More than 100 Vermont employers will receive awards next month for their efforts to improve the health and wellbeing of their employees, both on and off the job. One special recipient, University of Vermont’s Employee Wellness Manager Cara Hancy, will be recognized as the state’s outstanding contributor to worksite wellness. The awards will be given by the Vermont Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports during a ceremony on October 10 at the DoubleTree by Hilton in Burlington.
The Vermont Worksite Wellness Outstanding Contributor Award recognizes an individual who has substantially increased access to wellness resources within their organization and instills a culture of wellness. The recipient must foster wellness in multiple arenas, including physical activity, nutrition, work-life balance, mindfulness, and social connectivity.
Hancy, who lives in Morrisville, oversees health and wellbeing opportunities for the university’s more than 5,500 employees whose workspaces are spread across the Burlington campus and around the state. Opportunities include free health coaching, mental health first aid training, biometric screenings, flu and Covid vaccine clinics, on-campus chiropractic care, wellness education webinars, and support for participating in exercise classes, nutrition counseling, mindful meditation and sports.
Hancy’s award nomination letter describes how she revitalized the UVM employee wellness program, which had, the letter states, been under-funded, under-resourced and under-utilized:
“Since joining UVM in October 2021, Cara has transformed employee wellness at the university into a thriving program with many facets and features. UVM employee wellness alleviates financial and physical barriers to working with a health coach, participating in group fitness classes, and attending wellness workshops. She is creative in finding ways to partner with internal entities and outside organizations, make pricing deals, and offer innovative programming that touch on multiple aspects of health and wellbeing.”
Working with university leaders, Hancy developed an employee wellness best practices proposal for UVM’s provost and college deans to support, which creates a culture of wellness that trickles down through the ranks, according to the nominator. Best practices include things like allowing employees to use work time to attend wellness activities, supporting movement breaks and healthy food choices, encouraging employees to get health screenings and vaccines, allowing time off for family care and mental wellbeing, and supporting a healthy work-life balance.
Hancy will receive the award at a worksite wellness award ceremony in conjunction with the Vermont Worksite Wellness Conference, an annual event where attendees attend presentations, participate in workshops and meet with exhibitors sharing tools and strategies to inspire and support employees in making healthy choices. Conference attendees work in all employment sectors, including education, banking, health care, retail, manufacturing, recreation, and insurance.
Conference co-hosts are the Vermont Department of Health and the Vermont Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, which promotes health and wellness through physical activity for people of all fitness and ability levels.
Learn more about the Worksite Wellness Awards and Conference and find resources to support worksite wellness.