July 2023 Newsletter

 

Happy New (Fiscal) Year!

We hope you are enjoying the summer season so far.  Though we miss the student population on campus during this time of the year, the plentiful parking spaces cannot be complained about.  For the preparation of summer research, the Dean’s Office and the Departments collectively processed 238 payroll authorizations for summer 2023 payroll.  Way to go, everyone!  Great teamwork!

 

Fiscal Updates:

    FY23 Fiscal Year End and FY24 New Fiscal Year

• FY23 and FY24 are both open in KFS as of 7/1/23
• Default will be FY24
  • As you begin to look at balances on your accounts in KFS, please note the following:
  • Though FY24 is default on balance inquiries, you have the option to change to FY 2023 by typing over 2024
  • When looking at FY23 balances on the “General Ledger Balance” inquiry, there is an additional period called “Year End.” This is where you will see any activity posted after June 30, 2023 that relates to Fiscal Year 2023. On the General Ledger Entry inquiry, you will see these transactions in Fiscal Period “13”
  • KFS has the ability to show the prior year balances carried over into the new fiscal year. Ending balances from FY23, which are scheduled to be loaded overnight on July 1st as pending entries, will be regularly updated into FY24 until the final close in August
• Encumbrances:
  • New FY24 external encumbrances (Purchase Orders) are in KFS.
  • Prior Year external encumbrances that are carried forward into FY24 are also in KFS
  • FY24 payroll encumbrances will be posted the week of July 3, 2023

• CCR – this will be processed by the Business Office in period 13
  • For programs that have been identified as entrepreneurial for revenue sharing, we will be processing the transfers to recoup a portion of the revenue generated for Provost’s Office and CAHNR Dean’s Office per policy – for more information, please refer to the Entrepreneurial Revenue Distribution Policy found on the College Intranet

• FY23 Carry Forward
  • If your department is scheduled to receive any carry forward funding, the transfer of funds will not occur until after the FY23 hard close, which will likely be at the end of August

• Business Office Reports
  • In July, there will be two report distributions for department and faculty reports.  As we move through the first couple of weeks of July, the Business Office will be preparing account budgets and update all accounts to reflect the starting FY24 balances
  • July 1^st – will reflect FY23 ending balances; These will be the last report distribution for FY23
  • By July 13^th – FY24 will be generated and distributed reflecting FY24 beginning balances

• Salary Savings Accounts
  • Reminder – the BO will load any remaining prior year (FY23) salary saving account spendable balances for depts. and faculty on July 1st. These funds expire 6/30/2024
  • Salary Savings earned in FY23 will be distributed on 7/1/2024 (FY24).  These funds expire 6/30/2025
  • The same account will be utilzed and sub-accounts will identify what funds will expire in a given year.
  • The Business Office is in the process of developing a new report to capture this information

• CAHNR Awards
  • For those who received CAHNR Awards, the BO will establish new 6L RFNDO accounts and will manage any Foundation Disbursements by the end of FY24
  • These accounts will have the award recipient listed as the ‘Account supervisor’, and will be included in their monthly account statements starting July 14^th

• AY23-24 Grad Pre-Encumbrance
  • The BO will once again be loading pre-encumbrance for Grad payroll.  Last year, only GAs coded to sponsored program accounts were pre-encumbered.  Due to the positive feedback we received regarding this project, this year the BO will also be pre-encumbering for GAs coded to university accounts in addition to sponsored program accounts.
  • The pre-encumbrance will be reflected in the FY24 monthly reports

• Start-Up Accounts
  • The BO will be working to establish all new 8/23/23 faculty Start-Up accounts (if not completed already)
  • Reminder – Faculty (in most cases) will have three (3) 2-Ledger Start-Up Accounts:
    • Faculty Summer salary
    • GA’ Support
    • Equipment/Discretionary
  • The BO will serve as FO on both the Faculty Summer Salary and GA support accounts

• Federal Accounts (Smith Lever, SAES Capacity)
  • Beginning this month (July), the BO will begin its annual review and establishment of the FY24 Federal Accounts
  • This will be an ongoing process until the new Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) opens on 10/1/2023 (FFY24)

• FY24 Fringe Rates
  • Fringe benefit rates for University Programs, Sponsored Programs, Federal Agriculture and Smith Lever have been finalized for FY24: https://bpir.uconn.edu/home/operating-budget/fringe-benefit-rates/

 

   Purchasing Update

• Link to the March 29^th training video on Purchasing and Huskybuy: https://kaltura.uconn.edu/media/Procurement+and+HuskyBuy+Training+Edit/1_n1jcs4ur

 

   Travel Update

• For trips longer than 30 days, requests for long-term per diem support will only be approved with justification for why extended per diem support is required.
• This may include specific requirements of research, limitations on accommodation related to the area of travel, non-food expenses that are being supported through per diems, or issues related to the individual context of travel
• For more information, click here

 

    Business Office email update (CAHNRBO@uconn.edu)

• • To provide better accountability and timely responses to inquiries sent to the CAHNRBO mailbox, we will be utilizing an internal ticketing system.  There will be minimal changes as communication will still be done via email.  Our responses may include a ticket number in the subject line for reference

 

HR (Human Resources) and Payroll Updates:

Fall 2023 Payroll Deadlines

• Fall Graduate Students
  • Smart-HR Deadlines
    • Internal BO deadline was Friday, June 30^th.  Please submit ASAP for any SmartHRs not yet processed.
    • University Deadline: Friday, July 14^th
  • Please note: since 2024 is a leap year, the end date for an academic year appointment will be 5/21/24 (instead of the usual 5/22)

 

• Adjunct Faculty
  • PageUp Deadline
    • University Deadline: was Friday, May 26^th
  • Smart-HR Deadline
    • Business Office Deadline: Wednesday, July 19^th
    • University Deadline: Friday, July 28^th

   AAUP Faculty Smart-HR Blackout period

• Due to the merit process, there will be a blackout period for all AAUP bargaining unit members on: August 2^nd – August 22^nd
• Please do not submit any faculty continuations/renewals or other faculty changes during this blackout period – this applies to any transactions effective 8/23/23 and beyond

 

PageUp

• Trainings
  • Regular Payroll
    • July 17^th from 9:30am to 12:30pm (Register)
    • August 10^th from 9:30am to 12:30pm (Register)
  • Special Payroll
    • July 18^th from 9:30am to 11:30am (Register)
    • August 11^th from 9:30am to 11:30am (Register)

• Search Audits
  • Reminder for search audits submitted via PageUp, should route to Business Office for review for both initial search and hire request
  • Search: Add Amanda Masztal as the Org Head in the approval process for these search audit hires.
    • Hire request: select “CAHNR Department: Audit”
    • Amanda should be listed as the Dean’s Office approver

 

CAHNR Internal Professional Development Opportunities:

The CAHNR’s Dean’s Office is committed to providing opportunities for faculty, staff, and graduate students to expand their professional knowledge and skills. Throughout the year, the Dean’s Office will organize workshops and offer training, that will help the CAHNR community grow. Workshops and training will focus on fostering employee understanding and abilities in both hard and soft skills, such as in communication, HR/Payroll competency, and creativity.

As Professional Development Opportunities are finalized, they will be listed on our website here. Please be sure to check regularly for new learning opportunities and other about upcoming events.

• Business Office Open Hour
• Thursday, July 20^th – from 12:00PM – 1:00PM, Young 209 with a virtual option
  • In July the Business Office will host “Office Hours”
  • This hour will be left open and available for any topic and/or questions.
  • Please feel free to email us at CAHNRBO@uconn.edu if you have any questions about the upcoming session, or if you have anything you would like to know more about

• CAHNR Admin Meeting TBD (Sept 2023)

 

Shout Out:

• Welcome:
  • Jessica Staack, Financial Assistant 1, CAHNR Business Office
• Farewells:
  • Well wishes to:
    • Sabrina Jahnke, Administrative Program Support 1, PVS
    • Mnal Sahoobah, Administrative Program Support 1, KINS/KSI

 

Fun facts about this month in history:

• July 3, 1806 – The first cultivated strawberry is displayed by Michael Kent
• July 18, 1920 – Hammonasset Beach State Park (Connecticut’s largest public beach) first opened to the public
• July 20, 1969 – In “one small step for Man, one giant step for Mankind”, Astronaut Neil Armstrong becomes the first person to walk on the moon.

June 2023 Newsletter 

Fiscal Updates: 

• FY23 Fiscal Year End 
• • FY23 University Year-End Deadlines 
    • https://accountingoffice.uconn.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/143/2023/03/Year-End-Deadlines-63023.pdf 
    • Internal BO Deadlines 
      • Financial Processing (DI, GLT, TF, ST, BA, SSBA) – Wed, June 14^th  
      • Foundation Reimbursement (RFD) – Wed, June 14^th 
  • Foundation Reimbursement 
    • Reconciliation process – the BO will be directly processing RFDs for the departments that have an arrangement with us 
    • For the departments that would like to utilize the BO for this process, please reach out to cahnrbo@uconn.edu 

 

• • CCR – this will be processed by the Business Office in period 13  
    • For programs that have been identified as entrepreneurial for revenue sharing, we will be processing the transfers to recoup a portion of the revenue generated for Provost’s Office and CAHNR Dean’s Office per policy – for more information, please refer to the Entrepreneurial Revenue Distribution Policy found on the College Intranet 

 

• • Business Office Reports 
    • In July, there will be two report distributions for department and faculty reports.  As we move through the first couple of weeks of July, the Business Office will be preparing account budgets and update all accounts to reflect the starting FY24 balances 
    • July 1^st – will reflect FY23 ending balances; These will be the last report distribution for FY23 
    • By July 14^th – will reflect FY24 beginning balances 

 

• FY24 New Fiscal Year 
• • FY24 University Fringe Rates (email May 1^st) 
    • Fringe benefit rates for University Program accounts in FY24 will remain the same as FY23 – see attached email 
    • Fringe rates are found here: https://bpir.uconn.edu/home/operating-budget/fringe-benefit-rates/ 

 

• • Salary Savings Accounts 
    • Reminder – the BO will load any remaining prior year (FY23) salary saving account spendable balances for depts. and faculty on July 1^st. These funds expire 6/30/2024 
    • Salary Savings earned in FY23 will be distributed on 7/1/2024 (FY24).  These funds expire 6/30/2025 

 

• • CAHNR Awards 
    • For those who received CAHNR Awards, the BO will establish new 6L RFNDO accounts and will manage any Foundation Disbursements by the end of FY24 
    • These accounts will have the award recipient listed as the ‘Account supervisor’, and will be included in their monthly account statements starting July 14^th  

 

• Faculty Overload: 
  • Effective immediately, special payroll appointments that are approved to be categorized as faculty overload will be charged to object codes 5234 (Payroll – Faculty Overload) and 5634 (Fringe Benefits – Faculty Overload).  All requests for overload pay must be approved by the department head, dean, provost, and Human Resources as needed via the University’s formal approval process in advance of the start of the activity. 
  • Procedural Steps: 
    • For overload appointments processed through PageUp, these object codes will be triggered by selecting the option “Special Payroll – Approved Faculty Overload” on the PageUp Special Payroll Offer Card.  
    • For overload appointments processed directly in Core-CT via entering the Smart HR “UConn Hire Template – Special Payroll Teaching” (UC_TBH_SPT) template into Core-CT, these object codes will be triggered by changing the “EMPL Class” field in “Job Info” tab to “CC”. 
    • More information on the appropriate use of overload and the approval process can be found in the Faculty Compensation Policy and Faculty Compensation Procedures.  

 

HR (Human Resources) and Payroll Updates: 

• Fall 2023 Payroll Deadlines 
  • Fall Graduate Students 
    • Smart-HR Deadlines – SmartHR submitted to B.O. by Friday, June 30^th 
    • Payroll Deadline – Friday, July 14^th
    • Please note: since 2024 is a leap year, the end date for an academic year appointment will be 5/21/24 (instead of the usual 5/22) 
  • Adjunct Faculty 
    • PageUp Deadline 
      • University Deadline: was Friday, May 26^th  
    • Smart-HR Deadline  
      • Business Office Deadline: Wednesday, July 19^th 
      • University Deadline: Friday, July 28^th  

  

• Graduate Assistant Payroll 
  • Graduate School Timely Topics – see the attached email 
    • Thursday June 1^st at 1pm – Preparing for Fall: Graduate Assistant Payroll Procedures 
  • NEW Graduate Employee Union (GEU) contract – IMPORTANT UPDATE: 
    • Continuing Fall Graduate Assistant Offer Letters need to be sent to students by June 1st   
    • Supplemental Description of Duties – Due at time of Entry into Smart-HR 
  • Grad Payroll 
    • New Online Supplemental Description of Duties Form  
      • Email from Megan Petsa on 5/10 
      • The new KualiBuild form is available for use by all departments – not required, paper forms or department-specific templates can still be used 
      • Link: Graduate School – GA Supplemental Description of Duties Form 

  

• Wage Increases   – effective June 1, 2023 
  • Adjunct Faculty (see attached email) 
    • Effective August 23, 2023, per AAUP Contract Article 19.7, the following updates will be in effect: 
      • Adjunct faculty per credit minimum rate is $1,973.  
      • Adjuncts who have worked more than four semesters of continuous employment must minimally earn the 2% increased per credit rate of $2,012.46. 
      • Adjuncts who have worked more than twelve semesters of continuous employment must minimally earn the 3% increased per credit rate of $2,032.19. 
    • The updated rates for adjunct faculty can be found on the Special Payroll Information webpage, in the Compensation section. Any adjunct faculty hire requests for the Fall 2023 semester that are submitted with the old rates will be updated by the Special Payroll team prior to approval of the hire request. 
  • Special Payroll and Student Employees 
    • Connecticut State Minimum Wage increases to $15 per hour 
      

 

CAHNR Internal Professional Development Opportunities:  

The CAHNR’s Dean’s Office is committed to providing opportunities for faculty, staff, and graduate students to expand their professional knowledge and skills. Throughout the year, the Dean’s Office will organize workshops and offer training, that will help the CAHNR community grow. Workshops and training will focus on fostering employee understanding and abilities in both hard and soft skills, such as in communication, HR/Payroll competency, and creativity.  

As Professional Development Opportunities are finalized, they will be listed on our website here. Please be sure to check regularly for new learning opportunities and other about upcoming events.  

  

• CAHNR Connection
  • Wednesday, June 14^th – from 11:00 AM to 1:30 PM, Ratcliffe Hicks Arena 
    • Staff are invited for the inaugural CAHNR Connection event for fun-filled afternoon of professional development, networking, and food. 

 

• Business Office Open Hour  
  • Thursday, June 18^th – from 12:00PM – 1:00PM, Young 209 with a virtual option   
    • In June the Business Office will host “Office Hours” 
    • This hour will be left open and available for any topic and/or questions. 
    • Please feel free to email us at CAHNRBO@uconn.edu if you have any questions about the upcoming session, or if you have anything you would like to know more about 

 

Shout Out: 

• Good Luck:  
  • Victoria Lowther (KINS) 
  • Erica Maclean (Dean’s Office)