Debra "Deb" Burrow, David M. Rater, and Nadezhda "Nadya" Zyaykina were recognized as finalists for the 2018 College of Engineering Staff Awards of Excellence at the annual staff awards banquet held on December 7th. Nadya Zyaykina was named the recipient of the Professional Achievement Award.

Deb Burrow serves as the support person for the CE main office staff, as well as the receptionist for the civil engineering main office. Deb is instrumental in creating a welcoming place for the students to gather information, get their questions answered, and just be able to share their successes and problems. She is always available to the students to offer kind words or to pass along positive vibes if someone's having a tough day. Ultimately, Deb gives all of herself to everyone she encounters. She can exchange stories, experiences, or laughs, but her greatest quality of all, in the simplest form, is friendship.

David M. Rater serves as the facilities manager for civil engineering. Not only has he taken the School through several rounds of safety audits to keep the School compliant with REM, he has gone above and beyond with several renovation and construction projects within the School, including the Towing Tank facility, the new flume and circulation system in the Burke Hydraulics Lab, the Pankow Lab renovations, renovation of HAMP 2131/2135 environmental labs, the Page Pavilion construction, and the Staging Structure construction at the CAI facility. He has done an excellent job of managing logistics for moves, providing timely alerts when construction activities might disrupt operations, and providing help with moving faculty and staff during renovation operations.

Since joining the College of Engineering as a Laboratory Manager in Civil Engineering and Environmental and Ecological Engineering, Nadya Zyaykina has consistently performed assigned duties at an exceptional level, going above and beyond the normal expectation and volunteering for additional assignments, and maintaining a professional manner while serving as a role model for other staff. Dr. Zyaykina supports faculty who work in CE, EEE, ME, and MSE. Her position encompasses a variety of responsibilities and tasks that support the research, teaching and engagement missions of Purdue Univeristy.