Known for his ever-present smile and upbeat attitude, Mike Kaylor was awarded a 2015 Arts and Sciences Distinguished Staff award on April 21.

"I was really surprised," said Kaylor "I wasn't expecting it at all. I really appreciate the people that recommended me for this award. The great part is that I've enjoyed working with all of them."

A broad group of supporters including Susan Lawrence (History), Laura Sutherland (Chemistry), Kevin Stringfellow (College of Medicine), Justin Weimer and Melissa Beers (Psychology), and Ken Matthias (Vet Med) sponsored Kaylor's nomination:

We commend him for his extraordinary efforts in bringing departments together with the common goal of improving the process of teaching and learning. He and has a willingness to go out of his way to create partnerships, find solutions to improve workflow and student outcomes, and to share these advancements and accomplishments within the university community and beyond. The work he is doing is significantly improving our ability to assess learning outcomes and turn that information into action to improve teaching and learning.

"I really appreciate [Mike Kaylor’s] positive attitude and strong work ethic,” said Tim Smith, Arts and Sciences CIO and Kaylor's supervisor. “He brings enthusiasm and professionalism to all of his projects and has been instrumental in leading the Academic Technologies team."

Congratulations, Mike Kaylor!