DeSales University has named Tim Neiman, head coach of the baseball team, and Vince Berkes, dispatcher for public safety and police operations, the 2015 Employees of the Year.
Neiman received the Professional Staff Employee of the Year award and Berkes received the Support Staff Employee of the Year award. Both recipients were selected for their years of commitment and service to DeSales University and were recently honored at the University’s annual Service Awards Dinner.
The Employee of the Year awards are given annually to a professional and a support staff member in recognition of outstanding service. Recipients distinguish themselves through their commitment to the University; exemplify the values for which the University stands, and service that demonstrates such characteristics as effort, skill, positive attitude and creativity in the work place.
Currently in his 26th season, Neiman (right) has enjoyed distinguished success during his coaching tenure at DeSales. At the commencement of the 2015 season, he has led his teams to a combined .642 winning percentage, amassing a total of 627 wins, placing him 42nd among all NCAA Division III coaches in all-time victories.
Neiman led the Bulldogs to the 2003 NCAA Division III College World Series in Appleton, Wisc., where the team finished ranked #8 in the nation. Since 1994, his teams have won 11 conference championships and appeared in nine NCAA Regional Tournaments, earning him conference Coach of the Year honors 11 times and the NCAA Mid-East Region Coach of the Year award in 2003.
The Pennridge/Quakertown sports hall of fame inductee is also active outside of DeSales, serving on the board of trustees for Quakertown’s St. Luke’s Hospital and working as a commentator for Service Electric’s broadcasts of Reading Phillies games.
Neiman has received inquiries throughout the years to become a coach and scout for the Milwaukee Brewers, and to take over other college programs, but says DeSales’ family-oriented environment is why he chooses to stay.
“I really absolutely love it here, and if you find a place you love, you ought to stay,” he says. “I can’t imagine myself being anywhere else… Maybe the Yankees.”
Neiman and his wife, Rosanne, have four children--Jason, Kristy, Nolan, and Deron--and five grandchildren. According to his players, Neiman lacks little in his sense of humor, and is a Siberian husky enthusiast, as his two dogs, Zimmer and Torre, make appearances at practices.
Before his current position as a dispatcher for the University’s police department, Berkes served as DeSales’ chief of police from 1992-2010. Since stepping down as chief, Berkes has also served the department as a patrolman and a corporal.
Berkes (right) started at DeSales in 1989 on a part-time stint, but has since seen the University develop throughout its different stages. He became a major factor in the growth of the police department throughout his 18-year tenure as chief of police, implementing an emergency management system, the University’s first surveillance cameras, emergency call centers around campus, and a student-run EMS program.
Berkes brought experience from other police departments to DeSales, but knew upon arrival that Center Valley was where he wanted to stay.
“I worked for other outside police departments and I left those to come here because I saw what the future was going to hold for it,” he says. “The way it grew was unbelievable.”
Among Berkes’ favorite memories as police chief include working alongside the FBI and Secret Service, but he says his interactions with students top the list.
Berkes and his wife, Debra, have two children—Chad and Tracy—and three grandchildren. In his free time, Berkes enjoys attending ice hockey games with his kids and camping with his family.