Congratulations – Steve Bobbit – 2017 Region II Award of Merit Recipient

The NIRSA Regional Awards of Merit recognize a professional from each NIRSA Region who demonstrates exceptional performance or dedication to NIRSA or the field of collegiate recreation on a statewide or regional basis. Steve Bobbit, James Madison University, the 2017 recipient has more than served our region and has now joined the ranks of the other dedicated Region II members who have been honored with our Award of Merit.

Steve was honored during the Member Network Connection Meeting in February at the Annual Conference. Below is Tom Roberts presentation from the Annual Conference:

As the previous winner and Chair of the selection committee, it is my great pleasure to be here today to present the 2017 NIRSA Region II Award of Merit

Last year I was emotionally overwhelmed and unable to come up with any words to thank you for this award.

There are so many deserving people in NIRSA, especially in Region 2.

Those who know me well know I am one of those behind the scenes people – and therefore I never really expected to win this award.

So to fly under the radar for all these years and have your friends and colleagues recognize you with this award – that was very special, and I am grateful and honored. Thank you!

At this time I would like to ask all previous winners to please stand and be recognized!!!

Last year, after receiving the award and returning to my seat, David Bowles said to me “congratulations Roberts, you are now the Chair of a NIRSA Committee!

I soon discovered, the winner of this award becomes the next year’s Chair of the nomination and selection Committee.

As much as I have done my best the past few years to dodge chairing any NIRSA Committees, this is a committee that I am honored to serve as the chair!

Last year Dale Ramsey, the previous winner, gave a very detailed description of the process that goes into selecting the Region II Award of Merit recipient.

In summary, our committee of five, myself and the other four previous winners.

David Bowles, Eric Hawkes, Eric Hunter, Dale Ramsey

We accept nominations, make a decision, and then I play secret spy and stalk this person.

Fortunately, this was an easy task because I am very familiar with this year’s recipient.

This comment from their supervisor really captures the essence of this person:

“They are not one to promote themselves or make a lot of fuss over their contributions. But if you talk to the people who have worked with them or been their cohorts, they will tell you about the impact that they have had on them. So if one of the tests for this award is the effect on others in our region through their service, then I think they are a tremendous candidate.”

From a colleague:

“They routinely think outside the box to develop ways that our campus can be involved in recreational activities outside the traditional methods typically conveyed to students in a campus recreation center.”

From a student:

“This person has been phenomenal at the role of encouraging us to exceed our expectations as well as the expectations of others.”

This year’s recipient is highly thought-of throughout NIRSA, and has been, and still is very active and involved in our profession.

Let me share with you a brief summary of some of their more significant accomplishments:

They have an impressive list of 16 consecutive years of national and international presentations at professional conferences.

Consultant for six different institutions.

Faculty and two time chair of the NIRSA National School of Recreational Sports Management.

Extraordinary list of honors includes receiving the award for Educator of the Year from the Association for Experiential Education, and NIRSA National Service Award.

Best known for their expertise in experiential and adventure leadership and programming, and student learning outcomes.

Faculty member in the Campus Recreation Leadership track for the Master’s Program at their institution and taught college classes in a wide variety of topics, ranging from management in sports, to river canoeing and rock climbing.

If canoeing and rock climbing has not eliminated some of you, then this probably will — HIS previous positions included social studies student teacher and assistant choir director.

To me – what really stands out about this year’s winner – that comes from the heart, which you won’t find on someone’s resume, is his relationships and commitment to STUDENTS.

A comment from his nomination letter:

“He leads the efforts every year to get students involved in conferences such as VRSA, NIRSA Region II and the NIRSA National Conference. He not only recruits them, but is passionate about securing financial assistance for them as well. He is a mentor to many young professionals in our field and most of their involvement in the profession was sparked by his efforts.”

My final and favorite quote from a student:

“I had the pleasure of going to a conference with him. It was my first conference, he made sure to introduce me to everyone he knew. He made me feel like I belonged. Also, whenever I see him in passing, he always takes the time to stop, greet me with a smile, look at me directly, and ask me how I am doing.”