Excellence in Leadership award winner embodies connected, practical leadership

Two distinct character traits appeared again and again in Distinguished Professor Ruth Ellen Kocher’s nomination letters for the 2023 Excellence in Leadership Award: her capacity to connect with colleagues on a personal level and her ability to translate those colleague’s needs into practical, actionable plans. “I’m not doing this for power,” Kocher said. “But I see a problem and I see a need and I see people who benefit if we fix this problem.”