An article about a Global Food Fair dinner at Mary Washington was recently featured on Patch.com. The event was hosted by UMW Dining Services to celebrate international cuisines and help promote the University’s Center for International Education study abroad programs. To read the article, visit https://patch.com/virginia/fredericksburg/umw-global-food-fair-promotes-study-abroad.
W-2 Statements Available on Payline
The following message is from the Payroll Office.
The 2018 W-2s are now on Payline at https://payline.doa.virginia.gov/. Information about accessing Payline is available on the Payroll website at http://adminfinance.umw.edu/payroll/payline-information/.
Paper copies were mailed on Friday, Jan. 25 to each employee’s home address as recorded in the payroll system on 12/18/2018.
To ensure employee privacy, W-2’s returned by the Post Office will not be re-mailed.
Please contact the Payroll Office (payroll@umw.edu) with any questions.
Hybrid, DCP and 457 Deferred Compensation Plan Specialist Visit
The following message is from the Office Human Resources:
For Hybrid Participants, 457 and ROTH 457 Deferred Compensation Participants and ORPHE –DCP Participants:
Our Plan Specialist is available to conduct on-site one-on-one individual consultations in GW 215B to help you gain awareness of the benefits of the VRS Defined Contribution Plans (DCP). Department group meetings are also available. These meetings address the highlights and features of the plans, overall investment options, and distribution strategies for those employees approaching retirement.
One-on-One Consultations includes the following:
- Managing your account online
- Reviewing your contributions and investments
- Investment awareness
- Beneficiary review
Our Plan Specialist will be on campus each month in GW 215B. The current schedule is as follows:
- Tuesday, February 26
- Tuesday, March 26
- Tuesday, April 30
- Tuesday, May 21
- Wednesday, June 5
- Tuesday, July 30
- Tuesday, August 27
- Tuesday, September 24
- Tuesday, October 29
- Tuesday, November 19
- Tuesday, December 3
Reserve your consultation appointment
Additional information about the Hybrid, the 457 Deferred Compensation the ROTH 457 and the ORPHE is provided for your convenience. ORPHE Participants may inquire and select DCP as their Provider during their annual open enrollment.
Please contact Denise Frye at dfrye2@umw.edu with questions
Updates on Title IX Office
To the Members of the UMW Community:
I am writing to inform you that Tiffany W. Oldfield, Title IX Coordinator, will be moving to the Carolinas, ending her time with the University. The Office of Title IX has made significant contributions within our local and campus communities under her leadership efforts in compliance, education, prevention, and support. Tiffany served as the University’s first full-time Title IX Coordinator and built the procedures and policies to support various different members of our campus community. Additionally, she served as the Project Director for our Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) grant. Please join us in wishing her well as she returns to her native home.
I have appointed Stefanie Lucas-Waverly, currently Title IX Investigator, as the Title IX Coordinator within the Office of Title IX. She will assume this role once the Title IX Investigator position is filled. Stefanie comes to the role with a decade of experience working in higher education, including serving on Behavioral Intervention Teams (BIT), Threat Assessment Teams (TAT), and our Sexual Assault Response Team (SART). Stefanie has served in many different capacities on college campuses including Dean of Students at Saint Mary’s University. While at UMW, she has worked with our Policy on Sexual and Gender-Based Harassment and Other Forms of Interpersonal Violence and has a strong commitment to serving our University community. In her new role she will continue relationships with stakeholders and community partners.
Effective December 25, Marissa Miller, will serve as the Interim Title IX Coordinator until the Title IX Investigator position has been filled. She has served as Associate Coordinator for the Office of Student Conduct and Coordinator for Prevention and Advocacy within the Office of Title IX for the past four years. Prior to this time, Marissa worked in Residence Life for six years between UMW and Hobart and William Smith Colleges. She has supported a previous Interim Title IX Coordinator during the last transition working with students, staff, faculty, and community partners to support the needs of our UMW community.
Join me in thanking all of these people for their contributions to the UMW Community.
Enjoy the break,
Troy D. Paino, J.D., Ph.D.
President
Center for Economic Development Launches Business Reference Guide
The University’s Center for Economic Development Business Reference Guide is available for Small Businesses in Virginia to utilize for quick and reliable information.
Since 2006, the Center for Economic Development has compiled the Business Reference Guide as a business intelligence tool for Virginia small companies. Each year more information is added and validated to create what the guide has become today.
Some major topics included in the guide are: Business Data and Statistics, E-commerce and Retail, Main Street Resources, and Local Impact for a Small Business.
“Business Intelligence is an advantage for entrepreneurs and business owners,” says Brian Baker, the Executive Director of the Center for Economic Development. “The 13th Annual Business Reference Guide is designed to help them find answers and save time from a comprehensive source.”
The UMW Small Business Development Center (SBDC), a program at the Center for Economic Development, uses the resource guide to help small business clients. The SBDC provides assistance to the small business community through management training, industrial and demographic research, and confidential one-on-one consulting with a focus on capital access and management planning.
“I always include the business reference guide as a resource to our new business owners,” says Angela Kelley, Early Venture Specialist of the Small Business Development Center. “It provides them with valuable resources to help them start and grow their business.”
To view the 2018 Business Reference Guide, please click here.
New Mediterranean Menu at Underground Cafe
This week the Underground Cafe rolled out a new Mediterranean menu featuring “Build Your Own” entrees with Beef, Chicken, Veggie or Falafel Kabobs along with a wide array of salads, appetizers and sides. The menu will still include Red Pepper Gouda Soup on Wednesdays, as well as fruit and yogurt smoothies and assorted desserts daily. Blackstone coffee has now been added to the menu, and beer on tap is available after 5 p.m.
Campus Dining invites UMW faculty, staff, and students to stop in for some free samples of the new Mediterranean dishes between 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. on Friday, December 7th. For more information contact Rose Benedict at 540-654-2169.
Tax Deferred Savings Plans Update and Notices
The following message is from Human Resources:
Please Contact Denise Frye, Benefits Administrator, at dfrye2@umw.edu with questions.
How do you envision your retirement? Are you saving enough money? Are you aware of your investment options? At this time of year, we reflect on how the current year has impacted our lives and we give thanks. It is also a time to think about the changes we can make today to ensure the future is prosperous. There is a saying, “Never put off until tomorrow what you can do today.” The time is now to revisit your investment choices and make financial decisions that will make the transition to retirement effortless. Our Financial Representatives offers you the opportunity to plan for your retirement today. Give thanks for the power of giving not only to others but also to yourself.
UPDATE & REMINDERS:
Great News!!! The Internal Revenue Service announced limits on the amounts participants may contribute to tax-deferred savings plans. The limits have increased for the 2019 calendar year (see chart below).
| 457 Deferred Compensation Plan and 403(b) Contribution Limits* |
2019 | 2018 | |
| Annual deferral limit for participants younger than age 50* | $19,000 | $18,500 | |
| Standard Catch-Up (not to exceed participant’s catch-up credit) | $19,000 ($38,000 total) |
$18,500 ($37,000 total) |
|
| Age 50+ Catch-Up Limit | $6,000 ($25,000 total) |
$6,000 ($24,500 total) |
|
*The annual limit includes any voluntary contributions that Hybrid Retirement Plan members make to the Hybrid 457 Deferred Compensation Plan and another supplemental 457 plan. Any Roth after-tax or pre-tax contributions made to the Commonwealth of Virginia 457 Deferred Compensation Plan also count towards the limit.
Age 50+ Catch-Up
If you are age 50 or older during the calendar year, you may contribute an additional amount over the regular IRS annual contribution limit to the 457 or 403(b) Plan. You cannot use the Age 50+ Catch-Up and the Standard Catch-Up in the same calendar year.
Standard Catch Up
During each of the three calendar years before normal retirement age, participants may contribute up to twice the regular IRS annual contribution limit or the regular annual limit plus the amount of their Standard Catch-Up credit, whichever is less.The Standard Catch-Up credit is the amount participants were eligible to contribute but did not contribute in previous years.
Our Financial Plan Specialists are available to conduct on-site group meetings and/or one-on-one individual consultations to help you gain awareness of the benefits of the Defined Contribution Plans.
One-on-One Consultations with your Financial Plan Specialist include the following:
- Managing your account online
- Reviewing your contributions
- Investment awareness
- Beneficiary review
Our Financial Plan Specialists may be contacted directly to schedule individual consultations.
Scheduled Visits are as follows:
Our VRS Defined Contribution Plan Specialist will be in George Washington Hall on Thursday, December 6. You may set up an appointment by registering at https://icmarc.secure.force.com/events?SiteId=a0lf1000006PZv8AAG. Currently, VRS is also conducting Live Webinars on a regular basis throughout the year for you.
Here is the link to our Upcoming 457 Deferred Compensation and Virginia Cash Match Live Webinars as well as Upcoming Hybrid Defined Contribution Component Live Webinars that will assist with the overall understanding of the plans.
Our TIAA Financial Consultant, will be in George Washington Hall on Monday, January 14, 2019 and Wednesday, January 23. Registration will be open soon at www.TIAA.org/schedulenow
Our MetLife Financial Services Representative, will be in Lee Hall, Rm 412, on Monday, January 28, from 11 am to 1 pm with a workshop on Financial Footsteps. You may register by calling 703-394-7152 or by email gmarsh@financialguide.com.
For Hybrid Retirement Plan Members Only:
(Hired on or after 1/1/2014)
The December 17th deadline for Hybrid Voluntary Contribution Changes is around the corner.
Why You Should Be Saving with Voluntary Contributions
- Employer Match – Consider boosting your voluntary contribution amount to 4 percent. If you save 4 percent, you’ll receive 2.5 percent in employer matching contributions!
- Tax Savings – Taxes are deferred on both contributions and earnings, allowing you to pay less in taxes now.
- Link to your retirement plan – https://www.varetirement.org/hybrid/plan-info/voluntary-contributions.html.
Office Sustainability Tip of the Week
With December and the holidays upon us, hopefully we’re all getting into the spirit of the season a little bit. Even though this often proves to be a very stressful time of year, it’s also a time when people come together to help those in need. Throughout the entire year, organizations on campus such as COAR organize charitable events that benefit the local community. Most recently, the Staff Advisory Committee organized a Thanksgiving Food Drive, as did Kappa Delta Pi (KDP), the national Education honor society at UMW. Hopefully we’re all doing a little something this month to help others and those in need. While the “Office Sustainability Tip of the Week” usually focuses on environmental concerns, we’re taking the opportunity this week to think about how to go about sustaining social relationships in the workplace.
If you’re like me and many other people, you often feel as if you spend more time with your co-workers during the week than you do with your own family. So it’s crucial to establish good relationships with everyone that you work with. We’re often quick to shoot off the most minor of emails to co-workers to ask a question or pass along some information, but what about picking up the phone to speak to the individual or walking over to their area/office to discuss things in person? Even doing this just once or twice a month might make that connection you have with individuals a little more personal. Some organizations/institutions have “no email Fridays,” which encourages employees to pick up the phone or speak to individuals face-to-face as opposed to sending an email. Is a policy like this always going to be practical? Perhaps not, but it’s something to think about. Moreover, how often do we misinterpret tone or intent through email? How often is it hard to even comprehend what is trying to be communicated to you through email? The choice to speak with someone over the phone or in person may not only improve social relationships in the workplace, but it may also improve communication, problem-solving, and productivity.
What about other ways to improve interpersonal relationships in the workplace? If you’re a supervisor, are you taking the time to praise employees for a job well done? If there’s that one individual in your office who NEVER leaves their office except for lunch, are you reminding them to take a few minutes every now and then for a quick walk around campus, to grab a cup of coffee, or to even just get up and stretch a little bit? (Yes, I did just propose that you encourage your employees to get up and stretch. It’s an excellent way to maintain a healthy workplace. Read more about that by going to https://tinyurl.com/y9fnsfan). Maybe the answer for improving social relationships with your co-workers lies outside the office. Does your office have a weekly happy hour or get together for lunch or dinner? What about a Book Club or Movie Night among those you work with? If not, maybe it’s time for you to initiate this idea among your co-workers. The holiday season is also a great opportunity to have a Pot Luck Office Luncheon or a fun Cookie Exchange.
If you have any suggestions for things we can all do differently each day to create more sustainable office environments–whether ecological or social–please feel free to leave a comment or email Kevin Caffrey (kcaffrey@umw.edu) with ideas for other Sustainability Tip of the Week articles.
Kevin Caffrey is the Senior Associate Registrar at UMW and serves as Staff Co-Chair of the President’s Council on Sustainability. Formed in the fall of 2009, the PCS consists of faculty, staff, and students and reports both to the Executive Vice President for Administration and Finance and the Provost, serving a critical role in shaping administrative goals and objectives relating to campus sustainability. Their next meeting is Wednesday Dec. 5 at 4:30 p.m. in the University Center, 2nd Floor Jamba Juice/Qdoba dining area. Meetings generally last one hour and are open to employees, students, and the public.
Volunteers Needed for Holiday Dining Events
Campus Dining is looking for volunteers to help serve the Winter Holiday Dinner for students on Wednesday, December 5th. Volunteers are asked to serve for one hour beginning at 4:45, 5:45 or 6:45 p.m., and all volunteers will receive their dinner free in thanks for their service. Spouses and older children are also welcome to help serve!
The dinner menu includes Steamship Round of Beef, Smoked Salmon, Apple Stuffed Pork Loin, Roast Turkey with all the trimmings, Vegan Buffet with Faux Ham and Tofurkey, assorted holiday cakes and pies, a hot chocolate station and a holiday cookie decorating station.
Volunteers are also needed for the “Cram Jam” event on Monday, December 10th. To help UMW students get energized for final exams, Campus Dining will be providing free tacos for all UMW students between 11 p.m. and 12:30 a.m. at the Top of the UC. Volunteers are asked to serve between 10:45 p.m. and 11:45 p.m. and in addition to getting free tacos that night volunteers will also be given a ticket for a free meal at the Top of the UC at a later time that week.
Anyone wishing to volunteer for one or both of these events should contact Campus Dining at Dining@UMW.edu or call Rose Benedict at 540-654-2169.
Important Action Item: Verify Name/Address for HR and Payroll by Dec. 5
The following message is from the Office of Human Resources:
Dear Colleagues,
It’s that time again. Please take a few moments before December 5, 2018 to verify and, if needed, update your mailing address and legal name as they appear in Human Resources and Payroll records. This information must be correct for the University’s year-end Employer Reporting, your W-2 statements and the commonwealth’s Affordable Care Act reporting. Errors may result in federal penalties for the University.
Review your name and address by logging into Payline and selecting “Pay History” to check your pay stub or log into EmployeeDirect and click on “My Employment Profile” then “Personal.”
If an update is needed, please make the update in Payline by completing the following steps:
1. Click “Employee Profile”
2. Click “Request Profile Change”
3. Enter the changes needed
4. Select “Accept” at the bottom of the screen
5. Log out
If you are unable to complete the update in Payline, please forward your change of address to Gayle Robinson at grobinso@umw.edu.
Please ensure your name in Payline matches your name as it appears on your social security card. The HR and Payroll systems must reflect the legal name as shown on your social security card.
If your name in Payline does not match your social security card, please contact Gayle Robinson at grobinso@umw.edu.
Again, please enter or submit all updates on or before Wednesday, December 5 to ensure the address is updated for year-end processing.
Thank you.
Please Contact Denise Frye, Benefits Administrator, at dfrye2@umw.edu with questions.