Thomas V. Gibson Award for Creativity and Innovation
Thomas V. Gibson retired from Penn State in June 2006 as the Associate Vice President for Finance & Business. Prior to that, Tom served for many years as the Assistant Vice President for Housing and Food Services and the Director of Food Services. Tom embodies a creative, innovative soul and is known for challenging his staff to imagine the unimaginable and to make happen the inconceivable. While directing all of Housing and Food Services, Gibson made it a practice to empower and support his leaders. To extend honor and appreciation to Tom and all those who will follow in his footsteps, the Thomas V. Gibson Award for Creativity and Innovation was established in 2005. The award recognizes those who demonstrate visionary leadership and champion change that leads to quality improvement, among other criteria.
Eligibility
A full-time employee (exempt, non-exempt, or technical service) who has worked in or supported Housing and Food Services for at least one year is eligible for this award. This is an individual award and is not designed for teams.Selection Process
A director serving as chair, plus a seven-member awards committee—consisting of two technical service employees, two staff exempt employees, two non-exempt employees, and the previous year's award recipient—will select a finalist who demonstrates all or some of the following characteristics:- demonstrates visionary leadership
- champions changethat leads to quality improvement
- utilizes “out-of-the-box” thinking to solve difficult problems
- develops new approaches to capitalize on evolving trends and changing demographics
- applies sound business, organizational, and interpersonal practices in unique and successful ways
- identifies opportunities for progress and takes the initiative to follow through