Meet Kevin Garland, Recipient of the 2017 Employee of the Year and Gloe L. Bertram Awards
Every academic year, the College hosts several distinguished nurse leaders and sends faculty, staff and students to conferences, presentations and other events in the U.S. and around the world. Working behind the scenes to get them to their destinations is this year’s Employee of the Year and Gloe L. Bertram award winner, Kevin Garland, College of Nursing travel and purchasing coordinator.
The Employee of the Year Award is given in honor of a staff member who makes a substantial contribution to the College. The Gloe Bertram Award is given in honor of Mrs. Bertram, administrative assistant to the Dean who served the College of Nursing for 20 years. Recipients are described as committed, conscientious, efficient, competent, calm and serene.
“Kevin is our travel guru and keeps up with a myriad of details,” notes his nominator for the Employee of the Year Award. “He can be counted on to jump in when needed and works quickly to solve any problems. The College is lucky to have him!”
With 20 years of experience, Garland is an expert on reimbursement policies. He was a crucial part of the team that developed the new SAP Travel System – TRIP, and has been instrumental in training faculty and staff.
Janie Heath, PhD, APRN-BC, FAAN, dean and Warwick Professor of Nursing, witnesses firsthand Garland’s dedication to excellence in travel and purchase coordination. “Kevin is always a team player, and his expertise allows for smooth travel arrangements and responsible purchasing. We can depend on Kevin to get the job done.”
Garland, a Lexington native, grew up living on Keeneland’s grounds as his father worked as a groundskeeper for 42 years. In 1997, he came to the University of Kentucky to work in undergraduate admissions. Four years later, he began his career in travel coordination in the UK Athletics Department. He then worked for the Health Profession Colleges’ Integrated Business Unit (IBU) prior to coming to the College of Nursing in August 2014.
“Kevin’s smile and sense of humor is contagious,” notes one of Kevin’s nominators. “He is very helpful and understand—we need more Kevins at the University.”
Garland is an active member of the Lexington Sports and Social Club, where he’s played kickball since 2010. In 2016, he joined the Bluegrass Barons, a vintage baseball team – the only one in Kentucky. According to the Lexington Harald-Leader, “teams play using vintage rules, and they wear period uniforms and use period authentic equipment – wooden bats and no gloves.” Prior to this, Garland served as the president of his daughter’s Lafayette High School Girls Soccer Booster Club for two years and currently coaches his son’s recreational soccer team.
