wong

Another six staff members who had more than 15 years of service at ����ֱ�� received Distinguished Service Awards in recognition of their outstanding contributions. Honoured for their work on everything from maintaining the university’s electrical system to designing and building Plexiglass shields at food prep stations, the winners are:

• Al Hastings
• Al Lecointe
• Glen Pirie
• Mike Ryall
• Eugenia Romero
• Roy Voogel

Eleven teams totaling 93 members from across OREP and other vice-presidential offices were also recognized for their work on time-limited initiatives that included creating a best-in-class quarantine housing program for international students, rolling out the UCheck program and setting up a vaccine clinic on the St. George campus.

“Now in its sixth year, the OREP BBQ & Awards event recognizes my deep appreciation to the OREP team,” said Professor Scott Mabury, vice-president, operations and real estate partnerships. “In the case of this year’s event, it also serves to welcome back those of our team who were asked to work from home – and to honour those who’ve worked so hard to keep campus operational throughout the last 18 months, ensuring our campus remains safe and welcoming for all members of our community.

“I’m proud to celebrate their extraordinary achievements and dedication.”