Classified staff honored for service

12/12/2025

When the time comes to arrange travel for work, SUNY Cortland faculty and staff members usually encounter Kathy Timian.

Timian, the travel administrator in SUNY Cortland’s Purchasing and Accounts Payable Office, is a calm, helpful and understanding presence for any university employee who makes a trip for their job.

She was honored on Dec. 12 with the prestigious 2025 President’s Award for Excellence in Classified Service.

Since 2022, Timian has — efficiently, effectively and with a real human touch — handled employee travel reimbursements, administered the Travel and NET Card service, managed job candidate travel expenses and served as the backup official to the procurement card (P-Card) administrator.

“Kathy has consistently gone above and beyond in her travel administrator role,” said SUNY Cortland President Erik J. Bitterbaum.

“Her dedication to improving the travel process across campus has been exceptional,” he said. “Her professionalism and genuine care for others has made a significant, positive impact across campus.”

The President’s Award for Excellence in Classified Service was created in 2002 to annually spotlight one SUNY Cortland full-time classified service employee “for extraordinary achievement and to encourage the continuation of excellence.” Nominees must have at least three years of continuous service. Supervisors, co-workers or other university community members nominate workers considered for this honor.

The honor traditionally is presented at the annual Service Awards Ceremony, a 56-year-old event for classified employees with a holiday luncheon in Corey Union sponsored by the Human Resources Office.

At this year’s event, Bitterbaum presented Timian with a plaque to acknowledge her outstanding service to the university.

With more than 25 years in the SUNY system, Timian joined SUNY Cortland in Fall 2022 as a program aide/travel card administrator. Previously, she worked at SUNY Morrisville in the purchasing and institutional advancement offices. Before that, she was employed by SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, N.Y.

“Kathy is always willing to pick up the phone to walk someone through a form or go over any questions, such as the status of a travel authorization or reimbursement,” said Timian’s supervisor, Casey Avery, associate director of purchasing and accounts payable.

“Kathy has a way of making folks feel heard and understood,” Avery said. “… (She) always puts herself in their shoes and realizes that not everyone handles travel on a daily basis. She explains things in a way for all to understand.”

Timian’s flexibility and creativity in her work are what made her stand out as candidate. She has taken the initiative to lead multiple campuswide travel trainings, ensuring that faculty and staff remain well-informed and confident in navigating complex travel procedures.

“She’s always thinking of ways to help make understanding the travel guidelines easier for campus,” Avery said.

For example, Timian helped create business card-sized informational guides so employees attending to university business away from campus can quickly review the established policies, Avery noted. Stored inside wallets next to the Travel and NET cards, the guides explain which card to use and when.

Timian is also very flexible in her approach to informing the campus community. She is willing to juggle her schedule to conduct group, office, department or individual travel trainings as requested. Timian offers multiple tools to help users of the campus travel process. She adapts well to changes in procedures.

A thorough professional, Timian always researches answers to questions. When needed, she consults with other SUNY schools or the travel office for the New York State Comptroller before assisting with interpreting travel guidelines.

“When others in our office might be overwhelmed with a project, Kathy is always one of the first to ask how she can assist,” Avery said.

Timian is known for being an excellent cook and is a big fan of Disney. She is married to Jeff and has a son, Nate, and a granddaughter, Dani.

Also during the luncheon, 45 classified staff members were honored for a collective 550 years of service, as follows:

25 YEARS