The Daily Bruin

Guitar Lessons and Classes are offered for Winter 2011 at George Fox!

Group Classes are offered for beginners (Tues/Thurs. 9:40am-10:30am). Learn to strum and pick popular worship songs while learning to read music. MUSI 250-A

Private Lessons are offered to bring your playing to the next level. All styles are covered including jazz, blues, rock, worship, folk, etc. MUSA 105/305 GT

Email George Fox guitar professor Dave Iula for more info: daveiula1@gmail.com

Students-if you have changed residences over the break from one side of the campus to the other, or on/off campus, you will need a new parking permit. Also, if you are bringing another car to campus other than what you registered in the fall, that will necessitate a new parking permit as well. Please scrape off your previous permit and bring it to the Security office during office hours so we can change your vehicle/permit registration.

If you were registered as NOCAR last semester, but will have a vehicle this semester, you will need to go on myGFU and DELETE your NOCAR registration, and then input your vehicle information. A permit will then be assigned to you and sent to the main Post Office where you will need to sign for it.

Every student is required to either register their vehicle, or register as NOCAR by the add/drop date, so please don’t delay! You will be issued and charged for a parking permit if you have not done this by Friday, January 21.

Textbooks are arriving daily at GFU Mail Services.  If you live in the Newberg or surrounding area, you can stop by this Thursday or Friday (Jan, 6 or 7).  Hours:  8:00 – 4:30.
We are closed Saturday and Sunday – so come this Thursday or Friday and avoid next  Monday’s rush!
Thanks!
University Mail Services

Want to expedite your payment? There are no longer any online service fees charged for bank drafts (also called e‐checks or ACH payments). You will need your bank routing information found on the bottom of your checks, then follow these steps:

Sign into your account at mygfu.georgefox.edu

Go to Student Resources and navigate to your Student Center.

Under the Finances section, find “My Account” and click below that on “Account Inquiry.”

Next under the “What I Owe” section, choose “Make a Payment”.

Then choose “Click Here to Make a Payment.”

Next click on the word “Amount” and edit amount as needed.

Now, choose “Add to Shopping Cart” and be sure to follow all the steps to “check out” properly.

Please Note: Credit card payment is also available online with a 2.75% additional fee. Cards accepted include Master Card, Discover and American Express. Unfortunately, VISA policies currently prevent us from being able to accept VISA.

Students who registered after spring bills were printed and mailed in December or who are expecting an updated bill will need to access their student account charges through their student service center. Everything you need… account transactions, pending aid and payment due dates are all accessible online at mygfu.georgefox.edu.

Oregon Symphony Ushers are needed for the 8 p.m., Friday, Jan. 21 performance in Bauman Auditorium.  Responsibilities include helping greet guests, taking tickets, and assisting with special seating needs.  If you are interested in volunteering to usher for the concert, please contact Evangeline Pattison, 503-554-2121 or epattison@georgefox.edu.

George Fox University will host the Oregon Symphony in its 24th appearance in Newberg on Friday, Jan. 21 at 8 p.m. and employees (halftime and above) can receive up to two free tickets.

Tickets are available on a first-come first-serve basis starting Wednesday, Jan. 12 at 9 a.m. at the first floor Information Center in Stevens Center.  Phone reservations will only be taken for employees at the Portland and Salem centers.

On Tuesday, Jan. 18, beginning at 9 a.m., any remaining tickets (again, a limit of 2 per employee) will be available – also on a first-come first-serve basis – to those who sign up on a wait list.  If you find that you are not able to attend the concert, please return your tickets for another employee to use.

The concert is a gift from George Fox board member Ken Austin and his wife, Joan, founders of A-dec, to the Newberg community. The Austins have provided the university with a limited number of tickets for its employees.  These tickets are separate from those to be issued by the Newberg Area Chamber of Commerce to the general public.

Contact Amy Lorenz (alorenz@georgefox.edu) if you have questions.

Place your order online for the 2010-11 Bruin Directory. Bruin Directories are a service to the George Fox University community based on a volunteer staff within ASC.  We apologize for the tardiness this year due to unforeseen circumstances throughout the publication process. Each Bruin Directory is $4 and will be charged to the department account number mentioned in the order form.  The directories will be distributed through Mail Services.  Deadline for placing orders is Jan. 21.  Thank you for your patience. Contact Krissy Findley if you have questions.

It is time to think about nominating a colleague for the first Employee of the Month award for 2011. If you know of someone whose recent contributions make him or her worthy of this honor, please take a few minutes to send an e-mail to Peggy Kilburg that includes a specific summary of the person’s contributions (past 30 days or so) and any other information that you believe makes this person deserving of this award.

The deadline for nominations is Thursday, Jan. 20. The President’s Executive Leadership Team will select the recipient from the nominations submitted. This award and a $100 gift card to The Allison will be presented at our community meeting on Wednesday afternoon, Jan. 26.

Join IT for general FoxTALE sessions and sessions on the FoxTALE-MyGFU integration.

Want an introduction to FoxTALE? Consider these sessions:

• FoxTALE Introduction, Newberg: Hoover 211, Jan. 5, 9 a.m. – noon
• FoxTALE Grade Book Workshop, Portland: PDS 210, Jan. 4, 10 a.m. – noon
• FoxTALE Grade Book Workshop, Newberg: Hoover 211, Jan. 7, 9-11 a.m.

The start of the spring 2011 term brings the full implementation of the FoxTALE-MyGFU integration. Following are sessions that cover the integration.

• FoxTALE-MyGFU Integration, Portland: PDS 210, Jan. 4, 3:30-4:30 p.m.
• FoxTALE-MyGFU Integration, Online Webinar, Jan. 5, 1:30-2 p.m.
• FoxTALE-MyGFU Integration, Newberg: Hoover 210, 211, Jan. 7, 2-3 p.m.

Read session descriptions and sign up on this R.S.V.P. form. See all of the faculty and staff development sessions IT hosts at Schedule of Events.

If you are from Oregon and have been a recipient in the past of the Oregon Opportunity Grant (OOG) or believe you may qualify for it in 2011-12, it is more important than ever to FILE THE FAFSA EARLY.  Due to shortfalls with state funding, it is expected that the OOG will run out even sooner than it did in 2010-11. The only way to secure the potential of this award is to file within the first week or two of January, 2011. Estimating your income is expected and encouraged in order to file early.  We in Student Financial Services would like to help you secure as much funding as you possibly can so please gather up your information and head towww.fafsa.gov soon after the first of the year.

MyGFU will be unavailable due to scheduled maintenance beginning Wednesday, Dec. 29. at 5:30 p.m. through Sunday afternoon, Jan. 2, 2011.

The online “No Hassle Buyback” has been re-activated on our website.  Simply go to www.store.georgefox.edu click on the “Textbooks” tab, then select “Sell Books”.  Enter your ISBN numbers and the system will give you a buy price for each book.  Just follow the online instructions.  When completed, the system will produce a receipt and a pre-paid label for shipping your books.  You should receive payment with 5 business days.  If you need help, please refer to the contact information at the No Hassle Buyback.

Student supervisors, please submit the rest of your students’ December time sheets to HR right away — by noon on Tuesday, Jan. 4.

Please be sure the student’s name, ID number and cost center number is legible on each one. Please total them, sign them, and be sure the students did as well. (If the student is not available to sign it, please send it without the signature, and HR will contact the student.) Please do not send students to HR to sign their time sheets.

Federal Work Study regulations require that students delivering their own time sheets must have them in a sealed envelope.

If you happen to still have any paperwork to submit on a student hired in December, please hand-deliver it right away — no later than Monday, Jan 3. We need to set up students in the system before the time sheets arrive.

Thanks very much.

HR

HR has free tickets to the Build, Remodel and Landscape Show in Portland, scheduled Friday through Sunday, Jan. 7-9, at the Oregon Convention Center.

The event will feature hundreds of exhibits about – you guessed it – building, remodeling and landscaping. If you would like to attend this show, you can request two tickets by e-mailing HR@georgefox.edu. Order yours while supplies last.

The Office of University Relations still has red Christmas poinsettias for sale. The last day to buy them is Wednesday, Dec. 22, so stop by the Pennington House and check out the 6-inch potted plants. “Deals will be made.”

Contact Evangeline Pattison (ext. 2121 or epattison@georgefox.edu) to schedule a pick-up or to reserve.

On Friday, Dec. 17, the $5,250 tax break for tuition assistance from employers was extended for another two years. Section 127 of the U. S. tax code allows George Fox employees to exclude from income up to this amount each year in tuition remission they receive for graduate courses. (This exclusion does not apply to graduate tuition remission for spouses.) This exclusion would have expired on Dec. 31, 2010, had Congress not acted to extend it.

Please note: All undergraduate tuition remission to employees, spouses and dependents is excluded from income under Section 117 of the tax code, which applies to employees of educational institutions.

The bill passed by Congress and signed into law by President Obama late last week that extended what is commonly referred to as the Bush tax cuts contains a provision that will affect employees’ net pay for one year only.

The payroll (Social Security) tax is being reduced by 2 percentage points to 4.2 percent for 2011. This payroll tax is currently 6.2 percent of employee earnings and appears on our GFU pay statements in the “Taxes” section as “Fed OASDI/EE.” The amount of an employee’s earnings used to pay medical insurance premiums, dental insurance premiums and to contribute to flexible spending accounts is not subject to this tax, so an employee’s salary should be reduced by those deductions to determine what this amount is each month. You will first see the result of this payroll tax reduction on your Jan. 31 pay statement. The Fed MED/EE (Medicare tax), which appears on the row above, will continue to be 1.45 percent.

As you make any long-term financial plans, it is important to be aware that beginning in January 2012 this Social Security tax will again be 6.2 percent.

This legislation did not reduce the employer’s matching amount of this tax, so the university will continue to contribute a 6.2 percent Social Security tax on your earnings.

Getting married during 2011? Timing is everything when it comes to filing your FAFSA.

It is important that you meet with your financial aid counselor for an evaluation before you submit your 2011-12 FAFSA. By doing so, you will learn the best approach for the maximum amount of funding possible. Please keep in mind that you cannot change your marital status once you have filed a FAFSA, so contact your counselor first.

Your financial aid counselors are divided by the first letters of students’ last names:

A-G       Chris Schlarbaum             503-554-2234     cschlarb@georgefox.edu
H-O        Marla Sweningson           503-554-2294     mswening@georgefox.edu
P-Z         Terri Crawford                   503-554-2231     tcrawfor@georgefox.edu

George Fox University is investing in Yamhill County by partnering with the Mid-Willamette Valley United Way in a workplace campaign from now through Dec. 31, 2010.

Within the next few days you will receive a letter from President Baker regarding your opportunity for involvement in a Community Care Fund that will directly benefit local nonprofit organizations. Every donor has the opportunity to designate their dollars for an impact area, or for a specific organization.

Please take a moment to read through the brochure and donation form accompanying the letter. Send your gifts or requests for payroll deduction to the Department of Human Resources at Box 6108 by Dec. 31, 2010.

Please direct all questions to Sheri Philips, executive director of university relations, at ext 2114 or sphilips@georgefox.edu.