Annually, the Dr. Lisa P. Collins Outstanding Staff Awards program recognizes seven high achievers out of more than 2,000 employees.  Some 35-45 nominations are reviewed by a committee of college peers and honored at the annual RoundUp Staff Appreciation Day. 

In 1997 when the program was initiated, support came from Gamma Sigma Delta, the international agriculture honor society that became inactive at UK a few years ago, as well as the college’s alumni association and the Dean’s Office through the Partners in Agriculture fund.  In 2018, a revised endowment agreement called the Gamma Sigma Delta Gold Fund was finalized in order to support the OSA program in perpetuity. The awards were renamed for Dr. Lisa P. Collins in 2020 to recognize her outstanding service and advocacy on behalf of the staff of the college. 

People in the Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment often say “we are different” because we are.  M-G CAFE has offices and personnel in all 120 Kentucky counties, research and extension stations across the state, the Veterinary Diagnostic Lab, Regulatory Services, and an Arboretum; the list is extensive.  The staff of these units, whether on the Lexington campus or in Leslie County, are the heartbeat of the college.  There is not one M-G CAFE employee who has not gone above and beyond in service, innovation, and dedication. The Dr. Lisa P. Collins Outstanding Staff Awards are one way for the Martin Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment to say “thank you” to all staff employees.