January 29, 2024
Three individuals from Delta College have been selected to each receive a national award that recognizes their exceptional leadership and teaching to their college community.
Pamela Clark, executive director of institutional advancement; Angela Cramer, controller; and Chris Curtis, professor of psychology are recipients of a 2023-24 League Excellence Award, presented by the League for Innovation in the Community College.
The trio was nominated by Delta College President Dr. Michael Gavin and will be recognized at the 2024 Innovations Conference in March.
“Each of these individuals has been with the college for more than 25 years and during their careers here have made significant, lasting contributions to our college,” Gavin said. “Their work has made Delta a better place for students and employees alike.”
Clark’s journey began in 1991 as an employee of Delta Broadcasting’s PBS station, WUCX, later becoming station manager and then in 2006 director of planned giving. In 2007, she began her current role as executive director of institutional advancement, overseeing the Delta College Foundation, Public Media operation, Planetarium and marketing.
“My work is focused on being out in the community to make external connections with donors, business leaders and legislators,” Clark said. “As we raise money for projects, it has been a joy to talk about Delta College’s ability to impact our region.”
“Delta College’s Foundation is ranked among the top community college fundraising successes in the state and the nation,” she added. “I’m proud that our ability to raise dollars has allowed us to create a state-of-the-art Health Professions Building and open top-notch academic centers in both downtown Saginaw and downtown Midland.”
Cramer joined Delta in 1999. She has held three finance department roles in her time at Delta College, beginning her current role as controller in 2018.
“I love working with a fantastic team of individuals passionate about doing their jobs to the best of their abilities,” Cramer said. “The Finance Office would not be able to consistently achieve clean audits and meet our many deadlines without the contributions of each member of our team.”
“I am proud that my colleagues and I were able to utilize the many millions of dollars of HEERF Covid relief grant awards that the college received to help students and the college during a difficult time,” she added. “This wasn’t an easy task given the ever-changing rules surrounding this money, but we were able to spend it and did not have any of our decisions challenged.”
Curtis has been with the college for more than 28 years in a variety of roles including coordinator of Distance Learning, Social Sciences Division Chair and his current roles as immediate past president of the Delta College Faculty Association and professor of psychology.
“This might sound like an odd choice, but I am also proud of the work that we did during the pandemic,” Curtis said. “From top to bottom at Delta, the primary goals were to keep our students moving forward while also keeping our students - and our community - safe. It was incredibly difficult, but it showed me, once again, the dedication that Delta’s faculty and staff bring to our work.”
He added, “I have always been most successful at Delta when I’m part of a team. Even when I have been in a leadership position, it is the work that we do together that succeeds, and that is the work that is rewarding. My happiest memories at Delta, and some of my most cherished office pictures, are of the teams I have been a part of.”
The League for Innovation in the Community College is an international nonprofit organization with a mission to cultivate innovation in the community college environment. In 1969, Delta joined 11 institutions across the country to become one of the original organizing members of the League. Delta continues to serve on its Board of Directors as a founding member.