The John V. Thornton Distinguished Administrator Award

The John V. Thornton Distinguished Administrator Award recognizes 3 full-time or part-time Officers of Administration annually within the departments of CUIT, CUHR and Finance, who have at least 1 year of service at Columbia University and has gone “above and beyond” their normal duties to accomplish something exceptional.

The recipient will receive $1,000, an award plaque and be invited to attend an annual lunch event. The nominee should continuously exhibit the core values below based on their performance during the previous fiscal year.

Award Criteria
The Selection Committee will consider many characteristics to determine the winners, but the following criteria will be used extensively. Each nominee should excel in one or more of the following areas:

• Integrity: Shows a strong work ethic and stays focused on what’s important; takes on the tough challenges; takes personal accountability to uphold ethical standards; builds trusting relationships through honesty, openness, fairness, and candor; and lives up to commitments; Demonstrates a genuine appreciation for others and maintains the highest level of professionalism.

• Collaboration: Works effectively and cooperatively with others; establishes and maintains good working relationships.
• Continuous Improvement: Originates action to improve existing conditions and processes; uses appropriate methods to identify opportunities, implements solutions, and measures impact.
• Client/Customer Focused: Provides an excellent level of service to both internal and external customers, identifies and responds to current and future client needs. Has improved customer service or increased customer satisfaction; remains open to feedback; goes above and beyond to provide the customer with the best experience under any circumstance.
• Initiating Action/Initiative: Shows a strong work ethic and helps employees to strategize and determine priorities; looks for opportunities to take initiative and/or exceed expectations; creates a positive and motivating work environment. Maintains open lines of communication within the department and throughout the university.

About John V. Thornton
John Thornton was Columbia University's Executive Vice President for Finance from 1989 to 1993. A native New Yorker, Thornton was also an adjunct professor at Columbia, New York University and St. John's University.

After attending St. John's University, Thornton enlisted in the Navy and fought in the Pacific in World War II on the U.S.S. Wyandot. After the war, he enrolled in Yale Law School, graduating in 1948. He worked for 20 years at Consolidated Edison, starting as assistant general counsel. He was appointed to the newly created position of Vice Chairman in 1984 before joining Columbia in 1989.

Thornton passed away in 2005 at the age of 81.