Category: Featured

  • DHS to Temporarily Increase the Automatic Extension Period of Work Permits for Certain Visa Applicants – CUPA-HR

    DHS to Temporarily Increase the Automatic Extension Period of Work Permits for Certain Visa Applicants – CUPA-HR

    by CUPA-HR | May 4, 2022

    Effective May 4, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced a Temporary Final Rule (TFR) to increase the automatic extension period of expiring employment authorization documents (EADs) for certain renewal applicants from 180 days to 540 days.

    Specifically, the TFR applies to three groups of applicants in EAD categories currently eligible for the previous 180-day automatic extension of employment authorization and EAD validity. They are as follows:

    • Renewal applicants whose renewal Form I-765 application remains pending as of May 4, 2022, and whose EAD has not expired or whose current 180-day auto-extension has not yet lapsed.
    • New renewal applicants who file Form I-765 during the 18-month period following the rule’s publication to avoid a future gap in employment authorization and/or documentation.
    • Renewal applicants with a pending EAD renewal application whose 180-day automatic extension has lapsed and whose EAD has expired will be granted an additional period of employment authorization and EAD validity beginning on May 4, 2022, and lasting up to 540 days from the expiration date of their EAD.

    Categories that are eligible for the lengthened automatic extension can be found here and include refugees and asylees (a3 and a5), spouses of certain H-1B principal non-immigrants with an unexpired I-94 showing H-4 non-immigrant status (c26), and adjustment of status applicants (c9), among others.

    The TFR is part of a trio of efforts USCIS announced on March 29, 2022, to address the agency’s major backlogs and crisis-level processing delays. According to USCIS Director Ur M. Jaddou, “as USCIS works to address pending EAD caseloads, the agency has determined that the current 180-day automatic extension for employment authorization is currently insufficient,” and this temporary rule is necessary to “provide those non-citizens otherwise eligible for the automatic extension an opportunity to maintain employment and provide critical support for their families, while avoiding further disruption for U.S. employers.”

    CUPA-HR will continue to monitor the implementation of the new auto-extension period and keep members apprised of further developments.



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  • Award-Winning Work in Higher Ed HR – 2022 HR Excellence Award and Higher Ed HR Rock Star Award – CUPA-HR

    Award-Winning Work in Higher Ed HR – 2022 HR Excellence Award and Higher Ed HR Rock Star Award – CUPA-HR

    by CUPA-HR | May 3, 2022

    From creating diversity efforts and development initiatives to leading change, human resources teams and HR practitioners across the country are doing great work every day.

    CUPA-HR’s regional Higher Education HR Awards program recognizes some of the best and brightest in higher ed HR and honors HR professionals who have given their time and talents to the association.

    Here are this year’s regional award recipients:

    HR Excellence Award

    Honoring transformative HR work in higher education and recognizing a team that has provided HR leadership resulting in significant and ongoing organizational change within its institution

    Office of Human Resources Management, Fordham University (Eastern Region)

    Fordham University’s office of human resources management has transformed from a primarily transaction-focused department to a strategic partner that is relied upon throughout the university. The department has demonstrated its strategic strength on multiple fronts including the management of the university’s COVID-19 shutdown and reopening, return-to-work policies, customer service, technology, communication with employees that resulted in increased engagement and trust, anti-bias training, professional development initiatives and the performance management process. Additionally, in keeping with and living Fordham’s Jesuit mission of Cura Personalis, “caring for the whole person,” the office developed and implemented programs to help employees maintain a healthy work-life balance. Some health and wellness services that were developed include back-up childcare support, on-site and virtual physical fitness classes, and behavioral health services, such as a registered dietician available to employees. In doing so, the HR team has distinguished itself as a trusted advisor to employees, managers and senior leaders alike.

    University Human Resources, Iowa State University (Midwest Region)

    In 2019, Iowa State University implemented a new financial management and human capital management system. In conjunction with the new system, finance and HR service delivery teams were developed, pulling distributed customer-facing finance and HR roles into two centralized teams. University human resources’ performance through this significant and ongoing organizational change has been positive for the entire campus community. The HR delivery model has led to increased consistency and standardization in delivery of services across the university. It has also created a more well-trained and cohesive team of professionals that work together up and down the chain to find creative solutions to HR challenges and opportunities. HR support for leaders across the institution has significantly improved through better access to accurate data, streamlined processes for workforce and position planning, compensation adjustments, support addressing low-preforming employees and behavioral issues, large-scale employee movement and reorganizations, and professional human capital consulting. The new HR delivery systems have resulted in a much more efficient, collaborative and cohesive HR unit that is better equipped to serve employees and supervisors. At the same time, employees and supervisors have benefitted from HR’s reliability, transparency, accountability and consistency in its efforts to support them.

    Talent and Culture Department, Broward College (Southern Region)

    Recognizing that HR alone cannot create culture but that it plays a critical role in ensuring the infrastructure is in place to support the cultural aspirations of an organization, the talent and culture department at Broward College has worked over the last several years to spearhead significant organizational change. Beginning in 2019, the university launched its three-year culture transformation plan. An integral step in the transformation process was the implementation of information-gathering discussions between the HR leadership team and employee groups comprised of administrators, faculty and professional technical staff, which provided substantive feedback on areas that needed the most attention. This organizational change, led by the talent and culture department, has resulted in more substantive collaboration; stronger relationships among faculty, staff and administrators; and greater trust and communication between employees and their supervisors. It has also served as a catalyst for innovative projects throughout the organization designed to maximize the experience of employees, students and the community. Some major initiative highlights include the creation of talent business partner roles, Leadership 360 Assessments, psychological safety workshops, employee resource groups, employee onboarding, and a leadership development program called BC LEAD that educates and empowers managers at all levels to rise to leadership excellence.

    HR Campus Climate Liaisons, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (Western Region)

    After implementing a strategic action planning process, led by an internal HR workgroup called Campus Climate Liaisons, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley saw double-digit improvements in climate survey results within three years, all amid a pandemic. The liaison group consists of individuals from various HR areas, such as talent development, organizational development, employee wellness and employee relations/business partners. The group was trained to provide support to assigned departments with result-sharing, action-planning and ongoing progress-reporting. This method ensured that all departments received the same level of support and helped the HR team better track progress toward climate goals. It also helped empower all department leaders to have conversations about campus climate and department climate. The biggest improvements were seen in areas of faculty, administration and staff relations; senior leadership; and facilities. The campus climate liaison model has been so successful that it will continue to be used for future campus climate initiatives and to provide ongoing support to all departments.

    Higher Ed HR Rock Star Award

    This award recognizes an individual who is serving in the first five years of a higher education HR career who has already made a significant impact.

    Audrey Davis, Assistant Director of Personnel, Texas Tech University (Western Region)

    With her enthusiasm and inspirational demeanor, Audrey Davis has built strong and trusting relationships with each department she works with, not only within university student housing, but within each auxiliary services area at Texas Tech University. Since taking over the personnel team, Audrey has demonstrated continuous innovation and creative thinking, which has completely changed the way the student housing personnel team operates and provides services. After only two years in her role, she has identified and eliminated major gaps in the onboarding/offboarding processes. She has also developed a collaborative hiring system that allows hiring managers to communicate efficiently with the personnel team to discuss new hires, promotions and terminations. Audrey’s initiatives have resulted in university student housing being named a center for excellence for human resourcing by the assistant vice president for auxiliary services. Audrey continues to make a positive impact with her role and demonstrates her passion through advocacy, by fostering a welcoming work environment and by building confidence in her team to serve as a one-stop shop for personnel services.



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  • Reassessing Your Institution’s EAP: Steps for HR Pros to Increase Awareness and Accessibility – CUPA-HR

    Reassessing Your Institution’s EAP: Steps for HR Pros to Increase Awareness and Accessibility – CUPA-HR

    by Lakyn Whaley | May 2, 2022

    May is Mental Health Month. Throughout the month, be sure to join the Connect discussion in the General Discussion group to discuss challenges and successes, as well as pose questions and offer advice to higher ed HR peers on the topic of mental health. A Zoom discussion will also take place mid-May. Stay tuned for the link to be posted in the Connect discussion. 

    Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) are nothing new. In fact, 97 percent of large employers offer an EAP as part of their benefits package. Yet, the utilization rate of these programs is abysmally low, clocking in at an average of less than 5 percent even as concerns around mental health continue to grow. EAPs should be a key resource for struggling employees, so why isn’t anybody using them?

    Lack of Awareness

    Lack of awareness, on multiple levels, plays a large role in the underutilization of EAPs. Usually, employees are introduced to their organization’s EAP and other benefits during their onboarding process. However, the deluge of information new employees are exposed to during this time can easily wash out any memory of an EAP mention.

    In addition, there’s a general lack of awareness as to how EAPs function. People may form their own incorrect assumptions, such as thinking that participating in an EAP will incur an immediate cost or that EAP use will be reflected on performance evaluations, which keep them from accessing this benefit.

    Distrust and Stigma

    From grief counseling to connecting employees to legal resources, the situations that EAPs are designed to provide support for can often be deeply personal. Because of this, some employees may be concerned that personal details or other information related to their EAP access will be shared with their employers, since the EAP is an employer-sponsored program. Others may be hesitant to interact with EAPs due to the stigma surrounding mental and behavioral health topics.

    Accessibility

    If employees are aware and comfortable accessing their organization’s EAP, the next challenge they often have to surmount is the myriad steps required to connect with the resources and services they need. Many of the individuals who would benefit from using an EAP are already operating under higher levels of stress and may be more fatigued than their peers. This can mean that these employees are less likely to have the energy needed to engage with extended processes, even when they’re the ones who need it most.

    How Can HR help?

    It might feel like the issues listed above are too big for one department — and in some cases one person — to overcome, but there are steps you can take to help.

    Start by looking at your organization’s EAP from an employee perspective and map out the steps someone needs to take to access services. Ask questions along the way such as: How many steps are there? How do employees learn more about their EAP? What options are there for contacting someone? Might the hours of service be prohibitive to some? Are the services provided meeting a variety of needs? Note too where you notice the potential for confusion or frustration within the process and remember that if something can be simplified, it should be simplified!

    Once you’ve reassessed the EAP process, take some time to examine how your campus is talking about mental health in general. While communication about the EAP is necessary for program awareness, by itself it’s not enough to improve utilization. Double down on efforts to reduce stigma around mental health and mental illness. Creating a culture where employees feel safe to talk about their mental health and welcome to bring their whole selves to the table has myriad benefits — only one of which is improving EAP usage.

    Related resources:

    Mental Health Toolkit (CUPA-HR members-only resource)

    Destigmatizing Mental Health on Campus: What Can HR Do (Higher Ed HR Magazine)

    Right Direction – Free Turnkey Resources for Organizations to Address Mental Health in the Workplace



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  • The DeSantification of a University

    The DeSantification of a University

     I cannot help but think of Joseph  Welch and his historic face off with Joseph McCarthy when he finally said, in effect, ENOUGH, “Have you no sense of decency.” The answer was obvious, Joseph McCarthy had no such thing.

    Nor does the despicable, demagogue  Ron DeSantis who will do anything to appeal to the worst values in people. Rather then lead people to embrace the moral high ground,  he encourages people to wallow in the mud of racism, homophobia, and xenophobia. Rather than ask people to be better he asks them to be worse, much worse.

    And among his staunchest enforcers is the University of Florida particularly President Fuchs, Provost Glover, and Law School Dean Laura Rosenbury. With respect to the latter especially, one would expect some sense of decency, or at least the courage to resist what is clearly a case of moral lawlessness.  But no, in the Desantification of the University of Florida, rather then stand up against a bully, as did Joseph Welch, these so-called leaders cowered and when ask to jump simply asked “how high.” Any one of them could have been a hero in the world of higher education if they had simply said I will resign before I follow the orders of a maniac.

    So, at the height of the covid crisis faculty were allowed to teach remotely but only after weeks of in person teaching.  In the next year, while other schools required masks — a small price to pay perhaps to save a few lives — UF did not require masks.  Fuchs, Glover, and Rosenbury were just trying to keep Florida’s McCarthy happy. And then, when professors were asked to testify as experts witnesses,  they all folded again and decided it would displease their master if a word were uttered to upset his seemingly fascist agenda. 

    When the Desantis’ bizarre choice for Surgeon General appears to have needed a little extra dough, he was appointed to UF Med School. Not sure if the opening was announced ahead of time or whether a search took place. But who cares when it is to please the Governor. What was Fuchs’ response? Once again he simply said “how high.”

    And remember, this cowadise occurred in the context of administrators who all had a guarantee of life time employment. In fact, even their professional aspirations might have been enhanced if they stood up against a demagogue. In short, some show of courage would have been easy but, then again, there are no heroes at UF. 

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  • Some finance recommendations for activists

    Some finance recommendations for activists

    I have seen some confusions recently on twitter regarding university finances. Here are four recommendations:

    1. Avoid using sector aggregate figures to make your arguments
      The sector is very uneven both in terms of size of institutions and in financial performance, make sure you are familiar with your institution and how it fits into the sector.
    2. Avoid using figures for “reserves” when you mean cash
      In accounting terms, “reserves” does not mean cash. Cash is included in reserves but that is because reserves names the excess of assets over liabilities: that the institution owns more than it owes. If it didn’t have reserves it would be insolvent. But its assets include buildings and land, which can dominate the reserves figure.
      It is a confusion that crops up regularly and is often associated with right-wing arguments about the sector being “awash with cash”. If you want to talk about cash, use the figures for cash – but bear in mind that it is good management to hold significant levels of cash or other liquid assets to manage the day-to-day running of the organisation. Universities are large and have large outgoings!
    3. Revolving Credit Facilities (RCFs) are like overdrafts …
      If you have one, you aren’t necessarily planning to use it.
      It provides extra headroom or is there for an emergency. Universities might simply be using it in their “liquidity” calculations to assure OfS that they have sufficient resources to cover 30 days of expenditure – falling below that level is a “reportable event” – and never intend to use it.
      That your institution negotiated one, but haven’t used it, is not per se a sign of bad management.
    4. Avoid confusing one-off costs with recurrent costs
      There is a clear difference between spending £1million on a one-off purchase and an annual outgoing of £1million.
      Your management may not always present the difference between such items in a very clear way, particularly when they have a certain narrative they wish to present or when they need to hit targets or covenants.
      One to be wary of is “vacancy savings”. Are these higher because of a recruitment freeze? Are these one-offs or recurrent savings? Technically, the former; they would only become recurrent savings, if the posts are made redundant.
      A management highlighting a certain level of vacancy savings may want to convey discipline to governors or lenders, but it can mask issues of sustainability: it isn’t a way to address persistent deficits. If there is an underlying deficit of, say, £2million, you shouldn’t be confident because they covered that through a recruitment freeze this year. And that’s solely from the numbers perspective: before you consider the implications for workload …

    There are a few resources on this site for thinking about university finances. There is also a blog and recorded seminar for UCU on getting started with university accounts and “challenging the financial narrative”.

    If you want more help, please get in touch.

    I have worked with more than 40 UCU branches over the last few years to help with negotiations. Get in touch for details.

    A testimonial:




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  • Article for History UK on what’s next for English HE

    Article for History UK on what’s next for English HE

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  • 2022 Data: Changes in Higher Ed Pay and Workforce Size – CUPA-HR

    2022 Data: Changes in Higher Ed Pay and Workforce Size – CUPA-HR

    by CUPA-HR | April 27, 2022

    CUPA-HR has released its data on overall higher ed pay increases, as well as changes in workforce size for 2021-22.

    Higher Ed Pay Increases Have Not Kept Pace With Inflation

    The soaring inflation rate has far outpaced pay increases for the higher education workforce. According to findings from CUPA-HR’s annual workforce surveys for 2021-22, overall median salaries for administrators increased by 3.4%. Professionals and non-exempt staff saw increases of 2.9%, and salaries for tenure-track and non-tenure-track faculty increased by 1.6% and 1.5%, respectively. The inflation rate for 2021 was 6.8% and continues to climb.

    This is not the first year that pay increases have not kept up with inflation. Pay increases for administrators, professionals and staff last met or exceeded inflation in 2019-20.  Non-tenure-track faculty salary increases last met or exceeded inflation in 2016-17, and tenure-track faculty salary increases have not kept pace with inflation in any of the past six years.

    Explore pay-increase trends on CUPA-HR’s website.

    Overall Workforce Size Has Declined in the Wake of the Pandemic

    Historically, the overall size of the higher education workforce has increased from year to year. However, colleges and universities are experiencing the same employee recruitment and retention challenges that most U.S. employers have struggled with in the past few years. In both 2020-21 and 2021-22, the size of full-time staff, part-time staff, and tenure-track faculty declined from the prior year.

    Two areas of the workforce that saw growth this year were those of non-tenure-track faculty and adjuncts. Although the number of non-tenure-track faculty and adjuncts declined between 2019-20 and 2020-21, those numbers have rebounded in 2021-22.

    Explore the trends in workforce size changes on CUPA-HR’s website.

    In-Depth Data and Custom Reports

    Higher ed institutions can use CUPA-HR’s DataOnDemand (DOD) subscription service to run comprehensive data tables and analyses.



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  • DHS Extends I-9 Flexibility Guidance Through October – CUPA-HR

    DHS Extends I-9 Flexibility Guidance Through October – CUPA-HR

    by CUPA-HR | April 25, 2022

    On April 25, the Department of Homeland Security announced another extension of the Form I-9 compliance flexibilities that was initially granted in 2020. The guidance was set to expire on April 30 but has now been extended through October 31, 2022.

    The guidance will continue to allow for remote inspection of Form I-9 documents in situations where employees work exclusively in a remote setting due to COVID-19-related precautions. For employees who physically report to work at a company location on any regular, consistent or predictable basis, employers are required to use standard I-9 procedures.

    Last week, CUPA-HR and the American Council on Education (ACE) sent a letter to United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Ur Jaddou asking for this additional extension as colleges and universities continue to rely on such flexibilities during a period where institutions are facing worker shortages and a tight labor market that have caused institutions to turn to out-of-state professionals and faculty to fill open positions. Additionally, the letter noted that DHS is pursuing options to modernize the Form I-9 examination requirements through the formal rulemaking process, which may lead to a permanent option for remote inspection.

    CUPA-HR is once again grateful for DHS’s swift response and extension of the Form I-9 flexibilities. We will keep members apprised of any updates on both this guidance and future Form I-9 regulatory activity.

     

     

     

     



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  • Uncovering Workplace Barriers by Auditing the DEI Experience – CUPA-HR

    Uncovering Workplace Barriers by Auditing the DEI Experience – CUPA-HR

    by CUPA-HR | April 20, 2022

    Detecting bias can be a challenge, particularly when it comes to long-standing practices that are firmly rooted in our campus culture and systems. Left unchecked, these routine practices may create unintended barriers to inclusion and belonging.

    In the recent CUPA-HR virtual workshop, “Detecting Systemic Bias in Talent Practices,” Dr. Aarti Shyamsunder, DEI solutions consultant at YSC Consulting, and Pooja Shahani, founder and CEO of Kintsugi Consulting, discussed methods higher ed HR practitioners can use to pinpoint these barriers to inclusion. One method is to audit the DEI experience at your institution by reflecting on the following questions to determine who is present, who is participating and who holds the power.

    • Who runs things? Who are the individuals that make decisions? Who are the leaders? Who sits on the board? Do they all look the same? Is there a pattern in who gets to run things?
    • Who does the office “housework?” Who organizes team outings and takes meeting notes? Are these individuals recognized for their work? Women in the workforce often take on these additional duties.
    • Who gets credit? Are team members receiving praise and recognition for their contributions to a job well done? In academia, this could include whose name gets listed first on research or other academic work.
    • Who knows whom? Is there a pattern of individuals who know each other who receive more information and therefore have more opportunities to progress?
    • Who is speaking? Who gets to take space in a room? Is there an obvious difference in how often men in the room speak versus women?
    • Who gets development opportunities? Who are the individuals who get access to high-visibility roles that end up becoming senior-level positions? Who is being invested in?
    • Whose experience matters? “Covering” is a term that means downplaying our identities. What kind of covering demands (often unspoken) do we make of people so they feel compelled to change themselves in order to belong?
    • Who gets invalidated? Whose presence and voice are missing from meetings?

    Exploring long-standing practices through the lenses of various campus stakeholders is essential to creating a higher ed workplace that is both inclusive and welcoming. Look for ways you and your team can audit employee experiences and uncover barriers at your institution.

    Related resources:

    Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Toolkit (CUPA-HR members-only resource)

    DEI Maturity Index

    Diversity Resources

    Diversity and Inclusion Start With the Hiring Process: Two Institutions Getting It Right (The Higher Ed Workplace Blog)



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  • NO, You Cannot be a Law Professor

    NO, You Cannot be a Law Professor


                                                                         

    About once a year a student comes to my office to ask about becoming a law professor. I have to tell him or her there is virtually no chance and that may be overly optimistic. The reason, of course, is that they are not attending one of a tiny handful  of — mainly expensive private — law schools that produce what people who went to those schools, and are in charge of hiring,  regard as good enough to be law professors. This always seemed odd to me since some of the smartest people I know went to mid level law schools and some of the dumbest and most narrowly educated  (including some law professors) went to the fancy schools.

    Even if they apply to be a law professor they will be quickly vetoed — without so much as a second look — by someone who did go to one of those law schools. Strange isn’t it. The privileged attend the fancy schools, get all puffed up about it but they actually do not think they are very good teachers. How do we know this? Because rarely, if ever, do they think they have been effective enough in class to elevate even the smartest student to be a potential law professor. They must be lousy teachers since they cannot even explain to others what they claimed to have learned in law school themselves.

    So what is up with this. It’s either about rankings or some delusional notion that you have to have gone to a fancy school to be an effective teacher and researcher. I’ve said enough in other blogs about how law schools will sacrifice everything to advance in the rankings. It is the least ethical conduct I have seen in legal education. And, I do not know whether going to a fancy school is correlated with good teaching and research. I once attempted an empirical study of this but could not find enough people who went to non fancy schools to make the study valid.

    So what’s is it really about? It’s about status  and preserving status– anyway you can. Think about it. You’ve spend a few hundred thousand to attend a fancy school and you are a law professor. (And you are sure to remind the students of your days at Harvard or Yale,)  Then someone is hired who did not go to a fancy school and is running circles around you both teaching-wise and research-wise. What does that mean about you? It may mean that you are not so hot after all since some poor schlub from the University of Florida is kicking your elitist ass.

    So don’t feel bad. It’s just a way elitists ensure that the caste system is perpetuated. It has nothing to do with your merit and, most definitely, nothing to do with theirs.

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