Understanding Performance Management: A Guide for Non-supervisory Staff (11/3)

In this overview of the Performance Management Process (PMP) with Employment/Labor Relations Specialist Shobhna Arora, you will have an opportunity to learn about performance management and its components, the importance of setting goals and on-going communication, how to solicit and receive feedback, the benefits of completing a self-assessment and strategies for enhancing professional development. This session also covers tips and assistance in preparing for the mid-cycle performance review.

The workshop will be Thursday, November 3, 9 a.m.-noon, in The Commons Room 331.

Register by Wednesday, October 26, at umbc.edu/training.

Get a flyer with details at umbc.edu/hr/T&OD/schedule.htm.

Planning for Performance Management Success: A Guide for Supervisors (10/4)

This workshop is required training for all supervisors of regular and contingent II staff. In this overview of the performance management process (PMP), you will learn about the benefits of performance management, the importance of ongoing communication, the PMP cycle, how to use the PMP form and strategies for professional development. Elmer Falconer, director of employment/labor relations, is the instructor for this workshop.

The workshop will be Tuesday, October 4, 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m., in The Commons, Room 331.

Register by September 26th, at umbc.edu/training.

Get a flyer with details at umbc.edu/hr/T&OD/schedule.htm.

New Undergraduate Program Director at The Erickson School

From Judah Ronch, Dean and Professor, Erickson School

I am pleased to announce that Galina Madjaroff, lecturer, has been appointed the Undergraduate Program Director at the Erickson School. Ms. Madjaroff holds an M.A. in Management of Aging services from the Erickson School and a B.S. in Biology, Psychology and English from UMBC. She has been a lecturer and assistant program director at the Erickson School and has been instrumental in the development of the undergraduate program and some of its most innovative online and in-class courses. She has also been very active as an academic advisor and instructor for our First Year Seminar. She will begin PhD studies this fall in the Language, Literacy and Culture program at UMBC and plans to focus her research on the ways language usage affects and shapes perceptions and treatment of the elderly.

Please join me in congratulating her on her new position.

Video Co-Created by Vin Grabill to be Featured at Conference in England

A video by Vin Grabill, associate professor and chair of the Department of Visual Arts, will be presented at the International Computer Music Conference (ICMC) in Huddersfield, England on Wednesday, August 3. The video, “Pranayama 3,” was produced in collaboration with Grabill’s son, Elliott, who will attend the conference to represent both of them. The video can be viewed online here.

For more information about the 2011 ICMC, visit icmc2011.org.uk.

Robert Provine, Psychology, in the News

The world’s first “tickle spa” has opened in Spain, and professor of psychology Robert Provine doesn’t understand the appeal.

“Usually, people seeking a massage are seeking relaxation. Tickle is getting your blood pressure and heart rate up,” he tells MSN.com in a story entitled “Laugh it up: ‘Tickle spa’ opens in Spain.” The story appeared on the website on July 12.

Provine’s work was also recently covered in the Juneau Empire in a June 22 story entitled “Laughter: A Cure for What Ails You,” and in a July 6 Minneapolis City Pages story entitled “Laugh Yoga Practitioners Guffaw Their Way to Good Health.”

Ellen Handler Spitz, Honors College, on Australian National Radio

Ellen Handler Spitz, Honors College professor of visual arts, will be featured on Australian National Radio’s “ABC National Radio Book Show” at 10 a.m. on Friday, July 15.

The topic of the show will be L. Frank Baum’s “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz,” which Spitz recently reviewed in a column entitled “Yellow Brick Philosophy” in The New Republic.

UMBC Alumni Association Awards Scholarships to Outstanding Undergraduate Students

The UMBC Alumni Association is pleased to offer scholarships to outstanding current UMBC undergraduate students. The 2011-2012 recipients are Melanie Dell ’12, English (Legacy Scholarship); Jatnaa Fortuna ’11, psychology; Gift Jayakar ’12, biology; and Paige Khoury ’12, dance. One Legacy Scholarship is awarded annually to the child or grandchild of a UMBC alumnus/ae, while the remaining awards are need-based and available for application by all students who meet the stated criteria. Please also join us in celebrating this year’s student recipients for their accomplishments!

Read more about the scholarship recipients here.

Norris Calls Out Hypocrisy on Dream Act Flip-Flop

WBAL continued its coverage of Maryland’s referendum on a bill offering in-state tuition to undocumented students who fit certain criteria with a new investigative piece on the shifting positions of state politicians. UMBC chair of public policy Donald Norris suggested some GOP legislators’ new support for the referendum, after having voted previously for the bill, is “about political advantage” rather than principle. Norris clarified, “The Democrats would do the same thing” in another situation. When asked about the role of referendums in Maryland politics, where Republicans are seeking alternative ways to have an impact on a Democratic-controlled state house, Norris said, “I don’t think one referendum tells us that there is a trend… I think it would be too cumbersome to try to govern by referendum.”

Travel Reimbursement Rates

Effective July 1, 2011, the reimbursement rate for the use of a personal vehicle on authorized university business is .555/mile. The travel/miscellaneous expense form has been updated to reflect this change. The per diem rate for meals remains at $42/day and the breakdown is as follows:

$8.00 – Breakfast
$10.00 – Lunch
$24.00 – Dinner

Financial Services Authorized Signature Forms for FY 2012

In order to better serve the campus and maintain internal controls to ensure against unauthorized purchases and expenses, Financial Services is requesting that all departments update their authorized signature forms. The authorized signature forms are necessary to validate approvals for the payment of goods and services via payment request forms, working fund and petty cash, and for the processing and payment of miscellaneous and travel expenses. The form can be found on the Financial Services website at umbc.edu/FinancialServices under “What’s New?”

Please forward your completed forms to Peggy Ingle, supervisor, Business Services, 306 Administration Building, by August 19, 2011. If you have any questions concerning this request, please contact Ms. Ingle at ext. 5-2316 or pingle@umbc.edu. Outdated signature forms result in unnecessary delays in processing your important financial transactions, so please provide your updated form as soon as possible.