ABA NEWS

April is Alumni Month!

April is Alumni Month at Sacramento State! Join ABA in celebrating its division staff professionals who hold Sac State degrees. ABA is proud to employ over 60 Made at Sac State graduates with degrees ranging from bachelors and masters degrees to doctorates. Log on to ABA’s website where we proudly recognize our alums for giving back as Sac State career employees - http://www.csus.edu/aba/ABA-About/aba-alums.html. For a list of Sac State Alumni Month activities, visit http://www.csus.edu/alum/programs/alumnimonth.html.  

 

Projects Improve Campus Facilities

Over the winter break, Facilities Management staff professionals tackled major projects to improve student learning, provide better academic and athletic facilities and improve the overall beauty of the campus.

As a result, 14 classrooms were upgraded to Smart classrooms, each equipped with a ceiling mounted projector and a dedicated computer for presentations. The refurbished classrooms will provide a better learning environment for students and advanced instructional tools for professors.

In addition, the Sac State Athletics' logo was affixed to the large chilled water storage tank near Parking Structure 1. Previously a mix of green hues, the tank now features the dynamic logo that helps brand the University's athletics programs. The logo is visible from the perimeter roadway on the west side of the campus.

To welcome visitors to Sacramento Hall, the main lobby, or public-facing entry, has an attractive new look. With renovations that incorporate a reception station to be manned by customer service specialists, the front door is now a stop where visitors can find assistance. Not only that, a new automated entry system ensures safety and a personalized welcome for guests.

Thanks to work crews, Athletics teams returning from winter break can enjoy a new basketball floor in the Yosemite Hall Gym, Room 117. The surface of the floor, showing extensive wear and damage, was repaired and resurfaced with a shiny new finish.

Facilities Management staff also increased cabinet space in Sequoia Hall labs by 40 percent, to help provide adequate space for Chemistry students. One of the oldest academic buildings, Sequoia Hall houses labs equipped with cabinets to store student materials, and more cabinets means more students will be able to complete their chemistry courses on schedule.

A sincere thank you to Facilities Management for helping to ensure that our campus is both beautiful and functional.

 

Master Planning the Future Campus

Begun in September 2013, the campus master planning feedback process concluded with the February 10, 2014 forum, where the final draft of the master plan was presented. The draft incorporated feedback and suggestions gathered from past forums and other mechanisms over several months.

Contract architect AC Martin presented a robust plan and encouraged attendees to respond with additional comments before the final draft is submitted to the California State University Board of Trustees in May.

What is a master plan? "A master plan guides change to the campus over the long term and gives physical form to the University's strategic vision and values. It addresses all aspects of the campus' physical environment - existing and proposed buildings, open space, circulation - as well as connections to the surrounding city," states the Sacramento State master planning website.

At each forum, AC Martin explained the designs and their rationale as they relate to the strategic vision of the University. Participation from attendees of the forums is critical because those who are on campus every day know best both the obstacles and opportunities.

From parking, pedestrian and vehicle traffic and bike paths, to student housing, academic buildings and event centers, campus community members have first-hand knowledge of how the plans may affect the University.

If you would like to learn more, visit the master planning website. Presentations from past forums are available on the right-hand side of the webpage.

 

ABA Completes Website Migration to Monet Template

In February, ABA completed the last websites in the web migration project that began in December of 2011.

The project included more than 25 websites that make up the many departments, offices, and units within ABA. Each of these webpages now conforms with the "Monet" style appearance, similar to the Sacramento State homepage. New standards have been developed to ensure consistency amongst all of ABA's webpages, including left-hand navigation menus and new features such as the "contact us" box.

Websites recently launched include Records Management, Risk Management Services (RMS), and its subsidiaries: Risk Management, Workers' Compensation and Business Continuity Planning. Environmental Health & Safety, and Space Management were completed in 2013.

Each completed website within RMS has been developed with users in mind. Representatives from ABA's Strategic Planning & Quality Improvement office met with staff from RMS to discuss how to best organize content and categorize links that would be beneficial to different audiences that access their websites.

Websites are ever evolving, and staff are encouraged to submit feedback and/or suggestions to ABA's Web Content Manager at stiffler@csus.edu. To view all of the most recently completed websites, select the links below:

Risk Management Services: http://www.csus.edu/aba/rms/

Risk Management: http://www.csus.edu/aba/Risk-Management/index.html

Workers' Compensation: http://www.csus.edu/aba/Workers-Compensation/index.html

Business Continuity Planning: http://www.csus.edu/aba/Business-Continuity-Planning/index.html

But the work doesn't stop there! In November, ABA's Strategic Planning & Quality Improvement (SPQI) office met with all of ABA's web editors to begin a new project: removing old and outdated content.

Many have experienced the frustration of looking for a specific document via the search utility, only to find an outdated version. Old content can cause confusion for users. ABA's web editors have been tasked with removing obsolete content from the web server, as well as checking for broken links. The goal is for removal of all obsolete content and 100 percent link integrity.

 

Plans Heat Up for Summer Bowling Fun

Planning for the summer bowling league is already underway, with game dates to be communicated soon. The Sacramento State Summer Bowling League, coordinated by the University Police Department/Public Safety, will engage staff and faculty in a fun-filled, six-week competition at Capitol Bowl, 900 West Capitol Ave., West Sacramento.

League play will consist of three games per night. Competing teams will change from week to week. Teams will consist of four players, and substitutes may be used. Sacramento State faculty and staff teams may also include family members or friends. The goal is just to have a great time! The cost is $10 per player per night. Shoes may be rented for $2 per night. Eighteen-team maximum, even number of teams only. The league is expected to fill up fast, so hold your spot ASAP if you plan on bowling. To register, contact Serena Fuson at sfuson@csus.edu.

 

Fix 50 - Coming to a Highway Near You

Are you aware that major construction near Sac State will begin this April, and extend through June? Construction will take place on Highway 50, and will likely impact much of the campus community.

According to the website www.csus.edu/fix50, "Caltrans is planning a major repair project along Highway 50 that could have serious commute repercussions for Sac State students, faculty, staff and visitors. The downtown portion of the highway will have lane closures in April, May and June that will likely back up traffic for miles in each direction. It also will have a severe impact on surface streets, particularly during the last weeks of instruction and finals."

According to Caltrans, the project will include:

• Placing a 4-inch concrete deck on top of the existing deck and tying it to the girders

• Repairing cracks in the existing deck

• Adding steel column casings for seismic strengthening

• Improved traffic operations throughout the project area

The reason for the construction is to rehabilitate a section of Highway 50 that was built in 1968. The sections of highest concern are "comprised of two 2,530 foot-long parallel structures that carry six lanes of traffic over city streets, freight, and light rail lines in downtown Sacramento," according to their website. These structures have visible cracks and need to be repaired to enhance safety and reduce ongoing maintenance costs.

Daily commuters who use Highway 50 every day should begin to look for alternate routes once construction begins.