The 2012 Fall Convocation marked a time of new beginnings for Baker University, but it also reflected on some of the school’s accomplishments over the past year.

One of the main accomplishments for the university was the construction of the Ivan L. Boyd Center for Collaborative Science Education, and two individuals were recognized for their efforts on the project.

Professor of Biology Darcy Russell and Jeremy Portlock, director of the physical plant, were both honored at the end of Convocation and were applauded by those in attendance.

Portlock was recognized first by University President Pat Long as he received the Piper Rainen Outstanding Staff Award.

Rainen graduated from BU in 2007 with a Bachelor’s of Science and her family raised the funds for the award.

“This award was established for extraordinary efforts of staff in dealing with and for the betterment of (the) student population at Baker,” Long said. “I can think of no one more deserving this year than the person who worked day, night and weekends to ensure that students had an outstanding science facility open this fall.”

Russell followed Portlock, but she was not prepared for the announcement Long was about to make for her award.

“The criteria includes significant and substantial service to the university community as a whole. The first recipient of the Darcy Russell Outstanding Service Award is Dr. Darcy Russell,” Long said.

Russell explained that she was in “total shock” when Long announced that the Outstanding Faculty Service Award had been named in her honor.

“What did she say? Did she say my name?” Russell said. “I don’t know. It was just the most surreal moment I’ve had in a long time. I was not expecting it.”

While Russell was thrilled to be honored with the award, she is also excited about how the Boyd Center is already serving as a place for active learning and as a tool for bringing in future students and professors.

“It was really hard to recruit faculty into that old building,” Russell said. “Why would you want to come work at Baker if that is where you were doing work? It was awful. It was really hard to recruit students, particularly students from high schools like Blue Valley that were nicer than that building by a long shot, and so now we have this and this is an ultimate recruiting tool.”