Karen Sweeney-Jett
Executive Administrative Assistant, Office of Institutional Advancement
2008-2009 University System of Maryland Board of Regents’ Award for Extraordinary Public Service to the University or the Greater Community

Throughout her 29 years of service at UMBC, Karen Sweeney-Jett has been widely recognized for her dedication, enthusiasm and commitment to creating a positive community at UMBC.

As an executive administrative assistant in the Office of Institutional Advancement (OIA), Sweeney-Jett plays a key role by supporting the administrative functions of the vice president and associate vice president.

Sweeney-Jett has advanced throughout her years at UMBC from an administrative assistant in both biological sciences and computer science departments to working in the President’s Office and then OIA. In these roles, she has accomplished a wealth of important projects including setting up administrative procedures for a new department and coordinating a number of special events.

She was one of the founding members of UMBC’s Classified State Senate and was later elected senate vice president and president. She developed and gained approval for guidelines for the Employee of the Month Award program. To raise funds for the Senate, she organized several events from bull roasts to flower marts. As a senator and leader, she has served on the Smoking, Athletics and Personal Policy Committees.

Since her promotion, Sweeney-Jett has played an important role in OIA. For several years, she has served as Chair of the Non-Exempt Excluded Staff Senate (NEESS) Holiday Open House, which has become a special event for UMBC. She eagerly does most of the work involved in coordinating this much-anticipated event because she is dedicated to enhancing the community.