Author: Caelin Bragg

President Rick Muma and First Gentleman Rick Case cordially invite you to the Wichita State Winter Party from 2 to 5 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 30 in the Shirley Beggs Ballroom, third floor, Rhatigan Student Center. Attendees will be greeted by the President’s Executive Team and will receive a complimentary holiday glass — the second in a yearly series of vintage WuShock glasses — while supplies last (one per person). The Winter Party is a come and go event. 

A general arrival time is appreciated to assist our catering staff in preparations.

Kindly RSVP for one of the two time slots to let catering know when you are planning to attend by Wednesday, Nov. 22.

Housing and Residence Life staff were recognized as the next recipient of Rick Rewards on Oct. 30. The staff were honored for their round the clock, seven days a week support to all Shockers living on campus and for their work during move-in week helping new Shockers through the heat advisory.

Rick Rewards is awarded each month by President Rick Muma to show his appreciation for the efforts of the campus community.

To help faculty and staff plan their time off and work schedules throughout the year, Wichita State shares the winter closedown period schedule that has been approved for this year.

The closedown will commence at the end of the day on Dec. 18, 2023, and WSU will reopen the morning of Jan. 2, 2024. The closedown is 10 days, two of which are paid holidays and four are paid days so you will not be required to use accrued leave for those six days. Classes will not be in session during this period.

Employees who would normally be scheduled to work the days may use accumulated vacation leave or their 2023 discretionary day* during the winter closedown. Non-exempt employees can also use accumulated compensatory time off during the winter closedown.

If your role requires you to work during the winter closedown it must be approved in advance by your immediate supervisor. For those that are required to work during the winter closedown, we appreciate your dedication and service to the university.

Schedule of winter closedown:

• Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2023
• Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2023
• Thursday, Dec. 21, 2023
• Friday, Dec. 22, 2023
• Monday, Dec. 25, 2023 (Paid Holiday)
• Tuesday, Dec. 26, 2023 (Paid Day)
• Wednesday, Dec. 27, 2023 (Paid Day)
• Thursday, Dec. 28, 2023 (Paid Day)
• Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 (Paid Day)
• Monday Jan. 1, 2024 (Paid Holiday)

An employee must be in pay status the entire workday before and the entire workday after state holidays to receive holiday pay. The official state holidays are Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.

Please refer to these frequently asked questions for more information on your leave days and what to do if you work during the winter closedown.

*The discretionary day for 2023 must be used on or before Dec. 23, 2023.

Any faculty or staff who are interested in being involved with the Women’s Leadership Initiative are invited to a planning meeting at 9 a.m. Thursday, Nov 2 in 266 Rhatigan Student Center, Pike Room. 

At the meeting, attendees will break into working groups such as mentoring circles, professional development, conference planning and social/networking opportunities.

As WSU evolves and refines the pay variables utilized in the Market Based Compensation (MBC) Program, collecting and analyzing our employees’ work history for relevance to their current position is necessary. Understanding an employee’s relevant work history will provide additional information to assist in the proper placement of individual employees within the correct pay range quartile and allow the university to analyze the gap in pay for our existing employees. During the recent stakeholder feedback sessions with university leadership, there was overwhelming support from leaders to explore options for collecting this information for the FY25 pay analysis.

We are pleased to share that we have identified a method for collecting related work experience data. In the coming weeks, we will launch a survey process to capture the work history for all benefit eligible, non-teaching employees*. Here is what you can expect of this process:

• Step 1: Employees self-report work experience via a secure, online survey.
• Step 2: Self-reported data is analyzed by Segal Consulting to identify where further review or information may be needed.
• Step 3: Leaders review and make final determination of the total years of experience to be utilized for their respective employees.

The timeline for collecting the data will be tight, and we appreciate your prompt attention and response during the self-reporting phase of the process. More information on how to access the survey will be provided via email closer to the kick-off date, which is anticipated in early November.

*This collection process will include benefit-eligible, staff employees who participate in the MBC program. Employees not included in the data collection include faculty, Division of Industry & Defense Programs employees, coaches, non-benefit eligible employees and students. Faculty are not included in this data collection because faculty rank is used in lieu of prior work history.

CALL TO ACTION: Start gathering your work history so it makes self-reporting your work history easier to complete. Below are links that will assist you in gathering this information. Please note: these systems may not contain your entire related work history, so you may still need to gather additional information.

Click here to learn how to view your WSU job history since January 2006.

Click here to learn how to view your application for employment, if you applied for a job with WSU after March 26, 2014.

Hello, Shocker family!

Even though it’s only October, I’m likely not the only one who is thinking ahead to the upcoming holiday season. Having a break to rest and refresh — as well as spend time with loved ones — is one of the many perks of working at Wichita State.

And on that note, I’m happy to announce that for this year’s winter break — in alignment with other Regents universities — benefits-eligible WSU employees will also be given Dec. 26-29 without having to use accrued leave time, in addition to Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.

The winter break will look like this:

• Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2023 (accrued leave)
• Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2023 (accrued leave)
• Thursday, Dec. 21, 2023 (accrued leave)
• Friday, Dec. 22, 2023 (accrued leave)
• Monday, Dec. 25, 2023 (paid holiday)
• Tuesday, Dec. 26, 2023 (paid day)
• Wednesday, Dec. 27, 2023 (paid day)
• Thursday, Dec. 28, 2023 (paid day)
• Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 (paid day)
• Monday Jan. 1, 2024 (paid holiday)

Please refer to these frequently asked questions for more information on your leave days and what to do if you work during the winter break.

Thank you for all you do to make Shocker Nation what it is. Your efforts, enthusiasm and dedication are truly appreciated.

I hope you enjoy the rest of the semester and are looking forward to an enjoyable and relaxing winter break.

Go Shockers!
President Rick Muma

Open Enrollment for 2024 closes at 11:59 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 31. If you have not yet submitted your enrollment by that time, you will be enrolled in a default medical plan. Members who waived medical coverage in 2023 will continue to be waived in 2024 if they do not submit an enrollment.

Still need help making your 2024 election decision? Don’t worry, just ask ALEX.

The Total Rewards team has created multiple instructional documents with images of the portal and step-by-step instructions. Get help with:

• Logging in/Registering your account
• Adding a new dependent to coverage
• Making your online elections

Please take advantage of the scheduled virtual and in-person presentations, as well as on-demand options. For additional information visit the Open Enrollment Website. Any questions should be directed to TotalRewards@wichita.edu.

Wichita State University is hosting the annual Expanding Your Horizons Workshop, a one-day event from 8 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28 that introduces middle school girls to a variety of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) areas.

Attendees will meet STEM role models, participate in hands-on activities and learn more about careers in those fields. The keynote speaker is Clarice Phelps, an American nuclear chemist at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory. She is recognized as the first African American woman to be involved with the discovery of a chemical element.

Registration is $15 and includes lunch, a T-shirt and a WSU bag.

Faculty from the College of Fine Arts at Wichita State University and WSU’s Innovation Campus partners assembled for an hour of networking and making connections Oct. 25.

Featured faculty from each school in the College of Fine Arts shared a sample of scholarly and creative activities to Innovation Campus partners and other faculty from across campus. 

The mixer was part of a series of networking opportunities facilitated by WSU to encourage knowledge sharing and establish relationships among faculty and Innovation Campus partners. The College of Applied Studies was the featured college for the spring mixer.

2024 Benefits Open Enrollment is almost over. Log in to the Member Administration Portal to make your elections.

All benefits-eligible state employees must make their 2024 elections by the deadline on Oct. 31. Employees enrolled in medical coverage who do not make a new election will be defaulted into medical Plan N with a use-it-or-lose-it HRA.

Take advantage of the scheduled virtual and in-person presentations, as well as on-demand options. For additional information, visit the Open Enrollment website. Any questions should be directed to TotalRewards@wichita.edu.