Natalie Mireles

The recent passage of the CARES Act has allowed changes to our flexible spending benefit. A new Summary Plan Document can be found online on the HR webpage in the Forms & Resources section. The Summary of Material Modification document provides additional details regarding the legislative changes. Please contact your HR representative if you have any questions.

The following colleagues have been hired or rehired within the last weeks. If you see them on campus, please welcome them to Lawrence!

Elyse Lucas – Lecturer in Education (Education)

James Koch – Visiting Associate Professor of Psychology (Psychology)

Matt Sosinsky – Assistant Football Coach – Special Teams Coordinator/Defensive Assistant Coach (Athletics)

The following colleagues have recently moved to a new position within Lawrence. Please take the time to congratulate them on their new position!

Shannon Featherstone – Off-Campus Programs Assistant (Off-Campus Programs)

Sherri Immel – Senior Development Coordinator (Development)

Financial education is a key component to building a healthy financial tomorrow. Transamerica is proud to introduce their new Financial Wellness Center. This new platform provides an interactive financial tool to teach personal finance. See the informational flyer here.

I hope this message finds you and yours well and continuing to settle in more and more each day. I am writing today to share information about upcoming meetings for staff employees. These meetings, Staff Q&A with Mark, will be focused on answering your questions, sharing information, staying connected, and providing support to staff colleagues during this time.

Let me share a few of the logistics:

Meeting Dates & Times

• Friday, April 24 from 1:00 – 2:00 p.m.
  • Click the following link to join the April 24 meeting – https://lawrence.zoom.us/j/97317813248

• Friday, May 8 from 1:00 – 2:00 p.m.
  • Click the following link to join the May 8 meeting – https://lawrence.zoom.us/j/99393282187

These meetings will not be duplicates of one another. If you are unable to attend, we will be recording the meeting and will send a link after.

Submitting your Questions

Staff members are encouraged to submit questions ahead of the meeting here. The meeting will have an active chat function and questions can be submitted using this feature as well. We will cover as many questions as possible during the allotted time.

Additionally, the Staff Connections Committee will be hosting the spring term Staff Meeting on Wednesday, May 27^th. Watch for more information as we get closer to the meeting date. 

Thank you all for your dedication and work to support Lawrence. Please continue to take care of yourselves.

You work hard to build a strong financial future for yourself and your family, so we understand if the current market turmoil might have you rattled. The WAICU Retirement Readiness plan in partnership with Transamerica is pleased to offer a live webinar designed to help you navigate these challenges. This webinar will provide valuable insight on market volatility and your retirement strategy.

Registration:  Select “REGISTER NOW“ below and follow the on-screen prompts.

REGISTER NOW

ERC is proud to offer a Mindfulness Meditation for Well-Being and Performance series. This program is designed for all levels. It involves the introduction and process to mindfulness along with other habits that will serve toward to have impact over emotional, physical, spiritual, and financial well-being along with improving production, focus, communication, and efficiency in your work. Participants will cultivate awareness, acceptance, and forgiveness stance toward their thoughts, feelings, emotional state, and body sensations. Emphasis will be focused on cognitive behavioral strategies, interpersonal & interdependent communication, and exercising self-care as a priority.

Please see the included flyer for additional information and registration links. When registering, both the user name and password are ERC.

As our campus is transitioning to colleagues telecommuting at greater levels in the midst of the COVID-19 situation, Lawrence University understands that this can be new and unfamiliar to many. To support this new work arrangement, a Telecommuting Resource webpage has been created to provide tips, tools, and resources that employees and supervisors can utilize as they transition to telecommuting and support others from a distance.

If any of our campus colleagues find any helpful resources that could benefit our greater campus, please share these with your human resources representative.

In times of uncertainty, such as we are currently experiencing with the coronavirus, there are often many questions and concerns about how what is happening will affect you and your loved ones. These situations can often lead to heightened feelings of stress and anxiety. Remember that our employee assistance program (EAP) is available to you, your dependents, and immediate household members. Our EAP provider can be contacted at 1-800-222-8590 to schedule an appointment with a counselor and additional contact information can be found online.

As part of our EAP, you have access to ERC LifeCare, an online work/life portal containing an immense library of articles, educational guides, webinars, videos, and live talks from experts on topics such as mental health, legal, financial, and career, as well as an employee discount program.

The LifeCare portal does require log in credentials.  The case sensitive log in credentials are:

• Screen name – ERC
• Password – ERC

The LifeCare portal has a curated library of resources to help navigate the disruptions and uncertainty as the COVID-19 situation evolves. A few of the current offerings include:

• Article: Manage Coronavirus Anxiety & Stress
• Article: Protect Yourself Financially from the Impact of the Coronavirus
• Article: Tips for Remote Workers
• On Demand Webinar: Talking to Your Child About Coronavirus
• On Demand Webinar: Living in Uncertain Times

This online resource will continue to be updated as new information and support is available.

The University’s focus on protecting the health and safety of the campus community during the COVID-19 pandemic has led to the incredibly difficult decision to postpone the annual Service Award Luncheon.  While a rescheduled date will be identified in the future, we do not want to wait any longer to recognize those who achieved a service award milestone in 2019 and celebrate the recipients of our President’s Award of Excellence.

2019 Service Award Recipients

The following individuals celebrated a Service Award milestone in 2019:

5 Years

Kate Allison – Assistant Director of Alumni & Constituency Engagement (Alumni and Constituency Engagement)

Geri Angiulli – Restricted Funds Accountant (Financial Services)

Brianna Bernard – Assistant Director of Campus Safety (Office of Campus Safety)

Brenda Bundy – Custodian (Custodial)

Joshua Fairthorne – General Maintenance Assistant/Painter (Facility Services)

Jennifer Foth – Principal Gifts Officer (Development)

Mark Franke – General Maintenance Mechanic (Bjorklunden)

Carrie Korb – Wriston Art Center Administrative Assistant (Art and Art History)

Julia Messitte – University Counsel (Financial Services)

Matthew Schmeltzer – Art Director (Communications)

Anna Simeth – Associate Director of Corporate, Foundation and Sponsored Research Support (Development)

James Sternat – Assistant Director of Campus Services – Grounds (Facility Services)

Ellen Walsh – Administrative Assistant (Science Hall Office)

Kathryn Zoromski – Associate Dean of Academic Success (Center for Academic Success)

10 Years

Matthew Baumler – Executive Director of Alumni and Constituency Engagement (Alumni and Constituency Engagement)

John Belongea – HVAC/General Maintenance Mechanic (Facility Services)

Jason Fast – Head Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Coach and Head Men’s and Women’s Track and Field Coach and Assistant Director of Athletics (Athletics)

Ryan Gebler – Director of Financial Aid and Enrollment Planning (Financial Aid Office)

Susan Goeden – Cataloging Assistant (Library and Media Center)

Susan McCardell – Lecturer of Music and Teacher of Bassoon (Conservatory of Music)

Patricia Merrifield – Conductor of Ragazze Girl Choir (Academy of Music)

Jeffrey Minten  – Groundskeeper (Facility Services)

Sandra Timmins – Administrative Assistant (Development)

Rose Wasielewski – Associate Dean of Students and Dean of the Sophomore Class (Sophomore Programs)

15 Years

Ken Anselment – Vice President for Enrollment and Communication (Admissions)

Sara Devine – Teacher of Music for Special Needs (Academy of Music)

Kerry Lang – Assistant Director of Operations (Development)

Janet Pearce – Records Specialist (Development)

Lynn Van Zeeland – Senior Administrative Assistant (Admissions)

Laura Zuege – Assistant Director of Financial Aid (Financial Aid Office)

20 Years

Barbara Beechey – Teacher of Viola and Violin (Academy of Music)

Liz Boutelle – Art Director (Communications)

Joseph Vanden Acker – Director of Athletic Media Relations (Athletics)

Damien Velasco – Systems Administrator II (Information Technology Services)

25 Years

Nell Buchman – Teacher of Piano and Early Childhood Music and Lecturer of Music (Academy of Music)

30 Years

Kelley Carpenter – Lecturer of Music and Teacher of Saxophone and Saxophone Quartet Coach (Academy of Music)

President’s Award of Excellence

President Burstein along with the President’s Award of Excellence Selection Committee and are pleased to announce the 2019 President’s Award of Excellence recipients. The awards are based on the following criteria: innovation and enhancement to the university, support of individuals, stewardship of campus resources and facilities, teamwork and collaboration, and fostering a diverse and welcoming community.

The 2019 President’s Award of Excellence recipients are Erin Buenzli, Director of Wellness and Recreation, and Ariela Rosa, Associate Director of Corporate, Foundation, and Sponsored Research. Take a moment to congratulate Erin and Ariela and watch their nominators here highlight a few of the countless reasons they are so deserving of this recognition.