To maintain best practices in managing our plan, and conform to Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) guidelines, there are exciting new changes that will take place with the Brandeis retirement plan in the fall. We will be consolidating administrative recordkeeping services which will require some adjustments to the core program investment menu, and will be adding the option for participants to make investments outside of the core fund choice lineup, within approved program guidelines.

These changes require that certain existing proprietary investment options will no longer being available for new contributions, requiring individuals to adjust their investment allocations. Existing balances in these proprietary may remain, they are only closed to new investments.

• Tuesday, June 7, 3-4
• Thursday, June 9, 10-11

Are you an alumnus/alumna of Brandeis AND a faculty or staff member? If the answer is yes, we would love to see you at Alumni Weekend '22! Alumni Weekend 2022 will be happening June 10-12 on campus. If you are an alum of any year, please feel free to join us at the Annual Ralph Norman BBQ on Saturday, June 11 from 12-2 p.m. and hang out for Ollie's Family Fun and Ice Cream party in the afternoon! We would encourage you to also check out our Trucks and Tunes event on Friday night and Fire and Deis on Saturday. For more information or to RSVP, please contact Stephanie Grimes at grimes@brandeis.edu. Come join us!

As the fiscal year is coming to a close, the Division of Business and Finance would like to remind budget managers and others with financial transaction responsibilities to review your departments' financial reports. Please refer to the year-end memo for a list of deadlines and milestones. The last day to submit any accounting entries for fiscal year 2022 is Friday, July 15.   

For questions, please contact a member of our team. 

It is time to complete your performance review! Staff should complete a self-evaluation, followed by the completion of the annual performance review by the manager. All staff performance reviews are due to Human Resources on or before June 10.

All salary increases will be effective in July 2022. The new salary will be reflected in the July 8 and July 15, 2022 paychecks.

Managers, salary planners, and department/unit leaders must complete the salary increase submission and approval in Workday by June 17. Eligible staff will be notified of their increase rate by their managers after the process is completed and finalized at the end of June.

Key Dates:

• May 31: Workday Compensation module opens for managers, department/unit leaders, and salary planners to review and submit salary increases.
• June 10: Managers and staff complete annual performance review and submit to Human Resources.
• June 17: Workday Compensation module closes. All salary increases are due at this time.
• July 1: Increases are effective.
• July 8 and July 15: Increases are reflected in paychecks.

For additional information, visit the Human Resources website.

edHEALTH, the employee health insurance collaboration, has partnered once again with Harvard Pilgrim Health Care and Tufts Health Plan to launch a Walking Challenge. For additional information please see the edHEALTH webpage.

Join forces with your Brandeis colleagues to compete against other Boston-area colleges and universities that are part of the edHealth collaborative. Grand prizes will be awarded to the individual at each school who walks the most steps and to the school with the highest average of steps walked during the contest. In addition, weekly prize drawings will be held at each participating school for high-achieving steppers. For additional information please visit the edHEALTH Walking Challenge page.

All Brandeis staff, faculty, and students are working at the Library's summer workshops:

• SummeR of R
  • Intro to R and the Tidyverse, 1 - 1:50 p.m., Tuesday, June 7
  • Data Wrangling with R, 1 - 1:50 p.m., Tuesday, June 14
  • Data Visualization with R, 1 - 1:50 p.m., Tuesday, June 21
• Stata
  • Getting Started with Stata, 1 - 1:50 p.m., Thursday, June 9
  • Data Wrangling with Stata, 1 - 1:50 p.m., Thursday, June 16
  • Bivariate Analysis with Stata, 1 - 1:50 p.m., Thursday, June 23

• Intro to 3D Printing with Flashforge, 10 a.m. - noon, Friday, June 17

• The Beginnings of Brandeis: A History in Pictures, 10 - 10:30 a.m., Thursday, June 16
• Researching in Archives, noon - 12:30 p.m., Thursday, June 16

These recent mass shootings in Uvalde, Texas and Buffalo, New York have had a profound impact on the communities where they happened and on the country as a whole, leading to widespread sorrow, grief, fear and anger. Although people are resilient and often bounce back after difficult times, these events nearly always interrupt our sense of order and safety.

As parents, guardians and concerned community members, we wonder how we can protect our children and support them during this incredibly difficult time – and grieve for the lives senselessly lost in these tragedies. As you and your family process what has happened, we want to remind you of the support resources available to help.

What Happened to My World and Understanding and Supporting Children Through Trauma are guides created by Bright Horizons to help you ensure children feel safe through turbulent times and tragic events.

Other links that may be helpful to you or your family are included here:

• https://www.apa.org/topics/gun-violence-crime/mass-shooting-resources
• https://www.psycom.net/trauma/school-shooting-survivor-trauma
• https://www.nasponline.org/resources-and-publications/resources-and-podcasts/school-safety-and-crisis/school-violence-resources/talking-to-children-about-violence-tips-for-parents-and-teachers
• https://www.verywellfamily.com/how-to-talk-to-your-child-about-gun-violence-school-shootings-5205913

The Brandeis University Employee Assistance Program (EAP)  has resources and services available to help. The EAP services are provided by New Directions and are free, confidential and available 24 hours a day, every day. Please login to the New Directions website and enter the company code ‘brandeis university’ or call them directly at 800-828-6025. For support related to the recent shooting in Texas, click on the purple banner in the middle of the page.

In advance of the fall bill coming in early July, new students should access the Nelnet Student Account Portal to set up an account and add authorized parties. Please complete the following steps to ensure account access:

1. Set-up Nelnet account - Students should log in to the Nelnet Student Account Portal to set up their student profile. Refer to the Nelnet - Account Access job aid for detailed instructions.
2. Add parent or authorized parties access - Refer to the Nelnet - Add Authorized Payers job aid for detailed instructions. Students should not share their Nelnet log-in credentials with their parents. They must set up parents as Authorized Parties with their own log-in credentials.

We will send a notification to students and authorized parties when the information is ready in Nelnet.

The Brandeis Sustainability Committee has created a list of teaching resources for faculty to prepare for the Year of Climate Action. These include lesson plans, tools faculty can use to quantify climate solutions, multi-media resources, and climate data.

The Office of Sustainability is also compiling a list of faculty and courses who will be supporting the year through their courses or research. We would like to highlight your work on our website as we have already done with some faculty. Please contact mfischer@brandeis.edu to be included in this list.

Saturday August 13, 6 a.m. – 8 p.m.

• Castle – no generator
• East Quad - has emergency generator
• Mailman – no generator
• Landsman (Magnet Bldg) - has a generator but not f/helium compressors
• Central Heating Plant - generator available
• Skyline Residence - emergency generator available
• Stoneman Infirmary - emergency generator available

Sunday August 14, 6 a.m. – 8 p.m.

• Goldman Schwartz – no generator
• Rose art – generator will be provided
• Spingold Theater – emergency generator available
• Rosensteil (partial) – HVAC systems will remain running

Please visit the Department of Facilities Services website for more information.

We are excited to announce that Brandeis Family Weekend will be October 28-30, 2022! Last year’s return to in-person programming brought approximately 1000 guests to campus and we look forward to building on that success and expanding our offerings.

Family Weekend is a wonderful opportunity for our faculty and staff to come together and showcase the very best of Brandeis to our families and their students. Whether you want to offer a tour of your lab, a presentation on exciting research, a hands-on experience that gives a glimpse of student life, or you have ideas for a service project or entertainment, we want to hear from you!

Please join us on Zoom for the Family Weekend Community Kickoff Meeting on Wednesday, June 15 at 11 a.m. to meet the core planning committee, get an overview of the weekend and potential planning blocks, and learn about how your department can get involved!

For more information about Community Kickoff Meeting or to share suggestions for Family Weekend, please contact Matthew Galewski, Director of Student Activities, at mgalewski@brandeis.edu.

The MBTA has recently released its bus network redesign proposal, which impacts bus service in Waltham (see the Waltham-specific proposal in English here; other languages available on their website). The Office of Sustainability is drafting a response to the proposed changes; however, the MBTA is also seeking individual feedback via their online form, and we encourage you to do so. If you would like to contribute to Brandeis' feedback to the MBTA, please contact mfischer@brandeis.edu with your feedback by Friday, June 10.

As a commitment to the Brandeis University Community to continue to improve the reliability the Brandeis University’s Fire Alarm Systems, we have scheduled our 2022 annual Fire Alarm Testing.

Testing is taking place now through August 10. Please visit the Department of Facilities Services website for reference to the schedule. Signage will be placed at the entry doors to the buildings during the test to notify those entering the buildings. Any questions regarding the testing can be directed to the Department of Facilities Services.

Brandeis' partnership with Harvest Table for campus food service will formally begin on July 1, 2022. An informational email on what to expect will go out in late June. In the meantime, you may have questions -- about dietary needs, catering, student employment, etc. Please send all inquiries to harvesttable@brandeis.edu.

The University is deeply appreciative of the continued efforts made by our staff to support the University’s mission, our students and each other. We recognize the importance of work/life flexibility and time away from work to focus on yourself, your family and friends and to return to the workplace with renewed energy.

Departments/units may offer a flexible or compressed schedule for staff this summer beginning Monday, June 13 through Friday, Aug.19.

The University’s priority is to provide effective and efficient services to internal and external constituencies during all normal working hours, Monday through Friday. Therefore, it is important that flexible or compressed work schedules must be approved by the department’s appropriate supervisor, in coordination with the Department Chair, Director, Dean, Vice President or Senior Vice President. Some departments may be unable to implement the program due to operational needs. Please visit the Human Resources web page for additional information. For any questions pertaining to this program, please contact Human Resources.

Starting June 1, Student Financial Services will have a live chat feature available as part of our Ask Louis chatbot. A representative from the SFS office will now be able to answer your financial aid questions in real time, Monday thru Friday.

The Biden Administration has recently announced that 20 internet providers have agreed to cut prices and provide high-speed internet access to eligible users across the U.S. as part of the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). More information about eligibility, which includes students eligible for the Federal Pell Grant, how to apply, etc., is available on Newsweek.

In order to ensure that contracts and agreements for Brandeis University are properly reviewed, approved, executed, and recorded, the University has a policy for contract management. Per Brandeis University by-laws, only select individuals are authorized to bind and execute agreements and contracts on behalf of the University. Procurement and Business Services will oversee the review and execution of all non-research agreements and/or contracts, including independent consultant agreements, hotel agreements and other financial documents requiring a signature by a university official.

Contracts for review should be submitted along with a contract approval form. As indicated on the Contract Approval Form, certain contracts may require review by specific university offices, such as: Information Technology, Communications, Risk Management (Insurance) and/or General Counsel. If required, Business Services will reach out for consultation to the applicable offices.

Upon completion of the review of any proposed contract, Business Services will route the contract to the appropriate authority for signature.

Sponsored research agreements are and will continue to be reviewed and signed by the Office of Research Administration.

The list of all authorized signers for the University and more detailed information on the contract process is available on the Contract Management Webpage. If you have any questions, please contact procurement.

The Gender and Sexuality Center invites faculty, staff, and their families to join us for Waltham Pride on Saturday, June 4, 11 a.m. - 4 p.m. on the Waltham Commons. Waltham Pride celebrates our local LGBTQ+ community and allies. Enjoy live music, inspiring speakers, and learn about ways to get involved at the local organizations fair. Brandeis will have a table and we look forward to seeing you there. All are welcome.

If you have any questions, email GSC Director Julián Cancino or visit Waltham Pride.

Sign up today for a Warner Farm CSA share and receive a personalized box of fresh, delicious, locally grown vegetables, delivered right to the Brandeis campus. Our CSA program offers the option to customize your shares and your delivery schedule, so you’ll receive all the produce you love and nothing you don’t. Choose from three sizes of vegetable shares, as well as fruit, flower, mushroom, egg, and bread shares. Deliveries take place from June through October, every Thursday from 3:30-6:30 p.m. right to the Spingold Theater. It's the best way to eat healthy and local this season without breaking the bank Visit Warner Farm CSA or email csa@warnerfarm.com to learn more.