Mason Staff Senate

From Our Friends in Human Resources and Payroll

November 2015 Announcements

Faculty-Staff Enrichment Day: Registration Underway!
Register for Faculty-Staff Enrichment Day at hr.gmu.edu/learning/fsed. Join us on Tuesday, November 10, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. for this year’s theme: Dive into Your Strengths. Keynote speakers include Men’s Basketball Head Coach David Paulsen and leadership and mindfulness expert Laurie Cameron.

Breakout sessions will provide strategies for using your strengths in teams, in conflict, to improve your health, and more. Additionally, the keynote speaker presentations will be videoconferenced to the Arlington and SciTech Campuses.

To take the StrengthsFinder assessment for free, visit wbu.gmu.edu/strengths-academy. You must have taken StrengthsFinder in order to register.

Contact hrlearn@gmu.edu with questions.

Last Chance for On-Site Flu Shots for COVA and Kaiser Participants
In conjunction with Faculty-Staff Enrichment Day, participants in COVA Care, COVA HDHP, COVA HealthAware, or Kaiser Permanente may take advantage of an on-site flu shot clinic on Tuesday, November 10, from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. in the Johnson Center Gold Room. See page 2 of the 2015 Seasonal Flu Shot Guide for important information.

For questions, call Life/Work Connections at 703-993-2600.

Next Steps: Plan for Your Retirement – Friday, November 20
On November 20, Mason faculty and staff within five years of retirement are invited to attend this day-long seminar to gather resources and learn about timely and relevant topics. Presenters include the Social Security Administration, TIAA-CREF, Fidelity, Virginia Retirement System (VRS), and the Mason Benefits team. To register, visit hr.gmu.edu/learning and click on the Course Calendar tab.

For questions, contact Bridget Peabody at 703-993-6764 or hrlearn@gmu.edu.

Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign (CVC) Underway

The 2015 Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign (CVC) is underway. This is the annual charity drive by the employees of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Online giving is available through payroll deduction as well as one-time credit card donations at eDirect.virginia.gov. A list of charities can be viewed here.

Contact Helga Yunker at 703-993-4057 or hyunker@gmu.edu for additional information or pledge cards.

Build Your Financial Knowledge
Visit the Financial Well-Being portal for on-site classes, online classes, tools, calculators, and other resources to help you round-out your financial knowledge. Upcoming on-site classes for November and early December are included below. All sessions are videoconferenced to Arlington and SciTech. Visit hr.gmu.edu/learning/hr.php to register.

  • Monday, November 2, 12 p.m.: Preparing Your Savings for Retirement with Jeff Jones of Fidelity Investments. Jeff will discuss ways to boost your savings while you’re still at work and steps you can take today as you prepare for your transition into retirement.
  • Wednesday, November 11, 11:30 a.m.: Income and Estate Tax Considerations with Denise Lambert of TIAA-CREF. Nothing in life is certain, but you can improve your overall financial well-being by creating an estate plan. We will help you think through important life planning issues and estate planning strategies, including what an estate plan is, the importance of asset ownership and beneficiary designations, the current estate tax environment, the impact the recent tax law changes may have on your overall plan, evaluating trust planning, and determining whether lifetime gifts to your loved ones or charity should play a role in your planning.
  • Monday, November 16, 12 p.m.: Money at Work: Foundations of Investing with Marilyn Huang of TIAA-CREF. Marilyn will discuss the role of investing, protecting against various risks, and augmenting traditional savings programs to help accelerate retirement savings, as well as the products and tools available to manage a growing portfolio.
  • Thursday, December 3, 12 p.m.: Raising Money-Smart Teens with Tom Katovsich of the Virginia Credit Union. Tom will share information on how to help your child become money-smart. The session includes ideas for young children, teens, and college-bound young adults.