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St. Cloud State University
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SCSU administrator earns award
By Kateri Wozny
Published:
Thursday, February 13, 2003
In a time when finances are a tough issue, some light is on the horizon thanks to the recent award given by Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (MnSCU).
Diana Burlison, associate vice president for administrative affairs, received the 2002 Outstanding Service Award at the Chief Financial and Facilities Officers meeting Jan. 28.
Burlison was one of the seven individuals from Minnesota awarded in publicly funded colleges and universities. She was nominated by President Roy Saigo and Steve Ludwig, interim vice president for Administrative Affairs.
"(We nominated her) because she is a good person and has provided good services to SCSU," Ludwig said. "She has provided remarkable service during a difficult time. The financial position has improved the last couple of years and it will be easier to manage than otherwise. When we meet, the impact on students is always the first priority discussion."
The award is presented in recognition of outstanding contributions toward furthering professionalism in financial management or other contributions in the field of financial reporting, data integrity, internal controls, budget development and monitoring. Other recognitions include outstanding contributions toward furthering professionalism in facilities management, or other contributions in the field of facilities/physical plant maintenance, operations and management.
"It is pretty cool (to win the award) and I am very honored," Burlison said.
Burlison is originally from Hibbing, an area where the only work that was available was related to iron-ore.
"I did not want to work in the mines, so I decided to get an education and leave Hibbing," she said.
Burlison received her associate of arts degree in accounting from Duluth Area Technical Institute in 1974. She later went on to receive her bachelor of arts degree in public administration from SCSU in 1989.
She also currently has all of her coursework done to receive her Masters in educational administration from SCSU.
"I still need to work on my thesis," Burlison said.
From 1977-1997, Burlison worked in Business Services and was responsible for accounts payable, receiving and distributing financial aid, collecting Perkins loans, inventory and accounting.
"I learned (while working in Business Services) that it is the people you work with everyday and the students that come to SCSU are the most important," Burlison said.
In 2001 she was promoted from assistant vice president for financial management and budget to her current position. She is responsible for business services, human resources, printing services, financial aid and scholarships, public safety and parking facilities, the Husky Bookstore, administrative information services and foodservice at SCSU.
Although Burlison's job comes with many challenges, she is ready to conquer them all.
"(The thing I like the most about my job) is working with numbers, the budget and being creative about solutions," she said. "I also like sharing information with people so that they understand it. Anything that comes through to me I try and solve it."
On occasion, Burlison will also work individually with students.
"When students have issues, suggestions or things they want considered at SCSU, I try to be a good listener and address their concerns as best as I can," she said.
However, like every person, Burlison also has things she dislikes about her job, namely insurance.
"Handling issues and questions that come up on campus is not my strongest area of expertise," she said.
Currently, however, the biggest challenge in front of Burlison is the budget.
"I think we are going to have allocation cuts and we have to look at how we charge tuition carefully and reduce some expenditures on campus," she emphasized. "I would like to see us continue with the budget balanced, with tuition raises reasonable and that we can continue to let a wide variety of students come to SCSU," she said.
Aside from her job, Burlison has also been the proud adviser of Student Government since 2001.
"I like being involved with the students," she said.
When she is not dealing with administrative issues or tackling the budget, Burlison enjoys attending special and athletic events. She especially likes the SCSU hockey games.
"We have the best hockey arena around," she said. "It is loud and that is how hockey should be."
Burlison also enjoys her two cats that she adopted from the Tri-County Humane Society, Pebbles and Bam-Bam, riding her motorcycle in the summer, golfing and occasionally cross-country skiing in the winter.
"I like all the seasons that Minnesota has to offer," she said.
She is also proud of her two nieces, Beverly and Karen, and her great nephew, Andrew.
"They are great and are fun," she said.
