It’s been a couple of issues since I’ve written an update and—no surprise—a lot has happened in the last month. I had the opportunity to complete ASR’s annual budget documents in collaboration with the ASR directors, which gets submitted to OUE and then forwarded on to the Provost’s office and the Budget 6. The budget process requires us to model cuts and provides the opportunity to highlight areas of concern. The “areas of concern” turn into something like a request for new money, which is a long-shot in the University budget.
However, ASR’s budget documents were viewed very favorably by OUE and are being seriously considered in the next steps of the process. I highlighted areas where we are most in need of staffing, particularly where we rely on temporary funding, and ASR’s increasing software costs. Now the waiting game begins, and we will get official word sometime in the spring semester.
Looking ahead, we are rapidly approaching the end of the term and all of the work associated with closing out one term and beginning another. Somewhere in there, we will take a break during University holidays to rest and rejuvenate. As you reflect on the last year personally and professionally, take a moment to pat yourself on the back for the ways in which you have succeeded at work. Thank you everyone!
Finally, a quick note connected to the DEI update below, I recommend checking out the short documentary, “Rondo: Beyond the Pavement.” It provides several first-hand accounts from neighborhood residents that demonstrate the personal impact the freeway had on the neighborhood.
Thursday, November 30, 2023
Performance appraisal timeline
The Performance Appraisal form will be available tomorrow, Friday, December 1. The evaluations will cover the 2023 calendar year. If you have specific questions about the time frame or your goals from this past, talk with your supervisor.
The timeline for the performance appraisal is available below:
The timeline for the performance appraisal is available below:
- Friday, December 1 - Jadu form available for ASR staff
- Friday, December 1 - Friday, January 5 - Employees complete performance appraisals
- Friday, January 5 - Deadline for employees to submit their form in Jadu
- Monday, January 8 - Friday, January 26 - Supervisors must complete their forms
- Friday, January 26 - Deadline for supervisors to submit their forms in Jadu
- Friday, January 26 - Friday, February 9 - Directors complete review on all appraisals for their unit
- Wednesday, February 14 - Deadline for directors to complete review for consistency across ASR
- February 14 - March 15 - Supervisors and employees meet to review the appraisal
Historic Rondo Neighborhood, St Paul
Dating back to the mid-20th century, urban planners and government officials strategically routed interstate highways through low-income and minority communities, resulting in the displacement of residents and the destruction of vibrant neighborhoods, including the Rondo neighborhood in St. Paul.
Rondo was a predominantly African-American neighborhood known for its vibrant community and cultural richness in the 19th and early 20th centuries. From 1956 to 1968, the construction of Interstate 94 in St. Paul, Minnesota, intersected and severely impacted the thriving African-American community residing along Rondo Avenue. Redlining practices had confined Rondo residents to this area, resulting in a diverse, mixed-income community with a robust middle class, various housing options, and locally owned businesses.
However, the arrival of the interstate devastated community life and personal wealth, leading to the closure or demolition of 700 homes and 300 businesses, with families receiving insufficient compensation for their losses. This loss deeply affected those connected to the neighborhood, dispersing Rondo residents across the country and forming a Rondo diaspora. Nonetheless, those who remained retained a strong local identity and connection to their roots.
Recently, initiatives to rectify past injustices, uplift underserved populations, and ensure that future developments benefit everyone, regardless of race, income, or geographical location, have started across the nation and in St Paul. Rondo may be designated as a historic district, and a land bridge has been proposed to reconnect the Rondo community. You can learn more about Rondo from the following resources:
Rondo was a predominantly African-American neighborhood known for its vibrant community and cultural richness in the 19th and early 20th centuries. From 1956 to 1968, the construction of Interstate 94 in St. Paul, Minnesota, intersected and severely impacted the thriving African-American community residing along Rondo Avenue. Redlining practices had confined Rondo residents to this area, resulting in a diverse, mixed-income community with a robust middle class, various housing options, and locally owned businesses.
However, the arrival of the interstate devastated community life and personal wealth, leading to the closure or demolition of 700 homes and 300 businesses, with families receiving insufficient compensation for their losses. This loss deeply affected those connected to the neighborhood, dispersing Rondo residents across the country and forming a Rondo diaspora. Nonetheless, those who remained retained a strong local identity and connection to their roots.
Recently, initiatives to rectify past injustices, uplift underserved populations, and ensure that future developments benefit everyone, regardless of race, income, or geographical location, have started across the nation and in St Paul. Rondo may be designated as a historic district, and a land bridge has been proposed to reconnect the Rondo community. You can learn more about Rondo from the following resources:
- Meet the woman who preserves and catalogs St. Paul's Rondo memories
- Rondo Neighborhood (St Paul Historical)
- Rondo Neighborhood & I-94: Overview (Minnesota Historical Society)
- Rondo Center of Diverse Expression Plaza (327 N Fisk St, St Paul)
ASR Staff Engagement November 30 Survey
This week’s ASR Staff Engagement Survey examines our work-life balance. Thank you for continuing to share your stories and experiences.
According to the last survey, half of respondents say they work with staff from other ASR departments very frequently (50%). When you need assistance from another department, most will contact someone they know in the department (78.3%) rather than use the general contact email (17.4%). In addition, most know how to find the current organizational chart (83.3%), which is available on the ASR staff site.
Finally, most say that they prefer the aisle seat on an airplane (50%) versus the window seat (37.5%). Thanks all for your continued participation! It is very much appreciated. The results from the last survey are available below.
November 16, 2023 survey results
How often do you work with staff from other ASR departments (ex. One Stop) outside of your own?
On an airplane, do you prefer the window or aisle seat?
According to the last survey, half of respondents say they work with staff from other ASR departments very frequently (50%). When you need assistance from another department, most will contact someone they know in the department (78.3%) rather than use the general contact email (17.4%). In addition, most know how to find the current organizational chart (83.3%), which is available on the ASR staff site.
Finally, most say that they prefer the aisle seat on an airplane (50%) versus the window seat (37.5%). Thanks all for your continued participation! It is very much appreciated. The results from the last survey are available below.
November 16, 2023 survey results
How often do you work with staff from other ASR departments (ex. One Stop) outside of your own?
- Very frequently (50%)
- Somewhat frequently (20.8%)
- Sometimes but not frequently (20.8%)
- Very rarely (8.3%)
- I use the department’s general contact email (17.4%)
- I contact someone I know in the department (78.3%)
- I contact someone I don’t know in the department (4.3%)
- Yes (83.3%)
- No (16.7%)
On an airplane, do you prefer the window or aisle seat?
- Window (37.5%)
- Aisle (50%)
- I don’t have a preference (12.5%)
Thursday, November 16, 2023
ASR project request deadline
As a reminder, all project requests for P3 2024 (Feb-April) must be submitted via the Project Request form by December 15, 2023 for consideration. However, we encourage you to submit your requests sooner if possible. The project request submission process is available on the ASR Staff Site under Employee Resources.
Upcoming dates and deadlines for P3 2024:
- Project request deadline: December 15, 2023
- Project prioritization meeting: January 10, 2024
- Start of P3 2024 planning period: February 5, 2024
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee
Native American Heritage Month
National Native American Heritage Month is celebrated each year in November. In honor of this month, we are sharing some local history and facts to spark your curiosity.
Credit for this information goes to Luis Charging Bear, who originally shared this in the IT@UMN Slack.
Upcoming Office of Equity and Diversity (OED) education offerings
The Office for Equity and Diversity (OED) Education program added two offerings of their workshop, Addressing Implicit Bias in Search and Selection Processes, for November and December. Classes are held virtually via Zoom and are offered to all UMN staff and faculty. Unfortunately, the upcoming dates are currently both full, but you can still join the wait list:
Not sure which certificate courses you completed or if you have remaining courses you still need to take? Log into your Destiny One Registration System (DORS) account and click on 'My Enrollment History' to see the course(s) you are enrolled in and/or have completed.
National Native American Heritage Month is celebrated each year in November. In honor of this month, we are sharing some local history and facts to spark your curiosity.
Credit for this information goes to Luis Charging Bear, who originally shared this in the IT@UMN Slack.
- The Twin Cities Campus comprises Dakota Oyate lands.
- Dakota/Lakota/Nakoda (The Očhéthi Šakówiŋ) are often labeled as "Sioux." The name "Sioux'' is a French mispronunciation ("Nadouessioux") of the Ojibwe term "Nadowessi." The exonym “Sioux” became the common name of reference for Lakota/Dakota/Nakoda peoples even though Očhéthi Šakówiŋ (meaning 7 council fires of the great confederacy) people do not refer to themselves as “Sioux.”
- The name "Lakota/Dakota" in essence means "ally" or “one who is an ally.”
- Learn about the history of the University of Minnesota Morris campus and American Indian Boarding Schools.
- The map below and other Dakota land maps by the same creators include historically accurate names of the areas around the Twin Cities and Minnesota.
The Office for Equity and Diversity (OED) Education program added two offerings of their workshop, Addressing Implicit Bias in Search and Selection Processes, for November and December. Classes are held virtually via Zoom and are offered to all UMN staff and faculty. Unfortunately, the upcoming dates are currently both full, but you can still join the wait list:
- Tuesday, November 21, 10 a.m.-noon
- Thursday, December 14, 1-3 p.m.
Not sure which certificate courses you completed or if you have remaining courses you still need to take? Log into your Destiny One Registration System (DORS) account and click on 'My Enrollment History' to see the course(s) you are enrolled in and/or have completed.
Office of Student Finance
- FAFSA Simplification Update
- We’re presenting on the FAFSA Simplification Project at the OUE General Assembly on December 14.
- We had an all day, in-person “retreat” to prepare for the upcoming software rollout with the IT BA’s. For 2024-25, students will not have to get parents to “sign off” on their lack of support, which is going to require a new process.
- We completed the housing question that will “pop-up” before actual packaging since a housing preference is no longer included on the FAFSA.
- 24-25 financial aid communications have been reviewed and updated in anticipation of the new Student Aid Index that is replacing the expected family contribution (EFC). We’re also reviewing the queries that use EFC.
- We’re still reviewing the parent contributions process for those Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) programs (grants and loans) since the FAFSA will not allow parents of independent students to complete the FAFSA.
- American Indian Scholars Program Update
- The State of Minnesota’s new American Indian Scholars Program (AISP) is now available. The program covers tuition and certain fees for eligible Minnesotans who are enrolled members or citizens of any federally recognized tribe or Canadian First Nation.
- The project team is working diligently to finalize the process of posting the funds through third-party billing. Funds should be applied by early December.
- A big shout out to the project team for all of their hard work: Andrew Hill, Carolee Cohen, Caylin Scheff (Crookston), Jana Koehler (Morris), Kari Ellering, Meghan Czarniecki, Nancy Carl (Duluth), Richard Toetschinger, and Sarah Hoegger.
- College of Education and Human Development Grant & Scholarship Funds Update
- OSF worked closely with CEHD on disbursing the following Minnesota Office of Higher Education grants:
- Aspiring Teachers of Color Scholarship
- The Aspiring Teachers of Color Scholarship pilot program provides financial assistance to eligible undergraduate and graduate students who are preparing to become teachers, have demonstrated financial need, and belong to racial or ethnic groups underrepresented in the state’s teacher workforce. The University of Minnesota has awarded 36 students the Aspiring Teachers of Color Scholarship. $171,335 has been disbursed for fall 2023 semester, and $174,669 has been awarded for the spring 2024 semester.
- Minnesota Underrepresented Student Teacher Grant
- The Minnesota Underrepresented Student Teacher Grant provides financial assistance to eligible students who belong to a racial or ethnic group underrepresented in the Minnesota teacher workforce. 9 students have been awarded this grant for fall 2023, and a total of $66,099 has been disbursed.Minnesota Shortage Areas Student Teacher Grant
- The Minnesota Shortage Areas Grant provides financial assistance to eligible students who intend to teach in a license shortage area or rural school district. 4 students have been awarded this grant for fall 2023, and $25,607 has been disbursed.
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