{"id":119170,"date":"2025-02-06T02:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-02-06T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/?p=119170"},"modified":"2025-09-30T14:30:42","modified_gmt":"2025-09-30T19:30:42","slug":"gold-u-winner-vidlak","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/","title":{"rendered":"Gold U winner Vidlak applauded for making a difference"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Debbie Vidlak\u2019s commitment to science, teamwork and making a difference, both at work and in her community, have earned her UNMC\u2019s Gold U Award for February.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In her role as a research project coordinator lead in the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center Clinical Trials Office, Vidlak has been instrumental in elevating and bringing cutting-edge clinical trials to patients and has created new standard operating procedures that streamline processes and improve outdated ones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We help bring first-in-class drugs and novel treatments to people who may not have any other options,” she said. \u201cIt’s validating to know that the work we\u2019re doing is making a difference and giving hope.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although her role is administrative rather than patient-facing, the work she does with external sponsors and trial coordination has a direct impact on patient care in Nebraska. \u201cShe\u2019s a great resource for all,\u201d one nominator said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her career at UNMC began over 26 years ago as a laboratory technician sterilizing glassware in the biochemistry department. \u201cI started the semester before I graduated from college,\u201d she said. Over the years, she has embraced opportunities to grow and adapt, always driven by her love for learning and collaboration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vidlak, who will be recognized at Friday’s University of Nebraska Board of Regents meeting, attributes much of her success to the people she\u2019s worked with. \u201cThere\u2019s such diversity at UNMC, people from different backgrounds and departments. You\u2019re constantly meeting new people and learning new things,\u201d she said. She credits key mentors for shaping her career, particularly during her time in preclinical research. \u201cMy graduate school mentor, Tom Jerrells, had a profound influence on both my personal and professional life, encouraging me to never stop learning,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of the many trials Vidlak has worked on, those that evolve from early concepts to FDA-approved treatments hold a special place in her heart, she said. \u201cIt\u2019s amazing to see a trial go from infancy to something that\u2019s helping patients. That\u2019s incredibly rewarding.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beyond her contributions to UNMC and Nebraska Medicine, Vidlak is deeply involved in her community. After moving to a small town outside Omaha with her husband, she quickly became a vital part of local initiatives, from sustainability projects to animal rescue efforts. A passionate trap-neuter-return program advocate, Vidlak provides care for community cats, fostering animals and coordinating outreach efforts. \u201cIn a small town, it\u2019s easy to make a difference,\u201d she said. Her passion for sustainability is evident through her role on the board of Keep Cass County Beautiful, where she promotes environmental stewardship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cShe is conscientious about the work environment,\u201d one of her nominators said. She encourages office colleagues to recycle and practice energy curtailment. Said one nominator: \u201cShe is the first one to close the blinds and make sure we are all doing our part to make this world a better place.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite her busy schedule, Vidlak finds time for herself and her family. She enjoys traveling with her husband, spending time on the lake and connecting with friends and family.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Winning the Gold U Award is both humbling and validating, Vidlak said. \u201cKnowing that your peers and coworkers took the time to recognize your work \u2013 it\u2019s truly an honor. It’s validating to know the work you’re doing is making a difference, and people are noticing it.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Debbie Vidlak is a research project coordinator lead in the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center Clinical Trials Office.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":75,"featured_media":119169,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"53469,72092,45197,37968,34035,27427","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[3648],"class_list":["post-119170","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-cancer-center-inside-story","topic-inside-unmc","topic-unmc-community","department-fred-pamela-buffett-cancer-center","department-human-resources","department-unmc-front-page","department-unmc-today-todays-headlines","author_override-sarah-hankin-unmc-strategic-communications"],"yoast_head":"\nGold U winner Vidlak applauded for making a difference<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Debbie Vidlak is a research project coordinator lead in the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center Clinical Trials Office.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Gold U winner Vidlak applauded for making a difference\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Debbie Vidlak is a research project coordinator lead in the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center Clinical Trials Office.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Newsroom\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/unmcedu\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-02-06T08:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-09-30T19:30:42+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/DebbieVidlak020625.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1920\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1280\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Jeffrey Robb\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@unmc\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@unmc\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Jeffrey Robb\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Jeffrey Robb\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/6c55382c243ff55b6c4dee62262b6a5c\"},\"headline\":\"Gold U winner Vidlak applauded for making a difference\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-02-06T08:00:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-09-30T19:30:42+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/\"},\"wordCount\":566,\"commentCount\":22,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/DebbieVidlak020625.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Cancer Center Inside Story\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/\",\"name\":\"Gold U winner Vidlak applauded for making a difference\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/DebbieVidlak020625.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-02-06T08:00:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-09-30T19:30:42+00:00\",\"description\":\"Debbie Vidlak is a research project coordinator lead in the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center Clinical Trials Office.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/DebbieVidlak020625.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/DebbieVidlak020625.jpg\",\"width\":1920,\"height\":1280,\"caption\":\"Debbie Vidlak. University of Nebraska Medical Center portrait taken on Thursday, August 3, 2023.\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Gold U winner Vidlak applauded for making a difference\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/\",\"name\":\"Newsroom\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/#organization\",\"name\":\"University of Nebraska Medical Center\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/overview-1.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/overview-1.png\",\"width\":500,\"height\":153,\"caption\":\"University of Nebraska Medical Center\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/unmcedu\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/unmc\",\"https:\/\/instagram.com\/iamunmc\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/UNMCEDU\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/6c55382c243ff55b6c4dee62262b6a5c\",\"name\":\"Jeffrey Robb\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/author\/d09bf41544a3365a46c9077ebb5e35c3\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Gold U winner Vidlak applauded for making a difference","description":"Debbie Vidlak is a research project coordinator lead in the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center Clinical Trials Office.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Gold U winner Vidlak applauded for making a difference","og_description":"Debbie Vidlak is a research project coordinator lead in the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center Clinical Trials Office.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/","og_site_name":"Newsroom","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/unmcedu","article_published_time":"2025-02-06T08:00:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-09-30T19:30:42+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1920,"height":1280,"url":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/DebbieVidlak020625.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Jeffrey Robb","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@unmc","twitter_site":"@unmc","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Jeffrey Robb","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/"},"author":{"name":"Jeffrey Robb","@id":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/6c55382c243ff55b6c4dee62262b6a5c"},"headline":"Gold U winner Vidlak applauded for making a difference","datePublished":"2025-02-06T08:00:00+00:00","dateModified":"2025-09-30T19:30:42+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/"},"wordCount":566,"commentCount":22,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/DebbieVidlak020625.jpg","keywords":["Cancer Center Inside Story"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/","url":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/","name":"Gold U winner Vidlak applauded for making a difference","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/DebbieVidlak020625.jpg","datePublished":"2025-02-06T08:00:00+00:00","dateModified":"2025-09-30T19:30:42+00:00","description":"Debbie Vidlak is a research project coordinator lead in the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center Clinical Trials Office.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/DebbieVidlak020625.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/DebbieVidlak020625.jpg","width":1920,"height":1280,"caption":"Debbie Vidlak. University of Nebraska Medical Center portrait taken on Thursday, August 3, 2023."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2025\/02\/06\/gold-u-winner-vidlak\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Gold U winner Vidlak applauded for making a difference"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/","name":"Newsroom","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/#organization","name":"University of Nebraska Medical Center","url":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/overview-1.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/overview-1.png","width":500,"height":153,"caption":"University of Nebraska Medical Center"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/unmcedu","https:\/\/x.com\/unmc","https:\/\/instagram.com\/iamunmc","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/UNMCEDU"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/6c55382c243ff55b6c4dee62262b6a5c","name":"Jeffrey Robb","url":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/author\/d09bf41544a3365a46c9077ebb5e35c3\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119170","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/75"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=119170"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119170\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":119175,"href":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119170\/revisions\/119175"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/119169"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=119170"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=119170"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=119170"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}