On Thursday, May 1, the College of Science celebrated its faculty and staff with awards and recognition at its annual awards ceremony. Many genetics and biochemistry departmental members were honored with nominations and awards.
Alison Starr Moss – Dean’s Distinguished Lecturer Award
James Morris – Dean’s Distinguished Professor Award
Heidi Anderson – Excellence in Teaching Award
Rick Moseley – Outstanding Staff Member Award
G&B Advising and Registration Services Team – Oustanding Team Award
Crystal Pitts (left) and Ashley Anthony (right) joined the Department of Genetics and Biochemistry staff.
Crystal Pitts
In May the Department of Genetics and Biochemistry welcomed Crystal Pitts as their new graduate program coordinator.
Crystal, originally from Brooklyn, NY, has lived in the Upstate for most of her life. She graduated from Lander University in 2022 with a degree in Business Administration and is set to receive her MBA in Digital Brand Communications from Clemson University in August 2024.
As our Graduate Services Coordinator, Crystal provides administrative support in planning, designing, and implementing graduate degree programs in the Department of Genetics and Biochemistry. She serves as primary representative for initiating and maintaining academic and payroll records for enrolled students and assisting with student recruitment.
A fun fact about Crystal is that she used to be a 9-1-1 dispatcher for both Clemson University Police Department and Anderson County Sheriff’s Office. Outside of work, you can find her listening to jazz at Blues Boulevard, dining at her favorite Greenville restaurants Coral and Konnichiwa, or spending time with her husband and two cats, Zira and Olan.
“I am excited for the opportunity to work with student and faculty to make the upcoming Fall 2024 semester one of the best experiences,” says Crystal.
Ashley Anthony
The department recently welcomed Ashley Anthony, the new accounts payable and receivable accountant to their staff.
Ashley was born and raised in just around the corner in Pickens, SC and graduated from Pickens High School in 2001. Ashley has many years of accounting experience and recently left Blue Ridge Electric in the Customer Service Department after 11 years of service.
As our accounts payable and receivable accountant, Ashely handles all purchasing, invoicing, and reimbursement needs. She is the go-to person for all Concur, Buyways and day-to-day accounting needs.
A fun fact about Ashley is that she has fostered children and keeps in touch with some of them! She has three kids and is engaged to be married. Ashley’s favorite place to be is her lake house on Hartwell spending time with friends and family.
“I am honored to have gotten this opportunity to be with such great people. I am very blessed to work with such a great team!”
The College of Science faculty and staff awards celebration was held Tuesday, April 30, 2024, in the Life Sciences Building atrium.
Two members of the Department of Genetics and Biochemistry team were honored with awards at the recent College of Science Faculty and Staff Awards ceremony: senior lecturer Dr. Kimberly Métris and office manager Meredith Bradley.
Dr. Kimberly Métris was awarded the College of Science Excellence in Student Engagement Award, which honors a faculty member who has demonstrated excellence in service and innovation in teaching, with emphasis on the most recent three years.
She has developed a Creative Inquiry, a new experiential learning course and a project with a new, unique presentation method, all while mentoring at least 30 graduated students. Dr. Métris’ students thrive in and out of the classroom with at least six of her undergraduate students conducting field, lab, and bioinformatics research and five winning university awards over the last few years.
A student wrote, “As I told Dr. Métris, she was truly born to teach.”
Meredith Bradley was awarded the endowed 2024 Hattie B. Wagener Award, which is named after Hattie Boone Wagener, a long-time administrative staff member at Clemson. The award recognizes an individual who readily and routinely exceeds stated job expectations and presents a positive work attitude.
Meredith came to the department with a wealth of experience in administrative support roles in business environments in October 2021 as the administrative assistant. Department chair David Clayton said he quickly came to appreciate her capacity for thinking strategically about what needed to get done, why and when.
In just a couple short years, Meredith was juggling two jobs for the department: one the role for which she was first hired and the other by covering more duties for the department’s human relations and payroll liaison. After the HR person resigned in summer of 2023, Meredith quickly stepped into the role while continuing to serve as the chair’s direct administrative assistant.
Meredith has become the go-to person for the faculty and staff of the Genetics and Biochemistry Department. She leads the office with purposefulness and consistently exceeds expectations.
Congratulations to both Dr. Métris and Meredith on their accomplishments. We can’t wait to see what you achieve in the future!
