It’s been six months, and two terms, since Dragons were actually on campus — but there are still new and continuing developments happening at Drexel University. For coronavirus-related updates, there’s the “Drexel Response to Coronavirus” website. For staff and personnel updates, including parking fees and new wellness challenges and workshops, there’s “Heard Around Campus.”
Here’s what was heard around campus this month:
Update: Parking Fees Suspended Through December
All parking payroll deductions for active employees will be suspended through Dec. 31, 2020. Any payroll deduction that occurred after Aug. 1, 2020 will be refunded via the employee’s next pay period. Please visit the Drexel Business Services COVID-19 Operations page for details.
Respecting Religious Observances
Embodying a culturally and spiritually diverse community, Drexel University recognizes that on the occasion of important or solemn religious days, certain of its members will observe practices that preclude them from attending to their regular duties whether as faculty members, professional staff members or students. On the occasion of such days, it is equally important for all who do not share in these same practices to accommodate their colleagues and peers. Drexel University supports an environment that respects the religious observances of others and is committed to making every reasonable effort to accommodate religious observances.
The religious observances calendar, developed by the Drexel Interfaith Council, provides a non-exhaustive list of globally recognized religious observances. Information on requesting and providing religious accommodations at Drexel is available on the Office of Equality and Diversity’s website.
Walk at Work Wellness Challenge and Health Advocate Webinars
Registration is now open for a four-week wellness challenge in which you’ll aim to walk 10,000 steps a day, with an emphasis on fitting in more walking at work. Along with earning your 25 wellness points, this challenge will help you increase your physical activity, reduce your time spent sitting, relieve stress and improve your overall health! The Walk at Work challenge runs from Aug. 24 to Sept. 20, and the last day to sign up is Aug. 31. To register, log in to the Health Advocate Wellness Incentive Portal, click on “Walk at Work” from your To Do List, and select “Join.”
Having trouble with working from home with kids or caring for aging parents? Feeling anxiety about returning to work? Health Advocate has you covered. Check out Health Advocate’s webinars about resiliency and the “new normal”: healthadvocate.com/site/coronavirus.
New Wellness Workshops: Earn Money While Enhancing Your Health
Sign up for these new workshops in Career Pathway. Registration closes 24 hours in advance:
- Sustainable Spending will help you discern the “true cost” of your spending habits, from an environmental and financial perspective.
- Pilates Breath and Balance is perfect for anyone who wants to de-stress while improving their posture and deepening their breath.
Looking for more ways to earn wellness points? Want to improve your health and connect with your colleagues? Don’t forget to participate in Ten at 10. Not only is Ten at 10 enlivening, but you can also earn 1 wellness point ($1) each day that you log your participation!
Contact Wellness Administrator Monica Fauble at mfauble@drexel.edu with any questions.
New Webpage for Institutional Effectiveness Status Updates
The Institutional Effectiveness Committee has created a new webpage on the Office of Program Management and Organizational Effectiveness website to share updates for each sub-committee for Phase One focus areas. These sub-committees, ranging in topic from academic advising to university budget/RCM, have been meeting since summer 2019 to review survey data and devise and implement improvement suggestions, often working with key stakeholders and administrative departments to enhance services or procedures. The page will be updated regularly as improvements are made.
Updates from Procurement Services:
- Smart Source Unrestricted Budget Check: Smart Source will now perform a budget check on all requisitions submitted within unrestricted cost centers to ensure that there is an established budget. This allows greater stewardship of University resources on a per-purchase basis. This check will be performed against the ORGN’s pooled budget, and if there is insufficient budget, the requisition will be returned to the requisitioner. These returned requisitions may be resubmitted once there is sufficient funding.
- Expense Management Reminders for Fall 2020: The COVID-19 pandemic continues to present our University with extraordinary challenges. As we join many universities across the nation in maintaining a remote format for fall, we must do our best to reconcile the unexpected budget implications for both expenses and revenue. Drexel remains committed to ensuring that faculty and professional staff have what they need to do their jobs and deliver on our promise of an excellent educational product for our students; with that in mind, please review these expense management reminders for fall 2020.
Procurement Services is happy to answer any of your purchasing related questions at askprocure@drexel.edu. If you have a budget related question, please contact your budget representative or email budget@drexel.edu.