San Jose State University recognized 133 employees at the Spartan Service Celebration March 7 for reaching milestones of service to the university. Spartans gathered in the Diaz Compean Student Union Ballroom to celebrate their friends, colleagues and for some, their spouses who they met during long careers at San Jose State.

President Mary A. Papazian started the program off with a welcome and expression of gratitude for the hard work and dedication of university staff members.

“Staff members are the driving force behind the university, connected in some way, shape, or form to all that we do,” she said.

For each milestone of service – 15, 20, 25, 30, 35 and 40, members of the president’s cabinet shared their own thanks for the staff members who work within their divisions and collaborations across campus. See the full list of honorees who reached their milestones by Dec. 31, 2018. For each year celebrated, a video highlighting the year – with top movies, music and news events –played before videos of some of the Spartan staff members reminiscing about their time at SJSU.

Ester Burton, an administrative support coordinator with the Charles W. Davidson College of Engineering Student Success Center, who was honored for 20 years of service shared how she met her husband at SJSU. Coleetta McElroy, president of the SJSU Alumni Association and director of the SJSU Financial Aid and Scholarship Office, who has accumulated 30 years of service said she most values the connections she’s made with students. Alan Leventhal, an information technology consultant in anthropology with 40 years of service said much of his career at SJSU has been devoted to studying the Ohlone tribe.

Following the videos, the names of each honoree were read aloud, some to shouts, hoots, and whistles from colleagues. Some even waved SJSU banners, pompoms or wooden sticks with paper cutouts of the honorees’ faces.