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Gary’s Second Post

Published on by Gary Flegel2 Comments

The day had begun on a bright note. The sun finally peeked through the rain for the first time in a week, and the birds were singing in its warmth. There was no way to anticipate what was about to happen. It was a worst-case scenario and there was no way out of it.

Balloons are pretty and come in different colors, different shapes, different sizes, and they can even adjust sizes as needed. But don’t make them too big or they might just pop, and then bye-bye balloon. It’ll be gone and lost for the rest of mankind. They can serve a variety of purposes, from decorating to water balloon wars. You just have to use your head to think a little bit about what to do with them.

Since they are still preserved in the rocks for us to see, they must have been formed quite recently, that is, geologically speaking. What can explain these striations and their common orientation? Did you ever hear about the Great Ice Age or the Pleistocene Epoch? Less than one million years ago, in fact, some 12,000 years ago, an ice sheet many thousands of feet thick rode over Burke Mountain in a southeastward direction. The many boulders frozen to the underside of the ice sheet tended to scratch the rocks over which they rode. The scratches or striations seen in the park rocks were caused by these attached boulders. The ice sheet also plucked and rounded Burke Mountain into the shape it possesses today.

Thank-you

Gary’s First Post

Published on by Gary FlegelLeave a comment

The chair sat in the corner where it had been for over 25 years. The only difference was there was someone actually sitting in it. How long had it been since someone had done that? Ten years or more he imagined. Yet there was no denying the presence in the chair now.

He watched as the young man tried to impress everyone in the room with his intelligence. There was no doubt that he was smart. The fact that he was more intelligent than anyone else in the room could have been easily deduced, but nobody was really paying any attention due to the fact that it was also obvious that the young man only cared about his intelligence.

He sat across from her trying to imagine it was the first time. It wasn’t. Had it been a hundred? It quite possibly could have been. Two hundred? Probably not. His mind wandered until he caught himself and again tried to imagine it was the first time.

Person choosing a path

Job of the week – Union Manager

Published on by Roger BeachLeave a comment

This week’s job of the week is an Union Manager (#585654) for MSU Union. This position is seeking an individual to direct, implement and evaluate operational activities of services and partnerships at the Union.

The responsibilities for this role include interviewing, hiring, supervising and evaluating support staff. Other responsibilities for this role include working with Residential Hospitality Services (RHS), developing operational budgets, preparing monthly reconciliation of fund ledgers and provide active support with REHS Outreach and MSU Tour programs.

The ideal candidate would possess knowledge by completing a four-year degree program in business or hospitality; five to eight years of related and progressively more responsible or expansive work experience in management, retailing, accounting, marketing, maintenance, public relations and contract administration or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

For more details on the responsibilities of this position, and to view all our current postings, visit careers.msu.edu. Internal applicants should access postings through the Careers @ MSU tile in the EBS Portal.

Learn to use your sick time quota!

Published on by Roger BeachLeave a comment

How to Use Your Family Sick Time Quota Balance

If you’re an MSU support staff member, you may have you found yourself wondering how MSU’s family sick time balance works. How is your sick time balance related to your family sick time balance? Let’s break it down.

First, what is family sick time? Basically, the university gives you paid time you can take to care for a family member or someone in your home. Exactly how much time and what qualifies varies depending on your union. Find out here how your union defines family sick time. You get a certain amount of family sick time to use during a fiscal year, July 1 – June 30.

Is this separate from your sick time balance?

Technically, no. When you enter time in EBS, it appears separately, but any time you take for family sick will be deducted from the family sick balance AND your personal sick time balance. This means if you want to take eight hours of family sick time, you have to have eight hours available in BOTH the sick time balance and family sick time balance.

Think of it this way – you earn sick time every pay period and of that sick time, you can use a set number of hours as family sick time. Your sick time can be used when you personally are sick or when you go to the doctor or dentist. If you use up all your family sick time, you should not be using any remaining personal sick time to cover times when you’re away from work to care for a family member of someone in your home. View the full policy for support staff here.

Example: Sue Spartan’s Time Balances

Sue Spartan gets paid monthly. She earns eight hours of sick time every pay period. On July 1, Sue gets 80 hours of family sick time to use through June 30 of the next year. She has accumulated a sick time balance of 100 hours. Sue’s son, Sam, gets sick one day and she wants to take time off work to stay home and care for him. Sue will enter eight hours of time taken from her family sick time balance. Her updated balances will show 92 hours of sick time and 72 hours of family sick time remaining.

Still not clear?

If you’re still not sure how the family sick time quota balance works, or if you have questions for your specific situation, give us a call! You can reach a representative at the HR Solutions Center at 517-353-4434 or SolutionsCenter@hr.msu.edu.

Nominate your supervisor for the Outstanding Supervisor Award!

Published on by Roger BeachLeave a comment

Do you have a supervisor that shows empathy, understands your work/life balance and supports your individual goals? Nominate them now for the 18th Annual Outstanding Supervisor Award! This award is presented by the MSU WorkLife Office to honor supervisors who demonstrate positive leadership and support the work/life needs of their employees.

Here is one of last year’s winners, Niesa Kettler, with her employees below  from the department of Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory – Bacteriology. Her team described her as “Always welcoming, caring, accommodating and fully understands the needs of her employees, both on the job and outside of work”. When writing your nomination letter, think about what makes your supervisor special. How do they show their understanding and how do they stand out?

Niesa Kettler and her team from the department of Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory.
Niesa Kettler and her team.

When nominating a supervisor/administrator, nominate someone who shows qualities such as:

  • Understands work/life balance
  • Allows flexible schedules
  • Treat everyone with dignity, integrity and respect
  • Promote teamwork while supporting individual goals
  • People first attitude
  • Positive leadership that empowers others

To nominate a supervisor for this award, you must submit a nomination form, nomination letter and 2-4 letters of support on what makes that person an outstanding supervisor. Any staff, faculty or student can nominate their supervisor for this award. Submit a nomination online now through Tuesday, July 9.

The Outstanding Supervisor Award Committee will review the nominations and nominators will be notified in late September. The selected recipients will be honored with a surprise celebration around National Bosses Day on October 16. For any questions or additional information visit the WorkLife Office website or contact them via phone at 517-353-1635 or at worklife@msu.edu.

Take a pledge and Go Green this Earth Day!

Published on by Roger BeachLeave a comment

Celebrate Earth Day on April 22 with recycling, clean commuting options and more! Take the first step to help your Spartan community go green. Are you looking for ways to go green? Start small like walking to get your lunch instead of driving, carpooling with coworkers to work or recycling materials from home. Whether you’re at home or in the office you can recycle materials you aren’t using like plastics, paper, cardboard and glass.

MSU Recycling Center is taking the lead for reusable materials here on campus. The center is open 24/7 for dropping off recycling materials. They have labeled containers for collecting books, boxboards, cardboard, glass and more! You can find out what material is accepted at the MSU Recycle Center website.

If you are looking for clean commuting options on campus, try biking, CATA or Zipcar. MSU Bikes is one commuter option that you can use by finding 1-on-1 bike commuter assistance that can help you find the safest, lowest – stress route from campus to your home. Campus also offers secure covered bike parking with DIY repair and an air station for your convenience.

Zipcar is here to help you get to your on-campus destination or your weekend adventure. You can find local Zipcars in the area by visiting the Zipcar website or downloading the app. Zipcar offers a variety of cars, vans and SUVs for wherever you’re going. You also have the option to rent for a day, hour or weekend. Zipcar is offering commuter options for MSU staff and faculty, just locate the car you want, drive and return it back to its parking space. Find more information on Zipcar and where you can sign up at the Zipcar website.

CATA clean commute options are here for free ride matching services for bus routes, carpools, vanpools and bike buddies. You can find travel modes that best fit your needs for getting around campus. Clean commute options are guided to help you save money and have a no stress commute. CATA also offers a commute cost calculator by examining how much money you spend driving alone and how much you can save by carpooling. Visit the CATA website to get involved for a clean commute for your morning.

This Earth Day make a pledge to go green! Try one of these options, whether it’s recycling with the family or carpooling with coworkers in the morning. Putting in the effort this Earth Day will make for a better tomorrow.

Job of the week – Office Coordinator II

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This week’s job of the week is an Office Coordinator II (#571137) for the College of Education. This position is seeking an individual to provide support to the chairperson in the Department of Teacher Education with administrative and operational responsibilities.

The responsibilities for this role include course scheduling, analyzing information and assisting with departmental reports like enrollment and faculty assignments. Other responsibilities for this role include acting as a resource for faculty and staff, maintaining graduate applications and developing departmental databases.

The ideal candidate would possess knowledge acquired in the first two or three years in college, technical school or a related field; one to three years of related and progressively more responsible or expansive work experience in a professional office setting, performing secretarial and administrative tasks, including experience with scheduling meetings, data entry and payroll processing; or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

For more details on the responsibilities of this position, and to view all our current postings, visit careers.msu.edu. Internal applicants should access postings through the Careers @ MSU tile in the EBS Portal.

Start a healthy lifestyle with MSU Student Organic Farm!

Published on by Roger BeachLeave a comment

Are you looking for healthy food options that are organic and help support the local community? The MSU Student Organic Farm stand is run by MSU students who have an interest in farming and sustainable food resources.

The MSU Student Organic Farm is a 15-acre, certified organic farm that started in 1999. The goal of the farm is to provide a place where students can volunteer, work, visit and share their interest in the development of the land and farm. The farm has flourished over the years, becoming a place where people can engage with farming and creating learning opportunities through farming.

The Student Organic Farm Stand opened the first week of April and will run through the end of October; it is available every Thursday from 11 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. at Farm Lane and Auditorium Road next to the Rock, under the big white tent. All the food they have available is USDA Certified Organic and locally grown by students and the farm crew. Note: Due to inclement weather, the farm stand will not be open on Thursday, April 18.

Farm Production Manager, Sarah G. picking vegetables in a greenhouse.
Sarah G. Production Manager

Here are some of the items they offer throughout the season:

  • Spring: eggs, asparagus, spinach, lettuce, brassica salad mix, chard, kale, radishes, turnips, peas, and strawberries.
  • Summer:  tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, cucumber, summer squash, sweet corn, green beans, some cut flowers, raspberries, and other small fruit.
  • Fall: eggs, pumpkins, brussels sprouts, broccoli and cauliflower, raspberries, strawberries, pears, Asian pears, grapes, hazelnuts, and dried flowers.

The MSU Student Organic Farm offers many healthy food opportunities for staff and faculty with their Community Support Agriculture (CSA) and Market Share Program. The CSA program is designed to give you access to a diverse set of organic fruits and vegetables. You can expect 8-12 items each week ready for pick up at their farm and if you are looking for getting your hands dirty they also offer a U-Pick option. The Market Share program allows you to preload a card before you stop by the farm stand. If you purchase a minimum of a $100 share, you can receive 5-10% additional credit on your card. With the Market Share program, you can purchase fruits, veggies, herbs and flowers.

The Student Organic Farm is about connecting with the community and learning about farming and a healthy lifestyle. You can learn more about the CSA program at MSU Student Organic Farm and their Market Share program at their website. For information about upcoming events, join the MSU Student Organic Farm Stand Newsletter here. For general information about the MSU Student Organic Farm, visit their website.

Options for Using Your Educational Assistance Benefit

Published on by Megan MacGregorLeave a comment

Are you an MSU support staff employee looking for professional development opportunities? There are a variety of ways for you to learn and grow in your career at MSU. If you find a course or learning opportunity you’re interested in, don’t forget you have access to Educational Assistance! This benefit offers financial assistance towards your professional development after you’ve worked at MSU for an equivalent of 12 full-time service months. If you work less than full-time, the benefit is prorated based on your employment percentage.

You may receive financial assistance for a variety of learning opportunities. For non-credit learning opportunities, you may have up to $800 per year to use towards registration fees. It must be considered job-related and from an approved institution/program to receive assistance. Some examples of learning opportunities you can use this benefit for include:

For credit courses, you can receive up to 14 credits per academic year. Your financial assistance level is determined by your union group, the type of course you’re taking (graduate or undergraduate), and where you’re taking the course (MSU or another university). The course must be considered job-related, degree-related, or career/professional development-related.

Find detailed information about Educational Assistance – including how to apply – on the HR website. Questions? We’re happy to help! Contact the HR Solutions Center at SolutionsCenter@hr.msu.edu or 517-353-4434.

Please note: Academic Specialists have a program similar to Educational Assistance, please see the HR website for details.

Job of the Week – Engineering/Physicist Accelerator I

Published on by Roger BeachLeave a comment

This week’s job of the week is an Engineering/Physicist Accelerator I (#569539) for the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams. This position is seeking an individual to provide engineering designs and analyze particle accelerator applications.

The responsibilities for this role include providing engineering support for mechanical design, transforming technical requirements into design solutions and assembling and commissioning of technical equipment. Other responsibilities for this role include maintaining building information models and providing support for fabrication.

The ideal candidate would possess a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering or related +1 year in experience; in any related engineering occupation. Must have experience in mechanical systems design using Solid works and AutoCAD.

For more details on the responsibilities of this position, and to view all our current postings, visit careers.msu.edu. Internal applicants should access postings through the Careers @ MSU tile in the EBS Portal.