Recognizing Remarkable Colleagues—January 2026, Issue 2
Recognizing Remarkable Colleagues has become a meaningful way for our community to celebrate one another. To date, 172 submissions have highlighted the exceptional work and dedication of our colleagues.
In response to the ongoing interest and participation, submissions will continue to be featured in upcoming issues of Campus Connector. Read the second set of submissions for January (organized in alphabetical order) below.
Thank you to everyone who has shared stories celebrating their colleagues—it’s inspiring to see our community come together to recognize those who go above and beyond every day.
Submissions for next month are now open! Share your note of recognition by the last Friday of the month, and let’s continue celebrating the amazing colleagues who make our campus shine. For more details on the program, including links to past issues and details about how to make a submission, please click here.
Amanda Lukianchuk, McDougall Faculty of Business (two submissions!)
Amanda has been an incredible source of knowledge within the McDougall Faculty of Business (MFoB) and consistently goes above and beyond in supporting me, as well as faculty and staff, always with a positive attitude. She is often the first to volunteer when something needs to be done and approaches every task with dedication and care. Amanda has streamlined and organized numerous processes, making things easier and more efficient for everyone.
When I joined the faculty, she ensured a seamless transition by providing thorough notes on ongoing work, completed tasks, and outstanding items. She fosters a warm, welcoming environment, is an excellent problem solver, and brings a genuinely positive energy that brightens our days. She is part of our daily staff catch-ups every morning and always knows what's going on because she is central to our faculty.
Amanda wears many hats every day—Keeper of Keys, Printer Extraordinaire, IT Wizard, Procurement Expert, The Kettle Boiler, 25Live Pro, The MacGyver—and she has the most random but super helpful tools and items that will fix or cure anything you need. Thank you, Amanda, for everything you do! MFoB runs quietly, successfully, and efficiently because you are doing EVERYTHING behind the scenes to make it happen! - Steff Taylor
Amanda has made all MFoB sessional instructors very welcome and informed. She has always been responsive and understanding. I’m truly grateful for her kind, humble, and effective support.
Shawn MacFadyen, Utility Worker, Facilities Management
Shawn is a great worker and always happy to help out. If we had a whole department of Shawns, we would all be a lot happier and definitely louder (haha)! Shawn is always in a great mood and makes people around him in a good mood, too.
Jihae McDougall, RVT Small Animal Internal Medicine, VTH AVC
It is my pleasure to recognize Jihae McDougall as a truly remarkable colleague. Jihae is an important member of the small animal internal medicine team and comes to work every day with a positive, professional, upbeat, can-do attitude. She is always willing to help wherever needed and is reliable, knowledgeable, prepared, organized, and hardworking. Jihae treats her colleagues, students, and patients with the utmost compassion and kindness and makes the Veterinary Teaching Hospital a brighter place with her presence and daily actions. We are so fortunate to have her as part of the Small Animal Internal Medicine team at AVC.
Kristen Nowlan, Comptroller’s Office
Kristen, you have made a big impact since joining us not long ago. You stepped into this role and immediately started contributing in meaningful ways. Your positive attitude strengthens the team, and your willingness to take initiative has been noticed by everyone we work with. You’ve quickly become a reliable support, handling tasks with care, clarity, and professionalism. We’re genuinely fortunate to have you here at the University. Go Jays!
Christina Perry, Faculty of Graduate Studies
While working in a “special projects” role, Christina has had a huge impact at Graduate Studies—from launching Grad Student Hour and leading the draft of a handbook to be launched for graduate students to developing other fantastic resources. Christina’s kind spirit, depth of expertise, and team spirit have made her a delightful team addition; whether it be talking out problem-solving options or contributing a Grinch onesie to the December decorations, we have been made richer by having her as part of our team.
Jocelyn Phillips, Quality Manager, Diagnostic Services
Jocelyn consistently puts 100 per cent into her work, contributing countless efforts behind the scenes. She has been an integral player in the successful start-up of two different labs and is currently supporting the accreditation of a new program on top of her regular responsibilities. Jocelyn’s dedication, hard work, and significant contributions deserve to be recognized.
Maria Steele and Julie VanLeeuwen, Research Services and UPEI Research Partnerships and Innovation
Maria and Julie are always enhancing and updating their website’s content to ensure their important audiences get the most up-to-date and helpful information. With many funding opportunities, deadlines, and regulatory requirements, they work very hard to ensure UPEI’s research community is aware of their services and how they can help. The new “Research Partnerships and Innovation” name provided an opportunity to reframe their work connecting UPEI researchers with various partners, and Maria and Julie revised their website content with the RPI team to best describe the change and promote everything they do. They’re extremely collaborative in their approach, and I really appreciate their effort.
Sonia Stewart, Faculty of Science
I have been a sessional instructor at UPEI for 13 years, and I rely heavily on administrative support for print jobs, scheduling markers and proctors, and a number of other tasks. Sonia has been an outstanding support to me in her role as administrative assistant in Chemistry. She was organized and efficient and always made sure things were done correctly and on time. It made my job far less stressful to know that she was taking care of things! - Amir Zuccolo
