The Daily Bruin

There is only a short time remaining to give HUGS (hats, umbrellas, gloves and scarves) to Love INC. Please help those less fortunate stay warm and dry during the upcoming winter months. Toiletry items not covered by food stamps are also gladly being accepted. Donations can be placed in the bright yellow decorated barrels located in lobbies throughout the Newberg campus and Portland Center.

Thank you for joining the Staff Development Committee in this donation drive. The deadline for contributions is noon on Monday, Oct. 19.

Because of Monday’s unique staff lunch (see related announcement), the first noon walking club session, initiated by Ruth Baker, is rescheduled to start on Wednesday, Oct. 14, at the George Fox track. If it’s raining, join us inside Wheeler and we’ll trek the stairs.

Did you know George Fox biblical studies or Christian ministry majors with good grades can earn 6 to 14 semester hours of advanced standing credit at George Fox Evangelical Seminary? Were you also aware MDiv students can save $5,000? Come to the seminary fair between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 14, in Hoover to learn more.

The staff lunch scheduled for this Monday, Oct. 12, will be held on the roof of Wood-Mar/EHS. A boxed lunch will be provided, along with a special university history presentation by Clyde Thomas (Plant Services Director) — and a spectacular view of campus.

Take the elevator to the third floor, walk around to the far northwest corner of Wood-Mar, then walk up a short stairway to the rooftop. Staff Development Committee members will be available for direction and special assistance.

Please R.S.V.P. to Danya Ochsner (University Relations) at ext. 2121 or by e-mail at dochsner@georgefox.edu. We need to give Bon Appetit a head count for lunch. Please join us for a unique and meaningful “Lunch on the Roof.” The cost is $3 per person.

All Portland and Newberg staff are asked to fill out a quick survey for the Staff Development Conference coming later this month. Click on this hyperlink to complete this survey. Please take two minutes to complete it by Friday, Oct. 9.

Be informed and updated about what is happening with all the organizations and groups on campus by checking out the Associated Student Community website. It’s easy to get involved. Visit georgefox.edu/offices/asc/index.html.

The Bruin Bookstore will close early this Thursday, Oct. 8, at 5 p.m. due to the mid-semester break. It will reopen on Monday, Oct. 12, at 8 a.m.

Please note a correction to the Spiritual Life Calendar: The Wednesday, Oct. 7 chapel will be about the 2009 May Serve South Africa Trip.

This is a reminder that the Staff Development Conference is less than two weeks away! “How Great is Our God” is the theme for this year’s conference, scheduled from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 20, at Family Life Church in Newberg. The keynote speaker will be Mark Doyle (Biology).

This will be a day of spiritual renewal, as well as a fun-filled day of learning and serving together. All staff members are expected to attend. Watch your campus mailbox for more information.

Business cards may now be ordered directly from B&B Print Source at eorder.bbprintsource.net/avnet/avlogin.asp. The login user ID is “gfubc” and the password is “gfu123.” Please contact Danette Newkirk (Marketing Communications) to walk you through the process the first time.

Business card orders will be printed quarterly (September, December, March and June).

Would you like to carry a flag representing your cultural heritage in the Oct. 26 chapel to open Cultural Celebration Week? If so, please e-mail or call Dianna McIntyre (ext. 2649) or Alex Pia (ext. 2643) no later than Friday, Oct. 16. All you do is show up to chapel a few minutes early, carry your flag across the stage, and say the name of the country your flag represents into a microphone. If you volunteer, we will contact you the week before Cultural Celebration Week with details.

Who may carry a flag? Anyone who is from another country, lived in another country, was a missionary in another country, or has a cultural heritage from another country. It is a great way to show pride in your culture!

Funds for independent student research at George Fox are available through the Richter Scholars Program. Applications for the program are now being accepted. All George Fox graduate and undergraduate students are eligible.

The program supplies funds for research in collaboration with a faculty member. Applications are due in Hoover 110 by 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 1. Visit georgefox.edu/academics/richter/index.html for more information.

The university will host a Red Cross blood drive from 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 29, in the Villa Academic Complex’s Room 117. Come and serve your community by donating blood. Sign up this month in the Bruin Den during the lunch hour. Questions? Contact Jessie Sarver at jsarver05@georgefox.edu.

Undecided about your major? A Majors Fair is scheduled from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. Friday, Oct. 16. Come to both the Hoover and EHS atriums to visit with representatives from all departments on campus. Learn more about the majors that are offered by each department and stop by the Career Services booth to ask questions. The event is available to all students.

All First Year Seminar students are required to attend and receive signatures from three different booths to validate their attendance. Questions? Contact Jessie Sarver at jsarver05@georgefox.edu.

Scholars: Is a PhD in your future? Visit with Roger Nam of George Fox Evangelical Seminary on Wednesday, Oct. 14, at the seminary fair in the Hoover lower lobby. The fair runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

See a play in the city with fellow members of the George Fox community. The Northwest’s premier Latino arts and culture organization, The Miracle Theater, will present a bilingual performance of Canta Y No Llores at 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 30, and Multicultural Services has 20 reserved tickets. Visit the Office of Student Life (third floor of Stevens) and pay cash or check for a $10 ticket. This is half off the regular cost.

Every fall, the dead are commemorated in a lively show of dance, music and theatre in Portland’s longest-running Day of the Dead celebration. This year, in honor of Oregon’s 150th birthday, Los Muertos return singing familiar tunes that hearken back to another era when times were tough and tradition was one of the few things folks could call their own. For online info, visit milagro.org.

This is opening night and the audience is invited to stay afterward for a complimentary reception catered by a local restaurant.

For accommodations or questions, contact Shelley Yonemura, director of Multicultural Student Programs, at syonemur@georgefox.edu or stop by Student Life.

As announced in June, PeopleSoft works on a calendar year to track support staff and administrators’ vacation carryover balances, rather than on a fiscal year as it did with IFAS. As a result of this change, employees did not lose any vacation after June 30 if they carried balances into July that were greater than one year’s accrual. This change resulted in all staff and administrators having an extra six months (July-December 2009) to use any extra vacation.

If a balance of more than one year of vacation accrual remains after December time sheets and time-off reports are processed (in January), the employee will lose the portion that exceeds one year’s accrual.

To determine your accrual rates and how much you may need to use by Dec. 31, HR has prepared a chart and instructions for support staff and one for administrators to be used along with the information on your Sept. 30 pay statement. It also provides useful information about the balances on your monthly pay statements. To learn more, visit georgefox.edu/offices/hr/EmployeeBenefits/beneforms.html.

If you have any questions after you have reviewed your vacation balance, please contact HR for assistance.

Shane Roghaar, our TIAA-CREF representative, will be on the Newberg campus Oct. 27-28, with sessions scheduled in the Executive Dining Room. You may make an appointment with him to discuss your investments. See the invitation posted on the HR/Benefits web page: georgefox.edu/offices/hr/benefits.html. Employees in other locations may contact Shane to arrange a telephone consultation at 503-452-6981.

Interested in grad school? Be sure to check into any one of a number of events being offered next week:

• Join Career Services in the “Career Commons” blog at careers.georgefox.edu, where the topic will be on grad school information and questions between Oct. 12-23

• On Tuesday, Oct. 13, a “Getting Into Grad School” prep-shop will be held in Hoover 210 from noon to 1 p.m. and is available by webinar at that same time

• On Wednesday, Oct. 14, a Seminary Fair is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in Hoover’s lower lobby

• Career Center graduate school resources and guidance available in Stevens 220.

Questions? Contact Career Services at careers@georgefox.edu or call 503-554-2330.

Career Services is hosting a prep-shop and webinar on getting into grad school from noon to 1 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 13, in Hoover 210. Led by Career Services graduate assistant Chloe Lee, who has an MA and is also a  PsyD student at George Fox, the event will cover using a time line for admissions; taking the grad exams; selecting grad schools; preparing a curriculum vitae, cover letter and essay; obtaining recommendations; finding financial aid; and practicing for an admissions interview.

The prep-shop will be available by webinar at that same time. Contact Career Services at careers@georgefox.edu or ext. 2330 ASAP to get on one of our lists. The webinar has limited slots and is reserved for distance School of Professional Studies audiences first, but there will be a webinar waiting list available for Newberg campus participants. The deadline to sign up is noon Monday, Oct. 12.