The spring "Conversations with the President" at 2:30 p.m. Monday, April 28, focused on news of interest to UA employees, including Shaping Alaska's Future and the outcome of the legislative session. MORE...

Performance Appraisal Form

All employees will be evaluated by July 1 using the new performance appraisal process. Since this is the first look at the new tool, evaluations will be limited mostly to orientation to the form and the establishment of future goals. This new evaluation is developmental. It is designed to help marginal employees become better, good employees to become great, and great employees to become singularly exceptional.

Coming soon! A new web-based system is replacing the outdated Risk Management Information System (RMIS) used by the System Office of Risk Services. This new application will better manage worker’s compensation and insurance claims and consolidate all incident reporting for employees, students, visitors and contractors through a single web portal with access links on UAF, UAA, UAS and Statewide web sites.� Web based reporting will replace paper incident and accident forms system-wide. Incidents that can be reported through the new system include:

• UA Employee Injuries
• Non-Employee Injuries (Including Students)
• Unsafe Conditions
• Damaged Property
• Damaged Vehicles

The online incident reporting portal is scheduled go live prior to the end of the fiscal year. More announcements to follow.

On May 29, the UA College Savings Plan will join other states in celebrating “529 College Savings Day,” a national awareness campaign aimed at stressing the importance of saving for college. The Plan invites you to attend the following events on May 29:

Anchorage
5/29 Party at Kaleidescape Play Studio, University Center Mall, 3:00-6:00 pm. Free admission, refreshments, kids t-shirts, and a copy of the book, “Everybody Freaks Out! But it’s going to be okay.” Employees are invited to bring their children for kid friendly activities and opportunities to win door prizes.

Fairbanks
5/29 celebration at the Butrovich Building, 109 Butrovich, 10 am - 1 pm. Free admission, refreshments, kids t-shirts, and a copy of the book, “Everybody Freaks Out! But it’s going to be okay.” The Fairbanks Children’s Museum will bring their new "Imagination Playground". Employees are invited to bring their children for kid friendly activities and opportunities to win door prizes.

The UA College Savings Plan in partnership with T. Rowe Price released the book "Everybody Freaks Out! But it's going to be okay" and it's now available through Amazon.com.

Everybody stresses about saving for college. And it's no wonder. That estimated tuition number can be scary. But don't worry. Whether you, a friend or a relative needs some guidance, this illustrated book is a lighthearted way to see how easy it can be to overcome your worries and get started saving.

The book is an awareness building initiative intended to create buzz about saving for college and reassure families that resources are available to help families reach their educational and financial goals.

Summer hours programs provide a benefit to Statewide employees, and restrictive options for this program are not in the best interest of the employee or the University.� This year, no specific shift or work hour adjustments will be universally applied. Instead, we are advising departments to exercise maximum flexibility in approving employee requests to take time off during June, July, and August.�

Modification to individual employee hours (both exempt and non-exempt) is permitted within the department with the caution that any change in schedules cannot be to the detriment of the University or the services your department provides Mon-Fri, 8am-5pm (or your usual service hours).� Please also be advised that any schedules may be suspended or cancelled with or without advance notice to the employee if warranted by University need.

Supervisors are asked to feel free to be creative in their scheduling but also ensure that any overtime eligible (non-exempt) employee is not regularly scheduled to work more than 40 hours in a single work week, unless their overtime is approved.� To help with this, all changes to an employee’s schedule for the summer must be first documented and approved on the Change of Work Hours Request and submitted to the SW HR office. Revised schedules must encompass full pay periods only and may begin starting Sunday June 1st and ending Saturday August 23rd.

Special consideration must also be given for the two holidays that occur in July.� Holidays accrue to a maximum of 8 hours each. A benefits-eligible employee who is working, for example, a four,10-hour day schedule for the summer would have to charge both the full holiday plus two additional annual leave hours each day to receive full pay if not working on the 3rd or 4th of July this year.

Please contact the HR office at extension 8200 if you have any questions about scheduling or would like assistance in developing your options.
�

Commencement season at the University of Alaska begins May 1 with the first of 17 scheduled commencement ceremonies across the state. Congratulations to all UA graduates!

Click HERE for the full commencement schedule.

All through the year, you give of yourself to the University of Alaska – you give your time and your talents, and each spring we ask you to make a gift of treasure. Staff participation in private giving to UA is critical to our success – a gift of any amount is important and appreciated.

The Statewide Staff Campaign is a tradition where participation is our most important goal.

Few people know the benefits and value of a University of Alaska education as well as you do. Collectively, you and your peers demonstrate your belief in that value and in our students, helping to shape and enhance the UA experience while making it even more accessible. Every dollar you donate is more than a gift; it is a statement that you believe in UA.

This year’s Statewide staff campaign begins on May 1st with the Soup-er Scholarship Feed. Join us in either Butrovich 109 or Bragaw 205 at noon for delicious soups prepared by talented co-workers. Complement the soups with scrumptious sandwiches complements of UA Foundation. The top soup makers from both locations will receive a polar fleece UA insignia vest.

For just $10 you will enjoy a hearty lunch, made even more satisfying with the knowledge that all net proceeds will go toward the Statewide General Scholarship fund, which benefits students from all campuses. To add a little fun to this year’s campaign, we are holding a competition among all Statewide departments for the highest percentage of participation. The winning department(s) will receive a pizza party. For more information please visit our website: www.alaska.edu/foundation/staff_campaign.

Download the campaign brochure and employee donation form HERE.

Employees and their spouses or Financially Interdependent Partners are eligible to earn a $600 rebate each—up to $1,200—just for participating in the Healthyroads wellness program. All that is required to earn the rebate is to log in to Healthyroads and complete a Personal Health Assessment. It takes less than 20 minutes to complete! In addition, a biometric screening must be entered by June 30, 2014.

There are three options to report your biometrics:

• If you have had a screening since July 2013, or plan to go to a physician for a wellness visit prior to June 30, you can use the Health Care Provider Form. (HERE) Your physician will need to submit the completed form to Healthroads.
• You can schedule a screening at a Quest Patient Service Center (PSC) at My.BlueprintForWellness.com, and use the registration key of UOAremote. Follow the prompts to register and schedule your screening.
• The UA benefits office will be scheduling on-site screenings, starting at rural campus locations beginning in May. A schedule of screenings will be announced once finalized.

You must act before June 30 to earn the wellness rebate.

Wellness, plan redesign, provider payment changes, JHCC. I suppose we could stop there, but let’s explain a bit.

Having a strong wellness plan with incentives to use it (like our assessment and screening rebate this year), allows us to have healthier employees who use the medical plan less. Wellness screenings also allow your doctors to catch health problems earlier, thus avoiding larger, nastier medical bills.

Plan redesigns over the last few years have created more preventative care benefits that also help catch medical problems before they become real problems. Offering these benefits at little or no cost in all our medical plans means more people are taking advantage of immunizations, routine physicals, mammograms, colonoscopies (yes, yuck, but all essential); catching more issues sooner or at least creating the opportunity to talk to their doctors about ways to become or stay healthy. �

New plans with higher deductibles for non-routine issues make employees think more carefully about how they use the health plans. And think they did…with an increased focus on outpatient procedures, employees helped us save megabucks by avoiding inpatient hospital stays. MORE...

Buffy Kuiper in the College Savings Program and Tanya Coty in Human Resources have been named Chief Cashiers for Butrovich Building. They will handle any petty cash needs for Fairbanks-based Statewide employees.

The SAA election period will run from May 5 through May 23.

The spring nomination period identified a great field of candidates for staff representation on the Statewide Administration Assembly. Elections start next week. You can access the online ballot on SAA’s webpage: www.alaska.edu/governance/saa/elections/ starting on May 5.

All voting is anonymous, though you will be required to log into Google apps to access the ballot. Thank you to all candidates for accepting the nomination and for participating in the governance process at the University of Alaska.

Open Enrollment is April 15 through May 16. During this time employees may elect to enroll themselves, their spouses and/or dependents into one of three plan options: 750 Plan, HDHP or CDHP. Open enrollment provides the opportunity to consider any plan changes, such as adding or dropping coverage for family members, or electing or increasing supplemental life insurance. It is also an opportunity to decide to participate in a Medical Flexible Spending Account (on the 750 Plan or HDHP) or the Health Savings Account (for CDHP enrollees). The UA Choice Enrollment Guide, found on the benefits Web site, will help you select thehealth plan that best meets your needs and budget.

(Rates, Plan Changes and MORE...)