The university will be conducting a TEST on Friday, September 30, 12:30 p.m. of the Brandeis Emergency Notification System (BENS). The test requires no action on your part. However, you may wish to review your contact information or register if you have not previously done so. More information on the test may be found on the Emergency Preparedness website.

Please register to receive notifications via text message or a non-Brandeis email address. You must provide us with your mobile phone number (and/or your personal email address), and check the box authorizing Brandeis to send texts. Go to go.brandeis.edu/alerts for complete information and instructions. University email addresses will automatically be notified in the event of an emergency or severe weather.

The university has updated the Conflict of Interest and Conflict of Commitment Policy. This policy is intended to increase the awareness of faculty, staff, and other Brandeis community members to the potential for conflicts of interest and conflicts of commitment, and to establish a process whereby such conflicts may be properly managed or avoided.

The updated policy includes specific language regarding conflicts of commitment, which exists when a Brandeis employee’s external professional or personal activities have the possibility (either in actuality or in appearance) of:

1. Conflicting with the employee’s work hours for the University;
2. Interfering with that individual’s ability to perform, or effectiveness in performing, the full range of responsibilities associated with their position at Brandeis.

All faculty and staff are subject to the policy and should familiarize themselves with it.

Please contact Human Resources if you have questions.

The Department of Student Engagement is recruiting undergraduate students to apply for the Rich/Collins Community Leadership & Impact Fellowship Program. This is a one-of-a-kind, prestigious leadership opportunity where undergraduate students can apply for grant funding (between $500-$4,000) to implement a community impact project during the Spring semester, while receiving a $600 personal reward and engaging in a close-knit cohort leadership development series. You can see great examples from previous projects on our website. As you'll notice, the list of possibilities are endless! That being said, this year we are intentionally encouraging projects that support the Waltham community and center racial justice and climate justice work.

If you know of any amazing students that you believe would be great Fellows, please recommend them to us or encourage them to attend one of our upcoming information sessions! For questions regarding this Fellowship, please email rccliff@brandeis.edu or Assistant Director, Community Engagement & Leadership, Taisha White, who is overseeing this initiative. Applications closes Sunday, October 23 at 11:59 pm EST.

Join BUSAC on Wednesday, September 28 for an ice cream truck. The ice cream truck will be parked in the Tower Lot and is available to staff from noon to 1:30 p.m. If you have any questions, please email BUSAC.

Take an online course with Brandeis GPS, no application required! Enrollment is open until September 30, 2022. A few professional courses that are available this Fall include: Principles of Learning Experience Design, Foundations of Project Management, and Multichannel Marketing Campaigns. Eligible staff and faculty receive 100% tuition remission at GPS. To enroll in a professional course or degree program, contact Christie Barone, Director of Admissions: cbarone@brandeis.edu

Library Workshops - Open to all members of the Brandeis community

• Excel with Excel: Overview, Tips and Tricks. Part I, noon - 1 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 6 and Excel with Excel: Overview, Tips and Tricks. Part II, 12:20 - 1:10 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 20
• Introduction to Python: Fundamentals and Data Analysis, 1 - 2 p.m., Tuesday, Sept. 27
• Intro to R and the Tidyverse, 12:10 - 1 p.m., Wednesday, Sept. 28
• Regression Analysis with Stata (online), noon - 1 p.m., Friday, Sept. 30
• Getting Started with SPSS, noon - 1 p.m., Monday, Oct. 3
• Version Control: Intro to Git and GitHub, 1 - 2 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 6
• Introduction to Arduino Electronics Workshop, 4 - 5:30 p.m., Wednesdays starting Sept. 28

Mailing lists play a crucial role in day-to-day operations at Brandeis, so it’s important that we use a service that’s modern, secure, reliable, and dynamic.

Beginning Thursday, November 3, Listservs will no longer be available. Due to an outdated platform and security risks, ITS will retire the aging Brandeis mailing list service (lists.brandeis.edu) and transition to Google Groups.

During the next two months, ITS will create a Google Group for each Listserv list with Owners, Editors, and Members automatically added. Google Groups will be created only for Listservs used after January 1, 2019. Owners and Editors of existing Listserv lists will be contacted via email regarding the transition.

If you have any questions, please reach out to the ITS Help Desk at help@brandeis.edu.

Learn more about Brandeis’ new continuous performance management approach, the Talent Advancement Program (TAP) which is kicking off this fall. This new and exciting approach to performance management will help all of us TAP into our potential by increasing engagement, strengthening relationships through communication and coaching and creating a growth mindset culture.

TAP Training will cover an overview of the program, the new timeline for performance reviews (including mid-year reviews), how to provide and receive continuous feedback, and how to engage in and support a growth mindset work environment and make the most of the performance review process.

For additional information visit the TAP Website or to register for a training session please visit the Human Resources website. If you have any questions, please contact the Human Resources Office at 781-736-4474 or humanresources@brandeis.edu.

Brandeis is rich with religious diversity. The Jewish New Year of Rosh Hashanah, celebrated September 26 - 27, begins the 10 Days of Repentance which end with Yom Kippur on October 5. Jews observe Yom Kippur with a 25 hour fast (this does not include children, or those unable to fast for health/safety reasons) and religious services. Brandeis does not hold classes on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Muslims celebrate Milad al-Nabi October 7 - 8. On the 12th day of the Islamic lunar month of Rabi' al-Awwal, many Muslims the world over gather to recite poems recounting the biography and especially the birth of the Prophet Muhammad, who was born in the year 570 CE.

The free webinar series has been expanded to offer several programs each week, including regular sessions of guided mindfulness, Zumba, yoga and rotating health and wellness topics. For a list of topics and registration information, please visit Tufts Health Plan Living Well at Home page.

• September 28, No Idea What to Cook, Quick and Easy Menu ideas
• October 5, Cooking with Corn
• October 12, 10 Ways to Calm Anxiety or Anxious Thoughts
• October 19, Stress Management in the Digital Age
• October 28, Sweet Math: How to subtract added sugar from your diet

Please visit Human Resources website to view more information and registration details.

Brandeis University is committed to the health and safety of our faculty and staff. Human Resources, in partnership with Vaxinate Rx and Health Care Family Pharmacy, is pleased to announce that we will be offering vaccination clinics to our employees. This year's clinic will include the flu vaccination as well as the COVID booster listed below. The dates and times for these clinics are:

• 9/28, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
• 10/12, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
• 10/24, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
• 11/9, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

All clinics will take place in Hassenfeld, Levine Ross rooms 1 and 2.

For additional information and to register, visit the Human Resources webpage.

Create the Retirement You Want-Register

This program will be offered to Brandeis employees 50 and older and will include representatives from Fidelity Investments, TIAA and Social Security Administration. During this valuable session, you will be provided with information and resources to help set you on a path to a plan for successful retirement.

1. The Fundamentals of Retirement Income Planning Presented
2. Lifetime Income: Help Secure Your Retirement.
3. Estate Planning: Preserving Your Savings for Future Generations.
4. Social Security 101 – Everything You Wanted to Know

We have entered into the shoulder months for heating/cooling; the months whose temperatures range between 40 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Cooler mornings followed by warmer afternoons make maintaining temperature comfort in our facilities a challenge. Even if you are in a facility with air conditioning, the campus operates on a dual system which means our systems are either in heating mode or cooling mode; but not both. Currently, we are still in the “cooling” season but we will start to switch to heating mode on Sept. 21.

Consequently, during these shoulder months, there will be days when your office/room temperature is not as cool or hot as you want it to be. Most days, the outside temperature in the morning will be cooler than the temperature in your buildings so if you are warm, we recommended you open your windows, if you can, to help bring additional cooler outside air into your areas for additional comfort.

We understand that at times this may be uncomfortable but we ask for your patience during these New England shoulder months and this switch-over. Facilities will start this switch over in the Residence Halls, then move to heating the Science Buildings, followed by the Academic Buildings. The complete switch-over will likely take a month to fully complete.

For building temperature standards or energy conservation policies, please visit the Office of Sustainability webpage. 

Should you feel there is an issue with your heating system, please submit a service request on the Facilities Services website.

On August 24, 2022, the Biden-Harris Administration announced a plan to provide targeted student loan debt cancellation to borrowers with loans held by the Department of Education (ED), as well as a final extension on the pause on student loan repayment, interest, and collections through December 31, 2022.

President Biden has capped the loan cancellation at $10,000 for single borrowers making less than $125,000, or households earning less than $250,000, during the pandemic. The relief includes current students and borrowers who have federally-held undergraduate, graduate, and Parent PLUS loans where the first disbursement was on or before June 30, 2022. (Borrowers who were dependent students in the 2021-22 year will be eligible for relief based on parental income, rather than their own income.) Borrowers who fall under the income caps, and also received Pell Grants, will receive an extra $10,000, totaling $20,000 in forgiveness. Current Brandeis students can view their loan and Pell grant information by going to Workday and selecting Student Financial Aid and then Financial Aid Portal.

ED will be announcing further details on how borrowers can claim this relief in the weeks ahead. Please visit the Federal Student Aid debt relief website for updates.

Brandeis Tufts Health Plan Members can be reimbursed for up to 8 at-home COVID-19 tests per member per month. Visit the Human Resources webpage for reimbursement form and additional information.

Representative from Fidelity Investments and TIAA and are ready to help you

• Manage your retirement savings goals
• Review investment choices
• Build a plan that is easy to put into action

To register and for more details please visit the Human Resources Website.

We are making improvement to the Retirement Savings Plans! Effective, November 4, 2022, Brandeis will shift to a single provider of administrative services. All contributions (both yours and the University’s) will be directed to the investment options available through Fidelity Investments. The investment lineup includes mutual funds from several mutual fund companies (such as Vanguard and American Funds).

It is important that you have the information and resources you need to understand the upcoming changes and how they may affect you.

To learn more visit the Transition page for details on:

• Opportunities to sign up for-
  • in-person and virtual presentations
  • one-on-one meetings with Financial Consultants.

• Frequently asked questions
• Key dates
• Action steps

The Transition page will continue to be updated. The investment lineup changes will be updated on this site and communicated to you. Please stay tuned for additional information in the coming weeks.

As we begin a new semester, the Division of Student Affairs would like to share some exciting news! Over the summer, the departments formerly known as Student Activities and Community Service have collectively become the Department of Student Engagement. This change will allow us to streamline services and best support student co-curricular needs. Additionally, we implemented a new online platform for student organizations and engagement called Campus Groups. This new platform takes the place of Presence, which was previously used by clubs and organizations. All Brandeis students will be able to use the Campus Groups to join groups, see what their groups are up to, and register for events happening on campus. Faculty and staff have the opportunity to use this platform to learn more about student organizations and their events. You can access the site at brandeis.campusgroups.com. Feel free to reach out to the Department of Student Engagement with any questions.

Time off is an important benefit, and we encourage all staff to use their available time to rest and reenergize. Vacation time is meant to be restorative, is important for our well-being and can help improve productivity and creativity. It also can help reduce stress, help prevent burnout and promote work-life balance.

Brandeis offers a comprehensive benefits package, including a generous time-off program for staff. As we approach the fall, it is important for managers and staff to review vacation time balances. Managers should actively balance the needs of staff time off, with the operational needs of their department, and help staff find time to use available vacation days before the end of 2022.

While the University does provide a service-based vacation carry over policy, there are limits on the number of days that can be carried over from one calendar year to the next. Staff with high vacation balances may lose time, not including carry over amounts, if they do not use their available vacation days before December 31.

As a reminder, managers can review individual employee's time off balances in Workday under ‘Time Off’ and also review an absence calendar under ‘Team Absence’ that shows each employee's planned vacations and other absences (approved and unapproved). View the Benefits Eligible Staff Workday Time Off Categories.