Category: August 2022

The Support Group for Working Mothers at Mason is one way Mason faculty, staff, and students can come together, discuss the issues confronting working mothers, and perhaps spur changes on campus. We are celebrating our 20th year of group meetings which will be a mix of in-person and remote formats this fall. The first one will be on Wednesday, Aug. 31 at noon via Zoom. If you are interested in sharing stories and being part of an informal organization of working mothers, please join us here:

Join Zoom Meeting
https://gmu.zoom.us/j/91081740443?pwd=SG5Kem5uSUlRMGNybGhCWmdkRStDUT09
Meeting ID: 910 8174 0443
Passcode: 058387

We also invite you to join our group in MS Teams!

Feel free to visit our website for more information or contact Heather Aleknavage.

The September Staff Senate meeting will feature Andrew Lane, director of Performance Management & Employee Engagement, joined by members of his team, including Tamira Colbert, faculty/staff engagement assistant, and Stacey Ellis, faculty/staff engagement consultant, to discuss goals and initiatives following the results of the recent Gallup survey of Mason employees.

Wednesday, September 7
10 a.m. to noon
10 a.m. to 11 a.m., Staff Senate General Business Meeting
11 a.m. to noon, Guest Speaker
Hosted on Zoom
Passcode: SS123
Call in: 301-715-8592 or 267-831-0333
Webinar ID: 975 1903 7430/ Passcode: 078091

The Staff Senate represents all classified and non-student wage employees at George Mason University. Working closely with university administration, we address concerns that have an impact on the quality of work-life for the Mason community. The work of the senate is accomplished through open and continuous communication with its constituents. Find more ways to engage with the senate before, during, and after our general meetings. 

In July 2022, the Fiscal Services Training and Engagement Team rolled out a new training initiative*. This new training, “Purchasing Made Easy – Access Based Training,” is a two-hour, on-demand, self-paced training found in MasonLEAPS. This new training curriculum includes a review of Mason Purchasing, eVA procurement, P-Card uses and the Bank of America Works system, and will now fulfill the requirements necessary in order to become a P-Cardholder or approver. Sessions are designed to be watched asynchronously and are available online to watch as many times as needed, at any time.   

For those who are interested in getting a deeper dive, Fiscal Services has developed the “Fiscal Administrator Certificate Program.” These two-hour sessions over four weeks will allow a more in-depth knowledge of Fiscal policies, procedures, and financial systems.  

* Please note: This new training initiative has replaced the Fiscal Administration Sessions 1, 2, and 3. 

2022-2023 season individual event tickets for the Center for the Arts’ Great Performances at Mason and Family Series as well as the Hylton Performing Arts Center’s Hylton Presents, Hylton Family Series, American Roots Series and Matinee Idylls are on sale now! 

  

Updates on how Mason staff/faculty/alumni can save on tickets to performances are available on the venue’s websites: 

Center for the Arts:
https://cfa.gmu.edu/tickets/mason-discounts

Hylton Performing Arts Center:
https://hyltoncenter.org/ticketsevents/mason-discounts 

Save the Date: Abandoned Bike Sale 

Parking and Transportation’s “As Is” Abandoned Bike Sale will be held on Friday, September 16 from 2-4 p.m. in the visitor section of the Shenandoah Parking Deck. We have about 75-80 bikes to sell this year.  One bike per customer. Mason students, faculty, and staff only. Details, once finalized, will be at http://bike.gmu.edu. Questions? Please contact Parking and Transportation at 3-2828 or via email at transpo@gmu.edu. 

  

Fall Shuttle Schedules Available 

Fall 2022 shuttle schedules are posted at http://shuttle.gmu.edu.  For a summary of fall shuttle service visit https://transportation.gmu.edu/wp-content/uploads/Fall-2022-Overview.pdf. Please note: many routes have schedule changes from this past spring, including reduced service levels on Fridays on some routes.  A reminder that the Burke VRE route has been suspended indefinitely.  

Additionally, summer schedules are operating through Friday, Aug. 19. Fall schedules begin with weekend service on Aug. 20-21 on the Fairfax/SciTech, Gunston Mason, and On-Demand shuttle routes.  Fairfax/Mason Square, Sandy Creek to Metro, and West Campus fall service begins on Monday, August 22. There will be a special one-day Sunday service on the West Campus shuttle on Sunday, Aug. 21 from noon to 10 p.m. 

Questions?  Please contact Parking and Transportation at 3-2828 or via email at shuttle@gmu.edu 

  

Fall Semester Parking Permit Sales Underway 

Fall semester parking permit sales began online on Aug. 1.  Please visit http://parking.gmu.edu to purchase. For those faculty/staff who currently have payroll deduction permits, these permits will automatically renew on 9/1/22. 

For more information, please visit https://transportation.gmu.edu/fall-2022-parking-and-transportation-updates-and-permit-sales/. If you have any questions, please contact us at 3-2710 or via email at parking@gmu.edu 

  

New Equipment In Most Mason Parking Decks 

If you currently have parking deck validations, are a current deck permit holder or plan to purchase one for the fall 2022 semester, you may know that there are new equipment upgrades under way in the Mason Pond (Fairfax), Rappahannock (Fairfax), and Van Metre (Mason Square) parking decks.  

For departments and individuals with visitor validations for Van Metre Garage and Mason Pond Deck, the validations will need to be exchanged for new ones that utilize QR codes. You may use existing Mason Pond Deck validations in Shenandoah Deck for a short while longer, but please note that Shenandoah Deck will have new pay stations in September or October, similar to the ones in Rappahannock Deck that use validation codes instead of tickets. Also, new hourly visitor rates for all garages took effect on Aug. 8, with the all-day rate increasing to $18. Although the rate is increasing, you can replace your current validations with the new QR code validations by visiting the Parking Office at no cost. 

During the transition, the gates for these decks have been up but they were lowered on Aug. 8 in the Van Metre garage and on Aug. 9 in Mason Pond when the new technology was activated.  

For information on how the new equipment will impact you as a permit holder, please visit https://transportation.gmu.edu/new-equipment-in-most-mason-parking-decks/ 

 

What item best captures your #MasonNation experience? Is it a graduation photo, acceptance letter, buttons or other ephemera from a club or Greek organization, or even a homemade scrapbook? Submissions are open for Mason’s 50th Anniversary time capsule – and anyone (current and past students, staff, and faculty) can submit an idea for consideration! Schools/colleges are encouraged to submit an item that represents their history or current achievements. Please provide information about your item on the submission form before the Aug. 31 deadline. 

University Business Consulting (UBC) is excited to announce our inaugural Summer Knowledge Share Series, open to all Mason faculty and staff. This month’s session focuses on facilitation, and will be both in person in Merten Hall and virtual. Zoom information will be provided to all who register via MasonLEAPs. 

August 17th session (Noon-1 pm): Successful Facilitation Tips & Tricks 

For more information on this session and to view past recordings and resources, visit our website https://consulting.gmu.edu/resources/ or email us at ubc@gmu.edu.