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The 2026 excellence awards, sponsored each year by Markquart Motors, were presented to:

• Dr. Seungbin Oh, associate professor of accounting
• Brian Drollinger, director of risk management, safety and sustainability
• Dr. Pedro Sottile, professor and chair of accounting and finance
• Dr. Dorothy Chan, associate professor of English
• Nicole Owen, department assistant in mathematics
• Nichole Miller, post-traditional programming manager

Dr. Seungbin Oh, associate professor of accounting, received the Excellence in Advising Award

Dr. Seungbin Oh joined the UW-Eau Claire faculty in 2016 after completing his Ph.D. in accounting at the Seoul National University in Seoul, Korea. His teaching interests include all levels of accounting principles, financial accounting, financial analysis and international business.

Oh maintains a high level of published scholarship as well as a steady calendar of local, national and international presentations. He has served on multiple university and department committees and has been named three times as the Wipfli Accounting Faculty Fellow of the year.

The Excellence in Advising Award is student nominated, and the compilation of submitted letters on Oh’s behalf read, in part:

“Dr. Oh has gone above and beyond in helping students. He has led and advocated for many department immersion trips that provide unique intercultural learning experiences for students. He pushes students to become better versions of themselves through experiences like becoming a teaching assistant, a supplemental instruction leader or taking the opportunity to be a part of faculty-led collaborative research. Dr. Oh’s passion for course content and teaching is palpable, much like his positive attitude.”

While his early career was heavily focused on research, Oh says he has reached new levels of satisfaction from the elements of teaching that deeply engage students in conversation.

“As a professor, I believe that one of the most meaningful parts of my job is building relationships with the students,” Oh says. “I’ve realized that sometimes a short conversation with a student can have a much bigger impact on their life than my lectures can.”

Brian Drollinger, director of risk management, safety and sustainability, received the Professional Academic Staff Excellence in Performance Award

A graduate of the College of Business at UW-Eau Claire, Brian Drollinger has worked at the university for eight years, the last five of those as director of risk management, safety and sustainability.

Drollinger and his team work diligently to provide a safe and healthy environment for students, faculty, staff and visitors by identifying sources of risk or loss exposure and implementing corrective actions and continuous improvement initiatives.

A few key accomplishments of the unit under Drollinger’s direction have been updated safety plans for laboratories, classrooms, housing units and offices, along with routine inspections of automated external defibrillators, fire extinguishers, Narcan boxes and more. Drollinger also created a first aid/CPR certificate program free of charge for employees, a Safety Academy for student employees and new youth protection programming to ensure the safety of all kids visiting or staying on campus.

Brittney Hakes, human resources generalist and data analyst in RMSS, says that Drollinger’s core values of teamwork, collaboration and support have furthered the mission of UW-Eau Claire.

“Brian approaches his work with professionalism and collaboration,” Hakes says. “He has shown a genuine appreciation for the contributions of his colleagues and the input of team members. His leadership creates an empowering workplace.”

Drollinger is grateful for this honor and accepts the award while emphasizing the value of his whole team.

“Recognition for this type of award happens when there is a great team around the work,” Drollinger says. “I’d like to thank our team and their continued efforts in helping our department be of service to the campus community.”

Dr. Pedro Sottile, professor and chair of accounting and finance, received the Faculty Excellence in Service Award

Dr. Pedro Sottile joined the College of Business faculty in 2011 and has spent more than a decade exemplifying servant leadership, institutional commitment and a forward-looking vision that has elevated the academic experience for Blugold students.

In addition to his finance and accounting teaching, scholarship and prolific presentation calendar, Sottile has served consistently on department and university committees. He served as chair for 10 combined terms on the accounting and finance department personnel, finance curriculum and finance faculty recruitment committees since 2013. A few other key committee memberships over his tenure at UW-Eau Claire include the Accounting and Finance Scholarships Committee, Latin American Studies Scholarship Committee, College of Business Scholarship Committee, University Internal Review Committee for Economics, University Internal Review Committee for Political Science, University Faculty Senate Executive Committee, University Senate Technology Committee, University Complaint, Grievance and Termination Committee.

Sottile has also diligently served the profession throughout his career, in roles such as national and international journal review committees, textbook review committees and long-term membership in state, regional and national professional associations across the disciplines of finance, financial management and risk management.

In describing Sottile’s overall record of service to students, his department and the university, one nominator emphasized the rarity of his dedication.

“All his efforts combined demonstrate Dr. Sottile’s sustained commitment to high-impact service,” says Dr. Jean Pratt, associate dean of the College of Business. “Since 2015, he has consistently contributed service that far exceeds normal expectations. Dr. Sottile is an excellent candidate for his award.”

Sottile says he is humbled by this recognition of his successful campus service.

“I’m deeply honored to receive this service award,” Sottile says. “For me, it’s all about helping — helping students, helping my colleagues, helping my department and the university, however I can. I believe in contributing to make things better, and it’s nice to be valued for my contributions.”

Dr. Dorothy Chan, associate professor of English, received the Faculty Excellence in Scholarship Award

Dr. Dorothy Chan joined the English department faculty in fall 2019 and has since become a much-celebrated poet and editor with five published collections of poetry and two new collections under review with Deep Vellum. All have been received with high critical acclaim.

Chan’s poetry has been featured in many top-tier literary journals and magazines, and several pieces have been a finalist for prestigious poetry awards including the Theodore Roethke Memorial Prize, the Shelia Margaret Motton Prize, 2 Lambda Literary Awards and the Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowship. She has been nominated for over 8 Pushcart Prizes. Perhaps most notably, Chan’s work also has been nominated for the Pulitzer Prize and she was a 2019 recipient of the Philip Freund Prize in Creative Writing for excellence in publication from her alma mater, Cornell University.

Chan founded Honey Literary, a literary journal focused on Black, Indigenous and people of color, and served as editor-in-chief from 2020-25. Chan also served as book reviews co-editor for Pleiades from 2020-23 and poetry editor for Hobart from 2018-21. Breaking down barriers to expression and access to publication is a passion behind Honey Literary.

Chan’s colleague Dr. Erica Benson pointed out in nomination materials that Chan’s poetry is remarkable for several reasons:

“First, most of the poetry Dorothy has published is a form that she innovated: the triple sonnet. Secondly, nearly all the journals publishing her poems accept only 5% of submissions. Lastly, Dr. Chan’s scholarly record over a young seven-year career rivals the lifetime achievements of many creative writers and creative writing faculty,” says Benson, professor of English and director of the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs.

Chan’s passion for writing and teaching shines through in her shared thoughts about receiving this award.

“Mentorship is at the heart of everything that I do,” Chan says. “I owe so much to my poetry lineage, my poetry family, all of whom are astounding poets and writers. My life goal would be to achieve even a fraction of their legacy. As a faculty member here, to help and mentor the next generation of writers and poets is a thing of beauty.”

Nicole Owen, department assistant in mathematics, received the University Staff Excellence in Performance Award

Nicole Owen, department assistant in mathematics, began working at UW-Eau Claire in 2008 and has been hailed by colleagues as “the person who keeps the math department functioning.”

Owen is known for her leadership, dedication, positive attitude and vast institutional knowledge. Since 2016, she has served on the University Staff Council and was elected chair in 2020. She also served for two years as chair of the Professional Development Committee, leading the charge to create educational, fun and community- building programming for faculty and staff.

Above and beyond the committees and daily tasks of the ADA position, Owen oversees and helps supervise student employees in mathematics, coordinates and attends all department events and has been the “friendly face and spirit” of mathematics for 18 years.

One recent student employee remarked that Owen was more than a supervisor and mentor, saying, “I began working for the department as a freshman and stayed on until I graduated, because of Nicole. She went out of her way to make me feel welcome at UW-Eau Claire.”

Owen says she is humbled and grateful for this award that acknowledges the work she loves, work that she feels comes naturally to her.

“I also want to acknowledge that without the support of my team, my department and the University Staff Council members, I would not be standing here today for this recognition,” Owen says. “I thank you all for helping me to support students on their journey.”

Nichole Miller, post-traditional program manager in the College of Health and Human Sciences, received the Excellence in Community Building Award

Nichole Miller, a graduate of UW-Eau Claire, began her work at the university in 2008 as an academic department assistant in the music and theatre arts department.

After subsequently serving several years as an academic advisor in the Advising, Retention and Career Center, Miller transitioned to post-traditional program manager in 2025. Her career across campus has consistently been characterized as one rooted in “communication, equality and transparency.”

Most recently, the central focus of Miller’s work has been the implementation, pilot and successful launch of UW-Eau Claire’s bachelor’s degree in professional studies, which has graduated nearly 100 students in just two years. In building a degree designed to “meet students where they are,” Miller helped bring the following key changes:

• Advanced credit for prior learning opportunities, which will allow students to earn credits for a portfolio of professional work completed.
• Advanced online learning opportunities on the Vision 2030 Online Implementation Team.
• Implementation of the Prison Education Initiative at UW-Eau Claire. In May, a group of incarcerated individuals at the Stanley Correctional Facility completed bachelor’s degrees in professional studies. These were among the first incarcerated individuals in the state to have this opportunity in more than 40 years.

Miller says she is humbled and grateful both for this recognition and for the chance to work in a place where “people are willing to push boundaries to make new things happen.”

“I want to thank the people who nominated me for this award; I’m very honored,” Miller says. “This really belongs to everyone on this campus who builds this community that supports flexibility and access for post-traditional students.”