ABA NEWS

ABA Coordinates Food Drive

For many years, ABA has supported the campus-wide California State Employees Food Drive, the annual campaign that seeks donations to supply local food closets for many years. This year, the Sustainability Team from Facilities Management takes charge of the campus campaign. The team will handle logistical support, such as the provision of containers and pick-up and delivery of donations from across the campus.

To jump start this year's campaign, the team launched a call to action, distributing emails and flyers, and conducting activities in the library quad. They hope to make this year's food drive the most successful in campus history. The email reminds others why such efforts are important: "Hunger is a year-round problem and annual holiday drives, like this one, help Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services feed over 52,000 people in Sacramento County every month throughout the entire year."

The team has set a campus goal for this year's 40 year tradition to collect 6,500 lbs. of donated food! However, don't go raiding your pantry for food just yet. Monetary contributions are accepted as well, and each $1 equals 2.5 lbs. of food donated!

There are three ways you can help - food donations, monetary contributions, and the "Turkey Drop." Donations this year will be accepted between November 12, 2014 and Januaruy 16, 2015. Find one of the dozens of decorated boxes or barrels located around campus to drop off your non-perishable food. View the campaign flyer for more information. The turkey drop is scheduled for Friday, November 21. For instructions on how to participate in the Turkey Drop, click here.

As of November 20, a total of 728.4 lbs. has been collected from the many offices and groups throughout the campus. This is an all-hands-on-deck campaign, with every academic college and staff office participating, as well as sororities, fraternities, and ROTC groups. So please, this holiday season, donate generously, and donate often.

 

SMART Classrooms Support Student Success

Over the past few years, as Sac State wrestled with declining budgets, ABA and others stepped up to find ways to redefine the possible and make a difference with small scale improvements. Efforts to improve the appearance, cleanliness and functionality of existing facilities are a prime example of Sac State and ABA's persistence in the face of capital project funding challenges. One such effort, to transform classrooms into modern facilities equipped to educate today’s technology-savvy students, is focused on promoting student success.

Working with campus partners from Information Resources & Technology (IRT) and Space Management, Facilities Management has expanded and improved the classrooms our students learn in, conducting work during summer break and winter intersession. This past summer, 15 classrooms were improved, concentrated in Alpine, Brighton, Eureka, Mariposa, Tahoe, Calaveras, Douglass and Riverside halls. Additionally, Facilities Management collaborated with a contractor to improve another four rooms located in the AIRC, Eureka, and Mendocino halls.

"Every year we do smart classroom upgrades," said Mark Leisz, Facilities Management customer service manager. "The most recent count for lecture rooms is 44 advanced smart rooms, 51 intermediate smart rooms, 60 basic rooms and only 29 non-smart rooms."

Technology upgrades include installations of smart panels to interface with laptops, as well as desktop computers for faculty without laptops. Each installation connects to a projector for faculty to present academic material to their students.

With improved and up-to-date facilities, Sac State classrooms are better equipped to educate students, and students are better prepared to enter the workforce. Below are before and after images of classrooms with and without Smart technology.

 

UTAPS Improves Wait Times

ABA offices are continuously striving to find ways to improve their services and workflow processes for customers. UTAPS efforts over the past few years include online services and a PayByPhone option, both of which have yielded positive results.

This semester, UTAPS continued efforts to reduce wait times, and reduce overall congestion and lines in their main office, which was a major concern. "Reducing wait time is the single most recurring input from customers," said Senior Director of UTAPS Tony Lucas. "The beginning of semester waits used to range from 15 to 25 minutes for the first two weeks of class."

UTAPS addressed the issue using specific strategies. First, they redesigned their website, encouraging students to purchase their permits online and have them mailed to their address. Every student who bought a permit online and had it mailed was one less person in line. The changes had a big effect. "This redesign has tripled the amount of permits purchased online and mailed, and has reduced the permit pickup lines to near zero. This has reduced the amount of in-person purchases to a manageable number at semester start," said Lucas.

Additionally, UTAPS' introduction of PayByPhone over a year ago continues to benefit students and reduce wait times at daily permit machines. No longer do students have to wait in line to purchase daily permits; instead, they can purchase a daily permit through their smartphone with the PayByPhone app. To promote usage of the app, UTAPS offers free (plus convenience change) parking the first two days of each semester. "We wanted to encourage first time users to try it," said Lucas. "PaybyPhone now accounts for 33 percent of our Daily Permit Purchases."

With successful outcomes evident, UTAPS is inspired to continue to find new strategies to improve services to customers.

 

Reprographics Introduces Expanded Wide-Format Printing Services

Reprographics Services excitedly announced the expansion of its available wide-format printing services, with the addition of two new wide format printers in October. As the University's official print shop, Reprographics is continually updating equipment and expanding services to reflect industry standards and provide the campus community with the highest quality printed materials and services.

The new equipment is state-of-the art and includes a 44" aqueous printer, and a 64" latex printer ideal for indoor and outdoor applications, with laminated outdoor prints that will last up to five years.

A brief list of the applications these printers will produce expands the capability of Reprographics to produce high-quality materials that cross a variety of substrates, including:

• Posters
• Banners
• Wall, floor and window art
• Door and fence wraps
• Pop-up banners, and much more!

For more information about these printers, how to submit a work order, or any other inquiry, contact Reprograpics.

 

Officers Engage with Students over Coffee

Sacramento State's Police Department held a fall semester Coffee and Cops event in September. Hosted at The WELL by the Student Health and Counseling Services and Sac State Police, the event invited students, faculty and staff to enjoy coffee and doughnuts while asking questions and getting to know officers.

Events like these are designed to bridge the gap between the campus community and those who serve to protect them.

"It takes a certain amount of courage to come into an environment with a bunch of police officers," Sacramento State Police Chief Mark Iwasa said. "We are very open to being approached by students and being asked questions."

Approximately 60 attended the event, including students and others from the campus community. To learn more about Sac State's Police Department and their services, check out their website.

 

Financial Services Introduces Web FAQs

As a part of Financial Services' 2013-14 goals to strengthen customer service, the staff recently completed and published their department (family) FAQs website. The FAQs page, available here, covers a comprehensive array of information on multiple subjects and offices within the department of Financial Services. The new website will serve as a resource to students, faculty and staff, with answers to some of the most commonly asked questions.

Building the site was the collaborative effort of volunteers representing Financial Services units. The committee included Gina Curry, facilitator, SFSC; Nicole Rogers, chair, SFSC; Leah Davis, Procurement; Priscilla Llamas-McKaughan, Financial Services; Trish Lush, Accounting Services; and Natalya Sysa, Accounts Payable & Travel.

"To come up with the questions, the team solicited feedback in a variety of ways including customer feedback via a Gallery Walk at a Business Partners Round Table meeting and feedback at the Financial Services all staff meeting," said Justine Heartt, associate vice president, Financial Services. "The team held meetings to discuss what is really an FAQ and how best to answer the questions."

 

Police Conduct Tabletop Planning

In August, University Police coordinated with campus principals and multiple agencies and community representatives to conduct an Emergency Planning tabletop event.

Planning events such as these help prepare the University for emergencies, which can arise at any time and from various natural or manmade causes. As the Emergency Operations Center website states: "The best way to minimize potential loss and speed up the process of recovery from natural or man-made disasters is to plan ahead."

That is why University Police, representatives from Facilities Management, IRT, UTAPS, Housing, Services to Students with Disabilities, Student Health & Counseling Services, Public Affairs and Risk Management Services joined forces with the Sacramento Fire Department, the Sacramento Police Department, the American River Flood Control District and others, to prepare the response protocol for a potential major incident on campus. These meetings are held annually. This year's topic was flood/water intrusion, while last year's was hazardous materials. Next year's planning will involve training and preparation for a potential active shooter event.

Executive Assistant to the Chief of Police Serena Fuson provided information about the event: "Responsibilities of the on- and off-campus agencies during an emergency are discussed. First responders present, and then other departments primarily involved in an evacuation or shelter in place follow. Agreements with local agencies regarding jurisdictional responsibilities and assistance to each other during an emergency are discussed. ENS testing takes place during the training as well."

Training exercises such as these are important to help prepare not only University Police, but other agencies and constituencies, in the event of an emergency. Having these groups practice and prepare for such events helps give students, faculty, and staff confidence during an emergency. "Sacramento State's Emergency Preparedness trainings are simplified to focus on evacuation and shelter-in-place scenarios," said Fuson. "Life, safety, and then property are top priorities."

 

Our Promise Campaign On Target

ABA led the campus charge for this year's California State Employees Charitable Campaign (CSECC). Rebranded this year to Our Promise, the campaign "...provides a single charitable fund-raising drive in the State community," as stated on the website. "Our Promise offers California State employees the opportunity to utilize payroll deduction to support charitable organizations they feel passionate about."

According to preliminary data for the campaign, which began October 6 and ended November 16, "participation rates appear consistent with 2013, with an increase in new pledges."

ABA provided support and coordination for the distribution and collection of all campus forms as well as marketing and communication messaging. Vice President Mike Lee, Campaign Coordinator Tracy Jordahl, with staff professionals Margaret Hwang and Andrew Stiffler, hosted a campaign kick-off event for campus staff supporting the campaign. Attendees viewed a 15-minute video produced by ABA showcasing the many, and very diverse, organizations available. "I was pleasantly surprised by the number of renewed and new contributions!" said Tracy.

If you would like to learn more about the Our Promise campaign, or how you can get involved, visit their website.

 

New Entry Greets FM Visitors

Visited Facilities Management lately? If you have, then you were probably greeted by a dynamic slideshow featuring the work of Facilities Management staff on the recently installed television monitor.

Installation of the monitor took place in May, while a swinging door was installed in early September to encourage visitors to check in at the front counter.

The monitor showcases the work department staff perform for the campus, which is of interest to internal staff and visitors alike. "The screen displays all of our projects, improvements and maintenance throughout the campus," said Nikolas Soza, administrative support assistant, Facilities Management.

As a whole, the new entrance provides multiple benefits. "We now have a visible appearance of a more professional work environment, while the door has prevented people from entering, creating more security for our office," added Soza.

 

SPQI Releases 2014-16 ABA Goals & Measures

The Strategic Planning & Quality Improvement Office has published ABA's 2014-16 Annual Goals, Action Plans and Measures document online. The document contains each ABA department/unit goals for the upcoming two years. To view the document, and ensure that you understand the strategic direction of your department, visit the Department Goals and Progress Reports webpage. The document is updated with progress reports quarterly. Watch for the first quarter report, coming soon.

 

Frame It! ABA's Mission, Vision, Values and Code of Conduct

Coming to an office near you are ABA's Mission, Vision, Values and Code of Conduct statements framed for display!

After the success of ABA's mug giveaway last spring, ABA's Strategic Planning & Quality Improvement Office set out to provide each office with a copy of the mission, vision, value, and code of conduct, for display. A set of these framed documents will be provided to ABA units and offices as a way to keep the focus on the division's common purpose, vision for the future, and professional values and standards.

 

Flyer Sums It Up for Students

This semester, the Financial Aid and Student Financial Services Center teamed up to publish a flyer summarizing upcoming fall deadlines.

Helpful to students, the flyers keep students focused on important financial transaction dates that occur throughout the academic semester.

The production and distribution of this flyer is an example of the teamwork demonstrated by these two offices to help student succeed. Their collaborative efforts underscore a strong focus on student success and show what can be done when everyone works together to accomplish the common goal of supporting our students! To view the flyer, click on the image or the link here.