A new university award has been created to recognize and celebrate the accomplishments and achievements of cross-departmental teams, large and small.

The nomination period for the inaugural One Team Award is underway with the deadline for applications set for Friday, July 23. University President Soraya M. Coley will announce the winner at Fall Convocation on Wednesday, Aug. 18.

Recipients of the annual award will be recognized for their impact on the campus community and how closely their projects and initiatives align with one or more of the university's core values of academic excellence, experiential learning, inclusivity, student learning and success, community engagement and social and environmental responsibility.

"The establishment of the One Team Award is a result of the natural evolution of CPP's Strategic Plan Initiative 5, which seeks to advance organizational development and employee excellence," said Jesús F. Ávalos, chair of the One Team Award Committee and the learning and development consultant with Employee and Organizational Development and Advancement. "To that end, the One Team Award focuses on recognizing and rewarding the achievements of cross-departmental teams that positively impact the campus community with an emphasis on our core values. The goal of the award is to acknowledge the great things we can accomplish when we reach out, share ideas, and work together toward a common vision."

Team members must represent two or more departments, with a minimum of three professional staff or faculty (90 percent of the team must be professional staff or faculty members). Projects or a defined milestone of a project must have been completed in the past year. The application will ask nominees to share how they accomplished their project goals, what innovations or efficiencies they discovered or developed in the process and how their cross-departmental collaboration improved outcomes.

Presidential-appointed teams with multiple leaders and staff members such as the Safer Return Task Force, Commencement Committee, Semester Conversion Committee, etc. do not qualify for this award.

Besides being recognized at Fall Convocation, each winning team member will receive a certificate of appreciation and $50 in Bronco Bucks. The winners also will join President Coley and the vice presidents for a celebratory lunch and be featured on the President's webpage for one year. A plaque or trophy honoring the winners will be displayed in a prominent location in the Student Services Building.

Celebrating the contributions faculty and staff make to the university is imperative, said Ávalos.

"The events of the past year have taught us many things and perhaps one of the most important lessons is how much we need each of our unique strengths, perspectives, and efforts to move forward as a CPP community and indeed, as a society," he said. "Our diversity is one of our greatest resources and being able to work with people from varied backgrounds allows us to share our singular gifts, bring out the best in ourselves, and make a greater impact than we might be able to individually. To borrow a phrase from the author Ola Joseph, 'Diversity is not about how we differ. Diversity is about embracing one another's uniqueness.'"

MediaVision Director Trevor Henderson, co-chair of the One Team Award Committee, said he knows firsthand the importance of coming together with others to work towards a common purpose.

"Cal Poly Pomona's greatest resource is our people - our faculty and staff. They are the ones that make an impact in our student's lives," he said. "No one is an island and when it comes to teamwork, one plus one really is greater than its sum. I know I can speak from personal experience that collaborating with colleagues outside of my department has given me the opportunity to be challenged and develop some of the work I'm most proud of in my career. Highlighting these important collaborations helps ensure we establish a campuswide culture of working together for the common goal of helping our students."