Now that’s ending on a high note. Two long-time UITS staff members were recently awarded Indiana University presidential medals as they embark on their well-earned retirements.
Mark Bruhn, who retired in June as associate vice president for public safety and institutional assurance, received the President’s Medal for Excellence. Laurie Sullivan, who retired in March as associate vice president for enterprise systems, received the Distinguished Service Medal.
Bruhn poses with his President’s Medal for Excellence.
The President’s Medal for Excellence is awarded for outstanding academic, artistic, or professional accomplishments or to individuals for exceptional service to the university. The Distinguished Service Medal recognizes sustained distinction in administrative and other service to the university over an extended period of time or notable contributions that improve the university in major ways.
In an email to UITS staff, Brad Wheeler, IU vice president for information technology and chief information officer, wrote, “We live in peculiar times when we cannot have our customary gatherings to celebrate the retirements of our colleagues who have invested so much of their life at IU. Last week, I had the pleasure to at least have a celebratory beverage with two of our retiring team members who have each served at IU for over 30 years. It was my honor on behalf of President McRobbie to convey two of the university’s highest honors for their service to IU.”
Sullivan celebrates her Distinguished Service Medal.
Noteworthy careers
According to Wheeler, “Mark Bruhn led the development of cybersecurity policies and practices at IU long before they evolved to their current-day prominence. In 2009, he took on the additional responsibility to also lead physical security in developing an ‘all threats’ perspective to both cyber and physical security across all campuses. He is nationally known for his work and strong influence on the art and practice of university cybersecurity.”
Bruhn has been with IU for more than 30 years. He is co-founder of the IU-based Research and Educational Networking Information Sharing and Analysis Center (REN-ISAC), where he previously served as executive director. Bruhn is also an adjunct faculty member in the IU School of Informatics and Computing, and contributes to student education in cybersecurity and other assurance topics. Prior to IU, he was a member of the United States Air Force for more than eight years.
It was my honor on behalf of President McRobbie to convey two of the university’s highest honors for their service to IU.
Brad Wheeler, IU vice president for IT and CIO
For her part, “Laurie Sullivan came to IU as a COBOL programmer and rose through many responsibilities to recently retire as associate vice president for enterprise systems,” wrote Wheeler. “Among her achievements, she led the huge PeopleSoft implementation and has long been one of IU’s most trusted voices across many parts of the university.”
Sullivan has also held a variety of technology and student service positions in UITS, with responsibility for the PeopleSoft, Human Resources Management System (HRMS), and SIS enterprise implementations at IU. Sullivan led the technical projects to overhaul many of the student business processes as part of the Student Service Initiative. Sullivan served as the data steward for student data from 2010 to 2012. She also served on the Higher Education User Group Board and User Group Alliance Conference Team, which supports PeopleSoft users nationally and internationally.
Congratulations to both Mark and Laurie! You will be missed.
