Bloomington Council Staff Spotlight

April 2025

Ben Agan

Department: Office of Scholarships

Nominated by: Anonymous

Nomination text: I am pleased to nominate Ben Agan for his outstanding qualities and contributions he has made to Indiana University. Ben is an exceptionally hard-working individual who consistently goes above and beyond in his duties. His genuine care for his work is evident in the meticulous attention to detail he applies to every task.

Ben's dedication to incoming students is unparalleled; he is always striving for excellence and continuously seeks ways to improve and innovate. Moreover, Ben possesses a profound understanding of the deeper meaning of what a high education means and is always happy to share that with incoming students and current students. He recognizes that education is not merely about acquiring knowledge but also about fostering personal growth and contributing positively to society.

Ben's commitment to these values makes him a role model to all scholars on IU campus. his resilience, perseverance, and leadership potential further highlight his suitability for a Bloomington Staff Spotlight nomination. Ben's positive impact on IU campus is undeniable, and his qualities make him an invaluable asset deserving of recognition.


 

Stephanie Odaffer

Department: Environmental Resilience Institute (ERI)

Nominated by: Abby Henkel Roman, ERI

Nomination text: Stephanie is the finance manager for the Environmental Resilience Institute (ERI). She's one of those people who works quietly behind the scenes but has an enormous impact on our team and the success of our work! She's been at IU for over a decade but joined ERI about three years ago. Instantly I could tell she would be a joy to work with while possessing a thorough knowledge of everything to do with finance and administration at IU.

Stephanie manages to be responsive, efficient, thorough, and friendly at all times, even amid the frenetic pace of work at a busy research institute and in a stressful field like climate change! She's not my supervisor, but I can see how excellent she is at it, and her supervisees have nothing but praise for her. She always speaks up for what's right, even when it's hard. Stephanie deserves a shoutout for keeping steady as she keeps our team on track.


 

Marlys Barr

Department: Proposal Development Services (PDS)

Nominated by: Melanie Keller, PDS

Nomination text: Marlys has truly enviable organizational skills. Her spreadsheets are things of beauty and should be displayed in museums. She has worked tirelessly for more than three months to help submit a proposal that will benefit IU and humankind for years to come. She keeps a very large team of people on task, organized document submission across multiple institutions, attended multiple meetings each week and did it with ease. Not every team has a Marlys, but every team should! Her colleagues at PDS are grateful to have her on OUR team!


 

October 2024

Alison Stake

Department: Undergraduate Education

Nominated by: Anonymous

Nomination text: As the Student Services Coordinator in Undergraduate Education, Alison is responsible for directly helping staff and students in several offices on a daily basis: Academic and Major Exploration Services, Career Exploration & Student Employment, Health Professions and Prelaw Advising, and Undergraduate Education Records. Her duties are too expansive to list! She is incredibly organized and manages the demands of her role with an unparalleled attention to detail, professionalism, and kindness. She is a beloved member of the team in Undergraduate Education.


 

Abigail Gschwend

Department: Kelley Direct

Nominated by: Kylie Smith, Graduate Accounting and Finance Programs

Nomination text: Abigail is tireless in her efforts to improve diversity in the Kelley Direct Online MBA Program and to provide amazing support and resources to KD students. She was instrumental in creating partnerships with FORTE and ROMBA, organizations that provide great resources and funding for female and LGBTQ+ MBA students. She's also presented at several conferences to share inclusive recruitment and retention ideas with other universities.


 

Carissa Bullman

Department: University Enrollment Services

Nominated by: Anonymous

Nomination text: Carissa is a wealth of knowledge and is an integral part of the UES Student Records team. She is very easy to work with and is a compassionate supervisor. She truly cares about our Student Records team, individually and collectively, and cares about the people in the offices with which ours intersects. The work she does for IU positively impacts so many areas across all 9 IU campuses. If Carissa doesn't know the answer, she will either find it or knows the right person to point one to in order to get the assistance needed. Her 20+ years of Registrar knowledge and dedication to a job well done is priceless and we couldn't ask for a better representative for UES Student Records than Carissa. I am so thankful for who she is and all she does.