The Information Technology (IT) Governance Program, established in 2020 under the sponsorship of executive leaders, provides a structure for the community to become more engaged in technology decisions while increasing transparency and efficiency.

We are excited to share a new IT Governance Community Outreach initiative beginning in 2023 — to better engage the community in the IT Governance Program. The outreach initiative, led by Steve Knowles, will provide students, faculty, and staff with the knowledge they need to stay informed about IT Governance through newly established channels and directly engage in governance with various academic, administrative, and operational technology committees.

As Director of Strategic Outreach & Engagement for ITS, Steve’s mission is to provide support and guidance for all members of the Brandeis community while engaging with IT Governance groups.

For more information, to sign up for IT governance-related communications, to learn about your committee representatives, or to make requests, please visit our updated IT Governance website.

Take an online course with Brandeis GPS, no application is required! Registration is open until January 3, 2023. A few professional courses that are available this Winter include: Communication for Effective Leadership, Foundations of Project Management, and Foundations of Data Science and Analytics. Eligible staff and faculty receive 100% tuition remission at GPS. Start in the new year to maximize your benefits. To enroll in a professional course or degree program, contact Christie Barone, Director of Admissions: cbarone@brandeis.edu

Employees are reminded that Vacation Carryover balances must be used by December 31 to avoid losing them.

Employees may view their Vacation Carryover balances in Workday under Absence > View - Absence Balance - use as of date 01/01/2023. This time is also reflected on the payslip accrual summary in Workday.

Vacation carryover is based upon years of service and applies to all employees. The carryover cutoff is Dec. 31. Carryover amounts are prorated for part-time employees. If you have any questions, please contact Human Resources.

Have you noticed an increase in phishing emails? Are you confident you would recognize one?

Phishing emails often appear genuine and can expose our network to bad actors when users don’t immediately recognize red flags and take precautions. The ITS Security Group has seen a recent increase in sophisticated phishing emails — including some that look like official internal announcements or the Brandeis login page.

Over the next few months, ITS Security will conduct a KnowBe4 Phishing Education Campaign to increase awareness. The campaign simulates phishing attacks using emails that look like internal announcements and log-on pages. As a reminder, you should always verify the addresses of links in emails and ensure login pages utilize “brandeis.edu” in the browser location. If in doubt, please reach out to security@brandeis.edu.

Phishing awareness helps to secure the Brandeis network. We look forward to our continued success with this education program. For additional tips on identifying and avoiding phishing messages, please visit phishing awareness on the ITS website.

Proofpoint Email Protection safeguards the Brandeis network against potentially fraudulent emails. It automatically filters emails determined to be spam (e.g., marketing, cold sales, etc.) or bulk (e.g., newsletters, other mass mailings, etc.) and will quarantine the messages.

While spam filtering is accurate, no automated system is perfect. We all receive numerous emails, and there may be times when a desired or legitimate email message is marked spam. We recommend you review your quarantined messages periodically in your Daily Email Digest or by logging on to your Web Digest. From the digest, you can release messages, allow or block senders, and read quarantined emails on the web.

To learn more about Proofpoint and how to manage your spam filtering options, please visit the ITS website. To learn more about email security and protection, please contact security@brandeis.edu.

As recommended by the Brandeis Total Rewards Advisory Committee (TRAC), for fairness and consistency, Human Resources is pleased to announce that we are enhancing the policy on weekly paid/nonexempt employees vacation accruals. Effective January 1, 2023, all non-exempt (hourly/weekly paid) employee’s vacation accrual rates will be the same as exempt (salary/semi-monthly paid) employees.

Beginning In January, all full time eligible staff, employed up to 5 years will accrue 15 vacation days per year. Full time eligible staff employed more than 5 years will accrue 20 vacations days per year. Accruals are prorated for part-time employees.

Please visit Human Resources Benefits website to view more information.

Breezing Through the Holidays register - It may be called “the most wonderful time of the year” but December can also be filled with unwanted debt from holiday spending. Learn budgeting strategies and tactics to avoid that year-end credit card crunch and sidestep debt traps in the future

Reminder:

Managing at Brandeis: Nuts & Bolts Series (presented via Zoom):

• Thursday 12/8 - 1 – 2:30 p.m., Performance Coaching and Counseling register
• Monday 12/12 - 2 – 3:30 p.m., Legal Considerations of the Supervisor register

Virtual Workshops presented by New Directions (presented via Zoom):

• Monday 12/5 - 10 – 11 a.m., Respect at Work register

FREE Live Webinars offered by New Directions

For more information please visit the HR Training Website or email us at farquhar@brandeis.edu.

Students and families will receive the spring 2023 bill electronically via Nelnet this week. The due date is December 15, 2022. Students should access the Nelnet Student Account Portal, using the link provided in their Student Account worklet in Workday, to view e-bills and account transactions, make payments and manage monthly payment plans.

If students have not already done so, 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 - Students who would like parents, sponsors, or other third parties, to view their student account and make payments will need to set these individuals up as Authorized Parties in Nelnet. Refer to the Nelnet – Manage 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. 

The Payroll Office has issued the annual memo regarding important calendar year-end paycheck and tax information for 2022.

The memo is available on the Payroll website, under Payroll Year-end Memo 2022.

In the last several years, banks and credit card providers have seen a significant increase in potential fraudulent activity on credit cards. The Brandeis P-Card is a credit card through Wells Fargo.

In accordance with best practice, Brandeis has partnered with Wells Fargo to enable Fraud Alert notifications that will be sent out via email to the cardholder in order to ensure legitimacy of various P-Card transactions.

Whenever unusual activity is identified on your P-Card account, Wells Fargo will automatically send you an email alert asking you to verify the transaction as legitimate, or report it as fraud.

Please review our Guide on Fraud Alerts for any questions on concerns.

If you have any questions please reach out to us at: Procurement@brandeis.edu

The Alumni Association is currently searching for 2023 BOLD 9 honorees and needs your help. Launched three years ago, BOLD 9 honors young alumni making a difference in their chosen fields. Past honorees have included artists, activists, entrepreneurs, educators, influencers, and other leaders. To qualify for consideration, nominees must have graduated from Brandeis (with any kind of degree) between 2013 and 2022, be under 35 years of age, and embody Brandeisian values. 

Nominations are due December 9, at which point a selection committee will vet and identify honorees, who will be honored and celebrated in myriad ways throughout the year and across Brandeis communications channels. Please use this nomination form to submit candidates for consideration. Meet the BOLD 9 class of 2022 to get a feel for the types of honorees that have qualified in the past. 

Questions can be sent to Dave Eisenberg, at davideisenberg@brandeis.edu.

While we are approaching the end of the program, there is still time to earn points and to be entered in to gift card drawings before it ends! To join please visit The Health You page.

For December wellness activities dates and time please visit Living Well At Home. All classes are free and easy to access via Zoom.

• Guided Mindfulness Sessions
• Rotating Health & Wellness Topics
• Zumba Classes
• Yoga Classes

December Health & Wellness Topics

• Coming Back from COVID: A Look Forward to the Year Ahead
• Savory Holiday Recipes
• Tabata (Short spurts and high intensity challenges)

Activities and challenges in the program will end on December 15, and the program itself will remain available to you through December 22.

After that, the program will be unavailable for a short time, so that a new 2023 program can be built for you! Stay tuned for your new program to launch in January.

If you are having any trouble earning points or claiming gift cards, please contact LivingWellSupport@point32health.org before December 22. A representative will be happy to help you claim those hard-earned rewards!

The financial aid renewal application deadline for the 2023-2024 academic year will be March 1, 2023. Students receiving need-based scholarship funds must submit the 2023-2024 CSS/Financial Aid PROFILE, the 2023-2024 Free Application for Federal Student Aid and copies of 2021 student and parent Federal Income Tax Returns. Students who wish to apply only for federal sources of financial aid need only complete the FAFSA (taxes will be requested upon receipt of this application only if necessary). An e-mail detailing the renewal process will be sent to students and parents during the intersession.