This month’s Hero Award recipients are (from left) Sadie Weiss, Tina Hyken and Cedric Carr. (Photos by Derik Holtmann)

University of Missouri–St. Louis Chancellor Kristin Sobolik and her cabinet continue to recognize the exemplary efforts of staff and faculty members from across campus by bestowing the UMSL Hero Award on up to three individuals each month.

This month’s honorees are Sadie Weiss, the associate director in the Office of Precollegiate Student Services; Tina Hyken, the director of budget and financial planning in the Division of Finance and Operations; and Cedric Carr, a lieutenant with the UMSL Police Department.

Sadie Weiss

Weiss had been back living in her hometown of St. Louis for a little more than two years, working on student engagement programming at Fontbonne University, when a position with the UMSL Bridge Program presented itself in 2020.

For nearly 40 years, UMSL’s signature precollegiate program has been providing comprehensive educational programming to thousands of students and parents in the St. Louis region to boost college readiness and help them persist toward college degrees.

“I had heard really good things about the program from someone I worked with at Fontbonne who knew about it,” Weiss said. “Hearing about the longstanding history and tradition of the program and how much it seemed like it did for the St. Louis community, it really drew me. That idea of truly feeling like I could give back and be part of a program that was so focused on giving back to students in St. Louis was important to me.”

The past four years have only strengthened her belief that she made the right decision.

“Getting to work with middle school and high school students and seeing their growth is really amazing,” Weiss said. “We have some students who join us as a seventh or eighth grader and stick with us into high school, so to see them learn and grow and evolve and to discover what their strengths are and what their interests are – it’s really beautiful to witness that and be a part of that.”

But Weiss has been far from a passive observer during her time at UMSL. Rather, she’s been involved in every aspect of the program, working to improve the services it provides students and families.

That’s what motivated Executive Director Channon Peoples to nominate Weiss for the Hero Award.

“She embodies dedication, passion and empathy that sets her apart as the ultimate candidate for this recognition,” Peoples wrote in her nomination. “Sadie always makes the day brighter and is committed to transforming the lives of the students we serve through the Office of Precollegiate Student Services. I am honored to work alongside her.  She is truly a joy to know and strives to improve our services daily. She is intentional in her efforts to ensure that students have the resources and support necessary to succeed in their postsecondary dreams.”

The combination of service and education has been central to Weiss’ work throughout her adult life, starting with the time she spent in the Peace Corps – in Cape Verde, Mozambique and in the organization’s national headquarters in Washington, D.C. She spent time as a school social worker while earning her MSW from the University of Tennessee in 2018.

Last year, Weiss ran for and won a seat on the St. Louis Public Schools Board of Education. She sees that, in some ways, as an extension of her work at UMSL.

“We really want all of our students in St. Louis to have access to resources,” Weiss said, “to have access to experiential learning – all those wonderful things that students across the St. Louis metropolitan region are receiving.”

Tina Hyken

It is impossible for anyone to know about all the work that goes on at a university, but Hyken can come closer than most in her role as director of budget and financial planning at UMSL. She gets a glimpse at all the initiatives that require funding.

Hyken has always found that part of the job compelling.

“The thing about being an accountant is all we actually do is add and subtract,” Hyken said. “Our work itself isn’t that interesting, so it’s just plain fun to use that simple skill to support people doing much more interesting work.”

She has developed a special fondness for the community she gets to work with at UMSL.

But working on budgets is not without challenges.

“Universities are full of people with fabulous ideas,” said Hyken, whose career included 15 years as the assistant controller at West Virginia University, her alma mater. “No matter how many resources you have, how much funding you have, there’s never enough to fund all the great ideas. Leadership is constantly trying to determine the best ideas and making those priorities. I get to help provide the thought process for that.”

Tanika Busch, UMSL’s vice chancellor for finance and operations and chief financial officer, praised the role Hyken has played developing UMSL’s five-year financial plan and annual budgets over the past four years. Her contributions are what inspired Busch to nominate Hyken for the Hero Award.

“Her tenacity, attention to detail, and strategic approach have been instrumental in helping us effectively manage our budget, ensuring financial stability and growth,” Busch wrote of Hyken. “Her commitment to excellence has significantly contributed to UMSL’s success, making her highly deserving of this recognition.”

Knowing Busch nominated her was especially meaningful.

“It was gratifying to get the pat on the back from someone I personally respect so much,” Hyken said.

The two have worked together throughout the past two decades, since Hyken relocated to St. Louis from Morgantown, West Virginia, and began working at UMSL. They started out as peers, each working as fiscal officers with Busch assigned to the College of Arts and Sciences and Hyken to the College of Education. Then Hyken reported to Busch when the latter assumed a leadership role in the Finance Administration.

Soon after Busch was named vice chancellor and CFO, UMSL’s long-time budget director retired, and Hyken was promoted to that position.

“I have to be very grateful for Tanika because she had worked with me for many years as a peer,” Hyken said. “She had a good feeling for what I’m good at and what I’m not good at. So, when this opportunity became available, I believe that she saw I was a good fit, and I feel like this job is the perfect job for me.”

Cedric Carr

Carr says he got into law enforcement as a gag.

“I graduated from college, and I have one of the mothers who was like, ‘Hey, look, you need to find a job so you can get out of my house,’” Carr said. “Me and a couple of my buddies, we decided that, just as a joke, let’s apply to be a police officer.”

Then a letter arrived in his mailbox inviting him to come interview with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. He did, and the interview went well enough that he got another letter informing him he’d been accepted to the police academy.

Carr enrolled, figuring he’d try it out and eventually quit. Nearly 30 years later, he’s still at it.

“It’s the best move I ever made in my life,” he said.

It fits his personality and lets him work with a lot of different people.

“I love people,” Carr said. “I love dealing with people. I love solving problems. And my goal always, even when I was in St. Louis city, is to get people to see past the badge and the blue suit. I always tell people and try to educate people, even the officers here, that they don’t have a problem with us. It’s just a situation that they’re going through, and our job is to provide a solution, try to solve their problem.”

Carr spent the first 10 years of his career at the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, then moved to the University City Police Department for 11 years. He came to UMSL in 2016 in what felt like a bit of a homecoming.

“I grew up in Normandy,” he said. “I went to Normandy, went to junior high school in Normandy. When I came to UMSL I thought it was just the perfect fit. It had just enough work for me that it wasn’t boring.”

He’s come to appreciate how valued police officers are across campus.

“The staff, the students, even all the way up to the chancellor, they’ve got a certain respect for police officers,” he said. “They actually love the police department. They love our presence. They love what we do. They feel comfortable communicating with us, and that’s why I fell in love with UMSL. I’ll probably just stay here until I get tired of working.”

Carr has played a big role in building that connection between the department and the wider campus community, which is a big reason Chief Marisa Smith nominated him for the UMSL Hero Award.

She described his work with the UMSL Bridge Program’s Saturday Academy, which includes ensuring traffic and building openings. He also volunteered to participate in the program’s Career Exploration Day, answering questions about working in law enforcement and even handing out business cards to all the students who were interested and telling them to call him if they wanted to learn more.

Carr, a former college basketball player at the University of Arkansas, has also been the department’s liaison for athletic events and enjoys interacting with the student-athletes as well as cheering them on.

“He often volunteers to assist with events needing additional security and is typically the contact person for events requiring police assistance,” Smith wrote in her nomination. “He changes his schedule at a moment’s notice to ensure adequate coverage for UMSL events. Lt. Carr’s dedication to UMSL is observed through his consistent exemplary performance. He is friendly to all faculty, staff, students and visitors. Lt. Carr accepts challenging assignments and takes initiative in solving problems.”