June 2011 Archives

For those staff members within Johnston and for those attending meetings starting June 30-July 8th, occupants may  experience some inconvenience in Johnston over the next week or so - Intermittent water shut downs, but most importantly our elevator is going to be down for about a week starting tomorrow (Thu), June 30. It was felt that the 4th of July week would be one of the slowest of the summer and best to deal with this inconvenience.

Please keep this in mind when scheduling appointments and ordering supplies. I don't yet know what the accommodations procedure referenced below amounts to, but please let me know if have any immediate concerns related to orientation or other planned activities. Keep your fingers crossed that this will take less time than planned!

Grad Student 9561 and 9562 Appointments: 

If the funding source for these appointments is paying for Graduate Insurance coverage, please select Grad/Prof Student Position in the Employee Class area in the "Appointment Details" section. 

If the funding source will not pay for Graduate Insurance coverage, please select Student Insurance Eligible.

Thank you!
Rana

Intersections: GradTracker training will continue on a one-on-one or small group basis as needed. Contact Wendy Friedmeyer (fried053@umn.edu, 4-9815) to schedule training, request access or if you have any questions.

As soon as you have completed training you may begin entering future financial commitments for your students. Note that the deadline for entry of all graduate student commitments is September 15, 2011.

Jamey Hansen has been appointed Interim Information Technology Director effective July 5, 2011.

Jamey will manage the CLA Office of Information Technology, a department of approximately 100 employees who serve the IT needs of faculty, staff, and students across the college, and he will report to Associate Dean for Planning Gary Oehlert.

Jamey will serve as the leader, manager and advocate for information technology within the college, and IT representative of the college within and outside of the University. Jamey started in CLA in January 2005 as the Coordinator of Administrative Computing, and was promoted in July 2006 to Director of Info Tech Services.

If you or anyone in your units use surveys for research or administrative purposes, please attend a one-hour open forum on either June 23 or June 29.

The forums will kick off the work of the Enterprise-wide Survey Software Evaluation Committee, a team that is taking a close look at the tools used for more than 2,000 surveys conducted each year in classrooms, labs, and offices across the University of Minnesota system.

Our current ad hoc survey landscape does not promote best practices in survey research or allow for meaningful collaborations between units. Units may be conducting similar surveys for the same populations, leading to survey fatigue and poor response rates. External survey tools pose significant costs systemwide as well as practical, ethical, and legal issues for institutional and research security, IRB compliance, and data privacy.

The Enterprise-wide Survey Software Evaluation Committee is an effort by the Office of Planning and Analysis and Office of Information Technology to identify a state-of-the-art survey solution to meet needs across the University system--and to make this tool broadly available by early 2012.

To be successful, the 10-person project committee needs input from faculty, staff, and students who are involved in survey research at any level. If you use surveys for any reason, let us know what features, functions, and technical capacities you're looking for in an enterprise-wide survey tool.

Please contribute to this crucial conversation by attending an open forum on either Thursday, June 23 (1-2 p.m., Science Teaching and Student Services Building 114, East/West Bank) or Wednesday, June 29 (11 a.m.-12 noon, Biological Sciences Center 64, St. Paul).

You can also visit our project website to provide input or to request an info session for your unit, department, or campus. Comments may also be sent to the committee chair, Christina Frazier.

Please forward this message as appropriate within your units. Thank you for your participation in this vitally important process.

The new CLA-OIT website was written as a catalog of our services and designed with the customer in mind. Services offered are described in detail so that you know what we offer and who has access to the services we provide. It's your one stop shop for all things technology-related. Browse our offerings and learn about our services -- you might be surprised to find something new that you didn't know we offer! CLA-OIT website: claoit.umn.edu

CLA NOW listserve changes....Starting next week, your e-newsletter will be coming to you from a different source. 

You may be asking, "How does this impact me?"

It really doesn't with the exception that you may notice it comes from a different source.  Instead of clanow@cla.umn.edu it will be cla-now@lists.umn.edu.  

(You may want to ensure proper delivery by ensuring your filters are not placing this very important communication newsletter in your spam folder.)

Otherwise, expect everything to remain the same.  

As the process is now, all NEW subscribers need to contact klue0054@umn.edu to be added. 

Any questions, please contact Mary Beth Kluesner at the above email address.

Exit Survey Report

Attached is the University's employee Exit Survey summary report for the first quarter of 2011.  Q1 CY11 exit survey summary report.pdf

Also, we are using this report to remind you to extend an invitation to all individuals (faculty, staff, students) who have left a position with your unit, and to please copy that invitation to the CLA HR email account (clahr@umn.edu).  
To date, the college has far fewer exit survey invitations than the actual number of individuals who have left.  In order to get a sense of the reasons people leave CLA, we need to have CLA people complete the survey. 

Thank you for your cooperation.   

Office of CLA HR and Faculty

CLA NOW Mtg 6.16.11 Agenda.docx

CLA's Chief Information Officer Ed Clark left the the College of Liberal Arts on June 10 for a position as Vice President and CIO at Minnesota State University, Mankato. We congratulate him on this new opportunity and thank him for his 17 years serving CLA.

In the interim Gary Oehlert, Associate Dean for Planning, will assume oversight responsibilities for CLA-OIT, and the interim leadership for CLA-OIT will report to him. Dean Parente has asked Gary to explore and implement a thoughtful transition and interim plan for leadership in CLA-OIT. Gary will also lead the development of our permanent CLA-OIT leadership plan.

The college anticipates authorizing a national search for a new CIO/director of CLA-OIT later this year. Placing oversight for CLA-OIT into the portfolio of the Associate Dean for Planning provides important opportunities for alignment given the numerous transitions underway at the University: the impending arrival of President-designate Kaler, the departure of University VP and CIO Steve Cawley, implementation of the recent IT audit requirements, and the planning processes underway in the college, including long-range unit planning, and continued progress towards implementation of the CLA 2015 vision.

Call to Action!

We have been notified by Weisman Art Museum rental office that we are on record of having a piece of artwork rented to us, which should be returned.

However:  We don't know where it is!  It it missing!
The title of the missing artwork is "Water Lilies by Senso Saun

Here is a link to a similar piece of art from the same artist. (When looking at it imagine water lilies instead of red lilies.)

http://dcl.umn.edu/search/show_details?search_string=%20lilies&per_page=60&&page=25

With all the moves within the past few years, it could very well likely be located somewhere!  Look on your walls (obvious, yet a good first step), closets, behind filing cabinets, and storage areas (if applicable).

Please contact clafiscl@umn.edu if you have found it!  Thank you!

Have you ever wondered what policy or Benefit changes are on the horizon?  Here are some quick links to answer your questions.

Website for benefits changes:

http://www1.umn.edu/ohr/benefits/index.html


Website about policy changes:  

http://policy.umn.edu/User/POLICYLIB_UPDATED.html

We have received the Fiscal Year End Memo for 2011. The memo can be found at: http://controller.umn.edu/fye/

We encourage you to read the entire year end memo.  Below are highlighted some key areas from this memo that need your attention along with deadlines specific to CLA in order for the financial services team to meet Central's deadlines.

Upcoming Key Dates:

PO Vouchers                                             CLA Deadline is June 10

Non-PO Vouchers                                     CLA Deadline is June 17

Employee Expenses                                  CLA Deadline is June 17

P-Card Reconciliation                                CLA Deadline is July 1

Link here:CLA Fiscal Year End Deadlines 2011.rev.doc

An Announcement from the Office of the Associate Dean for Research and
Graduate Programs and CLA Fiscal Administration:

The GradTracker project is creating a more efficient tool for
recording, tracking, summarizing and reporting of graduate student
progress from admission/matriculation to placement.

This month the first module of Intersections: GradTracker, Financial
Commitments, goes live.

The financial commitments module records future commitments for
graduate students including employment, UMN fellowships, external
fellowships and additional student support (i.e. travel and research
funding).

The expectation is that departments will be expected to use
GradTracker in Intersectinos to record all of the financial
commitments for their graduate students beginning this summer. We
invite you to join us for training sessions beginning June 21. We
would like one person per department to attend, but anyone who may use
the program is invited.

We have scheduled four training sessions (more will be added as needed):

June 21, 10-11:30 AM Ford B53

June 22, 2-3:30 PM, Anderson 150

June 23, 2-3:30 PM, Ford B53

June 24, 10-11:30 AM Anderson 150

Please sign up at: http://z.umn.edu/gradtrackertaining. Bring offer
letters and/or funding documentation for a few current and future
(Fall) students to the session. During the training session we will be
attempting to enter complete funding packages for one or two students
in your department.

Departments will be expected to have entry of all future funding
commitments (Fall 2011 forward) completed by September 15.

If you have questions about the GradTracker tool or its use, please
contact Wendy Friedmeyer at fried053@umn.edu or 612-624-9815

Effective May 31, 2011, Jo-Ida Hansen's tenure as Associate Dean for Graduate Programs and Research has ended. During the interim, prior to the appointment of a new associate dean for research, Gary Oehlert, Associate Dean for Planning, will provide CLA collegiate approval on all PRFs. Please add him to the your routing chain as you prepare to submit proposals to the the Office of Sponsored Projects.

CLA Proposal Routing Procedures
The PRF requires electronic signatures from the following, in order:
1.    Principal investigator's department chair and department chairs of any other key CLA personnel (e.g. co-PIs) on the project
2.    If key personnel outside of CLA are included in the proposal, the authorizing agent from their colleges or centers
3.    Gayle Anderson (ander104), Grants Management Coordinator - CLA Fiscal Administration. Gayle will review the proposal (see CLA Review Concerns) and if it is satisfactory, will forward it to the next level.
4.    Gary Oehlert, CLA Associate Dean for Planning - whose signature authorizes final CLA approval.

It is time to be entering scholarships for the 2011-2012 aid year.  In order to ensure that your scholarships are included in students' initial financial aid award notice, scholarship batches must be entered by June 30th.

Click here for a copy of Best Practices for Awarding Scholarships at U of M_6 1 2011.docx  the Office of Student Finance has created to help outline some basic guidelines for processing scholarships.  They hope these guidelines will help us better serve students while remaining in compliance with federal financial aid rules.  

If you have any questions please contact the OSF Scholarship Unit at saosf@umn.edu.

We have received the Fiscal Year End Memo for 2011. The memo can be found at: http://controller.umn.edu/fye/

We encourage you to read the entire year end memo.  Below are highlighted some key areas from this memo that need your attention along with deadlines specific to CLA in order for the financial services team to meet Central's deadlines.

Key Dates:

PO Vouchers                                                       CLA Deadline is June 10

Non-PO Vouchers                                                CLA Deadline is June 17

Employee Expenses                                            CLA Deadline is June 17

P-Card Reconciliation                                          CLA Deadline is July 1


Click here for the CLA Fiscal Year End Deadlines 2011.rev.doc

This message is forwarded from the U Card Office director.  The message below is included as an attachment.  The fees were reviewed once more by central administration, resulting in some changes.**

To:  Members of the University Community

Subject:  Update-U Card Fee for 1st Card

Since the recent notification of a U Card fee for first U cards being scheduled for implementation on June 1st, 2011, your concerns regarding the card fees have been brought to my attention.  Responses received have been appreciated and forwarded for review by Central Administration.   As a result, the University leadership has revised the U Card fee structure for FY12 as follows:

    The $10 fee for first issued cards to students, staff and faculty has been put on hold at this time.  First time issued cards will continue to be provided at no charge.
    Replacement fees for U Cards will increase to $25, effective second quarter, fiscal year 2012.  Coordinate campuses (Morris, Duluth, Crookston and Rochester) will most likely adopt a similar replacement card fee effective second quarter, fiscal year 2012.  Confirmation from the campuses is pending.
    Replacement card fees must be covered by the individual card holder and not their department.
    Cards damaged due to product failure are always replaced at no charge to the card holder.  To learn more about card product failure and what card holders should do when this occurs, visit the U Card web site:  www.umn.edu/ucard
    Sponsored account cards can still be purchased by departments.  Sponsored accounts are defined as U Cards issued to faculty and staff such as visiting scholars, project based employees, and adjunct faculty.  More information about these sponsored accounts can be found on the U Card web site: www.umn.edu/ucard

The U Card Office will provide updates as new developments or direction are received.  We will continue to provide you state of the art technology as the card system and program continue to expand.  If you have any questions or would like additional information, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Thank you,

Cathy Morrison, Director

U Card Office

morri605@umn.edu

After the previous message about the MSRA form for Civil Service and Bargaining Unit employees was sent out, central HR received a number of questions as to where the form should be sent.  The form is to be sent to Employee Benefits and the address is included in the information below.  Employee Benefits staff verifies the data on the form and then sends the form to MSRS.

***An important reminder from Employee Benefits***

When a new employee is hired with a civil service or non-faculty bargaining unit appointment, the person is required to fill out the Minnesota State Retirement System (MSRS) form.  The first part of the form is filled out by the employing department and the second part of the form is filled out by the employee.  Once the form is filled out, it should be sent to:
Employee Benefits
Room 100 Donhowe Building
3122

The form is available on the Office of Human Resources web site by clicking on Forms at the top of the home page.  The direct link is:

http://policy.umn.edu/categories/hr/form/emp_info.pdf

Civil Service and non-faculty bargaining unit employees are covered by MSRS. Participation is mandatory and begins from the first day of employment -- there is no waiting period. Retirement deductions are 5 percent of total salary and are paid into the Retirement Fund. This money is credited to the employee's individual MSRS account and is tax sheltered from both federal and state income tax. The employer contribution -- also 5 percent of total salary -- is not credited to individual accounts. It is used to help pay the monthly annuities and benefits received from the Retirement Fund. Rates are subject to change by the Legislature.

CS/BU (civil service and bargaining unit) annual reviews are due to
the college by June 17, 2011. All review materials must be submitted
electronically as PDF files on  the CLA projects drive (P drive) with
a paper copy sent to central Human Resources (200 Donhowe; delivery
code 3122).  If you have any questions about the project drive please
contact contact Kara Tacheny at 624-8480 or  tach0019@umn.edu.
Further information about CSBU reviews can be found at:
http://cla.umn.edu/intranet/hr/CSBUAnnualReviews.php
Please share this information with supervisors of CSBU employees as necessary.

The GradTracker project is creating a more efficient tool for
recording, tracking, summarizing and reporting of graduate student
progress from admission/matriculation to placement.

This month the first module of Intersections: GradTracker, Financial
Commitments, goes live.

The financial commitments module records future commitments for
graduate students including employment, UMN fellowships, external
fellowships and additional student support (i.e. travel and research
funding).

The expectation is that departments will be expected to use
GradTracker in Intersections to record all of the financial
commitments for their graduate students beginning this summer. We
invite you to join us for training sessions beginning June 21. We
would like one person per department to attend, but anyone who may use
the program is invited.

We have scheduled four training sessions (more will be added as needed):

• June 21, 10-11:30 AM Ford B53

• June 22, 2-3:30 PM, Anderson 150

• June 23, 2-3:30 PM, Ford B53

• June 24, 10-11:30 AM Anderson 150

Please sign up at: http://z.umn.edu/gradtrackertaining. Bring offer
letters and/or funding documentation for a few current and future
(Fall) students to the session. During the training session we will be
attempting to enter complete funding packages for one or two students
in your department.

Departments will be expected to have entry of all future funding
commitments (Fall 2011 forward) completed by September 15.

If you have questions about the GradTracker tool or its use, please
contact Wendy Friedmeyer a fried053@umn.edu or 612-624-9815.