Andrea Porras, recently promoted to administrative support coordinator with the MIT Media Lab, was among the honorees. Repeated in her many nominations was her thoughtful and considerable work during a time of turmoil.

“In the aftermath of the fall crisis at the Media Lab, Andrea played a significant role in the work of getting the lab to a better place,” noted one nomination. “She served as a focus group member, helping to create the lab-specific version of the Improving Lab Culture workshop. Andrea represented the non-research staff of the Media Lab more than capably as we sought to reform and improve upon the governance and accountability structures of the lab. She generated several important recommendations that the working group ultimately put forward, and did significant work to improve others. She managed to do this confidently, effectively, and with empathy.”

Porras says she was grateful to have had a hand in affecting positive change and continues to love her job. “I get to learn something every day, which I know is cliché,” she says.“I love problem-solving with individual admins and research groups. There are so many situations I have to explore, and that makes it really fun.”