Editor’s note: This story originally was posted Feb. 29, 2020.

Stetson University was voted one of the top 10 “Best Places to Work, 2019,” as named by The Daytona Beach News-Journal. 

“Keep up the good work. Teamwork makes the dream work. You’re doing wonderful things for the community,” praised Jamie Brown, the regional events director of GateHouse Media, which owns The News-Journal.

Brown presented a plaque on campus Feb. 19 to a group of staff and faculty, appropriately adjacent to the university’s statue of John B. Stetson. 

The university’s namesake was a hat manufacturer who became an American icon, partly by virtue of his hardworking but welcoming and hospitable style. One description of him, courtesy of Stetson University Archives: “He cultivated a higher quality employee with less turnover and better productivity than many other hat manufacturers by practicing a form of paternal benevolence towards his employees.”

For much of the same reason, the university received The News-Journal’s honor. 

What is it about your workplace that makes coming to work a pleasure? If you are the owner or operator of a business or organization, what have you done to make the workplace an enjoyable and rewarding place for your employees?

Those were two of the key questions employers answered last fall in The News-Journal’s “Best Places to Work, 2019” online survey, which was open to all businesses and organizations that employ people in Volusia and Flagler counties. 

The survey also encompassed employee benefits, such as vacation and other time off, retirement plans and professional advancement. 

Ultimately, a panel of community employment experts used the survey responses to tabulate scores and select the top 10 employers in the two-county area. 

A tip of the hat — Stetson made the list.

– Stetson Today