EDAD's Benes receives NASPA regional student award

Stephanie Benes, master's degree student in Educational Administration.
Stephanie Benes, master's degree student in Educational Administration.

Stephanie Benes, a second-year master’s degree student in the student affairs program, has been selected for the NASPA (Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education) Region IV-West Graduate Student Rising Star Award. As part of her program in the Department of Educational Administration, Benes is a graduate assistant with the Nebraska Unions where she is responsible for overseeing the operations of the welcome desk.

A native of North Platte, Nebraska and a graduate of the University of Nebraska at Kearney, Benes is an active member of the Student Affairs Graduate Student Association and served on the Association of College Unions International 2016 Region V conference planning committee. The conference was held at the Nebraska Union in October.

“In the supervision of the welcome center, Stephanie has demonstrated extremely strong communication skills, the ability to quickly troubleshoot issues and problems, and has been instrumental in creating an overall strong culture of customer service with the students she works with,” said Ryan Lahne, senior associate director of Nebraska Unions.

The Rising Star Award is awarded to a student in each state in NASPA Region IV-West. Nominees must be actively involved with the division of student affairs at their institution and have intentions of pursuing a professional career in student affairs.