Good morning, colleagues. Here is this week’s update from Academic Affairs.
Important Update
There are many health benefit changes for 2018. Here are a few of the more momentous changes:
- United Healthcare and Humana are no longer participating in the health insurance program and affected employees will need to select a new health plan. If you do not select a new plan you will lose health insurance coverage as of January 1, 2018.
- WEA Trust will no longer offer Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin, Medical College of Wisconsin, Froedtert Hospital, SSM Dean Medical Group or United Hospital System in their East Service Area Network in 2018. Employees who utilize services provided by these entities may want to consider changing to Network Health, the other insurance provider.
- Health coverage for domestic partners will end on December 31, 2017 (this is not applicable to people who are married). Partners should pursue health insurance with their own employers or through the Affordable Care Act.
- Co-pays and out-of-pocket limits will remain the same.
- The $150 Well Wisconsin Incentive will require employees to participate in a StayWell program in addition to submitting their health screening to StayWell and taking the online StayWell health assessment. Participation will determine employees’ health insurance rates for 2019. Those who complete the Incentive program will receive lower rates than those who do not.
- CVS and Target pharmacies will no longer be covered by the Navitus Pharmacy program.
- For more details, please see the email message from Human Resources sent on Friday regarding the “Annual Benefit Enrollment and Change Period: October 2 – October 27, 2017”.
Dean Searches
The following dean searches are underway:
- College of Letters and Science – chaired by Jennifer Doering
- Lubar School of Business – chaired by John Reisel
- College of Health Sciences – chaired by Paul Auer
The search for the Zilber School of Public Health Dean has been deferred until next year. I thank Ron Perez for his willingness to continue his work as Interim Dean.
Homecoming week
It’s Homecoming week! You are all invited to join the Campus Campaign Celebration and Homecoming Kickoff tomorrow in Spaights Plaza. This exciting event will kick off Homecoming 2017 and celebrate the launch of the public phase of Made in Milwaukee, Shaping the World: The Campaign for UWM. Stop by to share some UWM spirit and enjoy a cupcake. Activities for Black & Gold Spirit Day start October 3. Don’t miss the fun or the prizes!
Kudos
– Margaret Noodin (English and Electa Quinney Institute for American Indian Education) and Donna Pasternak (Curriculum & Instruction) received a $1.15M grant from the Department of Education for the “Electa Quinney Teacher Training and Administrative Leadership Program,” a four-year program to recruit and train 20 undergraduate, post-baccalaureate, or graduate-level students to build capacity in public, private, and charter schools in the City of Milwaukee and tribal schools in the Great Lakes Region. Congratulations, Margaret and Donna!
– Kristen Taylor (Office of Clinical Experiences) and Donna Pasternak (Curriculum & Instruction) and their team, in partnership with MPS, were awarded a three-year, $5M US Department of Education Supporting Effective Educator Development (SEED) grant. The grant will support three very important areas: aligning School of Education programming in Culturally Relevant Pedagogy, developing twelve MPS community schools into Culturally Relevant Practice Centers to serve as our teacher candidates, and to support a pipeline of Culturally Relevant Practitioners by supporting and expanding the PLUS program that moves Educational Assistants into certified teaching. Well done, Kristen and Donna!
Panther Kudos
The Milwaukee women’s soccer team remains one of just four unbeaten teams in the nation, currently at 10-0-1. Watch seniors Anna Smalley and Jen Eberhardy discuss the season to date.
The Panthers topped Marquette, 2-0, to reclaim the “Milwaukee Cup.” Check out the recap, highlights, photo gallery, and more!
The Week
Monday
It is just sad to wake up this morning with the horrible news of yet another senseless act of violence. . . It’s a usual start to the week with my weekly meeting with Robin Van Harpen, the Chancellor’s Cabinet meets, I have a meeting with Mark Harris, and several SOIS accreditation-related meetings. I also have my staff meeting and I end the day with a meeting on Summer Bridge program planning and my one-on-one meeting with Phyllis King.
Tuesday
There is a CEMAT Executive Committee retreat in the morning, I’m attending the University Committee meeting, I have a meeting on Integrated Shared Services, I will give the charge to the Lubar Dean Search and Screen Committee, and I have a meeting on the Academic Performance Solution project.
Wednesday-Fri
I will leave Wednesday morning for a Provost meeting at Stout where we will discuss, among other items, performance-based funding and program array planning. This will be followed by the Board of Regents meeting also at UW-Stout.
The Weekend
Friday night I’m attending the Alumni Awards reception and dinner, and Saturday I’ll be at the Panther Prowl event.
Announcements
The UWM Graduate School will honor its new fellows with a celebration on October 4 at 4:30 p.m. in the Golda Meir Library 4th floor conference center.
PAWS will be inaccessible to students, staff, and instructors from 5 p.m. on Thursday, October 5 until 8 a.m. on Monday, October 9 to allow for a system upgrade. Campus units will be unable to provide services that require access to PAWS during this time. Please plan accordingly. Issues or questions that arise during or after the upgrade should be reported to the Help Desk at 414-229-4040 (toll free 877-381-3459) or https://uwm.edu/paws/help/.
UWM Korean Professors Association and Korean American Association of Milwaukee are hosting the 2017 KOREA Day Celebration on Friday, October 6 from 4:30-9:30 p.m. at the Helene Zelazo Center for the Performing Arts.
The Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning, along with the LGBT Resource Center and the Center for Inclusive Excellence, is offering an LGBTQ+ Inclusivity workshop series beginning October 27. Information and registration.
UWM hosts Pulitzer Prize winning author and historian Heather Ann Thompson to discuss issues of mass incarceration at “Lunchtime for Activists” on November 6 from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Dr. Thompson is the author of “Blood in the Water: the Attica Prison Uprising of 1971 and its Legacy.” Please consider bringing students to this event or encouraging them to attend. This is a free event and lunch is provided. Reservations.
You are also all invited to the Asian Faculty and Staff Association Awards Ceremony on Wednesday, November 8, from 3-4:30 p.m. in the Library 4th Floor Conference Center. Please RSVP to Christine Leung (leungc@uwm.edu) by Wednesday, November 1.
Registration is open for young Milwaukee fans to become one of Pounce’s Pals for 2017-18. Membership is only $10 and includes a variety of benefits, including free admission to select home Panther sporting events. Pounce’s Pals memberships are open to children in the eighth grade and under. Families with multiple children can register each additional child for only $5. For more information about Pounce’s Pals, please call (414) 229-5886 or email pounces-pals@uwm.edu.
University travel policies have been updated
Other
For bikers, check out this mirror.
Take care,
Johannes
Johannes Britz
Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs