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To Staff,

Our second full month of school is nearing completion and our thanks for the work you all have pursued to keep this campus running cannot be completely expressed in words. Every day you are sharing with us your experiences and new ideas to strengthen and grow this community. We appreciate every insight you provide us. Our role is to serve as your voice, to navigate crucial conversations with campus leadership and the other shared governance groups, and advocate on key issues to ensure you are safe, protected in your roles, and together we push forward to a new month.

We have a lot to update you on in the work and efforts your council has been doing.

COVID-19 Testing Provided to Staff:

As of Sept. 24, it was announced that testing was available to staff who are considered at high risk of close contact as defined by campus guidance and those who work or live in the residence halls – this has been a top priority of ours since day one and we are pleased to see this was pushed forward and implemented by campus leadership. Our full statement regarding this can be found here. Ìý
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However, we knew that was just the first step and we continued to advocate for testing for all staff. As of Oct. 5, testing was expanded to include all staff, regardless of the nature of their job, as well as off-campus students. We are grateful that campus leadership heard our voices and made staff testing a priority. Ìý
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The challenges we face right now as some take their roles fully remote and others come to campus each day is pushing us to think critically about how information is provided, transparency in campus plans and actions, and ensuring we are all on the same page to the needs of this staff. While we are thankful for this testing win…our work is not done making our campus as safe as possible for all staff.

On Campus Staff Survey Project:

Our roles, each of ours, look very different today than they did this time last year. For those of you who are working on campus right now, we want to hear from you. Our Payroll, Benefits, Retirement and Legislative (PBRL) Committee is planning a survey so that we can better understand your key experiences and identify actions we can pursue on your behalf. Please connect with us here if you have a specific experience/topic you wish to share, so that we can continue to address your needs as the fall semester continues. We thank you for your work, those that have volunteered to support Student Affairs in their efforts, and for others who are staying home, wearing your mask, and creating a safe environment for our community.

Game Night Success with Outreach & Events:

Outreach & Events has been hard at work providing a series of game nights and experiences for the whole family to get involved. We have been so excited to see so many faces at the events throughout September and October and hope you will further connect with us and your colleagues through this medium.

Largest Council to Date- 10 new reps join Council to meet demand:

In early September, we welcomed 10 new representatives to our Council. As the staff has grown over the last several years, we believe it is necessary to see more representation and ideation stem from the unique pockets of staff from across the Boulder Campus. We are excited to welcome- Maria Abramowicz, Megan Garcia, Angela Gorbold, Karrie Pitzer, Michael Reynoso, Andres Schemel, Kelly Smith, Aimee Santistevan, Daniel Steinke, and Susan Baumgartner. Our work is not done, we are constantly fighting for you, and we are excited to have these new additions to your Staff Council who have been appointed to serve as an at-large representative for the rest of this academic year. We are also working to permanently expand the size of the Council into future academic years. Elections for AY21-22 will be held in the spring – keep an eye out for the call for nominations.

IDEA Council Begins Conversations:

Staff Council is thankful to be a member of the campus’ initiative to build a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive community at CU Boulder. In the latest update, the recruitment and retention of diverse students, faculty, and staff was named the priority for this academic year.

We will continue to provide updates as it impacts both on-campus and remote staff. Please continue to reach out as things come up for your roles- we want to hear what is going on. It is our effort to ensure we stand together with all roles held by staff.

In Solidarity,

Shelby Javernick, Chris Muldrow, and Dylan West