April 27, 2026
Employee Appreciation Day is May 14
SIU Carbondale is hosting Employee Appreciation Day from 1 to 4 p.m. on Thursday, May 14, and all faculty and staff are invited to attend. The fun, informal, free event will be at the Becker Pavilion/Campus Lake area and the Tedrick Welcome Center, with shuttles running between locations throughout the afternoon.
Participants can tour the new Tedrick Welcome Center, enjoy chair massages and mindfulness activities, visit with therapy dogs, enjoy music by DJ Richard Jones and try to douse campus administrators in the dunk tank. They can also join in outdoor games and recreational opportunities including volleyball, cornhole, a climbing wall, canoeing and paddleboats.
A group walk around Campus Lake is set for 2 p.m. Dave’s Bagels and American Ice Cream will be serving up treats all afternoon long.
Faculty and staff are encouraged to “come as they are” or dress to enjoy the festivities on a come-as-you-go basis. The event is designed to give faculty and staff a chance to step away from their daily activities to connect, have fun, be appreciated and celebrate the work that happens daily at SIU.
Supervisors are encouraged to plan for minimal office coverage during this time, and some offices may even close, with the approval of appropriate cabinet level leadership. Employees should be given every opportunity to participate in the day’s events. If office coverage is needed, supervisors should maintain rotating coverage during the day to avoid anyone missing out on the event. Questions regarding operational need and release time should be funneled through the chain of command to the appropriate cabinet level leader.