By Joseph Murray
The search that began Jan.10 for Brigham Young University?s 2005 Student Employee of the Year ended April 1, in the Student Auxillary Services Creative Marketing department.
Amanda Parrish, a 22-year-old senior, from Thousand Oaks, Calif., majoring in humanities, was recognized Monday as the 2005 Student Employee of the year.
Committee members chose Parrish out of 106 total nominees from 66 different BYU employment departments.
?I was shocked to find out,? Parrish said. ?When they told me, I thought it was an April Fools joke. It is a very humbling experience to have been singled out from the 106 students who were nominated. I am humbled but I am also very excited.?
Each year, faculty advisors have the opportunity to recognize exceptional student employees who have demonstrated outstanding achievement in the workplace by nominating them for Student Employee of the Year.
Marketing Department Creative Media Director Marlin Sharp nominated Parrish.
?I could send you a mile-long list of her qualities, but for the most part she is very professional in everything she tries to do,? Sharp said. ?She is really focused on her job and she is very creative.?
Parrish began working in Creative Marketing as a freshman. She has worked alongside Sharp for almost three and half years, creating advertisements for the BYU Housing Department, BYU Dining Services, Outdoors Unlimited, the BYU Games Center and the BYU Barber Shop.
?One of the things that really impressed me was her ability to sit down and develop an advertising concept very quickly,? Sharp said. ?She can sit down, and at the end of the day we can have a commercial that is written and ready to go.?
Each year, a committee organized by Employment Services and Student Life selects the five top candidates and then submits one nominee to a regional and state competition sponsored by the Western Association of Student Employment Administrators.
Employment Services Student Office Speicialist Carla Stott, who was in charge of organizing this year?s committee, said: ?It helps us recognize the great contributions that student employees make.?
Executive Secretary for the employment office, Estella Crofts, also talked about the importance of student?s contributions.
?This campus would fall apart without the help we get from students through the jobs they perform,? Crofts said.
Parrish was also chosen as the State of Utah Student Employee of the year. Parrish?s nomination will now be submitted for the regional competition.
?It is probably the greatest honored I have ever received,? Parrish said. ?I get to represent all of the BYU employees who are working hard here on campus everyday. All of them are doing their best to make the BYU environment different than any other campus.?
Managing Director of the Employment Services Student Office Don Brown said the purpose of the program is to make sure the 106 nominees and all outstanding student employees are recognized for their efforts.
?We feel there is great value in recognizing work that has been well done,? Brown said.
Parrish will graduate in April and said she plans on pursuing a career in creative commercial filming. Parrish said she was grateful for the experiences here at BYU that has prepared her for the future.
?When I look back on my BYU experience, there won?t really be a way to differentiate between my classes and work,? Parrish said. ?Both have been such an important part of my education.?