Margie Varnado, an accountant in the School of Nursing, is the recipient of this year's EXCEL Award. The EXCEL (Employee Exemplifying Continued Excellence in Leadership) Award is presented each year to a member of the nursing school staff for outstanding performance. According to Assistant Dean for Administration and Finance Gene Kirschbaum, Varnado "has done a lot with getting the faculty, staff and students involved with community activities. She chairs a committee on community activities and organizes staff to meet community needs." Kirschbaum also praised Varnado as "a very good person with very innovative ideas for getting the school out into the community."