Archive for November, 2011
November 30, 2011
In an effort to continue to provide the most competitive and cost effective benefits in the market today, Guilford College is offering to all benefit eligible employees the opportunity to purchase optional Group Critical Illness Insurance and optional Accident Insurance through Unum that will become effective Jan. 1, 2012. The new enhanced offering will provide different levels of supplemental coverage.
To learn more, you can meet with a salaried benefit counselor on Dec. 6, 7 or 8 in the Hege Library Conference Room 131 from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. If you would like to meet with a benefit counselor, please contact DEBBIE CRAVEN in Human Resources at 336-316-2138 or dcraven2@guilford.edu to schedule an appointment.
If you are presently enrolled in any optional benefit plans with any of our current optional benefit carriers (such as AFLAC, Colonial Life, or American Heritage), they will be removed from payroll deduction effective Dec. 31, 2011. You will have the opportunity to continue payment by direct bill with them, or you can enroll in the Unum benefits.
November 30, 2011
Dec. 7, 2011 is the last day to enroll, or re-enroll, for the 2012 flexible spending plan. Human Rresources created a web page that provides all the information you need to enroll. Log-in is required. Please visit the website, familiarize yourself with the information and enrollment procedures, and enroll. There will be no enrollment extensions beyond Dec. 7.
If you have any questions after you’ve reviewed the materials, call Human Resources and Payroll. We’d be happy to assist you with the on-line enrollment.
November 30, 2011
This is the final week of the GuilfordShares annual giving campaign, which concludes Friday, Dec. 9. Help us exceed this year’s goals!
GuilfordShares supports non-profit organizations that serve the environmental, arts, human and social resource needs of our community: Earth Share of NC, the United Arts Council of Greater Greensboro, and the United Way of Greater Greensboro.
Faculty/Staff: Visit the GuilfordShares link to make a donation.
Students: Give via donation boxes in Founders and Hendricks Hall (recommended donation cap of $5).
Progress Update:
Total Participation: 40 percent,toward a goal of 50 percent participation among full-time employees
Total Donations: $21,402, toward a goal of $30,000
Donate to be entered in the pool for weekly prize drawings from the Guilford Bookstore donated by Follett. JERRY JOPLIN, SONYA MITCHELL-DUFFY and BRIAN WENGER are again coordinating the campaign. Along with the division representatives mentioned in the Beacon on Oct. 14, they can answer questions or provide additional packets. Remember, the campaign concludes Friday, Dec. 9.
November 30, 2011
ERIC MORTENSEN, associate professor of religious studies and chair of the Department of Religious Studies, presented a paper at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Religion (AAR) in San Francisco in November. His paper, “Then What are We Doing Here?: Kimberley Patton’s Religion of the Gods,” was part of a panel sponsored by the Comparative Studies in Religion section of the AAR assessing Patton’s recent award-winning book.
Mortensen was also made a co-chair of the Comparative Studies in Religion section of the AAR at the annual meeting, and was recognized for his reception of an Individual Research Grant from the AAR for his project: “Tales of the Unseen: Nags myi rgod Stories of the Tibetans of Geza,” the research for which he will conduct in the summer of 2012 in China.
November 29, 2011
Faculty, staff and students:
The College’s 10th annual budget letter has been prepared to help members of the campus community be more informed participants in our current budget discussions. It provides a review of the current budget estimates for fiscal year 2011-12 and an update on the final actual financial results for fiscal year 2010-11.
The Annual Fall Community Forum will be presented by the Budget Committee on Wednesday, Dec. 7, from 1:30-2:30 p.m. in the Joseph M. Bryan Jr. Auditorium. All students, faculty and staff are invited.
Click here to read the budget letter.
November 29, 2011
The men’s golf team is No. 1-ranked in the final NCAA Division III Golf World/Nike Golf and Golf Coaches Association of America Coaches’ Poll of the fall season. The Quakers earned 13 of the 15 first-place votes to maintain the top spot. Illinois Wesleyan University retained second with two first-place votes. The University of Texas at Tyler, Methodist University and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges round out the top five.
Guilford is also ranked No. 1 in the Nov. 16 Golfstat.com NCAA Division III Relative Rankings. The Quakers are in front of Claremont-Mudd-Scripps and Texas-Tyler in those ratings.
The Quakers earned their top rankings thanks to victories at the Golfweek Fall Invitational and the O’Briant-Jensen Memorial, along with a second-place effort at the Gordin Division III Preview. Guilford currently has two students ranked among the top 50 Division III players according to Golfstat.com’s Head-to-Head Player Standings, including top-ranked NOAH RATNER ’13, who won three of four events this fall. Ratner has also received ODAC Player of the Week three times this season.
Guilford returns to the links Feb. 27 at the Pine Needles Intercollegiate.
November 29, 2011
A memorial service for former Romance Languages faculty member LIGIA DIAZ MARXUACH HUNT is planned for 2 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 10, at Forbis & Dick N. Elm Street Chapel. Call 275-8408 for more information.
Hunt died on Oct. 19 at age 92, with burial following in Puerto Rico. She was an assistant professor emerita of Spanish who taught at Guilford from 1955 to 1984.
November 29, 2011
Human Resources and Payroll will be conducting preliminary training for hiring managers on the new online applicant tracking system (PeopleAdmin). If you’re going to be involved in the job posting process for your department, you’ll need to attend. These sessions will include demonstrations of how to post faculty, staff and student positions. As you may know, starting in January 2012, all positions will be posted through our PeopleAdmin website. We will no longer accept hard copy application forms and materials.
Training will be held in the New Garden Hall Boardroom.
Posting faculty positions: Friday, Dec. 2; Monday, Dec. 5; Tuesday, Dec. 6. All sessions are scheduled from 3:30-4:30 pm.
Posting staff positions: Thursday, Dec. 8; Tuesday, Dec. 13; Thursday, Dec. 15; Monday, Dec. 19. All sessions are scheduled from 3:30-4:30 pm.
Posting student positions: Tuesday, Dec. 20; Thursday, Dec. 22. All sessions are scheduled from 3:30-4:30 pm.
We’ll walk you through the creation and approval processes that we’ll use when creating new postings. Let us know which session you’d like to attend by e-mailing fdevine@guilford.edu.
November 29, 2011
Recent incidents at Penn State and Syracuse highlight the importance of paying attention to the legal and moral expectations Guilford College has for its faculty and staff when faced with the responsibility of reporting suspected child abuse. Included among our student population are traditional first year students under the age of 18, as well as minors enrolled in The Early College at Guilford. Minors attend the Eastern Music Festival and School and other camps on campus in the summer and at other times. Our proximity to minors may result in some of us becoming aware of information that would be of concern to authorities responsible for child welfare. Under these circumstances there is a moral imperative and perhaps even a legal duty to report this information.
Each state has its own laws governing whether a report is required or discretionary, and each state has its own system to receive and respond to reports of possible child abuse. In most states, including North Carolina, if a minor’s parent, guardian, custodian or “caretaker” engages in the abuse, any person who is aware of it has a duty to report it. Unlike “parent,” “guardian” or even “custodian,” exactly who is a “caretaker” under North Carolina law is subject to interpretation. However, rather than trying to parse legal definitions and determine whether or not a report is mandatory, we would do well to remember our moral obligation to do the right thing; not to cause harm to those who come on our campus or who otherwise put their trust in us; and to protect those who cannot adequately protect themselves. Therefore, when we reasonably suspect that a child is being abused, it is our duty as members of the Guilford College community to act in good faith and to report it.
Child abuse can be physical, sexual or emotional. Consider the possibility of abuse when a child:
Reports injury by a parent or another adult caregiver
Has unexplained burns, bites, bruises, broken bones, or black eyes
Has bruises or marks in non-prominent, fleshy areas of the body (for example, inside of biceps or behind the knees)
Has fading bruises or other marks noticeable after an absence from school
Displays overt sexualized behavior or exhibits sexual knowledge that is inconsistent with their age
Shows sudden changes in behavior or school performance
Seems frightened of the parents and protests or cries when it is time to go home from school
Shrinks at the approach of adults
Has not received medical attention for a physical injury that has been brought to the parents’ attention
Has learning problems that cannot be attributed to specific physical or psychological causes
Is always watchful, as though preparing for something bad to happen.
In North Carolina, mandatory reports should be made to the Department of Social Services (Child Protective Services) in the county in which the child resides. The phone number for Guilford County Child Protective Services is: (336) 641-3795. You are not required to give your name to the intake worker unless you would like to receive confirmation about the response to your report. In North Carolina, a reporting party is shielded from civil and criminal liability as long as the reporter acts in good faith.
If you are unsure about a situation and need guidance, the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline (1-800-4-A-CHILD) is staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Crisis counselors can direct your call to local support resources, and all calls are anonymous. Local law enforcement officials can also direct you to resources.
Should you be faced with the situation of having to make a report regarding an incident on our campus or involving a member of the Guilford College community, please notify the Dean of Students Office contemporaneously with your call to Child Protective Services.
A PDF of this document is available for printing.
If you have further questions about North Carolina law, Guilford College policies, or questions about reporting please contact AARON FETROW at 316-2186 or afetrow@guilford.edu.
November 28, 2011
The Friends Association for Higher Education has issued a call for papers to be presented at its annual conference June 21-24, 2012, at Wilmington (Ohio) College. This year’s theme is “Building Sustainable Academic Communities.”
The deadline for consideration of papers is Dec. 20. Information on the call for papers, which includes a set of queries, is available at the conference website.
The FAHE conference is held at one of 15 colleges with Quaker roots, to consider issues around a theme that will inform, refresh and inspire attendees. Questions can be addressed to KATE HOOD at 316-2178 or khood@guilford.edu.
