Roberts earns January Chancellor’s Gold ‘U’ Award

Stacks of grant budgets, speaker correspondence and course syllabi are piled atop Barbara Roberts’ desk in UNMC’s department of biochemistry and molecular biology. Much has changed since 1970 when Roberts first sat behind that then-new, metal desk in Bennett Hall.

What hasn’t changed is Roberts’ steadfast service to faculty, staff and students in the department. For her outstanding job performance, Roberts has received the Chancellor’s Gold ‘U’ Award for January.

“There are a lot of people on campus that go above and beyond the call of duty every day, so to be singled out for this award is really an honor,” said Roberts, an administrative assistant. “It’s nice to know your efforts are truly appreciated.”

Barbara Roberts Title: Administrative assistant II Joined UNMC: August 1970. Job responsibilities: Handles a myriad of departmental functions including grant budget records, employee and student records, course syllabi, faculty candidate and speaker correspondence, graduate student assistance and hiring paperwork. One day I’d like to: Live on a lake in Minnesota. Greatest personal achievement: Raising two great sons and maintaining a strong marriage.

Roberts’ colleagues say they’d be at a loss without her service to the department.

“Mrs. Roberts is instrumental in providing quality service to department members whether through the submission of grants, manuscripts or student admission or in preparing examinations for medical or graduate classes,” co-nominators said.

With the help of three assistants, Roberts shepherds through 60 or more grant proposals a year, maintains employee and student records, assists the department’s 13 full-time faculty and 32 graduate students, and sees that the department complies with all policies and procedures. “This is a prodigious job because we have the same number of staff now as we had eight years ago. However, grant budgets and numbers of lab employees have increased eight to 10 fold,” another nominator said.

Colleagues emphasize her efficiency, friendliness and fairness. “She sets an example for all of her staff…I have rarely seen such a well run office where all of the staff carry their part of the load with relative good humor and a “can do” attitude,” one nominator said.

The southwest Iowa native joined UNMC’s department of biochemistry and molecular biology in August 1970 then, while her children were young, left for two years before returning in 1975 to the department and that familiar black desk.

“There’s never a dull moment,” the department’s “troubleshooter” said, reflecting on her 31 years at UNMC. “I truly enjoy working with the faculty and the graduate students. It’s been fun meeting people from all over the world.”

Roberts, a business college graduate, enjoys quilting, family and friends, gardening and other outdoor activities. She and her husband Larry have two grown sons, Scott and Jason.