Pharmacy Building

Trey Davenhill photoTrey Davenhill is a very busy person. He is in his first year of Pharm. D., OSU’s highly competitive four-year professional program that accepts only about 90 of the 600-800 applicants each year. After four years of pre-pharmacy undergraduate studies with a major in BioHealth Sciences (maintaining at least a 3.5 GPA), another two years of Pharm. D. work at the Corvallis campus, a year at of study OHSU, and a year rotating through professional internships—eight years in all—Trey will finally become a pharmacist. Born and raised in Salem, Oregon, Trey appreciates the fact that Oregon State University offers a nationally-respected pharmacy program, which allows him to stay in the area he loves and in close contact with his extended family.

On top of his academic and personal responsibilities, Trey has worked at the Agricultural Sciences and Marine Sciences Business Center (AMBC) since his freshman year in 2011, putting in another 10-12 hours each week with the finance and accounting team. In this role, Trey does whatever he can to free up his co-workers to focus on their primary responsibilities, including office assistance, data entry, customer reception, clerical support, and errands. When asked why Trey continues to return to AMBC each year, he said, “I really love the people—it’s a very positive environment. I know what to expect from the work, but there is enough variety to keep it from being boring. And I love not working on weekends.”

The feeling is mutual. Trey’s colleagues at AMBC appreciate his performance so much that they nominated him for the 2015 Division of Finance & Administration (DFA) Outstanding Student Award. Trey was highly praised in the nomination letters for his “positive can-do attitude,” dependability, responsiveness, and proactive communication skills. He rose to the top of the approximately 100 student workers employed annually by the DFA, winning the award along with a cash prize. Trey’s supervisor, Sheryl Powell, explained that he deserved the award because “the great thing about Trey is that he’s consistent and reliable; we can give him a task and we know that he will take care of it. He has a great personality and we really enjoy working with him.”

Trey feels he is successful, both at work and at school, because of his attention to detail and his desire to provide the best possible customer service to everyone he interacts with. “I believe in the value of clear communication—asking questions and making sure everyone has needed information,” he explained, “and I spend extra time to make sure I deliver a good, accurate work product.” Jack Breen, the AMBC Manager, is grateful to work with such an outstanding person and pleased to see his development. “We support students like Trey by providing them with opportunities to build professional skills and earn some money, and in the process, helping them prepare to successfully participate in a global workforce in the future,” Jack stated. Trey Davenhill, the 2015 DFA Outstanding Student, gives us an excellent example of how the on-campus student worker experience can be positive and beneficial for everyone involved—employer and employee.