Heartfelt congratulations to Patrice Bolton, Program Assistant in the School of Business, for being selected as the June 2017 Employee of the Month. Read more about Patrice in this Mason News article.
Do you know a superstar? Make sure they receive the deserved recognition, and submit a nomination for Mason’s Employee of the Month. Additional information can be found on the Human Resources and Payroll awards page.
Contact Reward and Recognition at [email protected] with questions.
Wondering what to do with your school-age child between the ages of 6-11 once camp ends and school hasn’t started? Sign up for Mason Kids Club, managed by the George Mason University Child Development Center, from August 14-August 25. Two one-week sessions will be offered with fun, hands-on activities and engaging campus field trips. For details and registration, please visit http://www.regonline.com/masonkidsclubsummer2017 . If you have any questions, please call the Child Development Center at 703.993.5960.
Effective August 1 , non-exempt employees (i.e. overtime eligible for all hours over 40 worked in a week) can initiate or change their election regarding how their overtime is to be handled by the Payroll Department. All non-exempt employees have the option of being paid for their overtime (which is the default) or to accumulate their overtime as leave.
If a non-exempt employee has made an election in the past and does not want to change their election, they do not have to do anything. If they want to continue to receive pay for any overtime earned, they also do not have to complete a form. However, if the non-exempt employee would like to change their election from receiving pay to receiving leave or receiving leave to receiving pay, please ask him or her to complete an Overtime Leave Agreement Form and submit it to the Payroll Department no later than Friday, September 8.
Unfortunately this deadline is firm and we cannot accept forms after that date.
Please remember that an election commits the employee to their choice for one year until the next open enrollment period. This means that if the non-exempt employee elects leave accumulation he or she will receive leave and not pay for any overtime worked during the next academic year.
Please contact Catalina Wheat at 3.2751 if you have any questions.
If you or a member of your team is using the compressed schedule flexible work option, you may have questions on how to handle the upcoming summer holidays. Please visit http://hr.gmu.edu/worklife for details. If you have any questions, please call 3.2600 and ask for a member of the Life/Work Connections team.
Please check out the Life/Work Connections discount page at http://hr.gmu.edu/worklife/discounts for some money-savings opportunities. There are some terrific and timely summer savings opportunities out there from the Commonwealth’s Department of Human Resource Management. You can also visit them directly at http://www.dhrm.virginia.gov/employeediscounts.
There are some new offerings from GlobalFit. It’s not just gym discounts anymore. In addition to savings offers at over 9000 gyms, fitness centers, and studios nationwide, check out GlobalFit for group fitness on demand, exercise DVDs, or wearable fitness trackers. They also have offers from Diet-to-Go, Nutrisystem and more. Log in to the discount page and select “Athletics and the Arts” from “myDiscounts” on the left-side navigation or visit them directly at http://www.globalfit.com/georgemasonuniv.
Healthy finances are a cornerstone of your own personal well-being. It’s always important to be saving for your longer term goals – retiring student debt, buying a car or home, saving for the kid’s or grandkid’s college education, and the big one ….. retirement. No matter your age, retirement is one of everyone’s long term goals. To help you with your plans, take advantage of on-campus individual retirement counseling sessions offered by TIAA, Fidelity, and ICMA-RC. For dates and times, please visit http://hr.gmu.edu/benefits/retire/tiaa.php.
Our in-person financial well-being sessions are on hiatus until the fall but there are still some fabulous opportunities to enhance your financial knowledge during the summer. You don’t have to be a member of TIAA, Fidelity, or the Virginia Retirement System (VRS) to participate. Check out:
With the Mason Staff Senate’s move from Merten Hall complete, please note our mailstop has changed. Our new office is located in Mason Hall D019 and our new mailstop has changed to 2C9!
Election season is here! Voting in the Staff Senate election will begin on July 10, and end at 5 p.m. on July 21.
Visit this link to vote: https://staffsenate.gmu.edu/election2017. The link for voting will be posted at that link, beginning July 10.
Follow us on Facebook and Twitter to see highlights of the election candidates and election results.
Contact [email protected] with questions
Enjoy the flavors and fragrances of Provence and Northern Coastal Italy on this journey of the senses. Enjoy cooking classes, meeting the cheese maker, and exploring the rich culture of a region steeped in history. From Provence you will travel through the principality of Montecarlo, and onwards to Italy. Learn about local foods with hands-on experiences. Your Mason multi-lingual escort, instructor Patricia Boudinot, is from Cannes and will give expert advice and suggestions from her first-hand knowledge of the region. Celebrate with new friends at our farewell dinner in Italy!
This program is open to all members of the Mason Community including students, faculty, staff, alumni and the general public.
No academic credit is awarded on Mason Cultural Tour programs.
First class hotel accommodations; double occupancy standard.
Eden Hotel & Spa, rue d’Antibes, Cannes, France
Grand Bristol Resort & Spa, Rapallo, Italy
Included:
Not Included:
The itinerary and additional details can be found here. For questions, contact Rita Rowand at [email protected].
Mason’s gardens are booming and blooming right now. Get in on the fresh food, help serve your community, learn about plant identification, gardening techniques, and get a great work out while enjoying the sunshine.
Summer 2017 Volunteer Schedule:
Bring your own water bottle and dress to get dirty. For questions, contact Donielle Nolan at [email protected].
STEM exCEL has amazing summer camps at Enrichment Center in Fairfax City all summer long! Until July 4th, all GMU employees are offered 20% off for week-long full-day camps! Please use GMUsummer upon checkout to receive 20% off.
Check out the Maker Camp, Gamer Week, Minecraft Mania, & Digital Art Camp week-long offerings. STEM exCEL is located at 4010 University Drive, a 5 minute drive from GMU Fairfax Campus.
If you have any questions, email them at [email protected] or call 571-349-0048.
The Faculty/Staff Book Scholarship is now available to full-time and part-time faculty and classified staff who are in a graduate degree program or graduate certificate program at Mason. Graduate certificate students were recently added to the eligibility requirements based on feedback given by the Staff Senate.
The information about the Faculty/Staff Book scholarship is available here.
At its meeting last month, the Board of Visitors approved the budget for the 2017-2018 academic year. The budget includes a 3% salary increase for staff and faculty.
All eligible classified staff who have been employed since April 10 and have satisfactory evaluations will receive a 3% increase, effective on July 10, 2017. Bi-weekly classified staff will receive their increase on their July 28 paychecks and semi-monthly classified staff will receive the increase on their August 1 paychecks. All classified staff will be able to view their new salary in Patriot Web on July 10, 2017.
For more information, please see the 2017 Increase Memo from Linda H. Harber and the FAQ’s document.
Physical Well-Being: Dimensions Tobacco Free Program
Dimensions is a 6-week course that provides education and skills to people who want to gain and maintain a tobacco free life. An interest meeting, facilitated by Amanda Pusey of the Fairfax-Falls Church Community Services Board, will be held on Tuesday, June 6 from noon-1 pm in SUB I, Room 4210. Classes will be held at noon on Tuesdays from June 13 through July 25 (no class the week of July 3). Sponsored by the Student Support and Advocacy Center, HR & Payroll, and the Fairfax-Falls Church Community Services Board. For additional information and to register for the interest meeting, please visit http://ssac.gmu.edu/dimensions.
Social Well-Being: Family Matters Podcast Series
Tune into the Family Matters podcast series, brought to you by Bright Horizons®, for information on parenting, care-giving, and managing work with everyday life. Throughout the hustle and bustle of daily life, you may have questions, concerns, or simply need support. Bright Horizons parenting and education experts are here to help you navigate the parenting journey.
For details, please see the flyer at http://hr.gmu.edu/worklife/docs/2017FamilyMattersPodcastFlyer.pdf
Career Well-Being: Flexible Summer at Mason
Summer is right around the corner and so is “Flexible Summer @ Mason” (http://hr.gmu.edu/worklife/docs/MasonSummerFlexFLyer.pdf) which runs from Sunday, June 18 through Saturday, August 12. During this time, if and when possible, it is strongly suggested that departments make a concerted effort to integrate some type(s) of flex-work into their daily operations. Human Resources and Payroll will host drop-in sessions about Flexible Summer @ Mason to answer any questions individuals may have. Visit http://hr.gmu.edu for dates, times, and location of the sessions. A special abbreviated “Flexible Summer @ Mason” agreement form (http://hr.gmu.edu/worklife/docs/SummerFlexAbbreviatedAgreement2017.pdf) can be found at http://flexwork.gmu.edu.
Career Well-Being: Background Check Process Reminder
As you know, the Background Check Policy now includes all employees. We are writing to remind you of the process that’s required for new or rehired benefited and non-benefited employees. Please visit our webpage for background check process details.
Questions regarding the policy, our vendor, or the background check process? Contact Jessica Cain at 3.5298 or email [email protected].
Community Well-Being: Smoking/Vaping Policy at Mason
A reminder that, as a state agency, Mason abides by Commonwealth policy on smoking as well as Mason’s own policy. Please do not smoke within 25’ of any building entrance/exit, window, air intake or covered walkway (including parking structures). Additionally, please dispose of cigarette butts properly by putting them in a receptacle designed for this purpose. Please do not litter. The use of e-cigarettes follows the same guidelines as the use of all tobacco products. A flyer on courtesy bridging differences between non-smokers and smokers can be found at http://wellnessbymason.gmu.edu/documents/SmokingCourtesyFlyer.pdf.
Financial Well-Being: FromYouFlowers Discount Now 25%
We’re happy to announce that the discount for FromYouFlowers has increased from 20% to 25%. Visit Mason’s customized website at http://www.fromyouflowers.com/gmu for details.
