Morningside College has announced the addition of 14 new staff members.

The new staff members are Jennifer Byrne, housekeeper; John Gilbert, project manager for Project Unlimited Proficiency (PUP); Amy Josephsen-Kettmann, PUP administrative assistant and assistant volleyball coach; Carla Gregg, programmer/analyst; Deb Herman, coordinator of central scheduling and administrative assistant; Joan Mansfield, mass communications secretary; Larry “Mace” Mason, head tennis coach; Shaun Meyer, network operation specialist; Brad Schmit, assistant men’s basketball coach; Brenda Woodbury, payroll and administrative coordinator; and Darby Young, professional development coordinator.

Robb Rusk, Suzi Taylor and Bruce Weaver have also joined the staff as custodians.

As a housekeeper, Byrne is responsible for the cleanliness of assigned areas and performance of other duties established by the director of physical plant and the custodial supervisor. She has done similar work for Smith Elementary School in Sioux City, and she has been a dance teacher at Siouxland Movement Arts for 30 years.

Gilbert has come to Morningside College from LADO International College in Arlington, Va., where he taught English. At Morningside, he is project manager for Project Unlimited Proficiency (PUP). Funded through a federal grant, this new program prepares veteran educators to acquire English as a Second Language (ESL) endorsement from the Iowa Department of Education. Gilbert has a master’s degree from Shenandoah University in Winchester, Va., and he is working on his doctorate.

Josephsen-Kettman has been hired to assist the PUP project manager and also to serve as assistant coach for Morningside’s volleyball team. She earned a bachelor’s degree in 2006 from Upper Iowa University, where she was a three-year varsity letter winner and a two-year term captain for the Peacocks. She ranks second in Upper Iowa history with 241 careers blocks and sixth in its record books with 514 career kills.

Gregg comes to Morningside College from Technologent in Ainsworth, Neb., where she was a service specialist. Her responsibilities at Morningside include working as a member of the information services team to develop and support applications on the college’s management information system. She has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Nebraska at Kearney.

Herman has been hired to maintain a master schedule of events at Morningside College, to distribute the schedule of upcoming campus activities and to coordinate the rental of facilities by off-campus groups. She also coordinates room set-up for activities and assists the director of public relations in general office management. She previously was the manager of meat variety sales for Tyson Foods. Herman has attended Iowa Lakes Community College in Estherville and Iowa Central Community College in Storm Lake.

Mansfield previously was an administrative assistant for Woodland Productions in Sioux City. At Morningside, she assists the mass communications department with general office responsibilities, and she helps the chair of the mass communications department with various tasks. Mansfield has an associate’s degree from Northwest Iowa Community College in Sheldon.

Mason was hired to be head coach for the men’s and women’s tennis teams after he served as assistant coach during the 2007 campaign. A 1973 graduate of Morningside, Mason was the most successful player in the history of the college’s tennis program. After graduation, he was head tennis coach at Morningside for three years. Then he became a teacher, serving as head coach of the boys’ tennis team at Sioux City North High School for more than 20 years.

Meyer has joined the information services team at Morningside College to provide and maintain reliable, efficient and secure computing and network services for the college community. He previously was a bar and tube machinist for Prince Hydraulics Company. Meyer has an associate’s degree in computer networking and information systems from Western Iowa Tech Community College.

Even though Schmit is just now joining the full-time staff at Morningside College, he has been helping coach the basketball team since he earned his bachelor’s degree from Morningside in 2006. Schmit was a starter for all four of his years as a student. He became the Mustangs’ all-time leading scorer with 1,987 career points, as well as the school’s all-time leader with 329 career 3-point field goals.

Woodbury previously was the payroll administrator for BPI Technology in Dakota Dunes, S.D. At Morningside, she performs technical tasks in the administration of payroll and personnel programs. She also serves as administrative coordinator to the vice president for business and finance and provides support to the director of human resources. Woodbury has attended Western Iowa Tech Community College.

Young previously was an academic advisor and adjunct instructor for Western Iowa Tech Community College. At Morningside, he manages distance learning courses that use technology, and he works with off-campus partners to provide ongoing professional development opportunities for teachers. Young has a master’s degree from Iowa State University and is working on his doctorate.

Having joined the Morningside College staff as custodians, Rusk, Taylor and Weaver are responsible for the cleanliness of assigned areas and other duties assigned by the director of physical plant and the custodial supervisor. Rusk previously worked in the custodial department while a student at Morningside; then he applied for a full-time position after graduation and got the job. Taylor was previously a custodial/janitorial entrepreneur who offered services such as general cleaning, floor maintenance, glass cleaning, special events preparation, painting and lawn care; she is certified to work with hazardous materials. Weaver previously worked for 10 years for Menards, where he had a range of building maintenance, sales and new store set-up responsibilities; many of his responsibilities at Morningside are events-related. Weaver has an associate’s degree from Northwest Iowa Community College.