NACAS, the largest auxiliary and ancillary services support organization serving higher education, named Deborah T. Huebler, CASP, Executive Director of Auxiliary Services at the University of Houston, winner of the Volunteer of the Year Award at the C3X 2020 Virtual Annual Conference & Expo.
The Volunteer of the Year Award recognizes a member who has demonstrated exceptional volunteer work, at the regional and/or national level, that supports the NACAS mission. Nominees for this award are individuals that have reached out to meet others in the organization, demonstrated exceptional work on a NACAS committee, unselfishly worked with others to improve the association and its mission, and/or performed services or tasks that are not part of their normal assignments.
“I feel so very undeserving being here. I know firsthand how many people it takes to keep this organization running at such high standards. And in addition to the outstanding staff at NACAS it does take an army of dedicated volunteers to put all the programs and services together,” said Huebler. “From the webinars, to the roundtables to conferences, and then trying to figure out how to put together the same content in a virtual format, so that we can still offer relevant and current information. That is the exact kind of information that we need right now as we navigate through this unprecedented pandemic situation.”
“It’s a little surreal to be the one person selected for this award among the sea of super talented and dedicated people because none of us can do it alone,” Huebler said. “We’re all going through these trying times right now, and yet here we all are, still working with and helping each other, not just figuring out how to survive, but figuring out how to thrive and evolve to be whatever it is that our stakeholders need us to be.”
Huebler embodies the ideal volunteer engagement of a NACAS member from many perspectives. As a member, she attends every education session (all the way to the very end of the conference), passionate to learn more about how to improve her services. She also commits to attending virtual learning opportunities, to grow and enhance her knowledge year-round. This is also demonstrated by her commitment to passing the certified auxiliary services professional (CASP) exam in 2015.
In her regional leadership capacity, Huebler has served as NACAS West President in 2017-18. She also was recognized by her peers for her leadership role in ensuring the incredible success of the NACAS West/Central joint CX conference in 2019. Until her transition to the University of
Houston in 2020, she also represented the West Region on the NACAS Board of Directors. In her Board service, she always emulated a spirit of service, volunteering to support in a number of capacities, and with a constant commitment to representing the Board's goal of inclusive excellence in all she does.
“NACAS has always been there for us and we should continue to be there for them. It is through my association with NACAS that I have learned necessary skills of how to evolve in my role and to grow both personally and professionally,” Heubler said. “When you are really involved with NACAS, you’re going to learn things, and give and receive help and support in ways you never could have imagined. This help that you give and receive will change you and others in deep and profound ways. That’s what NACAS is all about.”