The Finance and Administration senior leadership team is holding its town hall meeting on Wednesday, Dec. 4 to discuss the key goals for the academic year, and the long-term plans regarding financial sustainability, staff engagement and campus modernization.

For more information please visit The Office of the Executive Vice President for Finance and Administration website.

The Thanksgiving holiday is an important opportunity for conserving energy at Brandeis. If you are leaving campus, the Office of Campus Operations requests you power down and conserve as much energy as possible. For a list of suggestions please visit the Facilities website.

Thank you, and enjoy your break.

Human Resources is pleased to announce that The Work Number is now being used to provide automated employment and income verification for Brandeis employees.

The Work Number from Equifax is a fast and secure way to provide proof of your employment or income—a necessary step in many of today’s life events including obtaining credit, financing a home or automobile, obtaining a housing lease or securing government benefits or services. The Work Number simplifies the verification process and accelerates qualifying decisions through an online system available to verifiers 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. For more information please visit the Office of Human Resources website.

The Brandeis Food Pantry, which provides free, on-campus access to healthy food options and other non-perishable items for students, is currently seeking donations of toiletry and hygiene items. These items include: deodorants (spray/roll-on), sanitary pads, bar soap/gels, toothpaste, toothbrushes, shaving sticks, and tampons. Please note: donations of sanitary pads and tampons, which are expensive and necessary items, are especially needed.

Donations may be dropped off at the following locations: Graduate Student Center conference room (Kutz 102), Student Activities Office (SCC 203), and 60 Turner Street, 1st floor (entrance to BOLLI). Please contact Toyosi Oyebanji, the Food Pantry Graduate Assistant, with any questions.

The Food Pantry is also in need of volunteers to pick up food from the Greater Food Boston Food Bank on a bi-weekly basis or support the food pantry on campus. A four-hour per month commitment is kindly requested. If you’re interested, please fill out this form or contact Toyosi Oyebanji.

The IRS recently announced the annual contribution limits for 2020 for the 403(b) retirement savings plan. The contribution limit for employees who participate in the 403(b) plan increased from $19,000 to $19,500. The catch-up contribution limit for employees age 50 and over increased from $6,000 to $6,500. The 2020 employee maximum contribution: $19,500 for 49 and younger and $26,000 for those 50 and older.

For more detailed information please visit the Office of Human Resources Retirement Plan website.

TedXBrandeis University is an annual event each April when members of the Brandeis community share an idea, experience, topic or just about anything they are passionate about. In years past there have been educators, researchers, motivational speakers, and community leaders speaking at the event.

This year, there is a special invitation for faculty members to apply. For faculty, the application process has been shortened but the selection of speakers will still be based on the same criteria. The selection committee looks for speakers with unique ideas, enthusiasm for a true passion, and that topics the Brandeis community will find relevant.

The deadline for the application is Sunday Dec. 1

The application for Brandeis Precollege Programs summer 2020 is now open! Precollege Programs offers outstanding residential experiences for exceptional high school students looking to explore academic and intellectual pursuits. Programs focus on app design, leadership and advocacy, public health, theater, religion and more.

Upon acceptance, high school students who are dependents of Brandeis staff may be eligible for one-third tuition remission. Please contact precollege@brandeis.edu with questions.

International Education Week, known as I Am Global Week at Brandeis, is a U.S. Department of Education- and State-sponsored week of celebrating global awareness, cultural exchange, and learning across the United States. I Am Global Week at Brandeis strives to highlight and celebrate global efforts and achievements across campus, promote integration between domestic and international students and scholars, and showcase our global community.

Each year, Brandeis hosts a series of events on campus from student cultural performances, theater of arts productions to academic lectures, movie screenings, trivia nights, and the annual Global Bazaar!

This year, I Am Global Week will be from November 16, 2019 - November 24, 2019. Find a full list of events on the I Am Global Week website. We hope you will come and join us at any of the events throughout the week to celebrate!!

For more information or questions, contact Adrea Papadopoulos apapadop@brandeis.edu.

Do you have a question about Workday? Want to hear what's next for Workday@Brandeis? Join the Workday@Brandeis team on Thursday, Dec. 5 at 10-11:30 a.m. to hear project updates, learn about Workday Student and get answers to your Workday questions. We invite you to submit your questions and comments through the Workday Feedback Form. Members from HR, Benefits, Finance, Student Employment and ITS will be available to answer your questions. For more information, send an email to workday@brandeis.edu or visit the Workday website.