Thank you Spartan Linen Services!

Spartan Linen Services keeps MSU looking fresh with expert cleaning and embroidering skills. The employees at Spartan Linen Services clean (literally) tons of laundry and linen with the assistance of industrial-sized machines.

Spartan Linen Services building
Spartan Linen Services is located on Service Road

The service even transports the dirty and cleaned linen around campus. It also partners with off-campus customers, such as Central Michigan University.

From this one-stop-shop MSU employees can have work attire, such as lab coats or culinary uniforms, embroidered or silk screened with logos and names. They can purchase regular clothing items such as T-shirts, rain gear hats and more from popular brands. Spartan Linen Services also cleans and rents out beautiful napkins and tablecloths. Students have this service to thank as well for free bed and towel linen trades in the residence halls.

Thank you Spartan Linen Services! After spending the day among tablecloths, coats, sheets, detergents and machines, know that the MSU community feels confident in your abilities and appreciates your work.

Go Green for the environment

Different seasons present new environmentally related problems and opportunities. Here are a few easy tips, provided in part by MSU Sustainability, about the best ways to pursue an eco-friendly summer.

Be Spartan Green items
Be Spartan Green by doing your part for MSU and the Earth!

Stay hydrated on hot days

Ditch disposable water bottles. Remember to bring a reusable bottle to campus and utilize one of MSU’s many water refill stations.

Enjoy the daylight

Lighting consumes 27 to 43 percent of the electricity used in a typical commercial building. Take advantage of sunny summer days and reduce your energy consumption by using natural light when possible. You can also use a mirror to magnify available light sources.Continue Reading… Go Green for the environment

Contact Best Doctors for expert medical advice

MSU promotes health among faculty and staff. To ensure that employees receive correct and professional treatment, MSU offers the Best Doctors service to its employees.

Stethoscope
For an expert second opinion, call Best Doctors at no cost to you.

Contacting Best Doctors grants access to one-on-one discussions with Member Advocates and medical record reviews from top specialists across the country.

The recommendations provided by the experts working with Best Doctors can put patients’ minds at ease and even save lives. The medical information given to Best Doctors is completely voluntary and confidential, and with your permission they can consult your own physician. The service is free and operates on your time. Continue Reading… Contact Best Doctors for expert medical advice

Cheer on the Spartans at discounted prices

Part of being a member of the MSU community is cheering on our Spartan athletes. Faculty and staff can attend games at discounted prices. Discounts for all games only apply to season tickets. Individual tickets are purchased at public prices.

Employees eligible for discounts are faculty and staff that work a minimum of 50 percent full time and former employees that retired with full campus benefits. For these retirees up to two tickets can be purchased as well, but only spouses can receive the extra ticket.

MSU football game
MSU football v. Nebraska on Saturday, October 4, 2014. Photo courtesy of Communications and Brand Strategy.

Football

Public $308 season tickets are discounted to $252 for faculty and staff. Closer seats have an additional fee that goes to the Spartan Fund. Season tickets are on sale now.

Men’s basketball

Seating is more limited in Breslin Center so discounts only apply to upper chair seating at $324 for 18 home games, which is subject to availability. Upper bench seating is $234. Tickets are available to purchase October 15.

Ice hockey

Tickets go on sale September 1. To attend the 20 home games, faculty and staff can purchase up to two season tickets for $240 for bench seating and $280 for chair seating. That’s a savings of $60 for either of the season tickets compared to public prices.

Women’s basketball, volleyball, men’s and women’s soccer, wrestling, gymnastics, softball, baseball

Faculty and staff can attend all of the regular home season games played by the above teams with the purchase of a physical $50 Go Green card. More than two cards can be purchased if desired, and with it children 8 and under can attend the events for free. Go Green cards are most easily purchased in August at Jenison Field House.

The home games of every other official MSU sport are free for everyone to attend.

Purchasing

Before buying discounted tickets, an employee verification form needs to be completed. This needs to be completed every year, even if season tickets are just being renewed. An athletic customer number is required to complete the form.

To find your customer number, purchase tickets or to have any additional questions answered, contact the Ticket Office.

Get ready to cheer on the Spartans this year. Go green!

Gain knowledge and skills with elevateU this summer!

Do you want to learn in a way that’s free, easy and convenient? The e-learning resource elevateU, provided by HR’s Professional Development Services and IT Services, offers free online instructional guides, videos, books and even courses. The tools available in elevateU focus on improving overall work performance, with topics ranging from the development of interpersonal skills to computer literacy.Print

Summer is a great time to catch up on reading. With elevateU, you will never be short of free books. The resource includes Books 24×7, a platform that boasts on-demand access to thousands of books, research reports, best practices and more. On Books 24×7, you can make notations and bookmarks, receive email alerts about new arrivals of books related to your interests, and read on tablets and smart phones. ElevateU will enhance your career through professional certification programs and quizzes.

If you want to sample elevateU before diving into courses and creating development plans, you can try watching the 7-12 minute business impact videos that dramatize frequently encountered business problems and provide solutions. You can also partake in a 15-20 minute challenge in which you analyze and solve a problem. Check out an overview of the elevateU resources here.  For a more in-depth and MSU-specific explanation, watch this video.

All MSU faculty and staff can use elevateU. To access elevateU, log in to EBS, click on the ESS tab, and then click on Professional Development. Look for the elevateU link under Training Opportunities.

Kick-start your retirement plan at upcoming workshops

Retirement might be far away for many, but it’s never too early to start planning and preparing. Starting to save and invest now can lead to financial security and a big pay-off in the future. On July 15 and 16, retirement vendor TIAA-CREF is coming to MSU as a part of their Financial Essentials education to provide free workshops to staff and faculty. All sessions take place in the MSU Union. Click the dates to register for one of the sessions.

Jar of change
Start saving now to ensure a comfortable future

The Starting Line: Why and how retirement saving should begin now

Wednesday, July 15, 4 p.m. – 5 p.m.

This session shows the real effect of time on money, why saving is important and how to plan, and how budgeting can help you find and save. Snacks are provided.

Halfway There: A retirement checkpoint

Wednesday, July 15, noon – 1 p.m. or Thursday, July 16, 8 a.m. – 9 a.m.

This session provides a mid-year financial checkup that allows you to evaluate current savings, formulate a plan to reach your savings goals and how to manage what might be competing with retirement savings, such as college savings, short-term savings and so on. Lunch is provided at the afternoon session and a light breakfast is provided at the morning session.

Inside Money: Managing income and debt

Thursday, July 16, noon – 1 p.m.

This session demonstrates how to make your money work, the importance of cash flow and how to use it. It describes good and bad debt and ways to help manage it. Lunch is provided.

Register soon! Seating is limited. If you have questions, contact TIAA-CREF at 800-732-8353 or MSU Human Resources at retirementinfo@hr.msu.edu or 517-353-4434.

Events Round-Up July 2015

Here are some events happening over the next month that may be of interest to MSU faculty and staff. Please visit the links for more information. Many events require registration.

Community Events

Saturday, July 4

Fourth of July Concert and Fireworks, 8 p.m., Adado Riverfront Park

Tuesday, July 7 – Sunday, July 12

Common Ground Music Festival, Adado Riverfront Park

Wednesday, July 8

The United States Army Field Band and Soldiers’ Chorus, 7:30 p.m., Wharton Center

Sunday, July 12 – Sunday, July 19

Capital Area Restaurant Week, Greater Lansing

Tuesday, July 14

Play in the Park, 7 p.m., Valley Court Park

Friday, July 17 – Saturday, July 18

Scrapfest, Oldtown

Thursday, July 23

Moonlight Film Series, 9:30 p.m., Valley Court Park

Saturday, July 25

Car Capitol Auto Show, Michigan State Capitol, morning – 3:15 p.m. award show

Taste of Downtown, 3 p.m. – 8 p.m., Downtown Lansing

Development, Training and Wellness

Wednesday, July 8

Best Doctors Live Q&A of Sports Medicine: Orthopedics, noon, online broadcast

Tuesday, July 14

Creating Accessible PDF Documents, 1 p.m. – 5 p.m., 210 Computer Center

Wednesday, July 15

The Spartan Experience, 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., Nisbet

Tuesday, July 21

Relaxing Under the Stars, 12:10 p.m. – 12:50 p.m., Abrams Planetarium

Tuesday, July 21 and Thursday, July 23

Influencer, 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m., Nisbet

Thursday, July 23

Boosting Your Career with ElevateU, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m., Nisbet

Reminder: University holiday on July 3

The American flag
In 1777 the American flag only had 13 stars.

Two hundred thirty-nine years ago the Continental Congress approved the final draft of the Declaration of Independence.  The Fourth of July is a day to reflect on the birth of our nation and celebrate with family and friends. It’s also a day to eat great food, attend parades and watch fireworks.

The Fourth of July falls on a Saturday this year, so the university is closed Friday, July 3. The next university holiday is Labor Day on Sept. 7. View the university academic calendar here.

On July 3, all Sparty’s sites and the Riverwalk Market at Owen Hall will be closed, but all other Eat-At-State hours of operation are the same. View the hours of operation for Independence Day here.

Enjoy the long weekend!

Thank you Controller’s Office

AdminBldg-2009
The Controller’s Office works with numbers in Hannah Administration. Photo courtesy of Communications and Brand Strategy.

The Controller’s Office manages MSU’s finances, and is behind every paycheck received by faculty and staff. That may be the favorite feature of this department, but the Controller’s Office is essential for innumerable university functions.

There are many rules, policies and laws that the Controller’s Office must ensure are being followed by the university, its students and its employees. In total, that’s about 60,000 individuals! Its mission is to provide world-class fiscal integrity and service while facilitating MSU’s world-class instruction, research, and public service.

The Controller’s Office performs many services, such as managing business traveling expenses, providing online calculators to estimate tuition, coordinating the MSU Manual of Business Procedures, which outlines policies and procedures regarding proper university business fund allocation, and so on.

In short, the good people at the Controller’s Office meet the constant financial needs of the MSU community. They pay attention to the nitty-gritty details that are vital to the university’s continued world-class fiscal reputation and strive for accuracy and integrity in their work.

Thanks Controller’s Office! You’re a good friend to Human Resources, and we definitely appreciate you!