Going Above and Beyond: 2017 Harlan Employee Award Winners

Last updated on: October 10, 2023

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Congratulations to the recipients of Wiley University Services’ 2017 Harlan Employee Recognition Award, an annual award that recognizes individual employees who have gone above and beyond their basic set of job requirements. This year we celebrate three individuals who were nominated by their colleagues for their outstanding efforts and positive impact on those around them.

2017 Harlan Award Winners

  • Roger McMullan (Chicago, IL)

About Roger:

Roger has been with Wiley for more than three years and serves as a visual designer on the Academic Services’ Media Team. He spends the majority of his time creating graphics, visual guidelines, storyboards, layouts, and user experience (UX) flows, plus the occasional treasure hunt for his team. He is currently working to obtain his UX certification.

Originally from Maryland, Roger has also lived in Ohio, Utah, and Brazil. He is an active member of his community, dedicating time to both his church and scout troop. In his free time, he enjoys the outdoors, working on entrepreneurial pursuits, and spending time with his two favorite women – his wife and daughter.

What His Colleagues Have to Say:

“Roger is relentlessly positive and his sunshine-y attitude really makes coming into the office every day a pleasure. He makes people feel welcome and appreciated and that kind of attitude is contagious!”

“Roger is an invaluable contributor to the culture of Academic Services in the Oak Brook office; in addition to being our safety officer and the Academic Services representative to the Culture Club, Roger also routinely goes above and beyond by lending his artistic talents to support his coworkers. If you need an image for a last-minute presentation or an Innovation Challenge submission or a flyer for a cause you believe in, Roger’s almost always happy to help with a smile. This is a nice place to work because of people like Roger who demonstrate care and support each and every day.”

  • Abdul Qayum (Chichester, United Kingdom)

About Qayum:

Qayum is a Senior Learning Technologist at Wiley. He is very much a self-starter and enjoys exploring new areas of online education, such as blockchain, digital credentials, and holographic professors.

Prior to Wiley, he worked in a multifaceted role as an online course developer at the University of Portsmouth’s School of Education and Childhood Studies, and the Institute of Criminal Justice Studies. There he gained invaluable experiences delivering distance learning courses with a team comprised of theatre actors, graphic designers, animators, and PhD researchers.

When not spending time working with Wiley’s university partners, Qayum likes taking trips to Camden and East London to explore the area’s quirky street art. Growing up, he enjoyed playing basketball, and was a really good point guard! He still plays occasionally, when the lungs permit it…

What His Colleagues Have to Say:

“Qayum has been an invaluable part of the Academic Services’ team in Chichester since the team first came together in mid-2015. As the sole Learning Technologist for two years, he was our vanguard in getting Wiley’s first UK-based university partner up and running, and regularly did out-of-hours work and extended hours to ensure our partner‘s colleagues got the support they needed. He is very well recognized, relied upon by all of our collaborators on campus, and very highly respected for his helpfulness and efficiency.”

  • Lisa Baquero (Orlando, FL)

About Lisa:

Lisa has been with Wiley for three and a half years and currently serves as an Admissions Manager for one of Wiley’s top-ranked US university partners. Recently, she has dedicated her time to several new business initiatives designed to improve student experiences for Wiley’s partner schools.

Lisa was born in Fairfax, Virginia where she lived for almost ten years before moving to Winter Springs, FL. She grew up playing several sports – soccer, which she played from age three until her sophomore year of college, and lacrosse, which she played on the first Women’s lacrosse team at Rollins College. Nowadays, Lisa finds that she watches sports more than playing after having two children who have become her whole world.

Colleagues’ nominations for Lisa alluded to her having a tough year personally and this award truly means a lot to her. Work helped her to keep moving forward, so she thanks everyone for their support.

What Her Colleagues Have to Say:

“Lisa’s positive ‘can do’ attitude is demonstrated by both her student-facing and colleague interactions…she is always looking for innovative ways to improve in her role.”

“Despite going through personal challenges herself, Lisa maintained a strong dedication to her job and did her best to keep smiling through the struggles.”

“Lisa is a solutions-oriented member of the team that has assisted our partner universities in achieving their highest online enrollment periods in Wiley history, and epitomized our core values personally and professionally to help the team achieve this goal.”

History of the Harlan Award

The Harlan Employee Recognition Award received its name from a pivotal member of the Wiley University Services family, Shari Harlan. Harlan joined the organization in 2003 and was instrumental to the formation of the sales organization. In 2004, Shari was diagnosed with breast cancer. As she tackled aggressive treatments, Shari’s smile and zest for life did not fade. Facing insurmountable challenges, she continued to focus on her job, the passion she felt about her position at Wiley, and how she was helping students achieve their educational goals by advancing online learning. She was often heard telling others, “Don’t let anyone get in the way of you doing your job” – a phrase still repeated in our offices today. Shari was a friend, mentor, and inspiration to many.

See our 2016 Harlan Award recipients.

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