co-chairs letters to staff

Letter from our Chairs

Anonymous — Tue, 14 May 2024 20:06:58 +0000

Letter from our Chairs Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 05/14/2024 - 14:06

Select a preferred language to read this letter

Espa?ol - Spanish
?????? - Nepali
????? - Hindi
�й�� - Chinese

Happy summer to all!

We have a jam packed newsletter to share with you all this month and look forward to you reading about all that is happening across Staff Council and the campus.

In every newsletter, we ask a survey question. Many of you take the time to respond and submit feedback and we truly thank you for that. The feedback we receive from many of the surveys has a direct impact on the work we do and provides crucial input we then use when talking with leadership, setting our meeting agendas and planning our year. A wonderful example of this is reflected in the pharmacy plan changes to CVS that were put in place last July. Staff Council asked for your input on this change and if it was impacting you and if so, how. As Staff Council met with campus leaders about the change, we were able to reference the direct feedback you all provided. We are proud to share that because of this feedback and input we were able to impact change and additional options for prescription services are now available at Costco and King Soopers. We asked what you would like to see Staff Council work on �C and more appreciation events and staff gatherings were at the top of the list. We are excited to share that on Wednesday, May 22nd Staff Council will be hosting the first CU Family Movie Night. The event will be held on Sewall Field and will be free and open to all. You can read more details in the newsletter but hope you and your family can join us for some popcorn as we take in Disney��s Encanto.

Lastly, Staff Council elections have taken place and we are excited to welcome all our new and returning representatives to service. Additionally, we share our congratulations to our newly elected officers �C we have full confidence in their leadership and are excited to see where Staff Council goes next year. As we welcome new members to Staff Council, it inevitably means we must say farewell to others, we would like to thank the following council members who are departing Staff Council at the end of their term in June. Your contributions have been appreciated:

Congratulations to the class of 2024! And to all those who are celebrating graduates this year. Please continue to provide your input and feedback to Staff Council. We are grateful for the opportunity to represent you, and we wish you all a wonderful summer.

Best Regards,

Esther

Karrie

Mike

We have a jam packed newsletter to share with you all this month and look forward to you reading about all that is happening across Staff Council and the campus.

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Letter from your Staff Council Chairs - February 2024

Anonymous — Tue, 30 Jan 2024 22:23:33 +0000

Letter from your Staff Council Chairs - February 2024 Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 01/30/2024 - 15:23

Select a preferred language to read this letter

Espa?ol - Spanish
?????? - Nepali
????? - Hindi
�й�� - Chinese

Hello Campus Community,

Happy New Year! Staff Council is happy to welcome all to the start of the 2024 Spring semester.

It was wonderful to see so many of you in person at the Staff Appreciation Breakfast in December. What a lovely way to wrap up the Fall Semester! As in previous years, the event was well attended, and campus leadership did an outstanding job volunteering in their serving roles. This event is continually one of Staff Council��s most successful offerings, and it is a highlight of our year. We look forward to hosting other gatherings in the coming year and to continue celebrating CU Boulder staff. The breakfast is a great way to participate, and we encourage you to explore the many ways to engage with Staff Council throughout the year by checking our event calendar and perhaps serving on Staff Council. We will be holding elections in March, so we invite you to run for a position.

As we start this new semester, we want to share that we are committed to continuing our work in the following areas:

Employee benefits
Providing input into the Chancellor search process via our Staff Council Representative who is serving the search committee
Promoting transparency in communications
Gathering more information about CU Boulder staff needs
Continuing to work with campus leadership to make CU Boulder more inclusive, welcoming and a competitive workplace

Additionally, we are looking forward to welcoming Professional Research Assistants (PRAs and Sr. PRAs) and Research Associates (RAs and Sr. RAs) to Staff Council. We are excited about this new partnership, which has been in process for over a year. We are eager to help support this population and have them in Staff Council representative positions.

As we welcome you to the new year, we also want to stress the importance of self-care. The international and political climates in the world and at home are a heavy burden for many, so please prioritize your wellbeing. We encourage all staff to explore the resources provided at CU Boulder. Employees can access the Faculty and Staff Assistance Program for counseling and workshops offered by FSAP therapists and their work partners.

As always, we want to hear from you about what is important to you, what you would like Staff Council to look into, and how we can better support staff at CU Boulder. Please do not hesitate to contact your representatives with questions, concerns, comments, and ideas.

We are grateful for the opportunity to represent you, and we wish you all a great start to the semester.

Best Regards,
Esther Horowitz, Staff Counselor, FSAP
Karrie Pitzer, Sr. Executive Aide, Strategic Relations & Communications
Mike Williamson, Assistant Director, Digital Accessibility Office

Happy New Year! Staff Council is happy to welcome all to the start of the 2024 Spring semester.

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Letter from Staff Council Chairs

Anonymous — Tue, 07 Nov 2023 00:29:05 +0000

Letter from Staff Council Chairs Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 11/06/2023 - 17:29

Select a preferred language to read this letter

Espa?ol - Spanish
?????? - Nepali
????? - Hindi
�й�� - Chinese

Hello Campus Community,

Happy Fall to All! With the semester in full swing, we wanted to take a moment to share news and highlights from the work underway on Staff Council:

Professional Research Assistant and Research Associate Representation �C Staff Council is pleased to announce that, beginning this academic year, we have expanded our representation to include the Research Faculty titles of Professional Research Assistants (PRAs and Sr. PRAs) and Research Associates (RAs and Sr. RAs). This development marks a significant step toward ensuring the voices and concerns of the roughly 2,000 PRAs and RAs are effectively heard and addressed by university leadership.
Chancellor Search Committee �C With the announcement of Chancellor DiStefano��s retirement, Staff Council was asked by the Office of the President to put forward staff nominees to be considered for the Chancellor Search Committee. As this is an important process, Staff Council wanted to ensure that any pool presented was diverse in years of service, job role and identity. Staff Council put out an open call for those interested to apply, and we received close to 60 applications from some truly incredible staff which we sent to the President��s office for consideration. Thank you to all who took time to apply. Individuals selected for the committee will be notified by the President��s office. In addition to recommending committee applicants, Staff Council passed a resolution and submitted it to the Office of the President requesting more equal representation among the governance groups sitting on the search committee by increasing the number of staff and students slots available on the committee. The resolution was passed on October 10, 2023.
2023 �C 2024 Representatives and Officers �C Staff Council is thrilled to welcome over a dozen new representatives to the organization this year. Additionally, we have many new individuals taking on leadership roles for the first time. You can visit the Staff Council website for the full list of representatives and officers for the 2023-2024 year. Please do not hesitate to contact your representative or Staff Council at large with any questions or concerns.
Upcoming Blood Drive Dates for 2024:
- February 6, 7, 8, 2024
- April 9, 10, 11, 2024
- June 12, 13, 2024
- August 27, 28, 29, 2024

Lastly, we have heard from many of you regarding the recent change in our employee prescription drug coverage plan and the requirement to switch to CVS/Caremark for service. In addition to meeting with our system colleagues on the University of Colorado Staff Council (UCSC), Staff Council is meeting with CU Boulder campus leadership to discuss the change. We recognize that this has been an impactful change for many, and we will continue to make sure your feedback is gathered and heard. Please visit this month��s survey questions to provide your direct feedback on this benefits change.

We value all that staff provide and give to the CU Boulder community and are grateful for the opportunity to represent you.

Best Regards,
Esther
Karrie
Mike

Happy Fall to All! With the semester in full swing, we wanted to take a moment to share news and highlights from the work underway on Staff Council. We value all that staff provide and give to the CU Boulder community and are grateful for the opportunity to represent you.

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A Letter from your Staff Council Tri-Chairs

Anonymous — Mon, 03 Apr 2023 20:21:24 +0000

A Letter from your Staff Council Tri-Chairs Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 04/03/2023 - 14:21

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Hola, comunidad universitaria:

?Feliz primavera para todos! Esta carta se tradujo a espa?ol, chino, laosiano e hindi, con el af��n de incluir a toda nuestra comunidad acad��mica. Con la misi��n de seguir con nuestras metas de diversidad, equidad e inclusi��n (DEI) y la participaci��n de los empleados, ahora el Consejo de Personal (Staff Council) se complace en proporcionar las comunicaciones en varios idiomas. Actualmente, brindamos traducciones en cuatro idiomas y seguiremos aumentando la accesibilidad a nuestras comunicaciones y eventos para comunicar y representar mejor a nuestra diversa comunidad. Agradecemos a todos quienes apoyaron este trabajo.

A medida que nos aproximamos al final de otro a?o acad��mico es importante que, como personal, recordemos centrarnos en nuestro cuidado personal y bienestar. El Consejo de Personal (Staff Council) tiene el compromiso de compartir recursos, dar apoyo y promover el bienestar del personal. Tenemos el placer de colaborar con la Oficina de Servicios de Salud y Bienestar (Office of Health and Wellness Services) para promover muchos de los recursos que hay para el personal. Animamos a todo el personal a explorar las muchas opciones disponibles para el bienestar de los empleados, desde recursos de salud mental hasta oportunidades de desarrollo profesional.

El personal de la UC Boulder est�� invitado a participar en la Encuesta sobre el compromiso del cuerpo docente y personal administrativo 2023 (2023 Faculty and Staff Engagement Survey), que mide varias ��reas que se relacionan con la experiencia del empleado. La encuesta estar�� abierta del lunes 10 de abril al viernes 21 de abril de 2023. La encuesta se puede completar por medio de tel��fono, tableta o computadora y esto llevar�� aproximadamente diez minutos. Para nuestro personal de primera l��nea, se instalar��n estaciones inform��ticas para que completen la encuesta mientras est��n en el campus. La encuesta tambi��n estar�� disponible en ingl��s, espa?ol, chino, laosiano, tibetano y nepal��.

Por ��ltimo, estamos orgullosos de reconocer el excelente trabajo del comit�� de Servicio a la comunidad y de Campa?a de donaci��n de sangre del Consejo de Personal (Staff Council Blood Drive and Community Service committee). El mes de abril marcar�� los 50 a?os de colaboraci��n del Consejo de Personal con Vitalant. Cincuenta a?os de donaciones que salvan vidas provenientes de la comunidad de la UC para los residentes de Colorado, ?un logro realmente extraordinario! Apreciamos sinceramente el esfuerzo continuo del comit�� por ser inclusivo mediante la promoci��n de donaciones inclusivas y la participaci��n de Be The Match.

Les agradecemos la oportunidad de representarlos y les deseamos a todos una excelente culminaci��n del semestre.

Atentamente,
Jasimine
Karrie
Mike

Hear from Staff Council leadership on what we are working on this spring and beyond. This letter has been translated into Spanish, Chinese, Laotian, and Hindi to expand accessibility and raise awareness for this important service. (Translation funding provided by Staff Council)

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Staff Council Statement �鶹��Ƶ the King Soopers Shooting

Anonymous — Wed, 14 Apr 2021 16:31:43 +0000

Staff Council Statement �鶹��Ƶ the King Soopers Shooting Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 04/14/2021 - 10:31

Dear CU Boulder Staff,

Ten lives from our community were tragically lost to violence on March 22nd. We mourn this loss of life.

We remember and honor:

Tralona Bartkowiak
Suzanne Fountain
Teri Leiker
Kevin Mahoney
Lynn Murray

Rikki Olds
Neven Stanisic
Denny Stong
Eric Talley
Jody Waters

We also mourn the physical and emotional impacts this shooting has had on the surviving victims and their families.

The impacts of this violence extend beyond those who lost their lives that day. All of us in the CU, Boulder, and greater Front Range communities have been affected. While the lights and cameras from national and state media have largely moved on to other topics, the impacts to our community from the shooting persist and are still very real. We are each still grieving. Our community is still grieving. It��s going to take a long time to work through this grief. We acknowledge that this experience impacted each person in our community differently and all of us continue to process, connect, and act on ways to lean in together. Ask for help when you need it. Know that you have resources and a community here to support you as you process your feelings after the tragedy. Please continue to check-in with your colleagues. You matter on this campus; in a time when it feels challenging to take a break away from your day-to-day responsibilities, this is a reminder we have resources and a community of staff to support you at any time.

Faculty and Staff Assistance Program (for faculty and staff)
- The Faculty and Staff Assistance Program (FSAP) can be reached at 303-492-3020. Provides free, confidential counseling for CU faculty and staff. Provides assistance to faculty and staff for personal or work-related concerns.
Office of Victim Assistance (for students, faculty, and staff)
- The Office of Victim Assistance (OVA) provides free and confidential support, consultation, advocacy, information and short-term counseling services to students, graduate students, faculty and staff who have experienced a traumatic, disturbing or life-disruptive event. Call 303-492-8855 to connect with an OVA counselor or to receive after-hours phone support.
Counseling and Psychiatric Services (for students)
- Counseling and Psychiatric Services (CAPS) is available for telehealth (virtual) counseling appointments and support services, including crisis support. If you need assistance, please schedule an appointment online or call 303-492-2277 to speak with a licensed professional 24/7.

Lastly, know that your Staff Council is always here for you and with you. We value each and every member of our staff. You have been pushed to work and perform in demanding ways this last year and we know it has not been easy. Let us know how we can support you now and in the future. Thank you for all your do for our campus and our community. Be well.

In solidarity,

Chris Muldrow, Hannah Simonson, Dylan West

Co-Chairs, Boulder Campus Staff Council

We mourn the lives lost from our community on March 22nd. The impacts of this violence extend beyond those who lost their lives that day. All of us in the CU, Boulder, and greater Front Range communities have been affected. We are each still grieving. Our community is still grieving. It��s going to take a long time to work through this grief. You matter on this campus; in a time when it feels challenging to take a break away from your day-to-day responsibilities, this is a reminder we have resources and a community of staff to support you at any time.

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Leadership Transitions on CU Boulder Staff Council

Anonymous — Tue, 09 Mar 2021 19:50:31 +0000

Leadership Transitions on CU Boulder Staff Council Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 03/09/2021 - 12:50

Boulder Campus Staff Council would like to acknowledge a few recent transitions in our officer team as we navigate the rest of our term as your elected leaders. As we continue to push forward in our transparency and open conversation, we want to bring to light the following individuals who have transitioned to new officer roles to support Staff Council initiatives for the remainder of the 2020-2021 academic year.

It is with great excitement we share that Hannah Simonson, previous Vice Chair for the 2020-2021 year, has agreed to step up and serve as Co-Chair alongside Chris Muldrow and Dylan West through June 2021. Shelby Javernick will be on parental leave for the remainder of the academic year; we thank Shelby for an incredible year of service and support to the full staff community through her leadership role.

With the Vice Chair position open, Boulder Campus Staff Council ran a special election and selected Natalia Johnston as the new Vice Chair for Staff Council for the remainder of the 2020-2021 academic year. Natalia has served on a variety of committees to support campus initiatives and her commitment to serving as Vice Chair is a valued addition to the officer team. Per the Staff Council Bylaws and Election Code, this position must be a current BCSC representative. Natalia will be taking over the Speaker Series programming initiatives previously led by Hannah, and will be promoting a variety of opportunities for staff engagement.

We are thrilled to see Hannah and Natalia step up in these roles. We are excited about where the spring and summer will take us as a leadership team and look forward to promoting and growing the staff voice as we move forward.

Thank you for trusting us to lead and serve as your representatives.

In Solidarity,
Shelby Javernick, Chris Muldrow, Hannah Simonson, and Dylan West
Staff Council Co-Chairs 2020-2021

As we continue to push forward in our transparency and open conversation, we want to bring to light the following individuals who have transitioned to new officer roles to support Staff Council initiatives for the remainder of the 2020-2021 academic year.

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Looking Ahead: Updates & Gratitude from your CU Boulder Staff Council Chairs and Campus Leadership

Anonymous — Mon, 11 Jan 2021 17:00:12 +0000

Looking Ahead: Updates & Gratitude from your CU Boulder Staff Council Chairs and Campus Leadership Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 01/11/2021 - 10:00

Dear CU Boulder Staff,

Happy New Year and thank you for your extraordinary dedication and hard work throughout 2020. We hope that you had an opportunity to spend time with your loved ones and that you were able to recharge.

Last semester took all our efforts. And it was not without challenges. With your help, thousands of students were able to live and study safely on campus and make progress to their degrees. You also enabled the resumption and continuation of our university��s research and creative work. We continued our work to make the campus a more just and equitable place. CU cannot meet its mission without the talents and contributions of you, its exceptional staff. As we look to the future, we are poised to begin a new semester with confidence that all of our preparations will result in a better spring for our students and for each of us.

To be sure, we must remain diligent in the face of the pandemic, wear our masks and follow physical distancing and campus guidelines for working on campus and remotely. Yet we have learned from the past nine months how to pivot and we see signs ahead with the vaccine and new federal funding that give us hope. We have reason to believe that 2021 will bring better days ahead.

Communication

This pandemic taught us just how important it is to stay connected and to share information with one another through the Staff Council Newsletter, CU Boulder Today articles and interactive forums like the Staff Council Town Halls. We pledge to continue these conversations in 2021 and encourage your participation and input. We also commit to improving communication and timely notification of information important to staff. Please continue to let us know how we��re doing and where we��re falling short. Staff Council exists to make sure that you have a voice, and Chancellor DiStefano often reminds us that we must listen to and respond to our staff��s questions and concerns.

Staff Support

We want you to know we value the work you do and we want to remind you to take care of yourself and be aware of the benefits, services and resources available to you to support your well being and to encourage your personal and professional growth. These resources include the Faculty and Staff Assistance Program available to any staff member in need of counseling services.

COVID-19 Plans and Resources

This semester will still not be ��normal�� as COVID-19 remains prevalent across the state and in our community. In December, we were able to expand our testing capacity to allow every staff member and their families to participate in our surveillance testing program. Please continue to utilize the testing, as it provides a means of helping to ensure the safety of our families and our communities.

CU Boulder will also be assisting public health authorities with vaccinations. So far, we have received a very limited number of vaccine doses that must be allocated to health care workers, and we don��t know when we will receive additional doses. As they become available, we must follow the public health authorities program, which prioritizes health care workers, first responders, and people over 70, but we will vaccinate our frontline workers as quickly as possible. We will provide ongoing information as we learn more and receive doses of the vaccine.

Leave and Holiday Schedule

You are entitled to use your generous leave benefits that include sick and annual leave and ten holidays including Spring holiday on Friday, March 26. (Some of you will receive an alternate holiday, coordinated through your unit leadership, if your duties require you to work on March 26). Additionally, many of you received four days of administrative leave this winter break in recognition of your extraordinary efforts this past year.

Employee Development

Your engagement is important to us and we understand that career growth and development opportunities are key to keeping you engaged. We are committed to your personal and professional development and want you to be aware of the offerings available to you through Human Resources. This past December, over a thousand of you participated in employee learning week. This spring, Human Resources is offering many programs in areas including employee learning, self care and personal growth, diversity and inclusion, and career development. Check out the full listings of HR Learning and Development Programs.

Performance Management

The performance planning and evaluation process also supports your professional development. In the coming weeks and months, the evaluation process will take place and we are encouraging supervisors to take into account the unique circumstances of this past year and to focus on employees�� ability to adapt and to show resilience during this past year and to place less emphasis on duties that became difficult or impossible because of the pandemic. We also want to encourage you to be a partner in your performance review and share with your supervisor what accomplishments you are proud of and what you need from your supervisor to be successful in your job. We do not know yet whether there will be a merit pool this year but we will update you as soon as we do.

In closing, we know this campus needed the best from all of us to have the success we saw in 2020 despite the pandemic. We are deeply grateful to you and we are honored to continue this journey with you into 2021 knowing that together we can achieve anything!

Staff Council Chairs Dylan West, Chris Muldrow and Shelby Javernick
Interim Chief Operations Officer Pat O��Rourke
Chief Human Resources Officer Katherine Erwin

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Update on how your Council is working for all Staff

Anonymous — Tue, 20 Oct 2020 15:30:44 +0000

Update on how your Council is working for all Staff Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 10/20/2020 - 09:30

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 �C 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.

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.

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 �C 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

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.

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Staff Council Statement �鶹��Ƶ COVID-19 Testing for Staff

Anonymous — Thu, 24 Sep 2020 14:39:39 +0000

Staff Council Statement �鶹��Ƶ COVID-19 Testing for Staff Anonymous (not verified) Thu, 09/24/2020 - 08:39

As noted in the Sept. 22nd issue of CU Boulder Today, campus has expanded COVID-19 testing 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. Boulder Campus Staff Council has been working hard to ensure all frontline staff members have access to on-campus COVID-19 testing. The safety of all staff, and particularly those working on campus right now, is a top priority for us. It is important our staff members, who are working day and night to ensure campus continues to run, are provided equitable access to testing. We thank our administration for hearing this concern and implementing changes; we will continue to work with them, as the elected body for all staff on the Boulder campus, to ensure safety continues to be the top priority during this time.

Our work is not done. This is a step in the right direction for our staff and we will continue to push for all staff members�� health and safety.

We are continuing to monitor working conditions, access to PPE, consistent adherence to the best science-based safety practices, and consulting frontline staff members on their experiences to ensure CU Boulder remains a safe place to work. Please know you can reach out to Staff Council at any time to voice your experiences and a representative will get back to you. We are your elected body. We are here to serve you and we stand in solidarity with all of our staff members to ensure we all have the ability to return to the campus we love and lead in our efforts to continue to move this campus forward.

Thank you to all of you who have reached out thus far. We hear you. We are working for you. Thank you for trusting in us to serve you as your elected council.

In solidarity,
Shelby Javernick, Chris Muldrow, Dylan West
Co-Chairs, Boulder Campus Staff Council

Last updated: 9/28/2020, 3:20 p.m. MST

CU Boulder Staff Council responds to campus's decision to extend testing to staff members.

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Letter from Staff Council Tri-Chairs

Anonymous — Wed, 26 Aug 2020 02:49:18 +0000

Letter from Staff Council Tri-Chairs Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 08/25/2020 - 20:49

We are thankful to welcome you back to another academic year at CU Boulder. There is no doubt that the start of this year, and this summer, have felt different in the ways we approach our work, and the feeling of community has looked different from what we knew. Nonetheless, we are excited to begin a new academic year and be that much closer to closing out 2020.

We want to take a few moments to thank you for your work, your commitment to this campus and its community, and the resiliency you continue to display. This time has challenged us all. From working remote to feeling like the work never ends, we want to acknowledge each and every one of you for your service to CU. Most of us are starting the year with pay cuts and many are returning to work with staffing at less than full capacity, while taking on more responsibilities than ever before. We know the challenges are not over, and we continue to work with campus leadership to lessen the burden wherever possible.

As the academic year begins it is vital for each staff member to know the campus�� current plans and policies. These are continually evolving based on the latest data and scientific knowledge; therefore, we ask all staff to take the time and read each COVID-19-focused email from campus and regularly check the campus and HR websites for updates.

As you may recall, in early August we offered a town hall with Chief Operating Officer Pat O��Rourke and Chief Human Resources Officer Katherine Erwin to discuss the current state of campus operations specifically as it relates to staff. We had over 300 in attendance. For those of you who missed that dialogue, you can view the discussion online.

Many points that came out of this town hall involved employment questions, concerns around equity, and racial profiling that can result from the public health mask mandate (see Staff Council��s Inclusive Excellence Committee statement). Staff Council has continued to discuss these issues. Our Inclusive Excellence committee is working alongside campus leadership to address key actions our campus can take to ensure we are a community that treats every individual with dignity and respect. The town hall was a great example of the types of spaces we plan to create for staff all year; a space where staff can be fully heard.

While a small number of employees subject to the summer furlough were laid off, retired or have requested personal leave, over 475 employees have returned to their positions as of August 1. More individuals will return by September 1, leaving less than 20 employees on furlough into the fall semester.

All Staff Council committees have started to plan programming and support initiatives to build upon the community we know and love at CU Boulder. A variety of virtual opportunities will be held for staff and their families to engage and connect as we continue to navigate the state of campus day by day.

We are doing our best to provide transparency on key conversations we are having, including navigating the ��essential�� employee definition, making sure staff voices are heard and their efforts celebrated, and continuing to work hard for all CU Boulder staff.

We are here. We are listening. We are fighting to ensure this remains a vibrant place to work where all can thrive. Thank you for being an essential part of what makes this community great. Please reach out if we can help in any way.

We wish you and yours well.

In solidarity,

Dylan West, Shelby Javernick, and Chris Muldrow
Tri-Chairs, Boulder Campus Staff Council 2020-2021

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