Dec. 2, 2024

As part of a new recognition tradition, Human Resource Services recently invited all NIU employees by email to contribute notes of congratulations to recognize colleagues celebrating service anniversaries of 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45 and years. To participate: 

In addition, when you visit the links, you can “invite others” to comment, which triggers an email be sent from TechSolutions inviting someone to leave a comment.  This email may be filtered into our Outlook Clutter or Junk folder, so be sure to check to see if someone has invited you to congratulate a fellow Huskie!

On Dec. 3 and 5, the NIU Foundation will have tables set up across campus where students, faculty and staff can write a personal note or record a video message to the Baustert Family, thanking them for their historic gift to our campus. Our goal is to fill a book with notes to deliver in time for the winter holidays. All members of the campus community are invited to write a note and get a special treat from the Foundation. Look for us in these locations: 

Tuesday, Dec. 3:
Holmes Student Center: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Wirtz Hall: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Fanny Ruth Patterson Community Center: 5 to 7 p.m.

Thursday, Dec. 5:
Neptune Central: 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Founders Memorial Library: Noon to 5 p.m.  

Questions? Contact donorrelations@niu.edu.

Donations are being accepted for the Huskie Food Pantry, which works to support NIU students who face food insecurity. Please donate food or household items. Items of most need to be donated include pasta, pasta sauce, condiments, spices, cleaning products, soap, shampoo and feminine products. Fresh foods such as bread, vegetables, fruit and yogurt. Frozen items such as microwaveable meals, juice, small bags of frozen fruit and vegetables. A full list of items needed by the pantry can be viewed on the Huskie Food Pantry website.

The PeopleSoft Financial Management system will be unavailable from 5 to 9 p.m. Monday, Dec. 2, due to system maintenance.

The PeopleSoft Human Resources system will be unavailable from 5 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 3, due to system maintenance.

The Payroll office will process and mail calendar year 2024 W-2s by the Internal Revenue Service’s deadline of January 31, 2025. These tax forms are required to be mailed to an employee’s home address unless the employee elects and consents to receiving the form electronically.  When you opt to receive your W-2 form electronically, you will have convenient, secure access to your tax information as soon as it has been produced instead of waiting for the forms to arrive in the mail.

The deadline to elect and consent to receiving your 2024 W-2 electronically is Friday, January 3, 2025.

To elect and consent to receiving your 2024 W-2 electronically, please follow the steps below:

If you have previously consented to only receive your W-2 form in electronic format through MyNIU, and you have not had any break in service in the last year, you do not need to take any action.

Questions regarding this information can be directed to payroll@niu.edu.

Nominations are now open for this year’s Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching (EUTA) and Excellence in Undergraduate Instruction (EUIA) awards. These longstanding annual awards recognize outstanding individuals who positively impact NIU’s student learning experience. The EUTA is available to tenured and tenure-track faculty. The EUIA is available to non-tenure track instructors.

Nominations are due to departments Friday, Dec. 13. Departments will select nominees and send materials to colleges for review and, ultimately, submission to the Committee for the Improvement of the Undergraduate Academic Experience by Friday, Jan. 31, 2025 for final selections. Nominees may not participate in the selection process.

Nominate someone for EUTA recognition.
Nominate someone for EUIA recognition.

We are excited to invite you to be a part of an incredible opportunity to shape and inspire our next generation of leaders at Northern Illinois University. Our Huskie Leadership Academy, hosted by Student Involvement, is a dynamic seminar series designed to introduce first-year students to key leadership concepts that they can apply in their personal, academic and community lives.

The academy runs Jan. 29 through March 5, with sessions from 4 to 6 p.m. every Wednesday. Each week, we will explore different facets of leadership such as personal growth, community engagement and driving positive change here at NIU.

We would be honored to have you share your expertise by leading a session on a leadership topic of your choice. Whether it’s a specific area of leadership you’re passionate about or a unique perspective you’d like to offer, your insight would be invaluable in helping our students grow as future leaders.

To submit a proposal for your session, please complete this brief form.

Thank you for considering this exciting opportunity to inspire and mentor our emerging leaders. We look forward to hearing from you soon.

Looking for a way to support Founders Memorial Library while giving a unique gift to give this holiday season?Consider purchasing our 2025 Nickels and Dimes or 2025 Michael Day Campus Wildlife calendars that are for sale on the University Libraries website.

Effective Jan. 1, 2025, the minimum wage in Illinois will increase to $15.00 as authorized by Public Act 101-1. As a result, Human Resource Services (HRS) will run a program that will convert the pay rates for any hourly employees who are paid less than $15.00 an hour to the new minimum of $15.00 effective January 1.  Accordingly, units will need to adjust resource allocations in cost centers to support the new minimum wage. No additional resources will be provided to fund the increases. Please note that this change occurs in the middle of our fiscal year, so it will be necessary to account for future changes in the budgeting process that may occur in the spring at NIU. While it is not necessary to submit requests to change pay rates for those employees to be raised to the new minimum, if your department has adjustments that need to be made outside of this process for students and extra-help employees, HRS would appreciate receiving the paperwork by Dec. 13, 2024.

Human Resource Services (HRS) reminds the campus to be mindful of the winter holiday closures and how those dates might impact recruitment. Hiring Officials are encouraged to be vigilant when setting close dates, and are recommended to schedule them at least two weeks before and one week after the New Year’s holiday closure to accommodate the schedules of search committees and the Talent Acquisition team’s assessment/referral process. HRS recommends closing dates after Jan. 2, 2025 for all searches posted after on or after December 13, 2024. If you have any questions, please reach out to TalentAcquisitionHRS@niu.edu. 

Tip: Submit your event, lecture, training session or deadline to the NIU calendar to help inform Huskies about everything that is happening on campus. 

The month of November is closing for all financial reporting activity at noon Monday, Dec. 9. Journals not posted at that time will go into December business. Submit November journals before end of business Friday, Dec. 6.  Final November reports are scheduled to be available Tuesday, Dec. 10. In addition, December reports are scheduled to be available Wednesday, Dec. 11. These dates and other important dates related to the Controller’s Office can be found on the NIU Controller’s Office Calendars and Important Dates webpage.

Mark your calendars—Huskies United 2025 is this April 2-3, 2025.

The day will kick off at 4:25 p.m. on Wednesday, April 2 and continuing through April 3, for an exhilarating 1,895 minutes of giving that will sweep across our campuses and beyond. Together, we’re about to create a wave of lasting impact.

To join the excitement and create a dedicated giving page for your department, complete the 2025 Participation Form by January 10, 2025.