The Daily Bruin

When there is an emergency campus closure, usually due to inclement weather as was the case Monday, Jan, 4, the university’s policy indicates the following in the Employee Handbook, Section 7.1 Emergency Closure:

• If the university is closed, employees are paid as if they worked.
• If the university has a late opening and/or early closure, employees who work are paid for a full work day.
• If employees cannot make it in, their absence is covered by the use of vacation or is unpaid if vacation is not available.
• Employees who are required to work to assist with facilities and safety issues as a result of the weather (primarily plant services employees) will be given time off within the following 30 days equal to the time they worked during the closure.

A revised staff time sheet for January has been posted to the Human Resources webpage. If you have already started your January time sheet, please download and use the revised form. Staff should mark their time sheets with hours worked only on the day of the closure. If you were not required to be at work, please record only hours worked through the end of your regular daily work period. You will be paid your scheduled hours between those times.

Staff who normally report to work before 8 a.m. should specify their regular work day start and end times in the designated area on the revised January time sheet.

If you were required to be at work, please make a notation on the bottom of your time card of the number of hours you were required to work during the two-hour closure. Later, please enter the equivalent hours taken off in the bottom section of the specific day’s time, so that it doesn’t show as hours worked, sick leave, or vacation. Then please write on the time sheet that these were “snow hours.”

Please note: Employees who happen to be on vacation or using sick leave the day of a closure should record those days/hours as vacation or sick leave the same as they would had the campus been open.

Please email Katie Sol at ksol@georgefox.edu with any additional questions.

Changes are coming to the George Fox wireless networks. Bruin-Secure is the new secure wireless network that you should connect to using your George Fox credentials.

Bruin-Secure is replacing the older foxwifi network. Please connect soon, as the foxwifi wireless network will be turned off Feb. 1. A new wireless guest network will be announced in the coming weeks. Watch for it!

If you have trouble connecting, check out the IT WiFi webpage.

Changes are coming to the George Fox wireless networks. Bruin-Secure is the new secure wireless network that you should connect to using your George Fox credentials.

Bruin-Secure is replacing the older foxwifi network. Please connect soon, as the foxwifi wireless network will be turned off Feb. 1. A new wireless guest network will be announced in the coming weeks. Watch for it!

If you have trouble connecting, check out the IT WiFi webpage.

Use your new, empty 2016 Spring sites as the sites in which you will teach. You may import content from another course site. See the instructions here for importing.

Your 2016 Spring sites are hidden to students. When you are ready to make a site visible, go to Administration> Course administration > Edit settings on the course home page. Scroll down to the “Visible” section and change “Hide” to “Show” from the drop-down menu. Then “Save changes” at the bottom.

Remember that all students enrolled in your class in MyGFU will automatically be enrolled in your FoxTALE course site. As students add and drop your course in MyGFU, they will be added or removed automatically from your FoxTALE site

If your course site is set to “Weekly” format, your course might show incorrect dates. To change the dates, go to Administration> Edit settings on the course home page. Scroll down to the course start date and change it to the first day of your 2016 Spring course. Scroll to the bottom of the page and “Save changes.”

Visit the FoxTALE for Faculty webpage for guides and resources.

Questions? Contact servicedesk@georgefox.edu.

Nine staff and administrator positions are currently open. Listed in order of recency, they are:

• Graduate Admissions Counselor, Seminary
• Custodian
• Administrative Assistant, College of Arts and Sciences
• Carpenter
• Associate Vice President of Human Resources
• Head Women’s Volleyball Coach
• Director of Financial Aid
• Associate Registrar
• Accounting Specialist II – General Ledger

The link to each of these position announcements can be found at jobs.georgefox.edu. If you know of someone you believe might provide a good fit for any of these jobs, please refer the person to the website for information about the job and instructions about applying.

The Internal Revenue Service has issued the 2016 optional standard mileage rates used to calculate the deductible costs of operating an automobile for business.

Beginning on Jan. 1, 2016, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car will be 54 cents per mile for business miles driven, down from 57.5 cents for 2015.

Please make sure you use the correct/current Expense Reimbursement Request Forms. Turn in separate sheets for 2015 and 2016 mileage. These forms are found at this link.

Please contact Matt Hammar at ext. 2162 or Jen Klapp at ext. 2170 with questions.

The alumni relations office is looking for an original painting of the Centennial Tower done for a George Fox Christmas card in 1998 by alumnus Ken Gilmore (see photo). The painting was last seen in the Pennington House in the summer of 2014.

If you know of its whereabouts, please contact the alumni office at alumni.georgefox.edu or 503-554-2134.

Thank you

Happy New Year! As we finish up the calendar year, we have had much excitement in advancement, processing more year-end gifts than ever before! In order to finish well, we need your help.

Please check your mail today and bring any donations received to advancement immediately (corner of Sheridan and Meridian streets). It is critical we receive all donations as quickly as possible in order to receipt the donors in a timely fashion and process the gifts in the correct calendar year.

In order to care for our donors, check your mail, send an email notifying Kristi Hagen (khagen@georgefox.edu) of any donations received, and hand-deliver them to advancement today.

Thank you!

Questions? Contact Kristi at ext 2111.

Tuition remission applications for 2016-17 are being accepted through Jan. 5, 2016.

In order to better coordinate financial aid communications with tuition remission benefits, the due date for the 2016-17 tuition remission applications will be Tuesday, Jan. 5. See the tuition remission section (top of the page) of the Benefits, Forms & Resources for instructions and applications.

Questions? Contact Darby Thiessen at dthiessen@georgefox.edu or ext. 2188.

Tuition remission applications for 2016-17 are being accepted through Jan. 5, 2016.

In order to better coordinate financial aid communications with tuition remission benefits, the due date for the 2016-17 tuition remission applications will be Tuesday, Jan. 5. See the tuition remission section (top of the page) of the Benefits, Forms & Resources page for instructions and applications.

Questions? Contact Darby Thiessen at dthiessen@georgefox.edu or ext. 2188.

Is there someone you can think of whose contributions in our community stand out as deserving Employee of the Month recognition? If so, please send an email to Lisa Burton (lburton@georgefox.edu) by Thursday, Jan. 14, with a summary of this colleague’s recent contributions.

The President’s Executive Leadership Team will select the recipient from the nominations submitted, and the winner will be honored with a citation and a $100 Visa gift card at our first community meeting later this month.

Congratulations again to Joel Kelley, who was our December Employee of the month!

George Fox University has established a US Bank Visa “One Card” program to provide for the rapid acquisition of many of our low-dollar items (<=$1,000.01). It is designed to facilitate and simplify the process of purchasing goods, improve administrative efficiencies, and provide more consistent procedures.

The US Bank Visa One Card can also be used for university travel/entertainment and associated travel transactions. Please continue to use purchase orders and check requests where/when appropriate.

If you are a current cardholder or would like to become a cardholder, please make sure you read the GFU Visa Policy. Information on purchase orders and check requests is available on this page.

Please contact Matt Hammar, director of purchasing, at mhammar@georgefox.edu or 503-554-2162 if you have any questions.

Don’t have tickets yet for the Saturday, Jan. 9, Oregon Symphony performance in Bauman Auditorium? You’re in luck, because a limited number of tickets are still available for George Fox employees (halftime and above).

If interested, swing by the advancement office at 215 N. Meridian St., to pick up your tickets. There is a limit of two per employee. Phone reservations (503-554-2134) will not be taken except for employees at the Portland Center.

Beginning today (Monday) at 9 a.m., any remaining tickets (again, a limit of two per person) will be available – on a first-come, first-served basis – to those who signed up on a waiting list. If you find you will not be able to attend the concert, please return your tickets for another employee to use.

The 29th annual concert will begin at 8 p.m. The performance is free to George Fox employees – a gift from George Fox honorary board member Ken Austin, who cofounded A-dec with his late wife Joan. The employee tickets are separate from those to be issued by the Newberg Area Chamber of Commerce to the general public.

Questions? Contact Mary Monahan at mmonahan@georgefox.edu.

Seven staff and administrator positions are currently open. Listed in order of recency they are:

• Administrative Assistant, College of Arts and Sciences
• Carpenter
• Associate Vice President of Human Resources
• Head Women’s Volleyball Coach
• Director of Financial Aid
• Associate Registrar
• Accounting Specialist II – General Ledger

The link to each of these position announcements can be found at jobs.georgefox.edu. If you know of someone you believe might provide a good fit for any of these jobs, please refer the person to the website for information about the job and instructions about applying.

Don’t have tickets yet for the Saturday, Jan. 9, Oregon Symphony performance in Bauman Auditorium? You’re in luck, because a limited number of tickets are still available for George Fox employees (halftime and above).

If interested, swing by the advancement office at 215 N. Meridian St., to pick up your tickets today (Tuesday) or tomorrow. There is a limit of two per employee. Phone reservations (503-554-2134) will not be taken except for employees at the Portland Center.

On Monday, Jan. 4, beginning at 9 a.m., any remaining tickets (again, a limit of two per person) will be available – on a first-come, first-served basis – to those who sign up on a waiting list. If you find you will not be able to attend the concert, please return your tickets for another employee to use.

The 29th annual concert will begin at 8 p.m. The performance is free to George Fox employees – a gift from George Fox honorary board member Ken Austin, who cofounded A-dec with his late wife Joan. The employee tickets are separate from those to be issued by the Newberg Area Chamber of Commerce to the general public.

Questions? Contact Mary Monahan at mmonahan@georgefox.edu.

This annual show will be held Friday, Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 8-10, at the Oregon Convention Center. It features hundreds of exhibits about – you guessed it – building, remodeling and landscaping. If you would like to attend, you can pick up two tickets (worth $6 each) from the HR department on Dec. 29 and 30, then from Barbi Doran at the Information Services window in the Stevens Center between Jan. 4 and 8.

Portland and Salem employees, you can reserve yours by emailing Barbi at bdoran@georgefox.edu. She will send them to you through campus mail early in January. We have a limited supply, so please request/pick them up only if you are reasonably certain you will attend this event.

IT will be staffed and available over the Christmas break. On Tuesday and Wednesday, Dec. 29 and 30, computer hardware repair services will be limited so our staff can enjoy the holidays with their families and be ready to serve you in the new year.

Newberg hours will be 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the days the university is open for business during the break. We will close for lunch from noon to 1 p.m. until Monday, Jan. 4.

Questions? Contact Josh Nauman at jnauman@georgefox.edu.

With the return of his daughter from a study abroad trip to Lithuania, President Robin Baker took time to reflect on the deep desire all parents have for the safety of their children.

You can read his reflections on his blog post here.

Please take note of the courier schedule during the Christmas break:

• Monday, Dec. 21: Courier delivery
• Thursday, Dec. 24: No courier

There will be no courier service between Dec. 28 and Jan. 1. The courier service will resume on Jan. 4.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Richard Silver at rsilver@georgefox.edu or 503-554-2551.

Merry Christmas,
Mail services

A few things to take note of as you mail packages …

No duct tape
As you tape up your outgoing packages being shipped by UPS, U.S. Mail or any other shipping carrier, do not use duct tape of any color. The drivers will refuse to take the package. This was originally a result of security following Sept. 11, 2001. Some carriers are again refusing to take packages with duct tape. Please just use clear packing tape for your outgoing packages.

Fragile packages
If you want “Special Handling for your Fragile package,” the package must be identified with a “Special Handling – Fragile” sticker that we have at mail services. These stickers are provided by the post office, and each sticker costs $10.35, in addition to the shipping costs of the package. For U.S. Mail packages, writing “Fragile” on the package does no good. The carriers do not handle these packages separately.

Shipping original art
If you want special handling of your ‘Original Art Work” you must purchase a $10.35 Fragile sticker at mail services for shipping by U.S. Mail. You still need your package packed securely to prevent damage. The only insurance that would be paid for “original art” would be based on an official appraised value of the piece of art by someone who is licensed to do this.

If you have questions, please email Linda Sartwell at lsartwel@georgefox.edu.