Mair and Marbury Honored: Promoting the Great and Good

The Leonard Sandridge Awards are the highest honors the University gives to its employees. Each year, selections are made based on the work the nominees do to make the lives of students, faculty, staff and patients not just easier in their spheres of influence, but better overall. The recent awardees include two UVAFinance team members Jacob Mair, financial accounting and reporting analyst, and Patty Marbury, finance director of training and development. Our team is fortunate to know first-hand the influence these dedicated team members have on living out UVA’s aim of being “great and good.”

Jacob, with UVAFinance for almost four years, prepares the audited financial statements, overseeing year-end close procedures, ensuring adoption on all new accounting rules and coordinating with both the Auditor of Public Accounts and the Commonwealth Department of Accounts and its sub-systems and has taken a lead role in the Finance Strategic Transformation project.

According to Nicole Ferretti, FST financial lead, “Whether it is leading an effort that involves cross-functional collaboration, drilling into complex financial principles, or sitting with our stakeholders over countless Zooms and in-person sessions, Jacob is always willing to go the extra mile to get everyone across Grounds comfortable with how our financials will look in future state. He never backs down from a challenge and, as you can imagine, there are always a few to go around when it comes to FST.”

Always focused and dedicated, Jacob didn’t even consider he would be recognized for his incredible contributions.

“I was surprised to be notified of the award,” he says. “I am honored someone would even consider nominating me; many others deserved it just as much as I did.”

Of his role with FST he says, “The project is challenging and massive in terms of scope and the options Workday makes available to us. This change will impact the everyday work with do in UVAFinance and for the university as a whole, it will certainly impact most internal and external financial reports that are available and produced.”

Patty oversees programs to enable the University community to understand and navigate the complex financial environment. She serves as the training and development expert on the FST project’s Change Management workstream

“Over the past 20 years, Patty has made many meaningful contributions, but her performance across multiple dimensions in 2021 has truly distinguished her,” wrote nominator William L. Ashby, associate vice president for financial strategy.

In addition to the dynamic initiatives she manages, Patty leads the Inclusive Excellence Committee and has brought in recruitment training and organized dynamic discussions and a book group.

“Leading the Inclusive Excellence team has been both a challenge and an honor, She says. “The most meaningful part is developing relationships with the people I’ve been working with on the team, especially our group who plan the bi-weekly Sprint discussions. We’ve had deep and honest discussions and have become close friends. Inclusive Excellence has benefited UVAFinance in that we’re working on making diversity, equity, and inclusion a part of who we are, not just another initiative. My hope is that we continue to work toward creating a culture where everyone feels welcomed, respected, and valued, and who, like me, want to stay at UVA.”

No one on the UVAFinance team is surprised to learn of Patty’s recent honor but she was, “I was completely surprised! I am truly honored. I’m so grateful to my manager, colleagues, and especially my team. Without them, I would not have been able to do the work I do for which I’m being honored. They are exceptional people.”

Read more about the UVA Leonard Sandridge awards here.