Program Guidelines for Service Recognition

Wichita State University would like to thank individual employees and congratulate them for their years of service to the State of Kansas and our institution. Service Recognition is our University's Employee Recognition program.  More information about Wichita State University's Service Recognition can be found at www.wichita.edu/ServiceRecognition.

Please refer to the guidelines below which are used to determine years of employment and service recognition. 

Guidelines for Determining Years of Employment and Employee Recognition

Length of Service

Length of Service is calculated for determining service awards for state and affiliated benefits-eligible employees. Time counted will be from the original date of hire in a benefits-eligible position. (An employee who earns sick and/or vacation leave is considered to be benefits-eligible.)

Bender of Twigs

Bender of Twigs is for the purpose of honoring state and affiliated benefits-eligible employees for 25 years of service to Wichita State University. In addition to the time deductions listed below, time at other state agencies would not be included in calculating for Benders of Twigs. (See our list of Previous Benders.)

Dates for Service Awards

As of 2005, September 1 is the cutoff date in figuring length of service. (Note: June 30 is used as the cutoff date for the 40 & 50 Year Service Recognition that the Governor sponsors each year in Topeka.) (See University Relations site for list of recent honorees.)

Type of Appointment Time in a benefits-eligible position will be counted. This includes: Time deducted includes: Other considerations:
University Support Staff
  1. Probationary
  2. Regular (Permanent)
  3. Intermittent for time before 11/28/98
  4. Conditional for time before 12/01/95
  5. Years of service at any State of Kansas institution
  6. Release time (from benefits-eligible position) for military leave and/or workers compensation
  1. Break in service
  2. LWOP time if more than 30 days
  3. Temporary time after 4/30/84
  4. Suspensions over 30 days
  5. Emergency appointments
  6. Seasonal workers
  7. Contractual labor (i.e. CWEP, Adecco & Kelly Temps)
  8. Undergrad and grad appointments
  
Unclassified Professionals
  1. Emergency
  2. Executive
  3. Regular
  4. Provisional
  5. Temporary
  6. Continuing
  7. Contingent
  8. Years of service at any State of Kansas institution
  9. Release time (from benefits-eligible position) for military leave and/or workers compensation
  1. Break in service
  2. LWOP time of more than 30 days
  3. Hourly appointments of non-benefits eligible positions
  4. Undergrad and grad appointments

Full- and part-time considerations:

  1. The years of phased retirement at less than 1.0 FTE will be counted as full years.
  2. Time in a regular 12 month appointment with .50 FTE, or greater, will be counted as full years.
Faculty
  1. Executive
  2. Regular tenure
  3. Provisional
  4. Temporary
  5. Sabbatical leave
  6. Contingent
  7. Years of service at any State of Kansas institution
  8. Lecturer/benefits eligible
  9. Release time (from benefits-eligible position) for military leave and/or workers compensation
  1. Break in service
  2. LWOP (except during summer)
  3. Lecturer appointments/not benefits eligible
  4. Adjunct faculty appointments
  5. Associate specialist (physicians) appointments
  6. Faculty associates appointments
  7. Undergrad and grad appointments
 An academic year appointment for 9, 10, or 11 months is considered the equivalent of a 12-month appointment for calculation of length of service.

The years of phased retirement at less than 1.0 FTE will be counted as full years.
Affiliated Corporations

Time counted will include any qualified State of Kansas time in addition to qualified employment with the affiliated corporation.
  1. Break in service
  2. LWOP
  3. Contractual employment (i.e. Sodexho, Aramark, Air Cap, etc.)
  4. Undergrad and grad appointments
  

Back to Top

Retirees

*Employees cannot be considered for retiree recognition unless they meet the minimum retirement eligibility criteria of their retirement plan. Faculty retiring by September 1 will be honored at the next recognition dinner. Length of service of 118 days or more will be rounded to the next year for retirees (e.g. if retiring with 24 years and 118 days of service, the employee would be honored for 25 years).

Kansas Board of Regents

  • Age 55 with at least 10 years in KBOR position
  • Age 60

KPERS Tier 1 (K1)

  • Employes hired on or before July 1, 2009
  • Age 62 with at least 10 years of service
  • Age 65 with at least 1 year of service
  • 85 points (age plus years of service)
  • Age 55 with 10 years of service (reduced benefit)

KPERS Tier 2 (K2)

  • Employees hired after July 1, 2009
  • Age 65 with at least 5 years of service
  • Age 60 with at least 30 years of service
  • Age 55 with at least 10 years of service (reduced benefit)

KPERS Tier 3 (K3)

  • Employees hired after December 31, 2014
  • Age 65 with at least 5 years of service
  • Age 60 with at least 30 years of service
  • Age 55 with at least 10 years of service (reduced benefit)

Note: For purposes of leave accrual, layoff, and service awards the length of service of any retiree returning to state service shall be reduced to zero and calculated on the same basis as a new hire.

Back to Top

Employee Recognition (based on length of service)

5-20 Years of Service

Wichita State employees celebrating milestone years (5-year increments: 10, 15, and 20) of service to the State of Kansas will be invited to a recognition event hosted by the University, receive a certificate, service pin, and have their name publicized on the Service Recognition webpage.  Beginning in 2019, honorees celebrating 5-20 milestone years of service will recieve a token of appreciation.

25+ Years of Service

Beginning in 2019, Wichita State employees celebrating 25+ milestone years (5-year increments: 30, 35, 40, etc) of service to the State of Kansas will be invited to a recognition dinner and reception, receive a certificate, service pin, token of appreciation, and have their name publicized on the Service Recognition webpage.

Bender of Twigs

Beginning in 2018, employees who reach their 25 year milestone of serving Wichita State University will be inducted into the Bender of Twigs Order and will be invited to a recognition dinner and reception, receive a framed certificate, service pin, token of appreciation, and have their name  publicized on the Service Recognition webpage. More information about Bender of Twigs can be found here.

Retirees

Wichita State employees retiring between September 2 of the previous year to September 1 of the current year will be invited to a dinner and reception, receive a certificate, service pin, token of appreciation, and have their name publicized on the Service Recognition webpage.  
 

Back to Top

Token of Appreciation

As of 2020, Service Recognition honorees will receive a Token of Appreciation for their years of service. Honorees will be sent information on where and how to select their Token of Appreciation closer to the Service Recognition event.  

Back to Top

History of Service Awards

An annual service recognition program began at Wichita State University in 1981. The Office of Human Resources first honored support staff with increments of 5 years of service as of December 31, 1980.

Beginning in 1995, University Relations took over the responsibility and the program expanded to include all benefits-eligible employees of the University. At this time, support staff began to be honored as Benders of Twigs, a ceremony conceived in 1951 to honor faculty and unclassified professionals. Subsequently, the service date for Service Awards has been shifted several times in an effort to find the optimum cut-off date.

Back to Top

Other Employee Recognition at Wichita State University

President's Award for Distinguished Service

Nine faculty and staff members are recognized by their peers for outstanding service at the annual Shocker Pride Celebration each spring. The Faculty Senate, Unclassified Professional Senate, and the University Support Staff Senate each select three persons to be honored from nominations received from their constituents.

Wayne Carlisle Award for Distinguished Service

Awarded to the outstanding Unclassified Professional of those nominated for the President's Award.

Back to Top

SME: SP
Updated: 10/24/2023 SA