Dr. Fred Fuentes Named First Staff Member of the Month

The University Staff Council named Dr. Fernando “Fred” Fuentes Jr. the Staff Member of the Month for October 2015.

Fuentes is the assistant dean of Enrollment Management for Hispanic Outreach and Retention at A&M-Commerce. Throughout his time at A&M-Commerce, he has also worked as a therapist and co-created the Sophomore Year Experience. Fuentes was the first awardee of Staff Member of the Month at A&M-Commerce.

Fuentes was the first in his family to graduate from high school. He began his career in the United States Army in numerous Military Police Battalions throughout the U.S. and in international bases. He has been a foster parent to over 15 children over the course of six years, and two of those children are now a permanent part of his family.

“I think the recognition is a beautiful representation of the formation and importance of the new Staff Council,” said Fuentes. “Receiving this recognition from my peers is a wonderful way of fostering an environment where team work and team play can lead to overall team success. Anything we can do to make our university employees feel good about working at this amazing institution will assist in the continued motivation to serve our students and our university community!”

The University Staff Council's mission is to serve as a representative voice for all staff members at A&M-Commerce and to serve as a liaison between university staff and upper administration. The Council wishes to support university staff and improve the sense of community among university employees.

“Part of the University Staff Council mission is ‘Providing Staff Recognition Services,' so to that end the Council developed and implemented the Staff Member of the Month program,” said James Vanbebber, member of the Staff Council. “Faculty, staff, and students can nominate any staff member who has demonstrated the university's values of integrity, innovation, and imagination. A committee of three council members reviews each nomination and rates it as to the criteria for the award.  In our first month of accepting nominations we received over 40 nominations.”

For more on the University Staff Council, visit www.tamuc.edu/staffcouncil.