Volunteer Acts as Employee "Advocate"

By day, Gillian Rittman is your basic supervisor of core labs at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston Dental Branch. But in her alternate life, Gill is a volunteer with a role that affects the lives of almost all university employees - she serves as the chair of the United Classified Staff Council.

"UCSC acts as an advocate for all classified employees and advises the university president and executive council on matters of importance to classified employees," said Rittman.

The council, made up of 41 volunteers from around the university, communicates matters of importance to and from their departments and university administration.

An 11-year employee with UT-Houston and a five-year member of UCSC, Rittman has been involved in a number of activities and efforts at the university. She has volunteered at the Texas Medical Center food drive, the holiday collection of toys for the Children's Assessment Center, UT-Houston employee recognition STAR Awards, spring workshop, scholarship fund raising, and the UT System Advisory Committee.

"I enjoy meeting people from every walk of life, making a difference for all UT employees," she said.

When elected chair of UCSC, Rittman said she was surprised at the amount of responsibility associated with the position. However, she enjoys the interaction between all UT-Houston units and the spirit of cooperation between people who have very different jobs and personalities.

"UCSC allows me to have contact with people who I normally would not meet and I have formed some lasting friendships because of being a part of the group," she said.

A married mother of two grown children, Rittman spends what little free time she has reading, cooking and bird-watching.

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©2006 Texas Medical Center

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