Congrats to the 2026 Chancellor’s Outstanding Staff Award Winners!

Six employees have been named the inaugural recipients of the 2026 Chancellor's Outstanding Staff and Supervisor Awards, a new program recognizing those who exemplify CU Anschutz's mission through exceptional service, innovation and leadership. 

Introduced earlier this year by Chancellor Don Elliman, the program honors excellence across campus. From more than 100 nominees, four Outstanding Staff and two Outstanding Supervisor recipients were selected.

“These inaugural award winners embody the very best of CU Anschutz. Our 2026 staff and supervisor awardees reflect the commitment, collaboration and excellence that drive our mission forward, and it’s an honor to recognize them for all they do to make our campus such an extraordinary place,” said Chancellor Elliman.

Congratulations to the 2026 Chancellor’s Outstanding Staff and Supervisor Award recipients!

Katherine Brumfield

Career Services Manager

Colorado School of Public Health

“Katherine is an exceptional colleague and a deeply valued member of the Colorado School of Public Health and CU Anschutz community. Students and alumni rave about their experiences working with her, often crediting her guidance as instrumental in securing their dream public health jobs.

Jacob Green

Division Administrator

Department of Medicine, Internal Medicine, School of Medicine

“Jacob has a terrific knack for attracting talent and then growing and nurturing it. He believes in each member of the team and they know it. He is an outstanding teacher and mentor – helping each member of our team shine in their jobs… This type of exceptional leadership not only fosters excellence but it engenders loyalty. Our division is so much stronger as a result.”

Carl Johnson

Assistant Vice Chancellor and Campus Dean of Students

Office of Student Affairs

“If you don’t feel instantly drawn in by Carl Johnson, you’ve simply never met him. Carl is the connective tissue – and often the heartbeat – of the Student Affairs Office. Everywhere we go on campus, the moment we mention we work for Carl, people light up and share stories about how he supported them, guided them, or solved a challenge no one else could.”

Wendy Kisicki

Technical Services Specialist

Strauss Health Sciences Library

“Ms. Kisicki consistently fosters collaboration and teamwork through her proactive communication and commitment to shared goals… Her calm and solution-oriented approach contributes to strong team dynamics and successful shared outcomes.”

Michelle Middleton

Research Services Principal Professional

Department of Medicine, School of Medicine

“Michelle’s overall impact is incredible… The Department of Medicine Research Office simply couldn’t offer the number of funding, education and event programming for faculty, staff and students without Michelle. It’s that simple… There is never a day that Michelle doesn’t go above and beyond.”

Elise Shalowitz

Principal Clinical Research Professional

Colorado Center for Personalized Medicine BioBank

“Elise’s commitment to collaboration distinguishes every aspect of her work… She is an exceptional problem solver who brings creativity and pragmatism to challenges, and her sound judgement consistently guides teams toward the right path. The impact of Elise’s contributions is transformative.”

Chancellor’s Outstanding Staff and Supervisor Awards

Awardees exemplify the CU Anschutz mission, vision and core values through:

• Innovation – Developing creative solutions or improvements that enhance operations, services or research

• Collaboration – Building strong relationships and fostering effective teamwork

• Customer Focus – Providing exceptional service to students, faculty, staff, patients and the broader community

• Integrity – Consistently upholding ethical standards in all actions
• Impact – Making meaningful, measurable contributions to their units and to the campus as a whole