Amy Rieser of Jackson, a sociology and environment and natural resources major, has been chosen as the University of Wyoming's Student Employee of the Year.
She received a plaque and cash award from the Western Association of Student Employment Administrators and a cash award from UW.
A research aide at the Wyoming Survey and Analysis Center (WYSAC), Rieser was chosen based on her reliability, initiative, uniqueness of contribution, quality of work, professionalism and community and campus service.
"She was consistently reliable in meeting all of her obligations and repeatedly showed initiative in going beyond those obligations by seeing what the project needed and doing it," says WYSAC Executive Director Burke Grandjean. "She displayed a consistently mature and professional approach to the work and was always a positive influence on the entire research team."
Grandjean adds, "She routinely contributed more of her time and creativity than her hourly pay could compensate." He tells how Rieser was so important that she had office space at WYSAC, which is "a scarce resource especially for a student employee."
Rieser also received the 2011 Rosemarie Martha Spitaleri Award as the university's outstanding graduating woman. She is a member of the UW Honors Program, National Society of Collegiate Scholars and Alpha Kappa Delta, the international sociology honor society.
