Donna H. Braxton, university administrative manager in the Department of Physics and Astronomy, has been chosen 1996 Manager of the Year.
The annual award is presented by the University Managers Association to a member who has made the greatest contribution in management at Carolina.
Cited for her keen judgment, managerial capabilities and people skills, Braxton officially directs all departmental financial matters and recordkeeping, oversees purchasing and manages support activities, such as the department's instrument shop.
"Quite simply, Donna is incredibly good," said Chair Thomas B. Clegg, V. Lee Bounds professor of physics and astronomy. "She serves as my right hand, with eyes and ears for everything going on around her. I am continually surprised both by her network of campus friends and her ability to see far over the horizon and know what is coming at us."
Braxton's management skills are even more impressive in light of the department's increasing financial resources, which expanded some 300 percent in the past eight years, Clegg said.
"She shows a remarkable set of individual talents," he said, "but Donna also has truly exceptional people skills. Here, I trust her instincts far more than my own. She is sensitive to others' needs and special concerns; she listens carefully and acts on what she learns."
Beyond those duties outlined in her job description, Clegg said, Braxton tends to the interpersonal aspect of managing the department. For instance, she was instrumental in initiating staff and student assistant birthday parties and monthly staff lunches.
"These breaks continually provide special times for us to relax briefly together and recharge," he said. "Thus, Donna is the sparkplug around which all our departmental support activities turn and the glue that holds our departmental infrastructure together."
Gwen Gardner, Training and Development representative, said the selection committee received many nomination letters from Braxton's staff and faculty co-workers.
Braxton, a 23-year University employee, has worked in physics and astronomy since 1984. She spent the previous 11 years in the Department of Psychiatry.
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