New Academic Year, New Professional Development Opportunities

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Fall is here, and the Organization and Professional Development (OPD) department in MSU Human Resources has spots open in the following courses to support your learning and development. All the current  Organization and Professional Development courses are on the HR website. Class enrollment is completed within the  EBS Portal, and employees may use available educational assistance funds towards course fees (if any).

Getting Things Done | Starting September 24-26 | Virtual 

This Personal Development course teaches skills needed to manage busy work days, high task demands, and interruptions that employees face on a daily basis. This will ultimately teach you how to organize incoming requests, handle stress in the workplace, decrease missed deadlines, and more in terms of personal development at work. 

Everything DiSC: Productive Conflict | August 28 | In-Person 

This course provides learners with techniques to work on self-improvement around conflicts in the workplace. After the course, you will have a better understanding of how to better recognize your own response to certain conflicts and how to curb destructive responses. Pre-work will be sent to you and will need to be completed before you take the class. 

Resilient Leadership Series | Starting October 30 | Virtual 

This four-part course will highlight essential resilience skills crucial for effective leadership, emotional intelligence, emotional resilience, psychological flexibility and mindfulness and more. Here you will develop practical grounding skills, learn about systems of power and privilege and cultural narratives in the workplace, and receive an overview of the MSU Spartan Resilience Training Program. 

Crucial Influence | Dates Coming Soon 

Targeting mid to high level-leaders responsible for leading change and improving efforts in the workplace, this last course teaches the Crucial Influence Model and explains why people do what they do. Here you will also learn how you can influence behaviors to encourage efficient teamwork and focusing on working well both as a team and as individuals. 

Job of the Week: Communications Manager I

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This week’s featured job is a Communications Manager I for MSU’s College of Social Science in the Department of Anthropology (job posting 981948). The Department of Anthropology is seeking a Communications Manager to develop, implement, manage, and sustain a comprehensive creative communications strategy that aligns with the department’s strategic goals, increases the visibility of department activities, and enhances the department’s reputation both inside and outside the university.

In this position, you will work closely with faculty, staff, students, and alumni to translate complex information into engaging content for diverse audiences across multiple print and digital platforms and venues. Position responsibilities include but are not limited to building and sustaining a cohesive media, communications, and marketing identity as well as developing and implementing a creative media and communications strategy for print, social, and digital media. The Communications Manager will also create visual storytelling and written content for a broad range of audiences, platforms, and channels, develop compelling social media campaigns, manage existing department social media channels, grow department social media reach,  and monitor and track social media analytics and audience engagement.

The ideal candidate for this position will have a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism, Telecommunications, or Public Relations and one to three years of work experience in a related area. Experience producing creative digital and print media—including long and short-form video production, identity design, graphic design, newsletters, flyers, brochures, photography, merchandise, etc. is also required to apply. This is an in-person position with the potential for two remote days per week.To learn more, visit the College of Anthropology website. To apply for the position, please submit a cover letter, resume, three professional references, and a link to an online portfolio to the MSU Careers website by September 17.

Job of the Week: Recruitment and Admissions Counselor

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This week’s featured job is a Recruitment and Admissions Counselor for MSU’s College of Nursing (job posting 971880). The College of Nursing believes in the power of research, practice and education to affect lasting change and to improve health outcomes in our communities. They do this through recruiting top faculty, staff and students and continuously staying at the forefront of changes in the profession. 

In this position, you will be responsible for student recruitment (including on- and off-campus events), admissions, and recruitment event facilitation for all graduate programs in the College of Nursing. Position responsibilities include but are not limited to new student recruitment; program admissions; event planning, coordination and support; as well as data tracking, analysis and reporting. All team members in the College of Nursing carry a leadership role that fosters a sense of inclusion, belonging and servant leadership. 

The ideal candidate for this position will have a Bachelor’s Degree and six months to one year of work experience in admissions, counseling, public relations, student services, or a related area. One year of work experience implementing programs and schedules, making formal presentations, and working with the public is also required. Three years of recruiting experience for graduate and undergraduate programs focused on health professions is desired but not required to apply. 

To learn more, visit the College of Nursing website. To apply for the position, please submit a cover letter and resume to the MSU Careers website by August 27. 

From the VP of HR: Welcome to a New Academic Year!

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Christina K. Brogdon, PHR, Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer
Christina K. Brogdon, PHR, Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer

Dear Spartan Colleagues,

I am excited to welcome everyone to a new academic year! As we embrace a fresh start this fall, I’m reflecting on the outstanding growth we’ve experienced here in HR. We have new leaders and staff in Benefits, Compensation, Employee and Labor Relations, and Talent. This growth allows our team to enhance our services and continue providing the Spartan community with extraordinary experiences every day.

In addition to this growth, I’m proud of many accomplishments from MSU HR in the last year including enhancements that benefit the Spartan Community such as the New Leader Development Program, Modified Operations policy, a new out-of-state health care plan, and an enhanced dental plan. We are here for you!

In the upcoming year, HR will continue its transformation to Produce and Perform with new initiatives that include Total Rewards, Talent Management, a renewed focus on Employee Engagement and Experience, and Operational Excellence. I’m also looking forward to starting a new academic year under the leadership of President Guskiewicz, a Tar-Heel-turned-Spartan like me! He is a strategic and service-oriented leader who will continue moving the university upward in its mission of education, research, and outreach. I share in his excitement for what’s in front of us.

Finally, I’d like to reiterate the message from President Guskiewicz regarding civil discourse in our community. As he mentioned, we all have a role to play in building a more inclusive community. While it’s okay that we don’t all agree, we should always demonstrate empathy and intellectual humility while exercising our freedom of speech. To support our employees as they engage in respectful civil discourse, a page is available on the HR website, Civil Discourse for Employees, with answers to frequently asked questions and additional resources. Let’s go into this new academic year supporting one another and demonstrating our Spartan Will to the community and beyond.

Thank you for your continued dedication to the University, our students, and our land-grant mission. On behalf of Human Resources, I wish you a safe, healthy, and successful academic year in which you take advantage of fresh opportunities and new beginnings.

Go Green!

Christina K. Brogdon, PHR
Vice President of Human Resources

Educational Assistance: Fall Reminders

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With this year’s Educational Assistance, or “Ed Assist,” support staff benefit resetting with the start of the fall semester, now’s a perfect time to refresh your Ed Assist knowledge and take advantage of this opportunity for your learning and development. Here are a few important reminders regarding this benefit.

Credit and Non-Credit Options

You may receive financial assistance for credit and non-credit courses, including training, seminars, workshops, conferences, or other educational opportunities. Use this benefit to enhance your professional skill set or help you reach Performance Excellence goals.

For non-credit courses, like professional development courses available through HR, support staff employees may have up to $900 per year to use toward course registration fees depending on their union contract. The course must be considered job-related and from an approved institution/program to receive assistance.

You may receive up to 14 credits per academic year for credit courses. Your level of financial assistance is determined by your union group, whether you’re taking a graduate or undergraduate course, and where you’re taking the course (MSU or another university). The course must be considered job-related, degree-related, or career/professional development-related.

Taxation Information for Graduate-Level, Degree-Related Coursework

When using Educational Assistance funds toward graduate-level, degree-related classes for credit, it’s important to remember and plan for IRS tax exemption rules. The Internal Revenue Code (IRC) provides up to $5,250 in exemption per tax (calendar) year for graduate-level, degree-related courses reimbursed/waived through employer educational assistance programs, like the one at MSU. Any amount of the benefit over $5,250 for degree-related, graduate-level courses is considered taxable income by the IRS.

If you use Ed Assist benefits for graduate-level, degree-related courses for credit over the $5,250 exemption amount, appropriate tax withholding will be made, and the amount will be added to your gross wages. If there is a tax liability, the deductions must be completed within the same calendar year. If this tax situation applies to your Ed Assist usage, you will receive a notification via email in the fall, typically around September. This notification will indicate the amount of Educational Assistance received in the calendar year, the taxable amount, and which paycheck withdrawals will occur to cover the outstanding tax liability.

Note: This tax liability, dictated by the IRS, applies ONLY to any Ed Assist benefit usage over the $5,250 limit when applied to graduate-level, degree-related courses for credit. For example, if you received $6,250 in eligible Ed Assist benefits in a year, you would only be taxed on the $1,000 over the exemption limit and owe a percentage of that $1,000 as your tax liability.

Find detailed information about Educational Assistance – including how to apply – on the HR website. Contact Organization and Professional Development at avphr.hrdmail@msu.edu with questions.

MSU Surplus Store

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With the school year approaching fast, it’s the perfect time to check out the best-kept secret on campus, the MSU Surplus Store! You can visit online here or shop in person on Fridays from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

The MSU Surplus Store and Recycling Center helps keep MSU green by innovating the community’s used materials. Last year, the center was able to divert 13 million pounds of material collected from the landfill. Michigan State University was recently ranked among the top 25 globally for sustainability in the Times Higher Education and there is no doubt the Surplus Store plays a large role in this accomplishment. 

The store also prides itself on its zero waste policy, meaning that if something is collected that cannot be resold, it is recycled for parts at the onsite recycling center. To learn more about the recycling center, visit their website here. 

The store sells a variety of products ranging from school supplies to bicycles to furniture, appliances and more. In addition to the store and website, the surplus store has an Amazon Storefront, eBay account and Etsy account. The Surplus Store holds many auctions on larger items such as lawn mowers and satellites. One of the most useful parts of these online resources are the textbooks, so if you are a student or have a student at home, check out these sites before buying your textbooks at full price somewhere else. You can visit the MSU Surplus Store at 468 Green Way, East Lansing. While in-person shopping is only open on Fridays, the store offers curbside pickup Monday through Friday. To shop or learn more about the store, visit msusurplusstore.com.

Job of the Week: Office Coordinator

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This week, MSU Human Resources is featuring a job posting as the Office Coordinator for International Studies and Programs at MSU (job posting 971859). If you are interested in supporting operations at the Center for Gender in Global Context (GenCen), coordinating projects and programs, planning events, and providing first-level support for student employees, this may be the job for you. You will play a vital role in GenCen production, operation, communications and more.

The Center for Gender in Global Context serves as Michigan State’s hub for gender and sexuality research, as well as engagement and teaching resources with a global perspective. GenCen prides itself on connecting scholars, students, and community stakeholders with feminist knowledge to encourage social change. 

This in-person role’s main responsibilities include preparing reports and promotional materials for GenCen, maintaining the website, creating graphic standards, and implementing communication strategies and executions – all while adhering to university and GenCen’s core values and policies. You will also oversee communications targeted towards GenCen’s community, including but not limited to the annual magazine, emails, newsletters, social media, flyers, brochures, presentations, podcasts, annual reports, and GenCen’s website. On the administrative side, you will monitor and support all facilities, complete computer tasks, answer phones and emails, seminars, and provide first-level supervision for designated student employees through goal-setting and check-ins.

The education, experience and skills desired for this role include two or three years of college or related technical school, and six months to a year of related work experience including using social media platforms and customer service. You will be using Qualtrics, Adobe, Microsoft Office applications, and copyediting, so it is important to have background knowledge in these areas. You should also have experience in event planning, supervising, communicating, and working collaboratively.  
Learn more about MSU’s Center for Gender in Global Context here. To learn more about this position or if you are interested in applying online, please visit the Careers at MSU website for more information! Applications require a resume and a letter of interest, and should be submitted by August 20th.

Back-to-School Discounts for the 2024-25 School Year

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Whether your family loves shopping for back to school, or they dread it every year, MSU Benefits Plus has you covered. All benefit-eligible employees can log into the MSU Benefits Plus portal with their MSU email address, and find dozens of discounts to get you and your family heading back to school in style without paying full price. 

Below are just a few examples of what might be useful this time of year. 

Computer & Electronics

Technology is now an essential part of the school supply list so enjoy extra savings on those investments through a variety of retailers, even here at MSU. 

  • Apple: Receive employee pricing on the products you want
  • Dell: Get the best pricing available on all Dell PCs, electronics and accessories
  • HP: Save up to 62% off the full portfolio of HP products
  • Lenovo: Save up to 67% during Lenovo’s Back to School Event
  • Microsoft Office: Save over 70% on Microsoft Office Home and Business
  • MSU Tech Store: Purchase all kinds of tech with prices exclusive to MSU staff, faculty, and students

Clothing and Apparel

Everyone wants a great outfit for their first day of school, whether you’re a student, an educator, or even if it’s just another day at the office. 

  • Bombas: 20% off with code CORESTREAM20 (plus a pair is donated with every pair purchased!) 
  • Crocs: Save $20 off a purchase of $100 or more using the code CROCS20
  • Spartan Spirit Shops: Visit any Shop in person and show your Faculty/Staff ID for 20% off!

Education 

Learn a new skill, stock up on textbooks for those fall courses, and show your Spartan spirit, all at a discount through these local organizations. 

  • Spartan Bookstore: 10% off new and used books when you show your ID
  • Student Book Store: 10% of your whole purchase (excluding computer software and calculators) when you show your ID
  • Method Learning: Up to 20% off SAT/ACT prep, college advising and more

For all of these discounts and more visit the HR Website or the MSU Benefits Plus portal. Employees can also call Benefits Plus at 888-758-7575 with any questions. Back-to-School is on at Michigan State!

Job of the Week: Video Producer

Job of the Week: Video Producer

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This week, MSU Human Resources is featuring a job posting as the Video Producer for Michigan State University Extension (job posting 969749). If you are passionate about producing videos and creatively telling community success stories about nutrition and physical activity programming, this may be the job for you. You will play a huge role working in partnership with the Health and Nutrition communications team, storyboarding, scheduling, producing, editing and more. 

Michigan State University Extension is committed to promoting a welcoming and inclusive environment, encouraging all staff to contribute towards a vision for success. Diversity, Equity and Inclusion are all crucial aspects of MSU Extension, regardless of your position within the unit. All staff are dedicated to working together, producing equitable impacts for all participants, embracing a culture of understanding, and more.

This in-person role’s main responsibilities include filming videos and photographing on and off-campus marketing pieces, vital to achieving marketing goals, directing, and most importantly sharing the impact of MSU Extension’s health and nutrition programs, participants, and staff. To take on this role, you must have a great ability to work independently, collaborate closely with communications staff, multitask, and manage timelines for multiple projects. This job will mostly take place on Michigan State’s campus, and travel may be required to various offices within Michigan. 

The education, experience and skills desired for this role include a degree in media technology, broadcast journalism or telecommunications, between one and three years of experience working in video editing and production, experience writing news stories and reporting news events, and using Adobe Creative Suite software. You will meet tight deadlines, work with non-traditional and social media, collaborate with your peers, and more. 
Learn more about Michigan State University Health and Nutrition Extension here. To learn more about this position or if you are interested in applying online, please visit the Careers at MSU website for more information! Applications require a current resume, cover letter, and four professional references including two prior or current supervisors, and should be submitted by August 20th.

August Events Round-Up

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If you and your family are looking for activities in the upcoming month, you’ve come to the right place. August holds many virtual and in-person opportunities in the Greater Lansing area for you to check out. Click the links below to explore future events and register if required.

Campus Events 

August 3rd – Family Day: PLAY: Join us at the MSU Broad Art Museum from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. for a hands-on and family-friendly day full of art and collage-making. Register above for this free event for all ages.

August 4th – Deep-Rooted with Beal Botanical Gardens: The Beal Botanical Gardens is hosting a summer tour from 1:00-2:00 p.m. Learn from Applied Ethnobotanist and Education Program Director, Maeve Bassett about the social, historical, and political narratives within plants in the garden and artwork in the MSU Broad Art Collection. Registration for this free event is encouraged. 

August 25th – Sparticipation: Come to MSU’s largest Fall Welcome Tradition, Sparticipation, to check out over 600 organizations that Michigan State has to offer within 30 different departments. Whether you are a student looking for clubs to become a part of or just curious about campus life, you don’t want to miss out on this one. No registration is needed for this free event at IM East Field from 4:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

Learning Opportunities 

August 8th & 22nd – Deepening Your Essential Skills: If you have completed a course by Spartan Resilience Education, you are eligible to continue learning at this webinar. Here you can ask questions, raise topics and build community with your peers. Be sure to register for this free course through the link above! 

Family Friendly Events 

August 8th – Bubble Day: Michigan 4-H Children’s Garden invites you and your family to celebrate the end of summer vacation at the garden with bubbles! As you explore the world of bubbles, you can eat, paint, and even make music with bubbles. Check out the link above for parking information. The cost is $5 per child.. 

August 9th – 11th – St. Johns Mint Festival: Join us at the 39th annual St. Johns Mint Festival featuring a craft show, flea market, live entertainment and activities for those of all ages. This 3- day event allows visitors to explore a variety of handmade crafts and unique items, and enjoy live music from local artists. Check out their website for parking information. 

August 10th – Meridian Pride Event: Come by and celebrate the 2024 Meridian Pride Event from 5:00 pm to 10:00 pm at the Marketplace on the Green Pavilion (1995 Central Park Drive). Meridian Pride brings together LGBTQ+ members, allies, and organizations to celebrate diversity and inclusion within the community. There will be food trucks, music, advocacy resources, art vendors, yard games and live entertainment. Check out the link above for more information. 

August 17th – Old Town ArtFeast: Celebrate art and food from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., and check out art, craft vendors, food trucks and more. Experience downtown Lansing at this event and come see the town’s unique bars, boutiques, and restaurants. No registration is required for this event.

August 31st & September 1st – Michigan Chicken Wing Festival: If you and your family are looking for a fun-filled weekend in the Lansing area, come on by the Michigan Chicken Wing Festival. Adado Riverfront Park will be hosting a 2-day event featuring live music, a kids’ zone, a VIP tent, food trucks and vendors, arts and crafts, and most importantly – chicken wings! This event is held as a fundraiser to support Against All Odds for their free boutique (Lilian’s) inside Lansing Mall. Against All Odds provides services to the homeless, cancer survivors, disabled, Veterans, and those that need a little help with everyday needs. Read more about the Michigan Chicken Wing Festival in the link above for more information and important notes on what to bring.

Farmers Markets

Farmer’s markets are beloved events in many local communities allowing us an opportunity to support local farmers and small businesses and enjoy delicious produce, baked goods, and even homemade crafts and personal care items. Many Greater Lansing communities offer seasonal farmer’s markets. Find one near you at https://mifma.org/find-a-farmers-market/

Save the Date for October 3: The Open Enrollment Benefits Fair is early this year on Thursday, October 3 at Breslin Center. MSU benefit providers and MSU HR staff will be available to answer questions and/or help employees enroll in their benefits on-site at the Breslin Student Events Center. More information will be shared closer to the event date. Mark your calendar and stay tuned for details!