Penn State Harrisburg staff members Toni Chainey and Chris Weaver each won an award at the annual Tech Pros + Web Pros professional development conference, hosted this year by Penn State Brandywine.
MIDDLETOWN, Pa. — Penn State Harrisburg staff members Toni Chainey and Chris Weaver each won an award at the annual Tech Pros + Web Pros professional development conference, hosted this year by Penn State Brandywine.
Two awards are given at the annual conference: the John Hoh IT Community Catalyst Award, and the Digital Excellence Award. Recipients are nominated by their peers.
Chainey, IT support specialist in Information Technology Services, was the recipient of the John Hoh IT Community Catalyst Award, which is named for a former chief technology officer for Penn State Harrisburg who also served as senior IT director for the Commonwealth Campuses, among other roles.
The award recognizes an individual who embodies qualities such as building bridges, empowering others, and inspiring forward-thinking leadership through positive collaboration and engagement.
Chainey’s nomination highlighted her work supervising and training the student technology team, noting that she builds relationships with the students and encourages them to step outside their boxes, and engage in ways to create and collaborate. She was noted as a “go-to” team member who collaborates with her team to provide tech solutions in a positive, enthusiastic manner.
Chainey expressed gratitude for the award.
“In the IT community, building bridges — between teams, technologies, and people — is essential,” said Chainey, who has worked at the college for 31 years. “Innovation thrives when we connect across disciplines, share knowledge openly, and support one another through rapid change. It’s through these connections that we grow stronger, more inclusive, and more impactful together.”
Weaver, associate director of strategic communications, was the recipient of the Digital Excellence Award.
The award recognizes a web professional within Penn State who demonstrates outstanding creativity, problem-solving and a commitment to enhancing digital experiences.
Weaver was nominated for his creativity, technical problem-solving skills, commitment to accessibility and passion for telling the Penn State story through engaging digital experience. His nomination noted his willingness to go above and beyond to troubleshoot complex issues, both at the Harrisburg campus and other campuses.
“It's a true pleasure to be a part of the Penn State web community; it's such a collaborative group and full of great camaraderie, support and idea-sharing,” said Weaver, who has worked at Penn State Harrisburg for 15 years. “Any contribution I've made has been in the spirit of giving back to this community, bettering the University, and improving the user experience. I'm humbled and honored to be recognized in this way.”
