Photo shows Donovan Award winners Dave and Sharron Paris with Jack Cook, right, president of MTU chapter of Blue Key National Honor Fraternity. Photo shows Donovan Award winners Dave and Sharron Paris with Jack Cook, right, president of MTU chapter of Blue Key National Honor Fraternity.
Dave and Sharron Paris of Houghton have been selected this year's winners of the Clair M. Donovan Award for outstanding service. The award is presented annually by the Michigan Tech chapter of Blue Key National Honor Fraternity to a member of the faculty, staff, or student body at MTU who has contributed the most outstanding service during the previous year. This year marks the first time in the 36-year history of the award that there have been co-recipients.
The award is made in honor of Clair M. Donovan, who through his many years of service as national president of Blue Key, as an MTU alumnus, and as a civic leader, made immeasurable contributions to the public image and prosperity of Michigan Tech.
In presenting the coveted award to the Paris's at a banquet Friday evening, Blue Key President Jack Cook cited the couple for both their professional and personal efforts to help students.
"Dave spent countless hours making sure the newly established web registration system worked as it should," he said. "After helping to complete that monstrous task, he decided he should stick around after hours to see that everything went well when students starting using the system. This meant spending many nights at the office that went well past midnight.
"Sharron spends every day ensuring that the Office of Student Records and Registration helps students in every way possible. She assisted in creating and setting up the University's student information system, and she has on numerous occasions used her personal time to help coworkers.
"Together, Dave and Sharron have been a staple at Michigan Tech athletic events for years, attending almost all MTU home games and many of the away contests. This year they drove all the way to Kentucky to support the men's and women's basketball teams as they competed in their respective NCAA Division II tournaments. In addition, they have always been willing to welcome a student into their home while he or she found more permanent housing. We are truly blessed to have them here."
Dave and Sharron married 32 years ago, in 1968, the same year he graduated from MTU with a B.S. in civil engineering. He played offensive tackle on the Huskies football team from 1965-68 and in 1967 was named the team's Most Valuable Player. He received his M.S. in civil engineering, also from Michigan Tech, in 1971. Since 1984 he has worked in various positions in administrative computing in the University's Department of Information Technology. He is a member of Chi Epsilon, Tau Beta Phi, and Phi Kappa Phi honor fraternities, is a former alumni representative on the MTU Athletic Council, and a current member of the Founder's Society and the MTU Football Advisory Council. He is also a volunteer construction worker with the local Habitat for Humanity chapter and is an active scuba diver. He has introduced several MTU students to scuba diving and encouraged them to obtain their diving license.
Sharron joined the MTU Information Technology staff in 1978, transferred to Enrollment Management in 1991, and in 1998 was named Director of Student Records and Registration. She added the title of University Registrar in 1999. She has served on numerous MTU committees and boards, including the Huskies Club Board of Directors, Security Privacy and Ethics Committee, Staff Council, Calendar Issues Clarification Committee, Calendar Transition Advisory Committee, and the Administration Evaluation Commission. For her support of MTU athletics, she has received both the Honorary "M" and an Honorary Varsity Blanket. She is a Founder's Society member, a former advisor to Delta Zeta Sorority, a member of St. Anne's church choir, and a former member of the Calumet Players and Copper Country Choral.
Dave and Sharron were co-recipients of the Ken Hamar Award in 1989.
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