December TUSS News for Staff

Published by on December 21, 2021 1:01 am Comments Off on December TUSS News for Staff in General

The Towson University Staff Senate (TUSS) is the advocate body for all university staff employees. All TU staff are general members of the staff senate and are encouraged to attend meetings. Meeting minutes are posted to TUSS SharePoint. 

Highlights from the recent TUSS Meeting 

  • Introduced newest Staff Senator, Academic Affairs Exempt – Saidat Adeleke, IT Operations Specialist Albert S. Cook Library. Senator Adeleke filled a vacancy. Welcome! 
  • $15.00 minimum wage adjustment was approved by USM to be implemented next year. More information to come. 
  • Division of Administration and Finance positions including Director of Budget and director of Capital Planning are being filled. 
  • Our Campus Master Plan was approved by the Board of Regents. 
  • The CIO is retiring at the end of March.  
  • OTS vacancies are being released and moving forward to get filled. Kudos and thanks to all OTS staff that stepped in to help!  We appreciate you! 
  • Budget update: The state is projected to have a surplus, but we will not know the state budget until Governor Hogan releases it in January. 
  • TU has been working with USM to restore budget cuts. 
  • Steve Jones presented on the Human Resources restructure and realignments. 
  • TU is continuing to monitor the new COVID variant. Negative tests will be required for residential students to move-in in the spring. KN95 masks are available on campus. 
  • As a thank you for all of the hard work of faculty and staff this semester, administrative leave has been granted for December 23. Essential personnel can use the administrative leave day before the end of January.  
  • Telework taskforce: Recommendations have gone through the President’s Cabinet, and all were supported except one. TU did not expand telework to include part-time employees at this time. The recommendations will next go to university counsel to be sure laws and USM regulations are not violated while being crafted into policy, then shared across TU’s shared governance following the university’s policy on policies. The goal is to have the revised policy in place in early 2022. 
  • Pay study: Moving into notifying exempt staff phase. HR’s Compensation webpage has more information: https://www.towson.edu/hr/current/compensation.html. 
  • The Senate passed a motion to create an Events and Engagement Committee to encompass the Staff Development Conference and encourage more engagement year-round. 
  • Diversity Action Committee: Several chair positions are open for affinity groups. Interested staff should reach out to the Office of Inclusion and Institutional Equity. 
  • Sustainability: USM, Morgan State University and St. Mary’s College of Maryland are aiming for carbon neutrality by 2035. Most new TU buildings will be designed to be all electric. The sustainability minor has been created. 
  • Council of University System Staff (CUSS): The 30th anniversary of CUSS is coming up in June 2022. 
  • Staff Senate elections will be held in the spring. More information to come.
  • Reminders: 
  • Keep an eye on leave carryover for 2022. 
  • The University Store is offering 25% off for Faculty and Staff through 12/23. 
  • USM training is posted at https://www.usmd.edu/training-and-development/  
  • Next TUSS meeting is January 19, 2022. Send agenda items to TUSS@towson.edu before January 12 please. 

Awards 

Top Tiger
Join us in congratulating Top Tiger Award recipients: 

  • Ashley Gregg, Events and Operations Coordinator 
  • April Bevans, Administrative Assistant, College of Liberal Arts 

TU faculty, staff and students can nominate staff members for a Top Tiger award by submitting the Top Tiger Nomination Form.  

Mark Your Calendar 

TU Basketball – Faculty/Staff Appreciation Day: January 9
SECU Arena
Women’s Basketball: 1 p.m.
Men’s Basketball: 3:30 p.m.
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TUSS Meeting: January 19, 1 p.m.
Zoom Direct Link: https://towson-edu.zoom.us/j/98702752003?pwd=N05Id3JZTEhxM2Z4ZUNBRk5OSDAvUT09
Meeting ID: 987 0275 2003
Passcode: TUSSZoom 

Notify TUSS@towson.edu by Monday before the meeting if you need to attend in person, please. 

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Staff Development Conference: March 23, 2022 – “Push What’s Possible: Make an Impact”
Registration will be opening in early February. Watch for emails and TU Today posts. 

Senator Spotlight 

This month features At-Large – Non-Exempt Senator, Carol Green-Willis (she/her). She is a Field Support Specialist in the Office of Technology Services. 

How long have you worked at TU? 
I have worked 24.5 years in the Office of Technology Services, Field Support Specialist, detailed in the Help Center. 

What does a typical workday look like for you?  
I’m Dell certified to troubleshoot issues of laptop and desktop for repairs; visiting clients’ offices to resolve issues concerning their computer. Answering calls on the faculty staff help line, assisting with walk-ins for clients that may have issues with their laptop. Monitoring and processing trade-ups of old system and ordering new systems and peripherals. I assist in the Educycle program in teaching visiting students how to refurbish systems to be sent out on the campus for further use.  

What do you enjoy the most about your job? 
I enjoy assisting people with computer issues and resolving them no matter how long it takes.  

What is your favorite place to eat on or around campus? 
My favorite place to eat on or around campus is Newell Dinning the people that work there are hard workers and very pleasant.  

What do you do to relax? 
To relax I love binge watching Netflix and traveling to places I never been. 

What’s one thing people would be surprised to know about you? 
What some people don’t know about me is that I’m an ordained Elder and serve as a Trustee at my church St. Martin Church of Christ in the heart of the city Druid Heights.  

What’s one thing you wish you had known when you were a teenager? 
One thing I wish I had known when I was a teenager, the power of and how to invest in the stock market to enjoy early retirement. 

If you could have any one skill or talent that you don’t already have, what would it be? 
One skill or talent that I don’t already have is crafting and photography. 

What’s the proudest moment of your life? 
One of my proudest moments in my life was becoming a mother and grandmother. 

Why did you decide to get involved with the TUSS?
I wanted to know what was going on on campus and how the system flows. Also knowing that my contributions will help staff current and the ones years to come.   

Describe what you have learned (or hope to learn) during your time in TUSS? 
I have learned that we do have voice and Towson is a wonderful place to work. I have admired working with people that want to see changes and don’t mine figuring out how to obtain those changes. 

 

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Please visit the website for more information about TUSS, details about upcoming meetings, the list of senators, and details about staff awards: https://www.towson.edu/tuss . 

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This post was written by Karp, Robert J.