March 2024 Newsletter

March 2024 Newsletter

Fiscal Updates:

  • Summer 2024 Faculty Payrolls 
    • The Business Office will be processing summer faculty salary against any grant/contract, start-up, and/or any other salary commitments from the Dean’s Office  
      • This process will begin in early March and continue through April 12th, which is the B.O. Deadline for Summer Payroll with an effective date of 5/22/2024  
    • Departments will continue to be responsible for processing non-grant summer payrolls. 
      • 11-month Faculty 
        • The B.O will work with faculty to process the summer hire  
        • This will include the PageUp Request and the Smart-HR Transaction   
    • Important Reminder:  
      • The updated overload policy allows faculty to be eligible to earn up to an additional 25% over their summer salary (12/12ths) for non-research activity (May and winter intersession, summer teaching, CETL course development, etc.) 
      • The overload must be requested and approved prior to the start of the non-research activity 
      • If you are processing special payroll compensation for your research-active faculty, please contact the B.O. to start the overload request  
  • Summer Pre-encumbrances 
    • The B.O. will be pre-encumbering salary and fringe for FY24 and FY25 (starting 6/14/24 onwards) for the following payroll types:   
      • Summer Grads, Faculty Summer, and other Special Payroll appointments on grant accounts  
      • The Pre-encumbrance will be reflected in the May 1st reports 
  • KFS Migration Update
    • Beginning at 3pm on Thursday, March 14th to Sunday, March 17th Kuali Financials (KFS) will be locked for the migration.  
    • After March 17th, a new web link will be provided via email and various websites
    • Please plan accordingly for this outage including processing any action list items, executing any necessary transactions or balance inquiries, and running any reports you may need prior to 3/14.
    • HuskyBuy will be available during the migration until 9pm on Friday, March 15th.  Due to the tight integrations with Kuali Financials, any transactions not fully approved or created after 3pm on 3/14 will be held in queue.  They will be sent to KFS once the new environment has been validated and confirmed ready on 3/17.  We strongly encourage entering/approving any orders, invoices, or vendors in the system prior to 3/14

 

    HR (Human Resources) and Payroll Updates:

    • Grad Summer 2024 
      • Important Dates 
        • Summer dates are 5/22/2024-8/22/2024  
        • Due to PageUp: 3/15/2024  
        • Approval in Page Up: 4/10/2024  
        • Smart-HR (Internal BO) Submit by 4/12/2024  
        • Smart-HR (University) Approved by 4/19/2024  
      • Reminders: 
        • Please include a print-out of the Grad calculator in your PageUp requests 
        • Submit a PageUp request for each unique funding period.  In the Smart-HR Special Payroll hire template, the appointment’s start and end dates are sourced directly from the PageUp record and are not editable. This could lead to inaccuracies in encumbrance if adjustments to funding are required 
    • Pre-Employment Background Check Policy
      • Effective February 16, 2024, HR will begin a phased implementation of educational and degree verifications as part of the pre-employment background check process at the university
      • As part of this process, HR will assess which degree needs verification based on the minimum qualifications when approving the hire request. They will begin assessing regular payroll appointments with the anticipation that other relevant payroll titles will also undergo this process later in the year
      • This will not affect workflow for departments. The actual degree verification will be facilitated by HR as part of the existing background check
      • Pre-Employment Background Checks will continue to be centrally administered, now via the Workforce Solutions team at Human Resources. Any questions regarding the new process can be directed to hr-cbc@uconn.edu
          • From the Graduate School:
            • Spring 2024 – Last day of work for GAs holding F-1 and J-1 visas 
              • Graduate students who complete their degree requirements during Spring ‘24 and have their degree conferred in May will no longer be pursuing their degree after May 5, 2024 
              • Time between May 4, 2024 through May 21, 2024 should be treated as time off for any GA who holds an F-1 or J-1 visa and whose degree is conferred on May 5,2024 
              • Refer to attached email for additional information 
            • Fall 2024 Grad 
              • Refer to attached email from the Grad School regarding April 15th resolution 
            • New award letter template for departmental fellowships – see email from 1/14/24 
              • From the Grad School: template includes language for fellowship award letters where the dept. intends for the grad to receive same total stipend as if they were full GA 
            • Graduate School Timely Topics 
                • Thursday, March 7 at 1pm – Embedding Career Readiness in Your Courses
                • Thursday, March 28 at 11am – Doctoral Degrees, Master’s Degrees, and Graduate Certificates: A Comprehensive Overview of Degree Audit Processes
                • Thursday, April 11 at 11am – Best Practices in Onboarding and Graduating International Students
          • PageUp Trainings 
            • Regular Payroll   
              • March 25 from 9:00am to 12:00pm (Register) 
            • Special Payroll   
              • March 25 from 9:00am to 11:00am (Register) 

           

          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 Workshop – We have renamed the B.O. Open Hour to B.O. Workshop. 
                  • Monday, March 18th
                  • Topics: Fall Grad Payroll Processing
                  • If you would like to receive the calendar invitation, please contact CAHNRBO@uconn.edu
            • 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 Staff Advisory Council (SAC)
            • Visit the CAHNR Staff SharePoint Site for opportunities with professional development, networking, and even hobby and wellness events.

            Shout Out:

            • Well wishes
                • Michael Fitzcordoba, Financial Assistant 1, CAHNR Business Office

             

            Fun “Dad” Jokes:

            • What do bees wear in the rain? Their yellow jackets
            • What do you call it when it rains turkeys and chickens? Fowl weather.
            • I worked on unclogging the tub for nearly an hour. Now I feel so drained.
            • Why did the farmer bury all his money? To make his soil rich.

            February 2024 Newsletter

            February 2024 Newsletter

            Fiscal Updates:

            • Summer 2024 Faculty Payrolls 
              • The Business Office will be processing summer faculty salary against any grant/contract, start-up, and/or any other salary commitments from the Dean’s Office  
                • This process will begin in early March and continue through April 12th, which is the B.O. Deadline for Summer Payroll with an effective date of 5/22/2024  
              • Departments will continue to be responsible for processing non-grant summer payrolls. 
                • 11-month Faculty 
                  • The B.O will work with faculty to process the summer hire  
                  • This will include the PageUp Request and the Smart-HR Transaction   
              • Important Reminder:  
                • The updated overload policy allows faculty to be eligible to earn up to an additional 25% over their summer salary (12/12ths) for non-research activity (May and winter intersession, summer teaching, CETL course development, etc.) 
                • The overload must be requested and approved prior to the start of the non-research activity 
                • If you are processing special payroll compensation for your research-active faculty, please contact the B.O. to start the overload request  
            • Summer Pre-encumbrances 
              • The B.O. will be pre-encumbering salary and fringe for FY24 and FY25 (starting 6/14/24 onwards) for the following payroll types:   
                • Summer Grads, Faculty Summer, and other Special Payroll appointments on grant accounts  
                • The Pre-encumbrance will be reflected in the May 1st reports 
            • Annual Cash Handling Training 
              • Anyone involved in handling cash and cash equivalents are required to complete the Annual Cash Handling Training for FY24 
              • Access to submit depositing eDocs in KFS may be removed if training is not completed
              • Training may be found in Learning@Work

             

            Procurement Updates:

            • Apple Computer Orders 
              • CT DAS contract used by the University expires 1/31/24. Until a new contract is finalized, the Apple contract and HuskyBuy punchout will be unavailable until further notice 
              • Apple product requests may be filled through other suppliers in the HuskyBuy catalog, including but not limited to CDW-G and GovConnection 
            • The UConn Foundation is now accepting credit card payments 
              • If you are planning an event at The UConn Foundation that requires an agreement to be signed, you must submit the agreement request on the new Hotel & Events Service Request form in Huskybuy 
              • Once the agreement is executed, your Travel Card may be used for payment (requisitions are no longer processed for these transactions) 
            • PCard Software Exception Process 
              • There is a form in Huskybuy to request exception for buying software on PCard 
              • The streamlined review of PCard requested software and cloud purchases helps ensure that the potential Supplier’s privacy and security policies and practices protect confidential University data 
              • University PCard holders should consider the data security and privacy implications and potential risks of purchasing software and c loud services 
              • This process may be used by PCard holders only and if the following conditions apply: 
                • Supplier will not/refuses to register in HuskyBuy and/or 
                • Supplier will not/refuses to accept UConn Purchase Order 
              • For more information, visit purchasing.ubs.uconn.edu/2023/07/11/huskybuy-pcard-software-exception-process/ 
            • Procurement Support Reminder 
                • See “Huskybuy Broadcast” email from 1/26/24 

             

              HR (Human Resources) and Payroll Updates:

              • Grad Summer 2024 
                • Important Dates 
                  • Summer dates are 5/22/2024-8/22/2024  
                  • Due to PageUp: 3/15/2024  
                  • Approval in Page Up: 4/10/2024  
                  • Smart-HR (Internal BO) Submit by 4/12/2024  
                  • Smart-HR (University) Approved by 4/19/2024  
                • Reminders: 
                  • Please include a print-out of the Grad calculator in your PageUp requests 
                  • Submit a PageUp request for each unique funding period.  In the Smart-HR Special Payroll hire template, the appointment’s start and end dates are sourced directly from the PageUp record and are not editable. This could lead to inaccuracies in encumbrance if adjustments to funding are required 
              • Smart-HR Reminder: 
                    • When submitting Smart-HR, please include the following information in the comments: 
                      • Employee name 
                      • Employee number 
                      • Dept. 
                      • Effective dates 
                      • Funding change: from accounts and to accounts and % distribution 
                      • Example: 

                        John Doe; Empl id #999999; CAHNR Dean’s Office, 1/1/24 – 12/31/24;  

                        From 2XXXXXX – 50%, 4XXXXXX – 50% 

                        To 2YYYYYY – 50%, 4YYYYYY – 50% 

                  • From the Graduate School:
                    • Spring 2024 – Last day of work for GAs holding F-1 and J-1 visas 
                      • Graduate students who complete their degree requirements during Spring ‘24 and have their degree conferred in May will no longer be pursuing their degree after May 5, 2024 
                      • Time between May 4, 2024 through May 21, 2024 should be treated as time off for any GA who holds an F-1 or J-1 visa and whose degree is conferred on May 5,2024 
                      • Refer to attached email for additional information 
                    • Fall 2024 Grad 
                      • Refer to attached email from the Grad School regarding April 15th resolution 
                    • New award letter template for departmental fellowships – see email from 1/14/24 
                      • From the Grad School: template includes language for fellowship award letters where the dept. intends for the grad to receive same total stipend as if they were full GA 
                    • Graduate School Timely Topics 
                      • Thursday, February 1 at 1pm – Effective Teachers and Productive Professionals: Givings TAs and Future Faculty What They Need to Succeed 
                      • Thursday, February 8 at 11am – Doctoral Degrees, Master’s Degrees, and Graduate Certificates: A Comprehensive Overview of Degree Audit Processes 
                      • Thursday, February 22 at 11am – Graduate Student Trends and Patterns: Insight from the Ombuds Office 
                  • PageUp Trainings 
                    • Regular Payroll   
                      • February 26 from 9:00am to 12:00pm (Register) 
                      • March 25 from 9:00am to 12:00pm (Register) 
                    • Special Payroll   
                      • February 27 from 9:00am to 11:00am (Register) 
                      • March 25 from 9:00am to 11:00am (Register) 

                   

                  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 Workshop – We have renamed the B.O. Open Hour to B.O. Workshop. 
                      • Monday, February 26th (in-person or virtual)
                      • Topics: Summer Grad Payroll Processing
                      • If you would like to receive the calendar invitation, please contact CAHNRBO@uconn.edu
                    • 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 Staff Advisory Council (SAC)
                    • Visit the CAHNR Staff SharePoint Site for opportunities with professional development, networking, and even hobby and wellness events.

                    Shout Out:

                    • Well wishes
                      • Melanie Desch, EXT Windham County

                     

                    Fun “Dad” Jokes:

                    • As a farmer, I hear lots of jokes about sheep.  I’d tell them to my dog, but he’d herd them all
                    • Did you hear about the guy who was afraid of hurdles? He got over it
                    • What’s an astronaut’s favourite part of a computer? The space bar
                    • What did the mama cow say to the baby cow? It’s pasture bedtime

                    January 2024 Newsletter

                    January 2024 Newsletter

                    Fiscal Updates:

                      • Spring ‘24 Payroll Pre-Encumbrance
                        • Similar to the Fall Grad pre-encumbrance load, the B.O. will be pre-encumbering PA that cross into the 2024 calendar year for the following payroll types:
                            • Adjunct on 2Ls
                            • Grads – all accounts
                        • PE will be reflected on Dec 1st and Jan 1st reports
                        • Department 4-L Revenue Accounts
                          • To prepare for FY24 year end, the Business Office will be adjusting the balances on all department 4-L revenue-based accounts to reflect actual revenue received to date vs. projected annual revenue
                            • Budgets will be adjusted on a weekly basis to reflect any additional revenue received
                            • This process will occur in January.  Therefore, when you view available balances in KFS (Kuali Financial System) they will be reflective of actual available funding.
                            • This will also reflect in the monthly reports that will batch on February 1st

                        Procurement Update:

                        • New Hotel & Events Services Form Request (email from 11/30/23)
                          • Travel Card for purchases such as hotel room blocks and catering for events
                          • New form can be found in HuskyBuy on the Home Shopping Page under Internal Request Forms
                          • Provide Procumrement and Contracting to execute the agreement/document that is required by the venue/supplier
                          • Job Aid may be found here: Hotel & Events Services Form

                         

                          HR (Human Resources) and Payroll Updates:

                          • Regular Payroll Search Requests
                            • HR has made modifications to fields in PageUp related to reuglar payroll search requests
                            • To help facilitate requested information for the centralized review of new and refill positions, three fields were added to PageUp:
                              • Previous incumbent’s name, salary, and date of separation (as applicable)
                              • Funding justification; and
                              • Position justification
                            • Minimum Wage Increase – effective January 1, 2024 (email from 10/19/2023)
                              • Connecticut’s minimum wage will increase from $5.00 per hour to $15.69 per hour beginning January 1, 2024
                              • The university encourages employers to review the hourly rates of student employees as the rates will be systematically increased in CORE-CT.  Manual increases may be processed in CORE-CT using the Student Payroll Data/Pay Change template (UC_TBH_DC_STUD_DAT)
                            • Current Pay Scale (June 1,2023-December 31,2023)
                            • Effective January 1, 2024
                            • Class I – $15.00
                            • Class I – $15.69
                            • Class II – $15.15-$16.35
                            • Class II – $15.84 – $17.04
                            • Class III – $16.40 – $18.35
                            • Class III – $17.09 – $19.04
                            • Class IV -$18.40 – $33.70
                            • Class IV – $19.09 – $34.39
                                  • Graduate Assistant Payroll
                                  • PageUp Training
                                      • Regular Payroll
                                        • January 9 from 9:00am to 12:00pm (Register)
                                      • Special Payroll
                                        • January 10 from 9:00am to 11:00am (Register)

                                   

                                  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 Workshop – We have renamed the B.O. Open Hour to B.O. Workshop.
                                    • TBD – 2024
                                      • Topics: CORE-CT/SmartHR Templates
                                      • 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:

                                      • Welcome
                                        • Yeny Abreu Jiminian, Business Operations Specialist 1, CAHNR Business Office
                                      • Good Luck
                                        • Noah Godino, CAHNR Business Office

                                      Fun facts about this month in history:

                                      • January 7, 1714 – A patent was issued for the first typewriter designed by British inventor Henry Mill “for the impressing or transcribing of letters singly or progressively one after another, as in writing.”
                                      • January 25, 1533 – King Henry VIII married his second wife, Anne Boleyn, in defiance of Pope Clement who had refused to annul his first marriage. The King later broke all ties with Rome and became Supreme Head of the Church of England.
                                      • January 28, 1986 – The U.S. Space Shuttle Challenger exploded 74 seconds into its flight, killing seven persons, including Christa McAuliffe, a teacher who was to be the first ordinary citizen in space.

                                      December 2023 Newsletter

                                      December 2023 Newsletter

                                      Fiscal Updates:

                                      • Federal Accounts (Smith Lever, SAES Capacity)
                                        • FY23 Accounts
                                          • will remain open through 11/30/23 for expenses incurred by 9/30/23
                                          • Please monitor your continuation accounts for timely cost transfer submission
                                            • Please contact the BO if you need any assistance
                                          • On December 1st the BO will begin the FY23 close out process
                                        • FY24 Accounts
                                          • New Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) opens on 10/1/2023 (FFY24)
                                            • The B.O. has started communicating to PIs regarding their account number for activity related to 10/1/23 to 9/30/24.  Budgets have also started to be loaded into the accounts
                                          • Your department Smith-Lever budget was identified in your FY24 Dept. Budget Hearing Letter from the Dean
                                            • *Reminder: Every expense must be categorized in 1 or more of the 5 areas strategic areas by the utilization of sub-accounts (only exception is Regular Payroll)
                                              • Sub-Accounts
                                                • Climate (CLIM)
                                                • Food (FOOD)
                                                • Health (HLTH)
                                                • Landscapes (LAND)
                                                • (MISC)
                                      • Spring ‘24 Payroll Pre-Encumbrance
                                        • Similar to the Fall Grad pre-encumbrance load, the B.O. will be pre-encumbering PA that cross into the 2024 calendar year for the following payroll types:
                                            • Adjunct on 2Ls
                                            • Grads – all accounts
                                        • PE will be reflected on Dec 1st and Jan 1st reports

                                         

                                        Procurement Update:

                                        • New Hotel & Events Services Form Request (email from 11/30/23)
                                          • Travel Card for purchases such as hotel room blocks and catering for events
                                          • New form can be found in HuskyBuy on the Home Shopping Page under Internal Request Forms
                                          • Provide Procumrement and Contracting to execute the agreement/document that is required by the venue/supplier
                                          • Job Aid may be found here: Hotel & Events Services Form

                                         

                                          HR (Human Resources) and Payroll Updates:

                                          • Regular Payroll Search Requests
                                            • HR has made modifications to fields in PageUp related to reuglar payroll search requests
                                            • To help facilitate requested information for the centralized review of new and refill positions, three fields were added to PageUp:
                                              • Previous incumbent’s name, salary, and date of separation (as applicable)
                                              • Funding justification; and
                                              • Position justification
                                          • Spring 2024 Payroll Deadlines
                                              • Graduate Students
                                                • Offer letter sent to the student by Nov 1st
                                                • Smart-HR Deadlines
                                                  • Business Office Deadline: Friday, December 1st
                                                  • University Deadline: Friday, December 15th
                                                • 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 – was Thursday, October 26th, please submit asap
                                              • Smart-HR Deadline
                                                • Business Office Deadline: Friday, December 15th
                                                • University Deadline: Friday, December 26th
                                          • Minimum Wage Increase – effective January 1, 2024 (email from 10/19/2023)
                                            • Connecticut’s minimum wage will increase from $5.00 per hour to $15.69 per hour beginning January 1, 2024
                                            • The university encourages employers to review the hourly rates of student employees as the rates will not be automatically increased.  Manual increases may be processed in CORE-CT using the Student Payroll Data/Pay Change template (UC_TBH_DC_STUD_DAT)
                                          • Current Pay Scale (June 1,2023-December 31,2023)
                                          • Effective January 1, 2024
                                          • Class I – $15.00
                                          • Class I – $15.69
                                          • Class II – $15.15-$16.35
                                          • Class II – $15.84 – $17.04
                                          • Class III – $16.40 – $18.35
                                          • Class III – $17.09 – $19.04
                                          • Class IV -$18.40 – $33.70
                                          • Class IV – $19.09 – $34.39
                                            • Faculty Overload Workflow
                                              • Faculty Overload Forms should be sent to cahnrbo@uconn.edu for the Dean’s signature and should be sent from the Business Office to the Provost for approval. If initiated in the department, the approved form should be sent back to the admin.
                                            • I-9 Update
                                              • As a reminder, the USCIS released a new version of the Form I-9 on 8/1/2023.  The previous grace period of using the old I-9 form ended on 10/31/23.
                                              • As of 11/1/23, all Form I-9s must be completed on the current version of the form.  Form I-9s signed on/after 11/1/23 will only be accepted on the current version of the Form I-9.  You can ensure you are using the current Form I-9 version by visiting our website (Form I-9 | Payroll Department (uconn.edu)) and clicking on the “Download Form I-9” button in the “Forms & Instructions” box.
                                            • Graduate Assistant Payroll
                                            • PageUp Training
                                                • Regular Payroll
                                                  • January 9 from 9:00am to 12:00pm (Register)
                                                • Special Payroll
                                                  • January 10 from 9:00am to 11:00am (Register)

                                             

                                            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 Workshop – We have renamed the B.O. Open Hour to B.O. Workshop.
                                              • TBD – 2024
                                                • Topics: CORE-CT/SmartHR Templates
                                                • 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

                                                 

                                                Fun facts about this month in history:

                                                • December 1, 1891 – High School teacher James Naismith nails up peach baskets at opposite ends of the school gym and gives students soccer balls to toss into the baskets, creating basketball.
                                                • December 21, 1620 – The Mayflower pilgrims land at Plymouth, Massachusetts.
                                                • December 23, 1954 – The first human kidney transplant is performed by Dr. Joseph E. Murray in Boston, MA.

                                                November 2023 Newsletter

                                                November 2023 Newsletter

                                                Fiscal Updates:

                                                • Q-drive Migration to Sharepoint
                                                  • The Business Office will be migrating the dept. shared Q-drive ‘payroll’ folders to Sharepoint as required by ITS
                                                  • Migration will start November 1st at 2:00PM.  This means that the Q-drive payroll folders will no longer be accessible
                                                  • We will share the new Sharepoint with each dept when ready (November 2nd)
                                                • Federal Accounts (Smith Lever, SAES Capacity)
                                                  • FY23 Accounts
                                                    • will remain open through 11/30/23 for expenses incurred by 9/30/23
                                                      • Please avoid last minute spending
                                                      • After November 30th, no additional transactions will be allowed on these accounts – transactions may need to be moved to an unrestricted account
                                                    • Please monitor your continuation accounts for timely cost transfer submission
                                                    • Please contact the BO if you need any assistance
                                                    • On December 1st the BO will begin the FY23 close out process
                                                  • FY24 Accounts
                                                    • New Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) opens on 10/1/2023 (FFY24)
                                                    • The B.O. has started communicating to PIs regarding their account number for activity related to 10/1/23 to 9/30/24.  Budgets have also started to be loaded into the accounts
                                                    • Your department Smith-Lever budget was identified in your FY24 Dept. Budget Hearing Letter from the Dean
                                                      • *Reminder: Every expense must be categorized in 1 or more of the 5 areas strategic areas by the utilization of sub-accounts (only exception is Regular Payroll)
                                                        • Sub-Accounts
                                                          • Climate (CLIM)
                                                          • Food (FOOD)
                                                          • Health (HLTH)
                                                          • Landscapes (LAND)
                                                          • (MISC)
                                                • Spring ‘24 Payroll Pre-Encumbrance
                                                  • Similar to the Fall Grad pre-encumbrance load, the B.O. will be pre-encumbering PA that cross into the 2024 calendar year for the following payroll types:
                                                      • Adjunct on 2Ls
                                                      • Grads – all accounts
                                                  • PE will be reflected on Dec 1st and Jan 1st reports
                                                • Search Expense Account
                                                  • The Dean has recently reached out to Dept. Head regarding approved searches for FY25 Faculty Hiring Plan.  In a follow up email, Alicia had provided an updated search cost allocation information:
                                                    • Dean will provide an allocation of $10k per search for approved searches.  Any expenses over this amount will be funded by the department
                                                    • Funds cannot be combined with other searches
                                                    • While relocation is included as a part of the search costs, if the relocation exceeds the standard relocation rate, the difference above will be split 50/50 by the Dept. and the Dean, regardless of available funds in the search budget
                                                  • When coding search costs to the department account, please use the designated sub-account number which is the last four digits of the search number

                                                 

                                                Concur Updates:

                                                • Concur Single Sign-On – email notification
                                                  • ITS will be updating the service that Concur uses for Single Sign-on.  This change will take place on Friday, October 27th, 2023 and will result in a new URL for login.  As a result, saved links directing to Concur will no longer function and need to be updated. Common places where a link may exist include:
                                                    • Bookmarks (Browser & Desktop)
                                                    • Websites
                                                    • Help Guides
                                                    • Other Travel Related Forms
                                                    • In addition, links within existing emails directing to Concur will be permanently broken and cannot be fixed. This includes notification emails for outstanding expenses, reports, and approvals. Users will need to log into the Concur application via the new link to access existing reports and expenses. Emails created on or after 10/28/23 will have working links.  The new URL will be provided shortly after the change has been made via email and on the https://travel.uconn.edu

                                                   

                                                  • Concur Transactions Over 90 Days Old:
                                                    • The Business Office has recently sent out a list of transactions over 90 days old to each dept.  Please review the report for the following:
                                                      • Old transactions should be cleaned up – submit expense report or delete the transaction if not an expense
                                                      • Let us know any transactions belonging to inactive employees.  We will reach out to ITS so they can give access to resolve the transactions

                                                   

                                                    HR (Human Resources) and Payroll Updates:

                                                    • Minimum Wage Increase – effective January 1, 2024 (email from 10/19/2023)
                                                      • Connecticut’s minimum wage will increase from $5.00 per hour to $15.69 per hour beginning January 1, 2024
                                                      • The university encourages employers to review the hourly rates of student employees as the rates will not be automatically increased.  Manual increases may be processed in CORE-CT using the Student Payroll Data/Pay Change template (UC_TBH_DC_STUD_DAT)
                                                    • Current Pay Scale (June 1,2023-December 31,2023)
                                                    • Effective January 1, 2024
                                                    • Class I – $15.00
                                                    • Class I – $15.69
                                                    • Class II – $15.15-$16.35
                                                    • Class II – $15.84 – $17.04
                                                    • Class III – $16.40 – $18.35
                                                    • Class III – $17.09 – $19.04
                                                    • Class IV -$18.40 – $33.70
                                                    • Class IV – $19.09 – $34.39
                                                    • Changes to the Pay Confirm Schedule in November:
                                                      • Pay Confirm will be Wednesday November 8th (instead of Thursday November 9th)
                                                      • There will be no access to CORE from Wednesday, November 8th through Sunday, November 12th
                                                      • Pay confirm will be Wednesday November 22nd (instead of Thursday November 23rd)
                                                    • Faculty Overload Workflow
                                                      • Faculty Overload Forms should be sent to cahnrbo@uconn.edu for the Dean’s signature and should be sent from the Business Office to the Provost for approval. If initiated in the department, the approved form should be sent back to the admin.
                                                    • I-9 Update
                                                      • As a reminder, the USCIS released a new version of the Form I-9 on 8/1/2023.  The previous grace period of using the old I-9 form ended on 10/31/23.
                                                      • As of 11/1/23, all Form I-9s must be completed on the current version of the form.  Form I-9s signed on/after 11/1/23 will only be accepted on the current version of the Form I-9.  You can ensure you are using the current Form I-9 version by visiting our website (Form I-9 | Payroll Department (uconn.edu)) and clicking on the “Download Form I-9” button in the “Forms & Instructions” box.
                                                    • Spring 2024 Payroll Deadlines
                                                      • Graduate Students
                                                        • Offer letter sent to the student by Nov 1st
                                                        • Smart-HR Deadlines
                                                          • Business Office Deadline: Friday, December 1st
                                                          • University Deadline: Friday, December 15th
                                                        • 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 – was Thursday, October 26th, please submit asap
                                                        • Smart-HR Deadline
                                                          • Business Office Deadline: Friday, December 15th
                                                          • University Deadline: Friday, December 26th
                                                      • Graduate Assistant Payroll
                                                        • Graduate School Timely Topics
                                                          • Thursday, November 2 at 2pm – Graduate Admissions: Reading and Reviewing Applications in the Slate Reader
                                                          • Thursday, November 9 at 11am – Information for New Graduate Faculty Advisors
                                                          • Thursday, November 16 at 11am – SCOTUS Decision on Race in Admissions and Impacts on Graduate Admissions

                                                         

                                                        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 Workshop – We have renamed the B.O. Open Hour to B.O. Workshop.
                                                          • Thursday, November 9thfrom 11:30AM – 12:30PM virtual only
                                                            • Topics: Post-Award Overview
                                                            • Please email CAHNRBO@uconn.edu to receive the invite with Teams link
                                                          • If you have any questions about the upcoming session, or if you have anything you would like to know more about

                                                         

                                                        Shout Out:

                                                        • Welcome
                                                          • Tara Craig, Administrative Program Support 1, PVS
                                                          • Nicole Rambone, Administrative Program Support 1, KINS
                                                        • Good Luck
                                                          • Jamie Williams, CAHNR Business Office
                                                          • Matilda Murray, Plant Science and Landscape Architecture

                                                         

                                                        Fun facts about this month in history:

                                                        • November 3, 1956 – The Wizard of Oz is televised for the first time
                                                        • November 5, 1935 – Parker Brothers markets the board game Monopoly
                                                        • November 25, 1920 – The first Thanksgiving Day parade is held in Philadelphia, PA.

                                                        October 2023 Newsletter

                                                        October 2023 Newsletter

                                                        Fiscal Updates:

                                                        • Federal Accounts (Smith Lever, SAES Capacity)
                                                          • SPS is working on closing old SAES and Smith-Lever accounts that have expired. The edoc requires FO approval and the system will ask the following question after clicking the ‘Approve’ button.  Please select No
                                                            • The account number 5XXXXXX for Contract Control Account has expired. Would you rather use its continuation account (4XXXXXX)?”
                                                          • FY23 Accounts
                                                            • will remain open through 11/30/23 for expenses incurred by 9/30/23
                                                              • Please avoid last minute spending
                                                              • After November 30th, no additional transactions will be allowed on these accounts – transactions may need to be moved to an unrestricted account
                                                            • Please monitor your continuation accounts for timely cost transfer submission
                                                              • Please contact the BO if you need any assistance
                                                            • On December 1st the BO will begin the FY23 close out process
                                                          • FY24 Accounts
                                                            • New Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) opens on 10/1/2023 (FFY24)
                                                              • The B.O. has started communicating to PIs regarding their account number for activity related to 10/1/23 to 9/30/24. Budgets have also started to be loaded into the accounts
                                                            • Your department Smith-Lever budget was identified in your FY24 Dept. Budget Hearing Letter from the Dean
                                                              • *Reminder: Every expense must be categorized in 1 or more of the 5 areas strategic areas by the utilization of sub-accounts (only exception is Regular Payroll)
                                                                • Sub-Accounts
                                                                  • Climate (CLIM)
                                                                  • Food (FOOD)
                                                                  • Health (HLTH)
                                                                  • Landscapes (LAND)
                                                                  • (MISC)
                                                        • Search Expense Account
                                                          • The Dean has recently reached out to Dept. Head regarding approved searches for FY25 Faculty Hiring Plan. In a follow up email, Alicia had provided an updated search cost allocation information:
                                                            • Dean will provide an allocation of $10k per search for approved searches. Any expenses over this amount will be funded by the department
                                                            • Funds cannot be combined with other searches
                                                            • While relocation is included as a part of the search costs, if the relocation exceeds the standard relocation rate, the difference above will be split 50/50 by the Dept. and the Dean, regardless of available funds in the search budget
                                                            • When coding search costs to the department account, please use the designated sub-account number which is the last four digits of the search number
                                                        • Fiscal Institute for Training (FIT) Update
                                                          • The B.O. has recently shared information with department admins regarding the return of FIT this Fall. The Fall 2023 sessions will take place in October and November. If anyone was unable to commit to these sessions but is interested in attending future FIT sessions, please let us know. We will be able to pass this information to the FIT coordinator to request for pre-registration as spaces are limited
                                                          • More information about FIT: https://fiscalinstitute.uconn.edu/

                                                        Purchasing Update

                                                         

                                                        HR (Human Resources) and Payroll Updates:

                                                        Spring 2024 Payroll Deadlines

                                                        • Graduate Students
                                                          • Offer letter sent to the student by Nov 1st
                                                          • Smart-HR Deadlines
                                                            • Business Office Deadline: Friday, December 1st
                                                            • University Deadline: Friday, December 15th
                                                          • 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 – Thursday, October 26th
                                                          • Smart-HR Deadline
                                                            • Business Office Deadline: Friday, December 15th
                                                            • University Deadline: Friday, December 26th

                                                        Graduate Assistant Payroll

                                                        • Graduate School Timely Topics – see the attached email
                                                          • Thursday, October 12 at 11am – Neurodiversity and the Advisor/Advisee Relationship: Fostering Open Communication with Neurodiverse Grad Students
                                                          • Thursday, October 19 at 11am – Graduate Student Data Resources

                                                        PageUp

                                                        • Trainings
                                                          • Regular Payroll
                                                            • October 24 from 9:00am to 12:00pm (Register)
                                                          • Special Payroll
                                                            • October 25 from 9:00am to 11:00am (Register)

                                                        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 Workshop – We have renamed the B.O. Open Hour to B.O. Workshop.
                                                          • Thursday, October 19thfrom 12:00PM – 1:00PM, Young 209 with a virtual option
                                                            • Topics: Pivot Tables, V-Lookup, Mail Merge
                                                            • 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
                                                          • Thank you for providing feedback regarding the scheduling of B.O. workshop on a Thursday when CORE is not available. This is a great suggestion! The November B.O. workshop will be held on November 9th @ 11:30 –12:30 – Save the date!

                                                         

                                                        Fun facts about this month in history:

                                                        • October 1, 1908 – Henry Ford’s Model T, a “universal car” designed for the masses, went on sale for the first time.
                                                        • October 13, 1884 – Greenwich was established as the universal time from which standard times throughout the world are calculated.
                                                        • October 21, 1915 – The first transatlantic radio voice message was made by the American Telephone and Telegraph Company from Virginia to Paris.

                                                        September 2023 Newsletter

                                                        September 2023 Newsletter 

                                                        Happy Fall 2023 Semester!  It’s great to see a bustling campus again.  We wish everyone a successful academic year.

                                                        Effective immediately, the Business Office’s hours of operation are 8:00AM – 4:30PM, Monday to Friday.

                                                         

                                                        Fiscal Updates:

                                                        • FY23 Hard Close
                                                          • Occurred: Thursday, August 24th
                                                          • As of Friday, August 25th, final balances from FY23 were carried over as beginning balances into FY24
                                                            • These amounts were previously seen as pending entries
                                                            • For contract and grant accounts, ending balances for FY23 will be seen in the “Contracts Grants Beginning Balance Amount” field on the General Ledger Balance Lookup for FY24.
                                                            • For all other account types, ending balances for FY23 will be seen in the “Beginning Balance Line Amount” field on the General Ledger Balance Lookup for FY23
                                                            • Kuali Financial Data Mart (KFDM) has also been updated to include the beginning balances for FY24
                                                        • FY23 Carry Forward
                                                          • If your department is scheduled to receive any carry forward funding, the transfer of funds will be processed by Friday, September 15th
                                                        • FY24 Monthly Department and Faculty Reports
                                                          • Payroll encumbrances for GA and Adjunct were loaded on August 30th and are reflected in the Sept 1st reports (pre-encumbrances have been released)
                                                          • Faculty hired with an effective date of 8/23/2023 and had start-up commitments identified in their offer letter have been added to our CAHNR Report Distribution.
                                                        • Federal Accounts (Smith Lever, SAES Capacity)
                                                          • FY23 Accounts
                                                            • will remain open through 11/30/23 for expenses incurred by 9/30/23
                                                            • Please avoid last minute spending
                                                            • After November 30th, no additional transactions will be allowed on these accounts – transactions may need to be moved to an unrestricted account
                                                            • Please monitor your continuation accounts for timely cost transfer submission
                                                            • Please contact the BO if you need any assistance
                                                            • On December 1st the BO will begin the FY23 close out process
                                                          • FY24 Accounts
                                                            • New Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) opens on 10/1/2023 (FFY24)
                                                            • The BO has begun its annual review and establishment of the FY24 Federal Accounts
                                                            • In September, you may see new account requests in your KFS Action List.  Please review and approve the edocs as timely as possible so the accounts are active and appear in the monthly report distribution as of Oct 1st
                                                            • Your department Smith-Lever budget was identified in your FY24 Dept. Budget Hearing Letter from the Dean
                                                            • *Reminder: Every expense must be categorized in 1 or more of the 5 areas strategic areas by the utilization of sub-accounts (only exception is Regular Payroll)
                                                              • Sub-Accounts
                                                              • Climate (CLIM)
                                                              • Food (FOOD)
                                                              • Health (HLTH)
                                                              • Landscapes (LAND)
                                                              • (MISC)

                                                         

                                                        HR (Human Resources) and Payroll Updates:

                                                        Spring 2024 Payroll Deadlines

                                                        • Graduate Students
                                                          • Offer letter sent to the student by Nov 1st
                                                          • Smart-HR Deadlines
                                                            • Business Office Deadline: Friday, December 1st
                                                            • University Deadline: Friday, December 15th
                                                          • 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 – Thursday, October 26th
                                                            • Smart-HR Deadline
                                                              • Business Office Deadline: Friday, December 15th
                                                              • University Deadline: Friday, December 26th

                                                        Graduate Assistant Payroll

                                                        • Reminder from Grad School – GA appointments with either a retroactive date of hire or a retroactive increase in percentage of appointment are prohibited – see attached email for more details
                                                        • Graduate School Timely Topics – see the attached email
                                                            • Thursday, September 14 at 11am – Racial Microaggressions and the Cumulative and Deleterious Effects on Historically Excluded and Racially Oppressed Faculty, Staff, and Students
                                                            • Thursday, September 21 at 11am – Graduate Admissions: Program Application Processing in Slate and Admissions Cycle Kick Off!

                                                        PageUp

                                                        • Trainings
                                                          • Regular Payroll
                                                            • September 20 from 9:00am to 12:00pm (Register)
                                                            • October 24 from 9:00am to 12:00pm (Register)
                                                          • Special Payroll
                                                            • September 21 from 9:00am to 11:00am (Register)
                                                            • October 25 from 9:00am to 11:00am (Register)

                                                        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 Admin Meeting 

                                                         

                                                        • Business Office Open Hour – Save the date
                                                          • Thursday, October 19thfrom 12:00PM – 1:00PM, Young 209 with a virtual option
                                                          • 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:

                                                        • Welcome
                                                          • Kyle Garneau, Educational Program Assistant 1, Academic Programs
                                                          • Andrea Li, Administrative Program Support 1, KINS
                                                          • Zachary Amarante, Administrative Program Support 1, CAHNR Dean’s Office

                                                         

                                                        Fun facts about this month in history:

                                                        • September 8, 1504 – Michelangelo’s Statue of David is unveiled.
                                                        • September 15, 1997 – The domain name “google.com” is registered.
                                                        • September 25, 1981 – Sandra Day O’Connor became the first female Supreme Court Justice.

                                                        Aug 2023 Newsletter 

                                                        Aug 2023 Newsletter 

                                                         Thank you to those that worked diligently to make the AY23-24 Grad payroll submission a success this year!  Departments and Dean’s Office collectively processed, reviewed and approved 279 payrolls by the University’s deadline on July 14th. 

                                                         

                                                        Fiscal Updates: 

                                                         Fiscal Year Transition/Updates 

                                                        • FY23 Hard Close
                                                          • At this time, the FY23 hard close has not been confirmed.  We will provide more information when it is available
                                                        • FY24 – active fiscal year
                                                          • When viewing account balances in FY24, it is important to include ‘Pending Ledger Entry’ as the FY23 hard close has not occurred and balances have not yet been carried forward
                                                          • When viewing Sponsored Project Account balances (5L and some 6L accounts) in FY24, please note indirect costs (NOPX) will need to be manually deducted from the Budget Balance Available
                                                        • 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
                                                        • AY23-24 Grad Pre-Encumbrance
                                                          • Pre-encumbrance has been loaded for Grad Payroll
                                                            • 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 have  pre-encumbered for GAs coded to university accounts in addition to sponsored program accounts.
                                                            • Reminder: Monthly Report in August and September will continue to capture the pre-encumbrance
                                                            • GA payrolls are usually encumbered during the first week of September.  Once this occurs, the BO will release the manual encumbrance previously entered to avoid overstatement on accounts
                                                        • Salary Savings Accounts
                                                          • Sub-accounts have been untilized to identify what funds will expire in a given year
                                                          • A new report has been developed to capture Salary Savings information
                                                          • Carryover from prior year will have expiration date of 6/30/24
                                                          • New distribution (savings earned in FY23) will have expiration of 6/30/25
                                                        • 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
                                                              • No budget will be loaded.  The BO will fund this account after processing summer salary
                                                            • GA Support 
                                                              • Both salary and fringe benefits will be loaded to identify available funding
                                                            • Equipment/Discretionary
                                                          • All accounts are budgeted by the BO and all accounts are Fiscal Based Accounts and run from July 1st – June 30th
                                                          • Funding will continue to carry forward until the timeframe in which these funds are to be used (noted in faculty Offer Letter)
                                                          • The BO will serve as FO on both the Faculty Summer Salary and GA support accounts
                                                        • Federal Accounts (Smith Lever, SAES Capacity)
                                                          • FY23 Accounts 
                                                            • will remain open through 11/30/23 for expenses incurred by 9/30/23
                                                            • Please avoid last minute spending
                                                            • After November 30th, no additional transactions will be allowed on these accounts – transactions may need to be moved to an unrestricted account
                                                            • On December 1st the BO will begin the FY23 close out process
                                                            • Please monitor your continuation accounts for timely cost transfer submission
                                                            • Please contact the BO if you need any assistance
                                                          • FY24 Accounts 
                                                            • The BO has begun its annual review and establishment of the FY24 Federal Accounts 
                                                              • In August and September, you may see new account requests in your KFS Action List.  Please review and approve the edocs timely
                                                            • New Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) opens on 10/1/2023 (FFY24)
                                                            • Your department Smith-Lever budget was identified in your FY24 Dept. Budget Hearing Letter from the Dean 
                                                              • *Reminder: Every expense must be categorized in 1 or more of the 5 areas strategic areas by the utilization of sub-accounts (only exception is Regular Payroll)
                                                                  • Sub-Accounts
                                                                  • Climate (CLIM)
                                                                  • Food (FOOD)
                                                                  • Health (HLTH)
                                                                  • Landscapes (LAND)
                                                                  • (MISC)

                                                        Travel Update 

                                                        • Informational sessions of Concur Travel and booking process:
                                                        • The following topics will be covered in this session:
                                                          • Concur Travel 
                                                          • Updating Traveler Profile 
                                                          • Traveler Preferences 
                                                          • Cell Phone Number
                                                          • Traveler Arranger
                                                          • Credit Card         
                                                          • Booking Groups/Conference Rates
                                                          • Booking Guests
                                                          • Important Contact Information
                                                          • Unused Ticket
                                                          • Benefits of Booking within Program
                                                          • Travel Industry Updates 
                                                          • Local Direct Bill Hotel

                                                          

                                                        HR (Human Resources) and Payroll Updates: 

                                                        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 2nd – August 22nd
                                                          • 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  
                                                            • August 10th from 9:30am to 12:30pm (Register)
                                                          • Special Payroll  
                                                            • August 11th from 9:30am to 11:30am (Register)

                                                         

                                                        New Requirement for Rehired Retiree Appointments 

                                                        • Effective immediately, all rehired retiree appointments will require the completion of the State of Connecticut Temporary Post Retirement Reemployment (CO-1208) form
                                                          • The Temporary Post Retirement Reemployment Form may be found on the HR & Employee Relations Forms webpage
                                                          • For current hire requests, the Special Payroll team will contact hiring departments to request the completion of this form as they receive requests for rehired retirees
                                                          • For future requests, we encourage departments to submit the CO-1208 form as an attachment to the hire request for efficient processing
                                                              

                                                         

                                                        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 Admin Meeting 
                                                          • Wednesday, September 20th – from 2:00PM – 3:30PM, Young 209 with virtual option
                                                          • 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: 

                                                        • Welcome 
                                                          • Chloe Bilodeau, Educational Program Assistant 2, PSLA
                                                          • Eva Wiggins, Business Operations Specialist 1, CAHNR Office of Research/Graduate Education
                                                          • Omar Simpson, Financial Assistant 1, CAHNR Business Office 

                                                         

                                                        Fun facts about this month in history: 

                                                        • August 1, 1790 – The first U.S. Census is completed. There are four million people in the U.S.
                                                        • August 12, 1955 – Minimum wage is raised to $1.00 per hour
                                                        • August 26, 1871 – Toilet paper is first sold in the U.S.

                                                        July 2023 Newsletter

                                                        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 1st – will reflect FY23 ending balances; These will be the last report distribution for FY23
                                                          • By July 13th – 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 14th
                                                        • 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)

                                                         

                                                           Purchasing Update

                                                         

                                                           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 30th.  Please submit ASAP for any SmartHRs not yet processed.
                                                            • University Deadline: Friday, July 14th
                                                          • 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 26th
                                                          • Smart-HR Deadline
                                                            • Business Office Deadline: Wednesday, July 19th
                                                            • University Deadline: Friday, July 28th

                                                           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 2nd – August 22nd
                                                        • 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 17th from 9:30am to 12:30pm (Register)
                                                            • August 10th from 9:30am to 12:30pm (Register)
                                                          • Special Payroll
                                                            • July 18th from 9:30am to 11:30am (Register)
                                                            • August 11th 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 20thfrom 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 

                                                        June 2023 Newsletter 

                                                        Fiscal Updates: 

                                                         

                                                          • 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 1st – will reflect FY23 ending balances; These will be the last report distribution for FY23 
                                                            • By July 14th – will reflect 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 

                                                         

                                                          • 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 14th  

                                                         

                                                        • 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 30th 
                                                            • Payroll Deadline – Friday, July 14th
                                                            • 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 26th  
                                                            • Smart-HR Deadline  
                                                              • Business Office Deadline: Wednesday, July 19th 
                                                              • University Deadline: Friday, July 28th  

                                                          

                                                        • Graduate Assistant Payroll 
                                                          • Graduate School Timely Topics – see the attached email 
                                                            • Thursday June 1st 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 

                                                          

                                                        • 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 14th – 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 18thfrom 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)