Thursday, October 31, 2019

Chicken soup for the student's soul: SFS's student food pantry

Trudy Taylor has worked in Student Financial Services for 20 years. In that time, she’s provided students with a lot of guidance, abundant service, and occasionally, a much-needed snack- - because although UVA and the Charlottesville community provide many resources for students with food insecurity, SFS encounters multiple students each semester who are hungry.

“It’s not just low-income students,” says Taylor.


“College is a life lesson, where many students are learning for the first time about budgeting. Sometimes they just find themselves in a pickle. Usually it’s over the summer and in gap times, when it’s close to the end of term, and their financial aid refunds have run out, and they’re paying higher rent than they can really afford.”

Although there are ample resources on Grounds that students can access for help, Taylor, her colleague Irene Paschall, and others had found themselves retrieving snacks from their cubicles or running across the street to McDonald’s to feed a hungry student. It happened often enough that Taylor and Paschall banded together with their colleagues to establish their own little food pantry for students in need. All of the items in the food pantry are donated.

The SFS staff has developed keen instincts for spotting students in trouble, and they don’t hesitate to ask gentle questions that might reveal food insecurity, and to answer the need with peanut butter, crackers, soup, and other items they have in their stock.

Due to a number of reasons – the possible stigma of walking into a food bank on Grounds, the absence of affiliation with a church, or even lack of transportation to local food pantries – Taylor says some students feel more comfortable talking about the issue with SFS staff, with whom they often have an established relationship.

Paschall explains that it’s all in the conversation: “We’re the money people. They’re coming to us to ask for an emergency loan because maybe they’re having trouble paying their rent. Then you ask them if they have money for food, and when is the last time they ate.”

Paschall says students sometimes try to downplay their need, but that SFS staff often counter their protests by reminding them that it’s their job as a student to function, and they can’t do that without eating.

A hug is often part of the transaction, and a request for the student to come back and let the staff know how they’re doing.

“We want to help them and get them to the finish line,” Paschall says.

“It’s our privilege to get to see them grow into adults and do great things in the world.”

Taylor agrees: “We’re Student Financial Services,” she says.

“Without the students, we wouldn’t be here – we are happy to help them however we can.”
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Resources for food insecurity on Grounds:
Community food pantries: https://www.foodpantries.org/ci/va-charlottesville

If you’d like to donate non-perishable food items to the SFS food pantry, feel free to drop them by the cashier’s window in SFS.

Shout out to the Shout Out board: We only knew about this story because Trudy and Irene’s colleague Nick Williams recognized them on the shout out board – kudos to all of you UVAFinance folks who recognize good work AND provide us with great, inspiring stories!

Wednesday, October 30, 2019

2019 CVC Event results and pictures



THANK YOU to everyone who took part in the 2019 CVC Event!  So far in this year's giving season, UVAFinance has raised $5700 for the Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign at UVA.  Each donation makes a meaningful difference in our community and beyond.
Your 2019 Cornhole Champs!

It's not too late to give!  Donations can still be made until December 13.  You can give online or use your red envelope.  Contact Patrick Wood in Procurement if you have questions. 

Congratulations to Judy Mallory and Stephen Cornelison, who took first place in the Cornhole Tournament.  The second-runner-up team was Asa Lopatin and Patrick Wood.

See photos from the event on our Flickr page. 

Staff Senate: Advocacy and Service

Why join the Staff Senate?  Click
image for larger view.
UVA’s staff senate is a forum through which UVA staff members can provide input on policies, procedures, and programs. It also provides the opportunity to interact with colleagues across Grounds, to stay aware of current issues, and to play an active role in shaping our “Great and good” University.

“This is an organization intended for staff to feel empowered, and to have a resource,” says Kristie Smeltzer of Organizational Excellence, who serves as Co-Chair of the Staff Senate.

Their priority of staff advocacy has the staff senate focused on some important projects:
  • Collaborating on UVA’s 2030 Strategic Plan, working with the President’s Office, the EVP-COO’s office, and HR to achieve a strategic plan initiative: “Cultivating Staff Success.”
  • Increasing two-way communication with constituents (that’s all of you reading this!), enabling senators to connect consistently with staff members as the senate represents them and shares questions and feedback.
  • Continuing the partnership to improve Education Benefits, collaborating with UVA HR to advocate for continuous improvement in this area.
Staff can visit the website at staffsenate.virginia.edu to interact with a host of helpful resources, to view upcoming meetings (which are open for staff to attend) and minutes from past meetings, and to find out who their senator is.

“We’re excited to have the opportunity to partner with other groups across Grounds to improve the staff experience at UVA,” says Smeltzer.
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UVAFinance, meet your Staff Senators!
Click image for a larger view.


New Procurement Websites are coming!

Coming November 2019! Watch for updates;
 contact Brandi Van Ormer or Shannon 
Wampler with questions/concerns

UVA Marketplace Upgrades: Resource and ISP sections

Procurement recently took another step toward its goal of making the UVA Marketplace a one-stop-shop for all things procurement-related. 

To eliminate the need for shoppers to seek necessary information in several places outside of the Marketplace, the procurement team added a few resources often needed/required during the purchasing experience:
  • Procurement-related forms and procedures:  sole source justifications, authorization approvals, etc.
  • Increased awareness and connection to UVA departments in charge of managing critical processes, such as Information Security and Accessibility.
  • Connectivity with Internal Service Providers (ISPs) such as Printing & Copy Services, Cavalier Computers, and more. 

The team hopes that having easy access to these resources will make the purchasing experience smoother for departments. 

See a screenshot of the new features: 
Click image for a larger view


Let us know how we can help make the Marketplace experience better for you!


Vendor profiles deactivated due to inaccurate information

Procurement has been verifying all vendor information in the Marketplace as a part of routine data cleanup. They have found approximately 2500 vendor profiles that contain inaccuracies such as old addresses and, most importantly, mismatching tax ID numbers and incorrect company names. These inaccuracies can cause confusion and non-compliance with the IRS.

For every incorrect Tax ID number in our system, UVA receives a potential penalty notice that could result in a fee from the IRS if not corrected. As a consequence, Procurement has been deactivating all vendors with inaccurate information in their profiles. 

Each deactivated profile will have a note describing the reason for deactivation, found in the internal notes section of the Supplier 360 tab (see the image below).  If you encounter this note on a supplier you use, please reach out to your contact within the company and ask them to fully register and update their information in the UVA Marketplace.


Tuesday, October 29, 2019

UVA HR is moving!

More info on the HR website:  https://hr.virginia.edu/news/hr-moving

Community Feast Project


As the holiday season quickly approaches, so does the season of Giving. UVAFinance will once again be collecting food donations for the Community Feast Project. The Community Feast Project is an annual effort run by various churches and organizations in and around the Charlottesville area. Thanksgiving baskets are then distributed to needy families right here in our community.

Beginning on Wednesday, October 30th, collection boxes will be placed around Carruthers Hall with a checklist of items needed. Additionally, monetary donations can be made to either Nicole Ferretti on the first floor or Carrie Crosby at the front desk. All donations must be received no later than Wednesday, November 13th.


The following items are needed:
  • Can of Yams (17.5 oz.)
  • Can of Green Beans (14.5 oz.)
  • Bag of Potato (5 lb.)
  • Jar of Turkey Gravy (10.5 oz.)
  • Box of Macaroni (14.5 oz.)
  • Box of Stuffing (6 oz.)
  • Can of Evaporated Milk (12 oz.)
  • Can of Cranberry Sauce (14 oz.)
  • Cake Mix (15.25 oz.)
  • Can of Crushed Pineapple (16 oz.)
  • Box Granulated Sugar (2-4 lb.)
  • Box of Brown Sugar (1 lb.)
  • Monetary donations for the purchase of turkeys

Thank you for your generosity.

Friday, October 25, 2019

New from Records and Information Management



The Office of Records Management's new name reflects an important dimension to the services it provides. As the "Office of Records and Information Management," it should be clearer that their mission is about more than paper -- it's also about electronic information: email, electronic databases, electronic files, audio, video, and images.
Besides their new name, the office is offering new online training for your convenience. Check out on-demand webinars on topics such as Email Management, Records Management for Research, Shared Drive Clean Up, and Paperless Office: Scanning Guidelines, plus many more!

Training for URMA, the web-based system designed to help departments maintain inventory of their physical and electronic records, will still be held in a classroom setting.

Check out the training resources, upcoming classes, videos, and tip sheets on the Records and Information Management website!

Remember to set your clocks back this weekend

Enjoy that extra hour of sleep!

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Opportunities for SWaM vendors at SWaMFest 2019

Small, women-owned, and minority-owned (SWaM) businesses enjoyed another great SWaMfest this October.  This was the 15th year of SWaMfest, the Commonwealth's premier networking, educational, and professional development event, and is organized yearly by the Virginia Association of State College and University Purchasing Professionals (VASCUPP).  

UVA is proud to be a member school of VASCUPP, and delighted to help provide opportunities to our SWaM suppliers. 
Events at the conference were focused on four key areas of business lifecycles:  processes, partnerships, possibilities and profits.  

Are you interested in using a SWaM supplier for your departmental purchasing needs?  

We can help!  Contact SWaM Champion Jack King in Procurement. 


UVA Night Tour: Walk in the dark



The UVA Security and General Safety Committee is soliciting suggestions for its upcoming Fall Night Tour to be held in early November.

During the Night Tour, committee members walk areas around Grounds in darkness to assess physical safety conditions, particularly lighting, pathways, crosswalks, and emergency phones; and physical infrastructure hazards, such as sidewalks, stairs, or railings.

Please share your suggestions!


Fill out this short survey where we will be collecting all suggestions and feedback on venues and/or issues to examine. The survey also provides the opportunity to upload photographs, maps, or diagrams. Responses to the survey will be accepted through Sunday, November 3rd.

More information about the Security and General Safety Committee, including contact information, can be found here.

https://safetyandsecurity.virginia.edu/night-tour-walk-dark

Thanksgiving Meal Match registration is open



Each fall, the International Center’s Thanksgiving Meal Match program matches international UVA students with local Charlottesville families, allowing them to participate in the American Thanksgiving experience. This long-standing program would not be possible without generous hosts.

The Center is currently seeking UVA faculty and staff and Charlottesville community members to host one or more international guest. If you are interested in hosting, please register online by November 12th.

Introducing UVAFinance's Associate Vice President for Financial Operations

UVAFinance is pleased to announce that A. Leigh (Augie) Maurelli is officially joining our team as the Associate Vice President for Financial Operations on December 2nd. In this role, Maurelli will be responsible for accounting and financial reporting, procurement and supplier diversity, payroll, tax and operational contracts.

Since 2015, Maurelli has been the Assistant Vice President of Strategy and Operations at the University of Delaware, with responsibility for payroll, procurement, disbursements, financial systems, treasury, capital budgets, and enterprise risk management. Previously, he served as a Senior Associate Director of Athletics at Delaware and, earlier, at Georgetown, with prior experience at Goldman Sachs and Johnson Controls. Maurelli holds an MBA from Georgetown and BS in Mechanical Engineering from Johns Hopkins (where he also played football).

We look forward to having him join our team as we continue through Finance Transformation. Maurelli and his wife, Kristen (a JMU grad) have two young sons, Nicholas and Alexander, and looking forward to moving to Charlottesville. 

Judy Divita, whose conscientious and enthusiastic leadership in the interim role of AVP for Financial Operations we deeply appreciate, will continue to serve in the interim role until Maurelli's arrival, after which she will continue to lead the Administrative Services Group, working with Bill Ashby as we continue to strengthen and improve UVAFinance operations.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

FST hires Workday Lead


After a thorough search, Finance Transformation is pleased to announce the addition of Jackie Tucker as Workday Lead.  Tucker will be joining the FST project team in November, bringing extensive experience in business solutions and Workday implementations at Yale University. Her role in implementing both Workday HCM and Workday Financials at Yale has enabled her to develop a wealth of knowledge at the intersection of functional process and technology. Her experience with migrating a top institution to Workday from the Oracle EBS environment, in addition to implementing a host of complementary solutions, will be highly applicable here at UVA.

We're excited to welcome her to the FST Team!

Are you interested in joining FST?  Check out our openings on the FST website. 

Thursday, October 10, 2019

Finance Strategic Transformation Updates

Workshops galore!


Business Process Discovery Workshops (BPDs) are well underway.  The purpose of these workshops is to give stakeholders in functional areas an overview of what their business processes could look like in the Workday environment so that we can capture implementation concerns as we move toward Phase 3.  No decisions are made in these workshops -- in our analogy of building a house, these sessions are like looking at an artist's rendering of the house we're considering building, not the actual blueprints.

The project team is striving to get summaries of all of the BPDs in the online community -- as we staff up, this should happen more quickly.  As of now, you can see slides from all of the BPDs in the Community, and summaries of all will be posted soon.  Please do let us know if you have questions about anything you see/read!


A Frequently asked UBI question


People have been wondering about what will happen with UBI when Workday Financials is implemented.  We don't have a crystal clear picture of that yet, but Mark Anderson and Forrest Swope of the UBI team shared some thoughts in the Community that should help.  (The short answer, as Mark says, is that UBI, the Data Warehouse, and Workday's native reporting will all have an important role to play in our future reporting.)  Read more on the Community.

Why is everything so vague?  


What's up with the lack of specifics on FST? We've been getting asked a lot about why things regarding FST are so ambiguous.  Read on as James talks more about the process of FST and project of this scale: https://communityhub.virginia.edu/community/uva-finance-transformation/blog/2019/10/15/a-few-words-about-ambiguity

Workday Rising


October 14-17, many FST project team members and colleagues from around UVA will attend Workday Rising in Orlando.  At this conference, we'll get to meet peers at other institutions with whom we can swap knowledge and experience, and hear from product and industry experts in sessions that will build our skills.  We're looking forward to this opportunity to learn and stretch so that we can make FST the best experience possible for the entire UVA community.  Look for Community posts from your colleagues who are attending!

Recap of this week in the Community: 

Slides from all BPDs
Thomas Schneeberger's update on the Chart of Accounts Workshops
UBI Question
What's up with the ambiguity?
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Comments and questions are welcome in the online community, and here on the blog.

Visit FST on the web: financetransformation.virginia.edu


Email us at financetransformation@virginia.edu 



Wednesday, October 9, 2019

Cash Out, Remote In!

Cash payments - and the trip across Grounds to the cashier's office to deposit them - are on the decline as a part of the Cashless Grounds initiative that began as a Cornerstone Project.

In the past few months, Cashless Grounds project team member Brenda Nalley of UVAFinance has visited around 20 departments in UVA's schools and units to set up remote depositing and train new users.

Before the first remote deposit can be made, however, a good amount of collaboration goes on behind the scenes, involving team members from Financial Operations, Enterprise Applications, and the Department of Treasury. After access tables have been assembled in Oracle, CashPro has been set up with Bank of America, and scanners have been sent to the department, it's time for a quick training session.

Nalley says it only takes a couple of hours with each department to go over instructions regarding records management and policies, hook up the software, set up the right account routing, and then give the system a whirl with an initial check.

"I train two or three groups a week," says Nalley, adding that her work on the project has allowed her to visit more of Grounds than she ever thought possible. Her training excursions have taken her to the Office of the President, Property & Risk Management, the University Press, the Virginia Film Festival, the School of Medicine, and many more locations. 

Sam Cash, who handles client services at the front desk of the Sheila C. Johnson Center for Human Services, is a recent recipient of a remote deposit scanner, which he says was very easy to learn and use.  

"It saves me about 30 minutes a day running across the bank," says Cash, adding that once the weather gets colder he'll enjoy his scanner even more.  

"It's very easy to use and there is always someone available if you have questions.  If anyone is on the fence about using it, I say do it!"

The goal to "go cashless" by 2019 means that anyone who deposits expenditure credits or checks will need a scanner as soon as possible. Student Financial Services will switch to a cashless system this November.

If you have questions or would like to get set up for remote deposit, reach out to Brenda!
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Read more about Cashless Grounds & Remote Deposit on the UVAFinance blog.


Monday, October 7, 2019

Get Grounded Trip to Mechanical Engineering

UVAFinance colleagues had the opportunity to tour the Mechanical Engineering Building recently as a part of the "Get Grounded" series of field trips.

Check out photos from their visit on Flickr.

Get Grounded field trips are brought to you by the UVAFinance Culture Crew

Interested in getting involved?  Have an idea for a field trip?  Let us know by emailing culturecrew@virginia.edu 

UVAFinance 2019 Employee Achievements



On October 4, UVAFinance held its Annual Employee Appreciation Breakfast.  Here we present those employees recognized for their achievements in 2019. 

Service Awards recognized here.

Congratulations, all!

More Real ID Sessions Coming Soon!


There was a flood of interest in REAL IDs at the Travel Expo.

DMV Connect processed 56 transactions at the Travel Expo and we have 156 appointments booked for two additional upcoming dates. 





DMV Connect will be back at UVA in January and Travel & Expense will be sending an email sign-up out for those appointments as soon as the date is confirmed.

Travel & Expense plans to keep inviting them back as long as there is a demand for this service.
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CVC: Giving online is easy!



You should be in receipt of your CVC envelope and giving cards. If you would like to give online, please use the following link: https://cvc.virginia.edu/

Want to use your red CVC envelope instead?  Bring it to Patrick Wood's cubicle in Procurement. There's a white UVA Commonwealth of Virginia envelope in the first chair to the right as you enter. If you are located outside of Carruthers, please send through the interoffice mail to P.O. Box is 400202.

2019 CVC Event - October 25


Interested in participating in the bake sale and/or the cornhole tournament taking place during our annual CVC event on October 25?  Sign up here:  https://virginia.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bNPpmK4M2viEvwp

Blood Drive October 24


Don't forget: Open Enrollment October 7-18



Benefits Open Enrollment for 2020 began October 7 and runs through Friday, October 18.

Choosing benefits is a significant investment in your physical and financial well-being. UVA offers faculty, staff, and team members a variety of options, so you can customize your benefits to meet your unique needs. 

You can view plan changes and premiums at the Open Enrollment website before using the Benefits app in Workday to select your benefits for 2020.


Securing Highly Sensitive Data Classes required for UVAFinance

As you are aware, securing highly sensitive data is extremely important in today's high-tech world, especially for UVAFinance employees. It is critical for each one of us to be knowledgeable about how to secure highly sensitive data, including when it is appropriate to share data and how to do so. 


We have partnered with Kelly Downey from ITS to create and facilitate an instructor-led course, Securing Highly Sensitive Data that will provide you with the most up-to-date information and tools to protect the data you are working with. Completion of this course is mandatory for all UVAFinance employees. For those working remotely, a video will be made and available later.



Location: Carr 1&2

Duration: 1 hour

Offerings: Thursday, Oct. 17th at 2pm

Thursday, Oct. 17th at 3:30pm

Friday, Oct. 18th at 2pm

Friday, Oct. 18th at 3:30pm


Registration Link



If you have any questions, email lsp-uvafinance@virginia.edu

Tech Takeback: Recycle your electronics responsibly



Looking to clear out some space at your home or office? 

UVA's Information Technology Services and UVA's Sustainable IT Working Group are co-hosting the annual community “Tech Takeback” event on Friday, October 11th from 9 AM to 4 PM and Saturday, October 12th from 10 AM to 3 PM at The Park at North Grounds. 

 All members of the Charlottesville community are welcome to drop off their old or broken, personally owned electronics for free; everything will be properly recycled through E-Cycle Secure, a responsible electronics recycler used by UVA. 

If you need a certificate of destruction, the team can provide that as well. Just swing by The Park and staff will quickly collect your electronics and ensure their sustainable disposal. Please do not bring CRT or LCD flat panel television sets – these items are not accepted by E-Cycle Secure.

Tuesday, October 1, 2019

Save the Date: UVAFinance Halloween Fun!


Introducing UVAFinance's Associate Vice President of Financial Strategy


After a comprehensive search, Bill Ashby has been chosen as the AVP of Financial Strategy. Ashby comes to UVAFinance from the Batten School of Leadership & Public Policy where he was Senior Associate Dean for Administration. His 18 years of leadership at UVA will serve us well as we transform our financial team and strengthen our partnerships with the University Community.

In this re-imagined leadership role, Ashby will build out UVAFinance’s reporting and analytics strategy to strengthen our partnership support model serving UVA’s stakeholders from the Board and foundations to fiscal administrators,  both today and in the post-FST world.  He will                                                     also manage our internal administration for UVAFinance. 

Finance Outreach & Compliance, the Administrative Services Group, and Foundations will report to the AVP of Financial Strategy.  He will work very closely with the Office of Financial Planning & Analysis, Treasury, Financial Operations, and the Financial Strategic Transformation team to achieve these objectives.