The Daily Bruin

If you are a benefits eligible employee and there is any possibility that you will use tuition remission during next academic year (fall 2013, spring 2014 and/or summer 2014 semesters), whether for yourself, a spouse, and/or dependent(s), a Tuition Remission Request Form for each person needs to be submitted no later than Friday, Feb. 1.  

Please go to this page for the link to instructions for completing the Tuition Remission Request Form(s) and to the forms themselves. Please note:  There is a separate form for the Adult Degree Program and the Elementary Education Degree completion program.  nd finally, please be sure to read the instructions page before you begin completing a Tuition Remission Request Form.

There is still time to register to take a Science Outreach class this semester! Classes begin the week of Feb. 4. To read about the classes being offered and to register, visit our website at this link.

For those of you who have been giving via payroll deduction, your 2012 giving information for tax purposes is noted on your December pay stub in the “Self Service” section of PeopleSoft.

If you have made a gift separate from payroll and would like a 2012 charitable gift receipt, please contact Kristi Hagen via e-mail at khagen@georgefox.edu or via phone at ext. 2111.

Thank you for your generous giving to George Fox’s mission where, in a Christ-centered community, you participate with students being prepared spiritually, academically and professionally to think with clarity, act with integrity, and serve with passion.

Be encouraged by what your giving means, not only to our students today, but also to those who will benefit from our students’ service and leadership tomorrow.

The fourth faculty “Coffee & Conversation” of the year, titled “Collaboration: Partnering with Adjunct Faculty,” is set from 10:40 to 11:30 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 4, in Hoover 104.

In this session, Melanie Springer Mock and Gary Tandy will share their experience working with and supporting Writing 110 adjunct faculty, and Mark Ocker will discuss how adjuncts teaching in the Adult Degree Program are supported.

• Come if you work with adjunct faculty.
• Come if you have all the answers.
• Come if all you have are questions.
• Come if you are curious.
• Come if you just want to have some free coffee and goodies, see colleagues and listen to the discussion.

Questions? Contact Gary Sehorn at gsehorn@georgefox.edu.

Come support the theatre department by attending our winter production, Mrs. Packard. The show runs Thursday through Sunday, Feb. 7-10, and Thursday through Saturday, Feb. 14-16, in Wood-Mar Auditorium. All shows begin at 7:30 p.m. with the exception of the Sunday, Feb. 10, show, scheduled as a 2 p.m. matinee.

Tickets can be purchased online at theatre.georgefox.edu or by calling 503-554-3844.

All George Fox students may receive a complimentary ticket for Thursday evening performances. All faculty and staff are entitled to one complimentary ticket for any show of the run. Tickets are available for pick-up in the Box Office located in the Pennington House. Box Office hours are from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays. Online tickets can be purchased at any time.

Play Description: Illinois, 1861. Elizabeth Packard fights for her life and her dignity when her husband, Reverend Theopholis Packard, commits her to Jacksonville Insane Asylum without proof of insanity for challenging his religious fundamentalism. Based on historical events, Mrs. Packard is a penetrating story about one woman’s struggle to follow her convictions despite the enormous costs to her family, her friends and her personal dignity.

Stop by the Stevens Center (Duke) Atrium this afternoon (Friday) between 3 and 5 p.m. to say goodbye to Greg Smith, who is leaving George Fox after eight and a half years to serve as vice provost-research at Missouri University of Science & Technology. Refreshments will be provided.

Beginning Monday, Jan. 28, the U.S. Postal Service is changing some of its services and increasing postage rates. Here is a summary:

• One-ounce letters will increase to 46 cents
• “Parcel Post” is changing to “Standard Mail”
  • The average increase in postage for Standard Mail (Parcel Post) is 21 percent
  • In most cases, Priority Mail will be cheaper than Standard Mail (Parcel Post)
• U.S. Mail tracking will be available
  • Delivery Confirmation will be replaced by tracking service
  • FREE tracking on Priority and Standard Mail (Parcel Post)
  • Available for First Class, Media and Library Rate mail for a 90-cent fee per package

Departments: Watch for more information in your campus box regarding the tracking feature.

Questions? Contact Sherrie Frost at sfrost@georgefox.edu.

Don’t forget the all-employee meeting scheduled for today (Thursday) from 3:30 to 5 p.m. in Bauman Auditorium.

The meeting will include an update on the Stoffer Family Stadium project, including a construction timeline and renderings, and a presentation on how Bruin athletics (track and field and football), community events and student activities will benefit from this new facility.

For those at the university’s regional sites, the meeting will be available at a stream site that you can access from MyGFU. Simply log into MyGFU and click the “Community Meeting Link” located under “Staff Resources/Faculty Resources.”

The 2012 W-2 form is now posted on MyGFU for all employees. If you have trouble opening it, you may need to disable your pop-up blocker. Call the Service Desk at 503-554-2569 for assistance.

For anyone who did not give consent for online-only delivery, your W-2 will be mailed no later than next Thursday, Jan. 31, although we anticipate it being a few days earlier. There will be an e-nnouncement to let you know the exact date if it is earlier. (You can go to MyGFU self-service anytime to give permission for future W-2s to be provided online only.)

New information included this year on W-2 forms is the amount of health plan premiums paid by the university for your coverage. This information is required by the Affordable Care Act (also referred to as health care reform), but it is information only – premiums are still pretax/not taxable.

To find other information that will likely be useful when you or your tax preparer files your tax return, please refer to instructions on the back of the form (if you receive yours in print). This information is also available via a link in self service in MyGFU. You can find GFU-specific W-2 information on this payroll forms Web page.

Questions? Contact Peggy Kilburg at pkilburg@georgefox.edu.

Please join the IT department for a farewell reception for Greg Smith on Friday, Jan. 25, from 3 to 5 p.m. in the Stevens Center (Duke) Atrium. Refreshments will be provided.

Greg is leaving the university to become the chief information officer and vice provost-research at Missouri University of Science & Technology. He had served at George Fox for the past eight and a half years.

The campus community is invited to an “Intellectual Feast” this afternoon (Tuesday) from 4 to 5 p.m. in Hoover 250. Paul Anderson (Religious Studies) will be presenting “A Bi-Optic Hypothesis.”

Synopsis
For a century and a half, the leading gospel-composition theory among New Testament scholars (the Synoptic Hypothesis) has sought to explain possible relations between Matthew, Mark and Luke — leaving out the Gospel of John. In recent years, Anderson sought to advance a theory that explains the place of John among the gospels.

Seeing John and Mark as having two different perspectives from day one, Anderson’s “Bi-Optic Hypothesis” identifies particular relations between John and each of the other gospel traditions, leading to a new overall theory of gospel composition. Paul will outline this theory and its implications.

Coffee, tea and cookies will be provided. All are welcome!

An all-employee meeting is scheduled for this Thursday, Jan. 24, from 3:30 to 5 p.m. in Bauman Auditorium (please note location change).

The meeting will include an update on the Stoffer Family Stadium project, including a construction timeline and renderings, and a presentation on how Bruin athletics (track and field and football), community events and student activities will benefit from this new facility.

For those at the university’s regional sites, the meeting will be available at a stream site that you can access from MyGFU. Simply log into MyGFU and click the “Community Meeting Link” located under “Staff Resources/Faculty Resources.”

Save the date! The university’s third annual Dalton Lecture will be held on Wednesday, Feb. 20, at 7:30 p.m. Due to the popularity of this lecture series, the event is moving to Bauman Auditorium.

The lecture title is “The Big Bang, Stephen Hawking and God” and will be presented by Dr. Henry F. Schaefer III, the director of the Center for Computational Quantum Chemistry at University of Georgia, a world-renowned chemist, and a Christian. Chapel credit will be given.

Dr. Schaefer will provide a second lecture on Tuesday, Feb. 19, at 7 p.m. in Hoover 105. This scientific, but lighthearted, lecture is entitled, “Third Age of Quantum Chemistry.”

The Dalton Lecture Series is sponsored by the Department of Biology and Chemistry. More information can be found on this page or by e-mailing Jane Sweet at jsweet@georgefox.edu.

If you are a benefits-eligible employee and there is any possibility that you will use tuition remission during the 2013-14 academic year (fall, spring and/or summer semesters), whether for yourself, a spouse, and/or dependent(s), a Tuition Remission Request Form for each person needs to be submitted no later than Friday, Feb. 1.

Please go to this page for the link to instructions for completing the Tuition Remission Request Form(s) and to the forms themselves. Please be sure to read this information before you begin completing a Tuition Remission Request Form.

Eight-hundred regular and student employees have given consent to receive their W-2s online. If you are not among these, please consider doing so no later than 10 a.m. this Friday, Jan. 18. There are several advantages:

• It will be available to you sooner
• It will be accessible to you in MyGFU (self service) when you are ready to print it. If you should misplace it after your print it, you won’t have to pay $5 for a replacement copy. You simply reprint it.
• It will save the university the time and expense of purchasing and stuffing paper W-2 forms and envelopes.

Here is how you give your consent; it should take you only about 30 seconds:

1. Log in to http://mygfu.georgefox.edu
2. From the menu at left, select “Self Service”
3. Select “Payroll and Compensation”
4. Select W-2/W-2c Consent
5. Read the statement and check the box to give consent
6. Enter your GFU password as a confirmation of your identity and click “Continue”
7. Click “OK”

You’ll receive a confirmation e-mail of your decision shortly after completing this process.

Tickets are available for employees to attend the Portland Renovation & Remodeling Show scheduled Friday through Sunday, Jan. 25-27, at the Portland Memorial Coliseum. This event features hundreds of exhibits with home improvement experts available to show attendees what is new for building, remodeling, decorating and landscaping homes.

Employees can pick up two tickets each ($8 total value) at the Information Services Desk in the Stevens Center. Children under 18 are free. Portland employees can request tickets by e-mailing Barbi Doran. Visit this link for vendor coupons for the event.

Would you please take a moment to review this brief “position announcement” and share this opportunity with anyone you know that might provide a good fit?

This temporary full-time professional is needed to assist with the spring (February-April) workload in Career Services and will have responsibility to:

• Counsel students seeking internship and job search guidance
• Assist director in managing Optimal Resume online reviews
• Provide administrative lead to First Avenue Career Expo preparation
• Connect with employers seeking relationship and information
• Supervise intern who is working on OLAPC First Avenue Career Expo and the Healthcare Fair
• Support current programming and plan and coordinate healthcare fair
• Assist with software
• Teach online course, depending on registrations

We are seeking someone who is familiar with George Fox and the Career Services office/functions and can “hit the ground running.” A bachelor’s degree with career-related experience is required; master’s degree is preferred. Also needed is a high level of technology proficiency and basic career development knowledge.

Please direct interested individuals to submit a letter, resume and application to Human Resources no later than next Friday, Jan. 25. Materials can be sent via fax (503-554-2186), e-mail to hr@georgefox.edu, U.S. Mail, or dropped off in HR. Applications can be found at this link.

If you have tickets for the Oregon Symphony performance on Friday, Jan. 18, and find that you will not be able to use them, please return the tickets to the box office as soon as possible.

We have a wait list of those who are hoping to receive any tickets turned in. Tickets can be turned in at the box office up until 5 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 18, or at the door of Bauman Auditorium the evening of the event.

Thank you,
Mary Monahan (mmonahan@georgefox.edu)

In reviewing your department expenses, you will notice credit card charges being posted to a new account: 52009 – Advance Clearing. Charges are being temporarily posted to this account to make sure the expenses are included in the proper month.

These charges will be moved to their normal expense accounts in subsequent months.

FoxTALE will be unavailable from 6 to 8 a.m. (Pacific Time) on Tuesday, Jan. 29, for scheduled maintenance. We apologize for any inconvenience. If you have questions, please contact the IT Service Desk.