Awards

Bernie led the IT organization at Boston College for over 20 years and presided over the first AJCU-CITM conference at BC in 1986. He was a leader ahead of his time launching a voice/video/data network for the residence halls at BC (Project Agora) in 1995 and actively participating in development of the Jasig/uPortal open source project which predated later higher education “community-sourced” software such as Sakai and Kuali.  Bernie was recognized by the CAUSE Elite Award in 1992 and served as a mentor to an entire generation of CITM colleagues.

Jerry had been responsible for Information Technologies and University Libraries at the University of Scranton since 1986. He organized and presided over the 1998 AJCU-CITM conference at the University of Scranton which was the first to be held jointly with the AJCU Conference of Library Deans.  Similar joint meetings have been held seven times since.

Jack had been serving as conference secretary since 1987; added the responsibility to conduct the annual business meetings in 1990; and helped administer the AJCU listserves.  His fluency in Spanish and organizational skills were essential to successfully planning and conducting the first joint conference between CITM and colleagues in information technology management at the Jesuit colleges and universities in Central America and Latin America at Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City in 1995.

Mark attended the first AJCU-CITM conference at Boston College in 1986 and has missed only two of the conferences since. He worked in academic computing management at Canisius College and has been hailed as a tireless contributor to many AJCU-CITM and AJCU-EDTECH programs both as a program committee member and as presenter. Perhaps the most significant example of those contributions is the great success of the annual meeting with our AUSJAL colleagues at ITESO in Guadalajara México in 2003 which resulted from the collaborative work of Juan Lanzagorta (ITESO) and Mark. Mark has been managing the CITM consortium site licensing arrangement with Adobe Systems since negotiating the agreement in 2002. He has been described as “a friend to many in the AJCU and a great example of what brings us together.”

Since John joined Loyola Maryland in 1989, he has attended most of our meetings including the two in Mexico and he hosted the annual meeting at Loyola Maryland in 1993. At meetings he has often exhibited his uncanny ability to be forward thinking about the potential of an emerging technology to serve students on our campuses. Outside of meetings he has helped countless CITM colleagues by e-mail and by phone and in person. A strong advocate of the Jesuit vision John represented the CITM at the second annual meeting of our AUSJAL colleagues at UNISINOS in São Leopoldo in Brasil in 1997 and has since been the CITM liaison with AUSJAL.

Except for a period in the 1990s during which he was a full time faculty member Ron attended nearly every CITM meeting beginning with the first one in 1986. He hosted the third and 26th meetings at Santa Clara in 1988 and 2011 respectively. From 2001 until 2014 Ron was not only a member of the program committee but he also made presentations at each of those meetings. He has served the organization in the following capacities: as liaison from CITM to JesuitNET from 2001-2013; as a member of the Shared Services working group from 2008-2012; as a mentor in the formal CITM mentoring program for four years; and at their request as an informal personal mentor to five current or former CIOs at AJCU schools during their first few years in that role. While he was on sabbatical during the 2014-2015 academic year he was a member of the AJCU-CITM History Project team. Ron’s wisdom humor and gentle manner have enriched the organization for many years.

When she joined Loyola University Chicago in 2005, Susan immediately grasped the importance of the rich, shared heritage of Jesuit higher education, and the value associated with being active in CITM. She has been active in leadership activities in many ways:  Vice President of CITM 2008-09; President 2010-11; host of the 2013 CITM conference; and founding member of the AJCU CITM Mentoring Program, mentoring both her own staff and several CIOs at other institutions.

More broadly, Susan has served in a variety of capacities for EDUCAUSE: faculty member and committee member for the New IT Managers program, co-chair of an EDUCAUSE task force on global education and distance learning in 2010, and Midwest Regional Conference 2012 Program Committee Member. Susan has served on the Jesuit Worldwide Learning advisory board and continues to be involved in many other national and international leadership organizations, too numerous to list here.  In perhaps her most unusual contribution, at the request of the Loyola Chicago president and while continuing as CIO, Susan served as Loyola’s Interim Athletic Director in 2014!

As one of her colleagues put it:  “Susan has always been a kind, considerate, intellectually superlative colleague who possesses the technical chops along with the managerial, strategic, and interpersonal skills that makes folks seek her out – for her counsel as well as her friendship.”

David’s most visible contribution to CITM was through his work with others to establish the Technology, Teaching, and Learning conference tracks and SIG, and was the first TTL representative to the CITM working group on distance learning. He also served as General Chair for the 2005 CITM Conference hosted by SJU. David was also a member of the JesuitNET advisory board and contributed.

Mike became an active member of CITM immediately after joining Boston College in 2003, becoming a fixture at CITM conferences, and encouraging the re-engagement of the Boston College Information Technology Services (ITS) organization with the CITM.  He has served the CITM by participating in the Mentoring Program, as host of the 2012 CITM conference, as vice president, and then as president.

At BC, Mike quickly established himself as a collaborative partner with faculty, students, and staff.  In his first five years, as Executive Director of Information Technology, Mike transformed the University’s applications and systems infrastructure, improving academic and research computation and student service systems.  He was promoted to CIO in 2010, and soon after led an ITS strategic planning process, which was hailed by his staff as one of the most inclusive, collaborative, and transparent initiatives ever undertaken by ITS, involving several cross-functional teams from all across campus. Beyond his ITS responsibilities, Mike has also served Boston College as a mentor in the BC Affiliates Program, participant in the Ignatian Colleagues Program (an immersion experience to El Salvador), and co-founder of the Colleagues in Mission seminar for administrative staff.  More broadly, Mike has provided consultative services with Jesuit Commons Higher Education at the Margins and the Jesuit Digital Network.

In his local neighborhood, Mike has served as coach and administrator for youth sports in his hometown of Wakefield. He sits on the Board of Trustees for the Town Library and plays a very active role in the Lawrence Boys and Girls Club, acting as an advisor and mentor to staff and children.

One of Mike’s close CITM colleagues sums it up thus: “Mike serves as an excellent role model for IT leadership and teamwork, and I especially appreciate that he does this so skillfully, with a quick wit and sense of humor!”

Jim Burke started his IT career in the mid-1980’s when he was hired as a COBOL programmer at John Carroll University, where he wrote their first student information system. After multiple promotions over his long career at JCU, Jim was named Chief Information Officer in 2018. Over the years, and across the positions he has occupied at JCU, Jim has consistently been a quiet but effective leader and a welcoming, supportive, hard-working, and dedicated member of CITM.

Jim’s formal service to the CITM covers a number of roles, including: Presider and Conference Chair of the 2016 meeting at John Carroll University; contributions to the AJCU-CITM History Project; chair of the O’Hearn Service Award committee; long-standing membership on the AJCU-CITM Mentoring Committee; and, most recently, CITM Treasurer.

Another long-term role for Jim was as AUSJAL Liaison Officer for CITM, through which he kept the CITM apprised of events and issues affecting Jesuit universities in Latin America. In this capacity Jim ensured that technology leaders from Jesuit institutions outside the US had the resources to participate in the CITM annual conferences.

Perhaps more important than the “what” of his formal contributions is the “way” in which Jim has engaged others across CITM, modeling steadiness, generosity, and compassion in every action. Jim is noted for his well-reasoned and thoughtful perspectives on issues. And while Jim may not be the most outspoken CIO in the Jesuit network, he may be the kindest and wisest. When he does speak, people listen.

In CITM, Jim is perhaps the best of the CIOs in terms of responding to requests for information among his peers and the broader CITM listservs. And what would the annual AJCU-CITM business meetings be without Jim’s understanding of “what it says in the by-laws” but also “how things are done”?! Jim is a key player in keeping CITM a vibrant, productive and close-knit group.

In their own words, this is how his colleagues described Jim in their testimonials:

“It seems to me that this award was created with people like Jim in mind.”

“There are few people I know where I can guarantee that each interaction with them will be positive, helpful, and encouraging – Jim is one of those special few where this is always true.”

“To sum up my thoughts, if Jim does not deserve this award, then no one does.

For more than 35 years, Bruce Montes served as an administrator, colleague, mentor, and teacher at Loyola University Chicago. He has always been known for his enthusiasm, inclusiveness, thoughtful listening, and genuine care for everyone he met. Within CITM, he has been a standout through his numerous conference presentations and participation on panels, his many years of service on conference planning committees – especially the 2013 conference at LUC, his service as a mentor in the Mentoring Program, and his many years as a core member of the History Project, which has captured the heart and soul of the AJCU CITM community that binds us together. As one of Bruce’s close colleagues and friends put it: “Bruce exemplifies Jesuit values in his leadership style: respecting the whole person, meeting people where they are, giving his time and experience, all while leading others to strive for excellence.”

With his dual roles at LUC as a senior administrator in academic computing and an adjunct professor in several of the LUC Schools, Bruce was, and continues to be, a valued and trusted advisor, particularly in the academic areas and in the effective use of technology to develop excellent teaching and learning experiences. And he has eagerly shared this knowledge and expertise through his active participation in the TTL SIG.

Even after his retirement in March 2020, Bruce continues to support the History Project, to serve as a respected and sought-after adjunct faculty member for several of the Schools at Loyola, and to remain active and connected to several AJCU CITM colleagues.

Presenting Bruce with the O’Hearn Service Award is an expression of appreciation for, and recognition of, his many years of service to the AJCU CITM, the IT profession, Jesuit education, and to Loyola University Chicago.

This year’s recipient has been an active member of CITM for a long time and their participation checks all the boxes:
● They attend the conference every year and they are a frequent presenter,
● They participated in the mentoring program,
● They have participated in CITM committees,
● They took on leadership positions including chairing a SIG,
● They have served on many program planning committees, and
● They have chaired this conference.

Now some qualities don’t have boxes to check.
● Like enthusiasm and enjoyment of getting to know everyone,
● Interest in making sure all feel welcome,
● A passion about alignment with mission in all they do including championing underserved populations
● Being a fierce advocate for the importance of the CITM, from both a knowledge sharing & relationship building perspective.
● This person lends a helping hand, even when their own plate is overflowing.
● And when one of their staff members was diagnosed with cancer, this person not only set up a meal train for them, they also organized a multi-weekend backyard project renovation so that this staff member would have a peaceful place outside to recuperate.

If you haven’t figured it out yet, this year’s recipient is Crista Copp from Loyola Marymount.

One of her colleagues captured Crista best, saying: I’ve seen Crista as the next generation of AJCU CITM and as a prominent long-term member and leader, I’m confident that the group will continue to be a welcoming and supportive network of colleagues who share knowledge, values, mission, and calling for technology and service excellence in Jesuit higher education with Crista involved.

Crista is a most deserving recipient of the O’Hearn Service Award and I ask you to join me in congratulating her as we present this award as an expression of our appreciation and recognition of her service to the AJCU CITM, the IT profession, Jesuit education and to LoyolaMarymount University.

Borre Ulrichsen has been active in CITM since he started at Gonzaga. He was heavily involved in helping CITM through the pandemic by arranging group meetings and keeping the group together. Half of the testimonies received by the award committee were sent by folks who are no longer CITM members but still took the time to reflect on his work and friendship, which shows how much folks respect Borre. A few items cited in the testimonies: Borre has been a mentor in our mentorship program no less than 8 times; he participates in the broader technology community, including but not limited to Educause and on higher education advisory councils; he always strives to foster a culture of excellence, collaboration, and service.

A quote from one of the testimonials: “Borre embodies what it means to be a leader at a Jesuit institution of higher education. Their grace and dignity in the face of all challenges, from pandemics to dysfunctional Provosts, is exemplary. In all ways, leading with humility, patience, and above all else, magis, always asking how their team can do better for the greater good.”