Renovations of Starr Plaza will begin on June 3 with completion expected by the end of August. During this time access to Irving Presidential Enclave and Bernstein-Marcus Administrative Center will be via the lower level door by the Administration Parking Lot.  Access to the Gryzmish front doors along the curved path will be maintained for as long as possible, but later in the project access will be only via the rear doors (facing the Science Building).

These renovations are not simply a repair, but rather a significant upgrade. The redesign will remove the steps surrounding Starr Plaza making the building accessible to all. It will also include seating areas and plantings. A rendering of the completed project can be viewed here.

As we approach our fiscal year-end on June 30, the Division of Business and Finance would like to remind everyone of the important deadlines related to financial transactions and reports. Please refer to the Year-end memo provided on the Division of Business and Finance website, which lists various milestones and deadlines for fiscal year end 2019.

Budget managers and others with financial transaction responsibilities should also remember to regularly review their department’s financial reports. Any adjusting entries pertaining to fiscal year 2019 should be submitted no later than July 19. For questions, please do not hesitate to contact any member of the the Division of Business and Finance team. Thank you for your cooperation and assistance.

The work to install upgrades to Fellows Garden and the area in front of Hassenfeld Conference Center has started. The work is being completed to repair the area disturbed by the steam line break in August 2018. While it is necessary to restrict some areas during construction, access around and through Fellows Garden will generally be as usual. Construction is anticipated to be complete by the end of August.

The surface area material changes and new plantings can be viewed here.

ITS has noticed that the University email system has been experiencing a high volume of “phishing” scams asking users to click a link and provide personal or account information. While our email filters and information security tools block most of them from making it to our inboxes, some do get through. ITS strongly recommends that the community enrolls in Proofpoint to help protect your account from spam, viruses or fraudulent email messages. Proofpoint is an email security protection tool that provides message filtering by controlling what reaches your inbox, the ability to maintain personal blocked and safe senders lists, and a daily digest containing quarantined spam and bulk messages.

Visit the Proofpoint opt-in page to enroll. Brandeis users who opt-in will receive a daily email digest at 8 a.m. containing quarantined bulk and spam emails. Please visit ITS website for more information. If you have questions please email security@brandeis.edu.

The use of P-Cards to purchase gift cards is generally not allowed. If there is a reason that it is necessary to purchase gift cards (such as to compensate individuals as research subjects) the purchase must be authorized by Procurement prior to being charged to University P-Cards.

To receive authorization email procurement@brandeis.edu with the dollar amount of the card, the total number of cards (if more than one) and the reason for the purchase. If the transaction is deemed allowable, Procurement will be able to help guide you to the best way to handle the purchase.

Gift cards can never be used to compensate individuals for services provided to the University, or for bonuses for a job well done. These payment are considered taxable and must be reported to the IRS correctly. Please email procurement@brandeis.edu with questions.

ITS is excited to announce that Anne Marando will join the team as Associate Vice President for Information Technology Services starting June 17. Anne has played a key role in building Rabb over the past 20 years and will transition from her current role as Associate Vice President of the Rabb School. With her extensive technology background as a program manager, analyst, programmer and a lead software process manager, Anne will serve as a strategic leader for the community for technology initiatives. Anne’s background includes roles in the areas of software development, systems analysis, methodology management, process management, and project management. She earned a B.A. in Mathematics from the College of the Holy Cross, and an M.S. in Computer Science from the University of Massachusetts, Lowell.

The intercollegiate edHealth Walking Challenge is back. Brandeis, edHEALTH and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care are proud to invite you to take part in the second annual walking Challenge for all employees. While Harvard Pilgrim is hosting the Walking Challenge for all employees, this does not affect your medical health plan coverage and you are eligible regardless of your health insurance carrier.

Employees can compete individually or as a team. Each member of a team tracks their steps individually, but team members can walk together to help each other boost their step count. Everyone who meets the weekly step challenge of an average of 5000 steps per day will be entered into a raffle to win great prizes each week.

For more information and to get started please visit the Office of Human Resources website.

Don't miss out on your chance to receive a weekly box of fresh, delicious, locally grown vegetables, delivered right to the Brandeis Campus. Choose from three vegetable share sizes and optional fruit, flower, mushroom or egg shares. Deliveries will take place from June 13 through October 24, every Thursday from 2:30-7 p.m. It's the best way to eat healthy and local this season.

As a special promotion sign-up between May 27 and May 31 and receive 2 free quarts of strawberries which will be delivered with your share during the first CSA week. There is no better time to sign-up for the 2019 Warner Farm CSA.

Visit www.warnerfarm.com/csa or email csa@warnerfarm.com to learn more.