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Week of Nov. 23, 2020
Contents:

Well-Being-Tip: Celebrating the Holidays During COVID

Protecting the Pack Updates

Resources for teaching
and working remotely

Applaud a Colleague

Upcoming Events

Notices

Deadlines

From NIU Today

Celebrating NIU’s
125th Anniversary

View Student Announcements

NIU Well-Being Tip: Celebrating Holidays During COVID
by Counseling and Consultation Services and The Employee Assistance Program.

With the holidays upon us, many of us find ourselves celebrating in new and unique ways. While this is not the way many of us imagined we would be spending the last weeks of this year, that does not mean we cannot find a way to make the best of this unique year.  We offer some tips to help normalize these upcoming weeks.

 

As we have previously shared, begin by acknowledging the holidays are going to be different this year and there will be many emotions associated with not being able to celebrate this time with all of our annual events and with everyone we’d hoped. It’s not unusual to feel sadness, overwhelmed, worry, angry, or fatigue. Feel the feelings, but don’t let them dominate you.  If you have young children at home, let them share how they also may be feeling and listen to what they share.  Let them know it’s okay to have these feelings, but then talk about things everyone can do to address those feelings and not let them dominate the holidays.

 

Determine what is going to be the safest and best way for you and your family to celebrate the holidays.  Will you be staying at home and celebrating with just your immediate family? Will you be having a socially-distanced and masked family gathering? Discuss the risks for your decisions and allow everyone to share their concerns and thoughts. Respect the decisions of those who may not feel safe gathering during this time. 

 

If you are usually responsible for planning or arranging family gatherings and have decided not to do so this year, share your decision with family members in advance so they have time to make alternate plans. If you provide meals for relatives or others, find alternative ways to provide food. Maybe you can deliver a meal to them, or order a meal from a local grocery store or restaurant to have delivered.

 

Worried about not seeing family over the holidays? Schedule virtual gatherings with those individuals who will not be able to visit. For family members or friends who don’t have a way to connect virtually or who may not be tech wizards, maybe you can purchase an inexpensive tablet, phone or other way to connect and set-it up for them. So, all they must do is open the gift and connect. Everyone gets to see each other, and no one misses out.

 

Continue to do those annual holiday events which you can do safely or from home. Now is also the time to create new holiday traditions! Are there things you or your family have wanted to do in the past, but never were able to because of the hectic holiday season? Select a few new things to help celebrate this unique year.  Special circumstances often allow us the opportunity to create special moments; don’t miss this opportunity.

Don’t forget to check in on those friends, family or even our fellow colleagues who spend the holidays alone.   They may find themselves feeling more lonely or isolated this year. Share a message, phone call, email, or plan a little virtual time with them. It could mean more for them than you could imagine.

 

Remember your wellness during the holidays. Eat and drink responsibly, exercise, get plenty of rest and try to limit your stress as much as possible. Keep yourself safe by continuing to practice social distancing, wearing your face covering and washing your hands regularly, if you must be in groups.

 

The holidays may not be what we envisioned when we began this year, but that does not mean we can’t enjoy them in a safe, meaningful way. Focus on those things you do have control over and choose to make memories in a safe and health way.

Protecting the Pack (COVID-19) updates
We continue to closely monitor activities and developments related to the spread and management of coronavirus (COVID-19) in coordination with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Illinois Department of Public Health and the DeKalb County Public Health Department. The resource links below are meant to support the health and wellness of our university community. Please check them frequently.

Frequently Asked
Questions

Communications

Human Resource Services FAQs

Plans for the Remainder of the Semester
On Monday, Nov. 16, President Freeman sent a message to faculty, staff and students regarding plans for the remainder of the semester. As you are aware, the Illinois Department of Public Health issued a stay-at-home advisory asking Illinois residents to voluntarily participate only in essential activities such as going to work or school. With guidance from the DeKalb County Health Department, we are taking several additional measures to help protect the health of our community and to deliver the critical support our students need to be successful in these final weeks of the semester. Read President Freeman’s message.

Supervisor Session Follow Up
On Tuesday, Nov. 17, Human Resource Services hosted a virtual panel discussion to provide updates for supervisors to answer questions on how to best support our employees with the rise in COVID-19 cases in the region and the state as we approach the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday and winter break. Read a follow-up message from Interim Chief Human Resource Officer Vernese Edghill-Walden.

Resources for Teaching and Working Remotely

Keep Working website

Keep Teaching
website

Keep Learning
website

Keep Engaging
website

Applaud a Colleague

 

Applaud a colleague is a show of appreciation for those co-workers who go above and beyond. These are just a few of the employees throughout the university that go the extra mile:

• Don Tidrick
• Tim Trottier
• Catherine Watson

 

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Read recent applause and take the time to applaud a colleague for a job well done >

Upcoming Events
Please check the calendar for more information and for online-only events as they become available!

Monday, Nov. 23: Coping Through COVID-19: Tips to Move More Webinar
Monday, Nov. 23: University Writing Center Undergrad Employment Open House
Wednesday, Nov. 25: Men's Basketball vs UIC
Saturday, Nov. 28: Football at Western Michigan

Dancing Together Forward: Fall 2020 Dance Concert
The NIU School of Theatre and Dance presents Dancing Together Forward: Fall 2020 Dance Concert with three airings this week on YouTube. This screen dance was made in collaboration with the dancers and choreographers of the School of Theatre and Dance and the artists of NIU’s Integrated Media Technologies. It was filmed and produced at locations all throughout our NIU campus.

The artists want to acknowledge that the place where they study and make their art sits upon the traditional homelands of the Sauk, Meskwaki and Potawatomi nations. This collaborative project is the culmination of a classroom exploration, not a production to which they are selling tickets.
The performance will only be available for viewing during these live airings:

Thursday, Nov. 26, 7 p.m.

Friday, Nov. 27, 7 p.m.

Saturday, Nov. 28, 7 p.m.

Notices

I-88 Construction and NIU’s Internet Service
On Tuesday, Dec. 1, fiber optic communications cables along I-88 will undergo maintenance from about 11 p.m. until 6 a.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 2. This work has the potential to impact regional internet and communications service providers. The Division of Information Technology has worked with our internet service providers to understand the risk posed to our campus services and has determined that the risk of this work impacting campus access to the internet is low but important enough to inform campus as other regional services may be impacted.

Upcoming improvements to email authentication

The Division of Information Technology will improving to email authentication on Monday, Jan. 4, 2021. These improvements are being made because your cyber security is important and O365 modern authentication protects your account from hackers. Also, basic authentication doesn’t require multi-factor authentication which leaves you and the university vulnerable. Because of that, it gives hackers an easy way to exploit an account once they have the password. Additionally, Microsoft has indicated that this will be the only authentication method for O365 in the near future.

The advantage of this authentication method is that even in the worst case of compromised credentials, modern authentication will help in reducing the impact using multi-factor authentication.

 

This improvement will be applicable to all staff, students and retirees. Once this improvement goes live on Monday, Jan. 4, 2021, only the supported clients will function with our O365 service. A detailed list of these supported clients are available at this page. If you are using any clients which are not on the supported list, you would have to make the transition to one of these clients to be able to access your NIU email.

Update to NIU Directory System

In an effort to increase consistency across NIU systems and improve process efficiencies, DoIT is planning on making a change to the Directory system on Wednesday, Nov. 25, after which the title in “People Search” results will show official HR Classification Titles.  HR Classification Titles are what are shown in other systems such as Outlook and Teams. There is nothing you as a user need to do for this change.

Updated Emergency Response Guide Now Available
The Emergency Response Guide has been updated for the 2020-2021 academic year.  This quick and easy reference contains basic information on how to handle different emergency situations. The information provided is given to every employee on campus and is displayed on the wall in each room on campus as a guide on how to handle these circumstances should they arise.

Join the Midwest Fitness Challenge
Huskie fans, it's time for you to get in on the #MACtion by joining "Team NIU" for the Midwest Fitness Challenge supported by Northwestern Medicine! Proceeds will directly benefit NIU Athletics' COVID-19 relief fund and Huskie student-athletes. All members of Team NIU will receive a Huskie-branded mask.

Nominations Sought for Supportive Profession Staff Awards
The Supportive Professional Staff (SPS) Council is requesting nominations for the Supportive Professional Staff Awards. The five SPS awards recognize those who have made outstanding contributions to the university in special fields of expertise:

Advocacy: Must have advocated for policies and practices that helped create a positive environment for students, faculty and/or staff.
Cultural competency: Must have shown leadership in creating a more culturally competent and diverse NIU community.
Excellence in supervision: Must have demonstrated outstanding leadership and ethical practices when supervising professional and student staff.
Institutional advancement: Must have shown leadership in activities, programs and/or research that helped advance their department and the university.
Partnership and collaboration: Must have cooperated and collaborated for the betterment of the NIU community. Recipients may be individuals or groups (departments, offices, etc.). Recipients are not limited to SPS employees.

Each recipient is given a plaque in honor of their accomplishment. An individual can receive each SPS award only once.

You can nominate someone by filling out the
nomination form. You'll upload a nomination letter that explains how the nominee meets the award criteria. You'll also upload a letter of support. Materials must be received by 4:30 p.m., Monday, Jan. 18, 2021. If you have any questions, contact Laura Lundelius at 815-753-9391 or lundelius@niu.edu.

Policy Library Update – One new policy and one revised policy
One new policy and one policy revision have been posted on the Policy Library website and are open to review and comment for a 30-day period. This provides the NIU community the opportunity to consider and respond to the revised policies before they take effect. The policies are:

 

New Policy: Prevailing Wage Policy

Policy Revision: Sexual Misconduct Policy and Complaint Procedures.

 

To submit a comment, go to the Policy Library website. The revised policies appear on the right side of the screen. Click on one of the policies listed above. You will be asked to sign in to SharePoint. All comments are due by Thursday, Dec. 17. If you have any questions, please contact Rebecca Hunt, university policy librarian, at rhunt@niu.edu.

Apply for Need-based Scholarships and Enroll for Spring Music Lessons, Classes and Ensembles at NIU Community School of the Arts
Spring 2021 registration at the NIU Community School of the Arts is now open. All NIU community members are invited to enrich their lives with music and art classes, private lessons and the music ensemble experience. 

Learn to play a new musical instrument or brush up skills by taking private music lessons — register for music lessons and start as soon as the week of Jan. 18.

Online guitar and piano group classes for adults and for kids make learning to play an instrument more fun — register now for classes that begin in January.

CSA Guitar Ensemble, CSA Steel Band, Symphonette, Sinfonia, Suzuki music instruction and Art Express "Saturday School" all start new spring sessions in January. 

Families in need of tuition assistance should complete a need-based scholarship application. A family with an annual adjusted gross income of less than $75K will now qualify to apply, and applications are accepted through Jan. 15. Pick up an application at the Music Building, Room 132 or call for more information.

Programs that meet in person in the NIU Music Building will strictly adhere to safety measures outlined by the NIU Community School of the Arts and the safety requirements of Northern Illinois University. Call for more information at 815-753-1450 and visit the NIU Community School website for complete details and to register. 

Deadlines

Monday, Nov. 30: Deadline for 2021-2022 Honors Faculty Felllowship proposals
Friday, Dec. 18: Nomination Deadline for 2021 Outstanding Women and Gender Advocacy Student Award

Important upcoming Human Resource Services dates and deadlines

Human Resource Services would like to share the following important dates and deadlines. If you have any questions, please contact humanresources@niu.edu.

Dec. 7, 2020:
Last start date for new hires this calendar year; the first start date available for new hires in 2021 is Jan. 4.
Dec. 15, 2020: Deadline to submit paperwork for Jan. 4, 2021, new hires.
Dec. 31, 2020: The deadline to submit address changes and/or confirm your mailing address is correct in the MyNIU Employee Self-Service before W-2 forms are generated.
Jan. 1, 2021: Minimum wage in the State of Illinois increases from $10/hour to $11/hour. Departments are reminded to adjust resource allocations in cost centers to support the new minimum wage.

Financial Month End Close

The month of November is closing for all financial reporting activity at noon Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2020. Journals not posted at that time will go into December business. Submit November journals before end of business Tuesday, Dec. 8. Final November reports are scheduled to be available Thursday, Dec. 10, 2020. In addition, December reports are scheduled to be available Monday, Dec. 14, 2020. These dates, and other important dates related to the Controller’s Office can be found on the FMS Reports Calendar.

From NIU Today

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Rebuilding Democracy Speakers Series kicks off Dec. 1 with Eugene Robinson
The NIU community is invited to join the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at 7 p.m. on Dec. 1 as they kick off their Rebuilding Democracy Speakers Series with Pulitzer Prize-winning Washington Post columnist and MSNBC Political Analyst Eugene Robinson. Read more.


 

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State of the U: Dr. Freeman praises pandemic response, says NIU must strategically embrace change
In her annual State of the University Address, President Lisa C. Freeman praised the NIU community for its response to the COVID-19 pandemic, while charting a future course that builds on Huskie values and continues to embrace change in this period of uncertainty. Read more.

Read more stories at niutoday.info

Celebrating our amazing history
America’s most enduring institutions are those created to meet specific needs and allowed to evolve as those needs change. Such is the story of Northern Illinois University, which this year celebrates its 125th anniversary.

 

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Featured Key Moment
The Martin Luther King, Jr. Commons is completed (1982)
As early as 1973, campus master planning called for the parking lot outside the Holmes Student Center to be removed and replaced with a landscaped commons area connecting the Center to the new Founders Library. But as the years went by, no state funding was made available for that project. Learn more about the MLK Commons.

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Learn more about NIU’s vision, mission and values.