Annie Herz, Associate Director for Employee and Labor Relations, Human Resources
2019 UO Senate Leadership and Service Award for Officers of Administration Recipient
Acceptance Speech
Thank you for this award. I am very grateful and quite humbled.
I had the pleasure of starting my employment at the University of Oregon in 1999 as the director of conflict resolution services in student affairs. I then moved into a position in the office of AAEO, and now serve on the Employee and Labor Relations team in HR. There have been a few delightful sub-journeys along the way, including serving for a year in an interim role in the Center on Diversity and Community, and an 11-year run co-teaching the Basic Mediation Training several times a year at the School of Law. I can honestly say that in each setting that I have worked here on campus, I have learned deeply, felt respected and supported in my work, and connected to a sense of contribution that made my work feel very worthwhile.
Recognizing that this award is intended to honor officers of administration, I thought back to my decision to pursue a spot on the OA Council many years ago. I know it was a long time ago because I recall a picture of the council that was taken for the website. In that picture I was pregnant with my older son, Zac, who has just today, completed the last day of his high school career (congratulations, Zac!). I’m not sure that my time on the council meets the criteria for “back in the day,” but it’s close.
It is exciting to think about the truly amazing ways in which the OA council and the OA experience has evolved over the last few decades (especially the last few years). This is particularly relevant to me because the vast majority of my work is with OAs. Whether it’s leading professional development training for supervisors, working with the extraordinary leaders who make up the OA council, contributing to the development and refinement of policies and procedures for OAs, coaching supervisors, consulting with leaders, or facilitating difficult conversations. I truly care about how employees experience their days working at the University of Oregon and I am grateful for the ways in which employees and leaders trust me to support, help, challenge, coach and contribute. Although my work is often in the context of challenging situations, I am so often impressed and inspired by the smart, talented, innovative and kind employees with whom I get to work on a daily basis.
I would like to acknowledge my family who is here today. My husband, Greg Rikhoff and my sons Zac and Finley. Thank you to my fabulous Employee & Labor Relations team and our amazing leader Missy Matella. I also want to thank Larissa Ennis and Micah Sardell, the current co-chairs of the OA Council, who have done extraordinary work along with the other council members to continue to improve the experience of OAs on campus.
So, this award is also about service:
In my mind, Service reminds us of our inherent connections to one another and the richness of getting out of our own way to see things in a new light, from another perspective, to fill a need or interest that might not be (or might not seem to be) our own. I can tell you that every service opportunity I have pursued on this campus has left me more informed, more effective and with a greater sense of connection to our community. So, I encourage each of us to pursue service to our campus community in ways that benefit our community and that expand our own experience of connection.
Thank you again for this lovely honor.