DSF is once again headed to the ball game! And during the work day no less! Join us on December 21 at 11am to enjoy a free Revolutionaries game and a complimentary meal just before the holiday break! All DSF staff is invited to attend, but we only have 120 tickets, so you’ll need to register if you’d like to attend. It’s first come, first serve, so sign up now!
If we’re being honest UKG, our time management system formerly known as Kronos, can be a complicated beast to get the hang of. But it doesn’t have to be that way! The UKG mobile app (UKG Workforce Central) for Android and iOS is a much more user-friendly experience that will let you do things like punch in and out, check your accrued vacation time, and manage time off requests from staff.
In order to use the app and get the server name you’ll need to sign in, you’ll first need to sign the user agreement. Once you do that, you’ll simply follow the simple instructions that pop up on screen. HR has guides for how to use the app for employees and managers, but below you can get a sneak peek of the home screen and what you’ll see when you click on “Accruals.”
If you need help, feel free to drop by Margaret Wagner’s desk in Support.
Competition for the Five Star FixIt Awards is heating up as we head into the colder months! Here are the updated top 10 standings through November. There’s only one month of FixIt reviews to go before we determine the winners!
Souk Vongs – 15
Brian Johnson – 14
Terrence Branch – 13
Carl Bryant – 11
Raymond Wallace – 11
Christopher Gammon – 10
Jose Ventura – 10
Jose Melgar – 9
Julio Martinez – 9
Nestor Fuentes – 9
In total, 115 different people have been awarded at least one Five Star FixIt Review from customers in 2023. We think that’s pretty stunning and worthy of a long holiday break in a few weeks!
We encourage you to read all emails sent to university employees, but we realize it’s easy to miss the details in the barrage of content sometimes. Below we’ve compiled a few highlights from recent editions of Digital Download and The GW Staff Council Pillars Newsletter and a GW InfoMail on Campus Store holiday discounts.
Quick web tips from GW Communications & Marketing.
Canva Holiday Templates and Training
Looking for ways to celebrate the holiday season with your community? Use GW holiday-themed Canva templates to create festive email headers, social media graphics, and printable cards. If you’re new to Canva or need a refresher, join Communications & Marketing on December 7 to learn how to use this free web application to create your GW-branded holiday greetings
The official newsletter for GW’s Staff Council.
Attend a Staff Council Meeting
The GW Staff Council typically meets on the third Friday of each month from 10:00am to 12:00pm. GW Staff Council meetings occur via Zoom and are open. Please direct any related questions to staffcouncil@gwu.edu. President Granberg will join the meeting on December 15!
You can find meeting minutes from past meetings on the Staff Council website, along with information on upcoming meetings. Registration is required so please be sure to register for any upcoming meetings you’d like to attend.
Winter Necessities Drive
GW has partnered with DC Public Schools to collect winter necessities for local students and their families. Donate new socks, gloves, mittens, and winter hats for children, teenagers, and adults.
Donation stations will be available at the Virginia Campus and Foggy Bottom Winter Celebrations. If you would like to contribute but are unable to attend the events, you may drop off items at the Honey W. Nashman Center for Civic Engagement at Public Service (2300 H Street, NW), through December 22.
Staff Holiday Discount at the GW Campus Store
Visit the GW Campus Store for the Faculty & Staff Holiday Shopping Event!
December 5 & 6
In-Store and Online: 25% off GW Branded Clothing and Gifts
*See store for details. Must show a valid GWorld card. Excludes Lululemon, electronics and technology.
Online Shopping Discount Instructions:
We love when DSF folks make enough positive waves to attract the attention of local media. In this case it’s VERY local media as Veronica Franklin with the custodial team got her very own video feature in GW Today. Veronica is no stranger to TV or our own internal coverage. Over the years, she’s been a frequent contributor to the various iterations of our newsletter, whether it be sending us photos, participating in write-ups, or simply adding a comment to this very blog. Thanks for all the content and keep it coming, Veronica!
Recycling centers are raising their standards for the quality and cleanliness of the recyclable materials that are being processed at their facilities. Increasingly, truck loads of recycling that our drivers have brought for these facilities have been “downgraded” due to high levels of contamination with non-recyclables like trash and food waste. These downgraded truckloads are sent entirely to landfill, meaning we do not get credit for the effort our community members and staff took to sort and separate recyclables.
To increase the amount of recycling on campus and bring us closer to our Zero Waste goals, Colin O’Brien and the Sustainability Office are offering three simple tips. Read on below or watch the video!
Do Recycle: Clean and dry paper, cardboard, hard plastics, metal and glass.
Do not recycle: Thin plastic films, including chip bags and snack wrappers, styrofoam, small plastic items like straws and disposable utensils, and/or any recyclable materials that are contaminated with food waste residue.
Black bags will be considered trash at the Recycling Facility regardless of their contents. If there are too many black liners in a recycling compactor, the entire load can be downgraded and sent to landfill. Keeping black bags out of recycling receptacles increases our chances of a successful load.
Therefore: If you are lining a recycling bin, always use a clear bag.
If you are unloading a recycling bin that has been lined by another staff member with a black bag, remove those items from the bag and place in a clear liner before depositing in a recycling dumpster or compactor.
The presence of food waste or liquids in an otherwise clean load of recycling can cause it to be rejected and sent to landfill. If you encounter a recycling bag that contains clearly visible food or liquids, follow the rule of “when in doubt, throw it out.”
Questions? Feel free to email Colin and he’ll fill you in!
We’ve previously covered Career Milestones in 2023 and now we’ve got pictures of some of the folks who attended celebrations in their honor! Baxter Goodly was on hand to congratulate our long-serving colleagues in 1957 E St.’s City View Room. And above is a picture of Calvin Williams with Executive Director GW Talent and Recruitment Diane Conners. Calvin has been with GW an amazing 50 years! Thanks to everyone for all you do to keep GW up and running.
We’ve all got paperwork to deal with in our personal lives, whether it be for mortgages, apartment leases, or some other necessity. Often this paperwork requires proof of employment or income. GW aims to make that part easier by using a fast and secure automated service called The Work Number. Just follow the simple instructions below or head over the HR website for more info.
Our top Service Priority here at GW is Safety. Each day, we seek to create an environment on our campuses that protects us from hazards and accidents, but what about when we’re off the clock? The need to implement safety protocols extends even into our personal lives.
The DC area has seen a huge increase in carjackings over the past year and at least a couple of our staff have recently been targeted at their homes. Luckily, no one was hurt in either instance, but it’s a good reminder to all of us to keep our heads on a swivel and to observe some basic precautions. The tips below were pulled from a number of sources we’ll list at the end of this post if you’d like to learn more.
Remember, anyone can be a carjacking target. Carjackers are more often looking for anyone who is distracted or alone, not a specific demographic. Carjackers target areas like self-serve gas stations, deserted intersections, parking garages, residential driveways, and highway exit ramps.
Before You Go:
Getting There:
Upon Your Arrival:
Returning to Your Vehicle:
In a Carjacking Situation:
Further Reading:
Final exams are coming up quickly for our stressed out students and that means Midnight Breakfast is also right around the corner on Monday, December 11. Midnight Breakfast is an annual GW tradition where students are encouraged to take a break from studying for final exams with food and fun activities. This event is a great collaboration between faculty and staff as we all work together to show support to the student community during final exam season. A significant number of DSF staff members have typically volunteered in the past to help make this event a huge success.
During the event, volunteers are expected to be available from 8pm until 12:30am. This time includes on-site arrival check-in and training at your stations, as well as clean-up after the event has ended. If you’re interested in volunteering (and supporting our DSA partners!), please fill out the form!
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