Erin Wood Honored with a Duke Presidential Award

Updated on April 19: Watch the Recording (above) of the Virtual Ceremony, held on April 14

The below intro and LATIN-19 sections were excerpted from an article by Stephen Schramm for Working at Duke/Duke Today. To learn about all of the Duke Presidential Award winners, READ Duke's Presidential Award Winners Meet the Moment in 2020: From a global pandemic to reckoning with inequality, winners rise to unprecedented challenges 

From frontline health workers helping patients, to staff and faculty members figuring out everything from surveillance testing to remote teaching, everyone at Duke responded to the COVID-19 pandemic in their own way.

The challenges facing Duke in the past year were varied and numerous, and the Duke Presidential Awards for 2020 recognize the historic contributions.

The Presidential Awards program, organized by the Office of the President in partnership with Duke Human Resources, recognizes individuals and teams from the University and Health System who best demonstrate the values that define and shape Duke as an institution. The awards are the highest honor given by Duke to staff and faculty members. Many of this year's winners helped Duke rise to the challenge of the COVID-19 pandemic and the difficult national dialogue on race and social justice.

“I am delighted to congratulate this year’s Presidential Award winners, who were selected from our most competitive ever field of nominees,” said Duke University President Vincent E. Price. “Over the past year, we have faced unprecedented challenges as a community, and the leadership of these awardees has helped keep us safe, healthy, and engaged—and on course toward a more inclusive and vibrant future for Duke. We can all be proud to call them colleagues.”

Erin Wood, Senior IT Analyst, Duke Cancer Institute Information Systems

As a stage 4 colon cancer survivor, Erin Wood throws herself into the work of the Duke Cancer Institute, and her other roles as an advocate for colon cancer awareness and sympathetic supporter of colon cancer patients.

While continuing to undergo treatment, she remains a dedicated and positive colleague for her teammates.

“Erin constantly shows an incredibly positive attitude and spirit, a dedication to Duke’s patients and staff, and has an intricate understanding of what the staff and patients need from the unique perspective she readily provides,” wrote nominator Geoffrey Chenger, Duke Cancer Institute Information Systems IT Manager. “Not only have I never heard her complain about any of this, she stays so positive that it is an inspiration to all of us. Her spirit reminds all of us why we are really coming to work today.”