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Author: Costanzo

Volunteer for Midnight Breakfast!

Midnight Breakfast 2023 Banner

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!

Katie Fox and Baxter Goodly volunteering at Midnight Breakfast 2022.
Katie Fox and Baxter Goodly volunteering at Midnight Breakfast 2022.

Throwback Thursday: Grounded Beginnings

Throwback Thursday Banner

Today we’re introducing a sporadic feature we hope you’ll help us with in the future. We’ve got old-school DSF photos to share! Today’s offering is two large photos that have been floating around the Support Building for some time showing off previous editions of the Grounds Team. These two images are ripped and water damaged, so through the magic of amateur Photoshop editing and AI generation, we’ve restored these as best we can. You might see some familiar faces in the crowd! Send us an email or comment on this post and let us know who you recognize!

We’ve got more pictures in store for you, but if you’ve got throwback pictures of yourself or of the DSF team here at GW, please share! Happy Thanksgiving!

An throwback picture of the grounds crew gathered together in uniform in front of plants
A throwback photo of the grounds crew in front of a George Washington University sign.

From the Desk of Baxter Goodly: Thanksgiving Reflections

Thanksgiving Banner

Team FPCM,

Thanksgiving is a special holiday for me. It is a time to reflect on and celebrate life’s many blessings. And one of those blessings is to be a member of this incredible team that does so much to improve the lives of the entire GW community.

And it is a time to express my sincere appreciation for all that you do to make GW a truly great university. Your hard work over the past year has been instrumental in elevating our standards of customer service and creating a positive and safe environment for students, faculty, staff, and visitors. I couldn’t be prouder of your efforts and I am grateful for your dedication and commitment to excellence. You are making a difference!

As we gather with family and friends to celebrate Thanksgiving, let us take a moment to cheer our shared successes and recommit ourselves to our mission: Fostering an inviting campus environment through exemplary delivery of facilities services.

Enjoy this well-deserved break, celebrate the fruits of your labor, and anticipate the exciting opportunities that lie ahead!

All the best,
Baxter

FPCM Forward Award Nominations: Now Always Open

The FPCM Forward Awards only take place a few times a year, but now you can submit your nominations whenever you’d like! As always, we’ll comb through all the submissions with a committee before each All Hands to pick the winners. So submit your nominations at go.gwu.edu/forwardawards whenever you think of a colleague who deserves major recognition!

And now those who win not only get a trophy, they’ll also be placed in our special Forward Awards Gallery in the first floor Support cafe as seen below! The last set of winners was as follows…

Safety Award
Reid Davis

Care Award
Ebony Malone
Phillip Thomas

Efficiency Award
Anthony Baylor
Jose Flores

Rookie Award
Anya Welch

Only at GW Award
Terry McGhee

FPCM Forward Awards Gallery

Kudos Roundup for 11/21/23

This week’s kudos are throwbacks from earlier in the year that we need to catch up on! Have more you’d like to share? Send them to us!


From Emily Dieker to Monet Ballard, Greg Brooks, Adam Poplin, Sonny Saadi, Natalie Addison, Jason Neves, Hilda Merche, Joseph Chavis, and Rosa (whew!):

I wanted to send a HUGE THANK YOU to all of you and your teams for your assistance in the GWorld relocation and renovation efforts this summer. I know none of this was in our summer plans, but you all responded quickly and efficiently to our emergency needs and requests and we couldn’t have gotten through this summer without you. Your efforts ensured that the GWorld Office was able to stay open and fully functioning all summer, and we were able to move back into a renovated office just in time for students returning. It’s truly remarkable to realize that the GWorld renovation was fully planned and executed in only 3 weeks, and despite all the work and disruption to our space we never had to close or turn away customers.

Specific Thanks to:

  • Monet, Greg & Moving Masters for your help moving the GWorld Office in June and August
  • Adam & Sonny for your oversight of the GWorld renovation and making sure the renovation stayed on schedule
  • Natalie for your design efforts and making sure the renovation stayed on schedule
  • Jason, Hilda, Rosa, & Joe for your repeated cleaning and help with bulk trash and recycling
  • Baxter for your high level support and appreciation of the urgency of our needs, and for assigning the right people to get the job done.
  • My apologies if I’ve missed anyone. 

Your efforts are a reflection of the outstanding work and leadership of FPCM and I’m truly grateful!


From Emily Dieker to Diamond Newman:

I wanted to pass on Kudos to Diamond from Facilities Central. She noticed all MVC GWorld readers were offline (very soon after the network went down) and did the exact right thing of calling the GWorld emergency line. Her quick response altered me to the issue, and I was in turn able to alert Housing, Facilities, and GWIT leadership to the issue in the very early stages. 


From Zoe Saunders with Chartwells to Erika Argueta, Cecilia Melendez, and Corrina:

I just wanted to say how much I appreciate the ladies who are maintaining the restrooms and the dining area floors and tables each day.  They shocked me when they cleaned the bases of the high-top tables.  I had been looking at them and made up my mind to have one of my utility workers do a deep cleaning project and detail the table bases.  When I walked him over to show him what I wanted done I had to take a step back.  They were already spotless.  I told him never mind and had him clean something else.

These ladies are fantastic!  Please thank Erika, Cecilia and Corrina for me.  They’re amazing!


From CLRE’s Lacy Myrman to Eric Hamilton and Roland Brown:

I just wanted to share my appreciation for how Eric and Roland have been super helpful for events recently. They have taken initiative, been eager to assist, made themselves available, and quick to respond. On two occasions, they’ve really shown up and helped with last minute asks, which has really taken the pressure off of me and allowed me to focus on managing other aspects of the events I was managing. They’ve made sure the experience of our attendees was positive and seamless and all of the minor details were attended to, and guests and attendees have shared that feedback with me as well. Please extend my gratitude to them for all they do. 🙏 


From Hellen Olumilua with SMHS to Kathya Rodriguez:

I am joining other teams on the 4th floor to give a shout-out to Kathya, the housekeeper on the 4th floor. She goes above and beyond to keep the 4th floor clean. Jackie(copied on this email) stopped by and expressed how detailed Kathya’s cleaning is, and I echoed that. Her attention to detail is a breath of fresh air coupled with her sunny disposition… She is definitely a great addition.

Tuition Remission Applications are Open!

One of the unique benefits of working for GW is the potential to get a percentage of your tuition costs covered by GW. Applications for the Tuition Remission Benefit for the Spring 2024 semester are open and must be submitted no later than February 1.

Keep in mind, the exact rate of coverage depends on a number of factors, including: employee status, employee hire date, whether the student is an employee or dependent, and the specific academic program being pursued. An application for each person must be submitted each semester and you must register for your courses before applying for the Tuition Remission Benefit. See the email GW sent to employees for more information or contact Benefits at tuition@gwu.edu or 571-553-8382.

Kudos Roundup for 11/15/23

Ah, a good ol’ fashioned Kudos Roundup! It’s been awhile since we’ve done one of these! Kudos for DSF staff can come in many forms, from emails alerting supervisors to a job well done to direct praise from managers in a meeting. We’ll be collecting these kudos for all to see right here in this feature. Take a look!


From Betty Freyre in the Office of the President to Sonny Saadi:
I wanted to let you know that we have been working with Sonny for a couple of months now, and I have to tell you that he has been phenomenal. He found a solution to the outdoor patio doors that required a locking mechanism, he worked with the carpenters to reconstruct the President’s office bookshelves, installed the handrails for the steps to the outdoor patio, and ordered new shades that were damaged a few months ago. He is truly a professional, very kind and easy to work with. We are lucky to have him!


From HR’s Pam Smith to Eslie Murraine:
I will give a proper shout out to Eslie; but wanted to let you know that he has been very helpful to HR. Mainly me but yesterday I fell under the weather and Eslie was able to take over the interview/ applicant that came in for his interview and he also followed up with me today.

He is very much appreciated, especially at last minute’s notice when I was in a jam. 😁 There have been other occasions when Eslie is very responsive and willing to move along with the interview process in a timely manner. Kudos to Eslie.


From Richard Donovan to Roger White:
On behalf of everyone in HR at VSTC, especially Diane Conners and Kellie Wall who were more involved in our recent renovations; they really wanted to point out that Roger went above and beyond, was on top of everything and knew what was going on when questions came up.  They said he has a great attitude and was very calm and supportive as things were happening.


From Brenda Bradley with Anthropology to Monet Ballard, Matt Andrews, and Eslie Murraine:
I am writing in my capacity as Chair of the Anthropology Department to let you know how amazing it has been to work with Monet Ballard, Matt Andrews, Eslie Murraine and the rest of the team to relocate one of our faculty offices. The move was difficult for several reasons. It was urgent because there was mold in the space but also stressful and emotional because the faculty member had been in that office for decades and was very attached to the space. She also has a huge collection of books that are irreplaceable and of great academic value. 

Monet and Matt handled the situation perfectly by listening thoroughly and compassionately to the faculty member’s concerns and also working efficiently to move all the materials in short order. Monet and her team also carefully arranged the books in the same order and the faculty member noted that it ‘felt like home’ when she stepped into the new office. 

Matt and Eslie have also been so communicative and helpful in making repairs to the vacated office and preparing it for a new faculty member.

We are extremely grateful for Monet’s, Matt’s, and Eslie’s efforts, care, and attention, as well as their efficiency.

Many thanks to them and their teams!!

Inbox Highlights: Virtual Retirement Fair and GW Basketball Tickets

Inbox Highlights Banner Image

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 the November GWell Newsletter and the November GWIT Newsletter.

Virtual Retirement Fair

Thinking about retirement and want to learn more? Preparing for the transition to retirement takes thoughtful planning. Join GW Benefits on Tuesday, November 28, for GW’s virtual Retirement Fair designed to help you understand your GW retiree benefits and the steps to prepare for retirement. 

GW Benefits and vendor partners, TIAA, Fidelity, and Via Benefits will lead the following sessions scheduled for this event:

Discounted Tickets for GW Basketball

GW Athletics offers exclusive discounts on Men’s basketball season tickets for Faculty and Staff!  Upper Sideline seats are just $180 for the season. Purchase your tickets today using promo code GDUBFS24.

Faculty and Staff can also purchase Women’s basketball season tickets for $85 this season.


IT Website Redesign

The IT website has been redesigned. The new design is the first step in improving navigation and making it easier to find resources and support. In the redesign, GWIT consolidated acadtech.gwu.edu and printing.gwu.edu into IT.gwu.edu, making it more convenient to access related services. GWIT has plans to expand the resources and service offerings in the future.

GW Thanksgiving Break Hours

The university sent along an email with hours of operation for various services around campus during the Thanksgiving Break. We encourage you to read through the email, but here are some of the highlights.

  • There are no classes Nov. 20-25.
  • The university will be closed on Nov. 23-24.
  • Academic and administrative offices will be open Nov. 20-22, and will reopen on Nov. 27.
  • Academic and administrative buildings will be available via GWorld tap access only Nov. 23-26.

DSF SERVICES

EMeRG
Nov. 18: 8 a.m. – out of service
Nov. 26: 6 p.m. – resumes normal service
Emergency Medical Services remain available 24/7 through D.C. Fire and EMS. For help in an emergency call 911 or GW Police at 202-994-6111.

Facilities Central and FixIt
Nov. 23 – 27: Facilities Central/Key Depot and FixIt will continue to be available 24/7. Submit a FixIt ticket.

Vern Express
Nov. 20 – 24: Weekend service from 7 a.m – midnight.
Nov. 23 – 24: Late night shuttle van not in service from 12:15 a.m. – 6:45 a.m. Note: Late Night Lyft for Mount Vernon Students will be operational.
Nov. 25 – 26: Weekend service from 7 a.m – midnight.

VSTC Express
Nov. 20 – 22: Regular service Nov. 23 – 26: No service

Safe Ride
Nov. 22: Regular service from 7 p.m. – 4 a.m. Nov. 23 – 24: Not operational
Nov 25 – 26: Regular service from 7 p.m. – 4 a.m.


DINING

Dining on Mount Vernon Campus – Pelham Commons
Nov. 20 – 25: Closed
Nov. 26: 4:30 – 9 p.m.

District House Dining
Nov. 18: 11 a.m. – 9 p.m.
Nov. 19: 11 a.m. – 11 p.m.
Nov. 20 – 26: Closed

Shenkman Hall Dining
Nov. 18 – 22: 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. and 4:30 – 9 p.m.
Nov. 23: Closed
Nov. 24 – 26: 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. and 4:30 – 9 p.m.

Thurston Hall Dining
Nov. 18 – 19: 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. and 4:30 – 9 p.m.
Nov. 20 – 25: Closed

University Student Center
Panera Bread
Nov. 20 – 26: Closed
Chaat House and Absurd Bird
Nov. 18 – 19: noon – 8 p.m. (Chaat House only, Absurd Bird Closed)
Nov. 20 – 26: Closed

World Tour of Corcoran Hall

Adam Aaronson leads a tour outside of Corcoran Hall

The Greenbuild International Conference and Expo (this year in DC) is the largest annual event for green building professionals worldwide to learn and source cutting-edge solutions to improve resilience, sustainability and quality of life in our buildings, cities and communities. As part of this year’s conference, Adam Aaronson and HOK Architects led a tour of Corcoran Hall to talk about the building’s green features, including plumbing fixtures that reduce water use by 41%, lighting power density reduction of 58%, daylight controls in 100% of occupied spaces, all leading to our LEED Gold rating. The tour included people from across the US, Japan, Serbia, and Saudi Arabia! Great to see so much interest in our projects!