A reminder for staff participating in the “Engaging with Change” workshop series with Dr. Paul Porter: the third session will take place on Tuesday, December 2, and the final workshop will take place on Monday, December 15. Location: Board Room.
Last Friday TLC offered a digital storytelling workshop in which participants created a “superhero” based on the strengths they identified in the first two workshops. Check this out.
As a community, the Monterey Institute is experiencing change on many levels, from integration with Middlebury to the reorganization of schools and services within the Institute. At the same time, as a society, we are facing economic dislocations and uncertainty about the future of everything from the planet to our retirement accounts.
Change can be frightening, but times of change can also unleash powerful creative energies and offer opportunities for growth. To develop skills for constructive participation in a changing organization, the Human Resources department invites staff to take part in an exciting workshop series, Engaging with Change.
Dr. Paul Porter will facilitate the series of four half-day workshops designed to help staff members learn skills to assist with organizational change. Dr. Porter is a highly respected trainer, consultant, workshop leader, and speaker. His background includes serving as a teacher, counselor, school principal, director of special education, university professor, and school district superintendent for 17 years. He is well known for his practical and engaging style and work in the areas of change, leadership, team building, positive intent, organizational development and communications and has spoken to and worked with many public and private organizations in these areas.
The workshops will take place on November 4 and 11, and December 2 and 15. (There will be sessions from 9-12 and 1:30-4:30, and you can register for either the morning series or the afternoon series.)
We think you will find the workshops a positive and enjoyable learning experience. Not only will you acquire new skills to enhance your own career, but you will have a chance to interact with other staff across departments.
The workshops will cover topics such as the following:
Staff members should check with their supervisors before signing up to make sure essential services are covered, but these workshops are considered part of the paid work day for those who participate. Each workshop builds on the learning from the previous session, so please check to make sure you can attend the entire series before you register.
Register HERE. (Enter your name and click “morning” or “afternoon.”)
Illustration: Plate from Metamorphosis of a Butterfly, Maria Sybilla Merian (1747-117)
If you have moved your office, or changed your home address, please be sure to notify HR, so that you will not miss important communications.
It’s Payday! A good time to remind everyone that there are things you can do with Banner besides submitting your time sheet. Here’s a quick guide to what you’ll find below the time sheet link.
Please be aware that there are only two more days left in the Open Enrollment period for benefits.
To date, only half our employees have returned the Flexible Spending Account election agreement. We require this form from all employees, regardless of whether or not you wish to take advantage of opportunity to spend pre-tax dollars on certain approved expenses.
We would really appreciate it if you would get your form in today! If you are not sure how to fill it out, please don’t hesitate to take it to the HR office and request assistance.
— Human Resources Office
The recent volatility in the stock market, and the liquidity crisis that is swirling around some large financial institutions may have some of you concerned about your retirement investments. This is particularly so as one of our retirement choices, VALIC, is a subsidiary of AIG Insurance Company, around which there is a lot of discussion.
As is explained in a “Talking Points” memo from AIG Retirement, under the “Asset Safeguards” section (bottom of page 1), individual funds invested in VALIC mutual funds are in segregated accounts protected from any claims other that yours. VALIC itself appears to be well capitalized and strong financially.
The economic turmoil of the last six months has created a volatile stock market. There have been lots of ups and downs. History tells us that the better long term strategy is to ride it out, and not try to “time” the market’s ups and downs. However, how you react to your individual investments is a personal decision, based on your comfort with taking risk in the pursuit of a greater reward (they usually go hand in hand.)
Should you have questions, our VALIC representative, Rodney Smith, is available to talk with you. He can be reached at 595-2588.
–Jim Graber,CFO
Rodney Smith, our VALIC representative, will be on campus next week to assist you with your retirement questions.
When: Tuesday, September 16, 2008 11:00 AM-3:00 PM
Where: HR Conference Room
If you would like to arrange to meet with Rodney at a particular time, please give him a call on his cell phone at 595-2588.
— from the Human Resources office
The HR office would like to remind all employees that the Open Enrollment period for benefits will end on September 19.
Open Enrollment provides the following opportunities:
1. If you or your dependents are not currently enrolled you may add yourself and/or dependents to the medical, dental, or vision plans. Please contact Human Resources for coverage application form(s) if you would like to add coverage.
2 If you are currently enrolled in the medical, dental, or vision plans you may terminate your own or your dependents’ coverage. Please contact Human Resources for coverage change form(s) if you would like to end coverage.
In addition, there is one thing all benefit-eligible employees must do as part of Open Enrllment: return the Section 125 (Flexible spending) election agreement. This plan allows you to do 3 things:
1. If you are on MIIS insurance plans, you can have the premiums deducted from pre-tax dollars.
2. You can have a portion of each paycheck (in pre-tax dollars) deposited into an account that you can draw upon to pay for medical expenses not covered by insurance.
3. You can have a portion of each paycheck (in pre-tax dollars) deposited into an account to pay for dependent care.
If you do not want to do any of these three things, you still must sign and return the form indicating that you do not wish to participate.
The Simul2 interpretation lab now sports two new 32” Plasma screens, soon to be joined by a third unit in the Simul3 lab in the IIRC building.
In addition, each of the three Simul labs will soon receive a Sony SLV D380P – DVD/VCR combo unit, replacing the older VCRs to allow more digital content to be deployed in the interpretation booths.
A second IP-based videoconferencing site will also come on line soon. A new Polycom videoconferencing unit will generally reside in the board room, but is portable within McCone. This will complement the VC service now available in the Fletcher-Jones conference room in the Library.
How do you set up a VC?
1) Ascertain that your videoconferencing partner has comparable equipment.
2) Reserve the space. (Contact the President’s office for the Board Room or Ann Flower in the Library for the Fletcher Jones room, or consult with ITS about other possible locations in McCone).
3) Make arrangements with ITS for VC support. This includes putting them in touch with a technologist at the other end for a test call.
4) Sit down and talk with your colleague on the other side of the country—or the world.
— from Information Technology Services
It can be confusing to know how to proceed when you need to hire new staff. HR has tried to demystify the process by publishing new guidelines that provide a step-by-step roadmap of the process. Along the way, we consulted with several veteran supervisors who helped us to see the process through their eyes.
— from the Human Resources Office