Emailed to Northwestern staff February 19, 2021
UPCOMING EVENTS | REMINDERS | CALL TO ACTION | PREVIOUS NEWSLETTERS
Hello Northwestern Staff,
Welcome to 2021. We have made it through a tough year together. We hope you had an excellent holiday season and are keeping warm this Winter quarter.
As we reflect on the past few months, I’d like to thank NUSAC, the outreach committee, and the generous staff of NU for another successful Holiday Drive this past December. Though this year we were primarily virtual, many families were able to have a nicer holiday season because of you and your efforts.
Northwestern University is excited to welcome Robin Means Coleman as our newly appointed vice president and associate provost for diversity and inclusion and chief diversity officer. She brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in practice and policy development in areas of diversity, inclusion, equity, education, and communication. We here in NUSAC are looking forward to partnering with her and her team.
Coming up in the Spring, NUSAC will host Conversations with the President. With our successful mount of this important event virtually in 2020, we will once again bring you a Q&A with our senior leadership with a focus on staff interests and issues. These events give staff and faculty the chance to hear directly from President Schapiro as well as key administrative staff as they speak on the state of the university, new developments, and plans for the future. Look out for more details on how to watch the stream or the recorded event.
As we continue to navigate the unknown, we are dedicated to continuing our efforts to unite our staff. Stay safe, stay healthy, and take care of yourselves and each other. I encourage you to check in with the fantastic work our colleagues in Human Resources are doing with their Well Being Programs.
We hope to see you all soon. We are hopeful for a great 2021.
Thank you and Go ‘Cats!
Nate Daigle
NUSAC Chair
UPCOMING EVENTS
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Wednesday, February 24, Noon – 1 pm – NUSAC Winter Brown Bag: Navigating the Seas of Organizational Change
This webinar will help participants learn about navigating organizational change and its associated stress. Ellen Burton will facilitate this brown bag and discuss how to practice stress-reduction techniques, learn effective problem-solving skills and develop internal and external support networks. |
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Tuesday, March 9, 1pm – Women’s History Month Annual Symposium: Mutual Aid and Community Engagement Join The Women’s Center for a day dedicated to Mutual Aid and Community Engagement. Sekile Nzinga, director of the Women’s Center, will offer opening remarks on the history of mutual aid in Black communities. They will be hosting a plenary conversation between Kelly Hayes and Dean Spade, and there will be panel of Northwestern students, staff, and faculty currently doing the work of advancing mutual aid and engaging our communities. |
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Tuesday, April 13, 10-11:30am – Conversations with the President In partnership with the Office of the President, NUSAC will host Conversations with the President on Tuesday, April 13 from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. via livestream. Similar to previous formats, President Morton Schapiro will begin with opening remarks, followed by a Q&A session which will also include Kathleen Hagerty, Provost, Craig Johnson, Senior Vice President for Business and Finance, and Robin Means Coleman, Vice President and Associate Provost for Diversity and Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer. Questions for the Q&A session are being gathered by NUSAC ahead of the event. Staff are encouraged to submit questions here. Staff can anonymously submit and vote on questions submitted until Friday, March 26. If questions arise during or after the event we encourage staff to email NUSAC at nusac@northwestern.edu. Please note that you do not need to RSVP for the event. The livestream will be visible shortly before 10 a.m. on Tuesday, April 13. Link to livestream here. |
Reminders
Creating Community
Creating Community is part of the Your Daily 30 program. The intent of this program is to provide a space and opportunity for faculty and staff to come together to get to know one another, knowledge share, learn new skills and/or insights about oneself. These are great sessions to do as a team or office. Household family members and children welcome!
Your Daily 15 & Your Daily 30
Your Daily 15 are 15 minute virtual well-being breaks that are meant to be short and easily incorporated into your day. Your Daily 30 are 30 minute virtual well-being breaks for those looking for a longer break.
COVID-19 & Campus Updates
NU Cares
NU Cares is a financial fund established by NUSAC in 2010 to help support fellow colleagues experiencing financial hardship due to a medical or catastrophic event. Awards have helped with expenses such as groceries, rent/mortgage, utility, medical bills and more. Consider contributing to NU Cares by making a recurring monthly or one-time contribution to help support your fellow colleagues. We are proud to announce that the grant amount has been increased from $750 to $1,000.
If you are experiencing a financial hardship, you may be eligible to apply for a grant.
Call to Action
Career Workshops Survey
Five Ways to Get Personal about Data Privacy
Did you know that January 28 was Data Privacy Day? In observance of this day, Northwestern encourages each University member to use best practices and make informed decisions when managing personal data. Learn more Five Ways to Get Personal about Data Privacy presented by Northwestern IT.
You can also visit the National Cyber Security Alliance website (NCSA) to learn more. NCSA leads an international effort focusing on respecting privacy, safeguarding data, and enabling trust.
Diverse Candidate Slates in Recruitment and Selection at Northwestern
Northwestern’s Policy Review Committee invites your review and feedback on a proposed policy, “Diverse Candidate Slates in Recruitment and Selection at Northwestern,” which the Office of Human Resources has developed. This proposed policy was developed to establish procedures that will support equitable staff recruitment processes, mitigate the impact of bias on protected and underrepresented groups in the staff recruitment and selection process, and ensure accountability in upholding Northwestern’s commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion.
Please review the proposed policy in the Under Review section of the University Policies webpage. A NetID and password are required to access policies under review. You may then email your comments on the policy draft, and any questions you may have, to policy@northwestern.edu by March 7, 2021. Your comments will be shared with the Policy Review Committee and policy sponsor and will inform next steps in the development of this policy.
The ins and outs of contact tracing at Northwestern
Northwestern is closely tracking existing and new cases of COVID-19 to help reduce the spread of the virus and, ultimately, keep campus safe. University health officials do this through a common public health practice known as contact tracing. Visit Northwestern Now to understand the ins and outs of contact tracing at Northwestern, as well as how it works, what is expected of you and why it’s important.
Past Events
Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemoration
MLK Dream Week 2021 is a cross-campus collaboration with the Office of Institutional Diversity and Inclusion. The Northwestern University community celebrates Dr. King with an expanded special commemoration including stage events, discussions, lectures, and service projects throughout the month to inspire reflection on Dr. King’s life and legacy. To see highlights of this year’s programming, including a recording of the Mariame Kaba MLK Keynote Address, please visit the Northwestern MLK website.
Be sure to also visit Multicultural Student Affairs’ website as well for an overview of this year’s Black History Month events.