Joanne Chaplin Wins Leonard W. Sandridge Outstanding Contribution Award

UVA Biology People
June 15, 2018

Intro Biology Lab Coordinator and preparator Joanne Chaplin has won a Leonard W. Sandridge Outstanding Contribution Award! The 2018 award winners are highlighted in today's edition of UVA Today. "The Sandridge Awards are the highest honors the University gives to its employees. Each year, five employees from the Academic Division, five from the Medical Center and one from UVA’s College at Wise are selected from nominations made by their colleagues."  When asked to provide a "fun fact" for the award luncheon, Chaplin wrote: "When I was hired by then-Chairman Dr. James Murray in 1984, I committed to keeping this job for no more than two years, as I had been actively pursuing a career in computer programming. In fact, the only reason I was in Charlottesville was to interview for a programming position over in the Medical Center. Unbeknownst to me, HR apparently sent my resume over to the Biology Dept. due to my lab experience, so I agreed to stop by and meet with Dr. Murray before leaving town. Nearly 34 years later I’m still here! I have spent over half my life in the Biology Dept., and feel that many of the faculty and staff are not only friends but practically family, having seen me through all the ups and downs of life for all this time. Thanks to the wonderful people with whom I have had the privilege to work, not to mention a myriad of wonderful and memorable experiences with thousands of students over the years, I continue to feel as if the department is my second ‘home’. Joanne would like to sincerely thank all those who made this award possible!  To read about all of the winners in UVA Today, please click here.  

Photo by Stacey Evans