Opportunity to make a difference has inspired Dot Nolen Cupp during 45-year career

Providing excellent customer service isn’t something Dot Nolen Cupp has to work very hard at. It comes naturally for the humble Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering administrative assistant from Blacksburg, Virginia.

Cupp is one of seven Virginia Tech employees who are being honored for 45 years of service to Virginia Tech. She was recognized during the 2016 Service Recognition Program this spring.

“My experience working with Dot has been nothing short of outstanding,” said Don Wittke, director of industrial engineering for United Parcel Service. “She is very dependable, organized, thorough with her work, and never misses a detail. When she tells you that she is going to take care of something, you can consider it done.”

Her supervisor agrees.

“Dot is an incredible employee,” said Don Taylor, the interim dean for the College of Engineering. “She runs the office with high efficiency, and anticipates the needs of others and often has tasks completed before they are even requested. Our faculty and staff often turn to her for assistance, and she never lets us down.”

Cupp came to Virginia Tech in 1969 in a 1965 Ford Mustang, a vehicle that she still owns today. Since then, she has worked for her entire career in the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, serving in many administrative support roles. She moved into her current position as the administrative assistant to the department head in 2005.

One of Cupp’s main responsibilities includes making sure the department runs efficiently. In addition to supporting the department head, she schedules meetings for several faculty members and has a hand in faculty hiring and onboarding and dozens of other human resources processes. She also plans the department’s biennial Academy of Distinguished Alumni banquet during the spring. Around 200 alumni attend the event every other year.

Cupp said that her favorite part about coming to work is the opportunity that she has to make a difference.

“I always ask myself, what can I do today that will ensure a faculty member is happy with the work I do for them?” said Cupp. “What can I do to improve myself? What new things can I learn? Can I make someone smile by doing something nice?”

Written by Mackenzie Nicely, a senior from Lexington, Virginia, majoring in public relations and political science.