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OA Star 2023 Nominations

The Officers of Administration Council is accepting nominations for outstanding OA Star Award honorees until Monday, July 31.

Each year, the OA council selects and recognizes officers of administration who have made an exceptional, positive impact on the university.

Honorees will be recognized at the council’s fall open meeting, receive a certificate and sit in the president’s suite during a UO football game at Autzen Stadium this fall.

Officers of administration selected to receive OA Star Awards distinguish themselves by applying their professional efforts for the betterment of the entire institution and the university community. They not only excel in their positions and departments, but they also embody a spirit of collegiality and vision, working with peers and partners across departmental and divisional lines. They strive for continuous improvement and look to build relationships and solutions that improve the university for all stakeholders.

UO community members can nominate up to three officers of administration by completing the online survey. Each nomination should include a short paragraph that addresses their exceptional and positive impact on campus and how the nominee embodies a spirit of collegiality and vision to foster a more inclusive campus community. Nominations are due by 5:00 p.m. on Monday, July 31.

OA Council Leadership Symposium Documents

The OA Council hosted the Engaged Leaders Symposium on May 24, 2023. This post to the OA Council website will hold the slides and handouts provided at the symposium.

 

Slides

OA Council Leadership Symposium 2023 Slide Deck

OA Council Leadership Symposium DEI-Climater Survey Presentation 2023

Handouts

Building a Learning Organization

OA Council Leadership Symposium Presentation 2023

Learning and Development Handouts

Engagement Team Considerations

Guide to Inclusive Meetings

UO Leadership Culture Study Reports and Presentations

Presentation

Full Report

On Page Handout Summary

 

 

 

OA Council Leadership Symposium: Engaged Leaders

The OA Council is hosting a half-day symposium, partnering with colleagues across campus, to bring tools, information, and connection-building to OAs. You will have the opportunity to build your learning record on MyTrack if you wish for Session Two, or simply attend and listen. More information will be added as the Symposium draws closer.

 

When: May 24, 8:30am – 12:30pm

Where: Ford Alumni Center Ballroom

Session One: Engaged Leaders

Information and resource sharing. Topics will include:

  • OA Star nominations
  • OA Council priorities and progress
  • Campus Climate Survey updates
  • Panel discussion with campus resources on OAs as engaged leaders

Session Two: Strengths Based Leadership, a Campus of Belonging

This is an optional add on hands-on experience offered in partnership with UO HR and the OA Council. Space is limited to the first 50 registrants. Clifton Strengths is a tool that can help us gain awareness of our greatest talents and begin turning them into strengths.

Fall 2022 Open Meeting Recap

The OA Council hosted an Open Meeting in November 2022 with special guest Interim President Patrick Phillips, along with Senior VP for Finance and Administration Jamie Moffitt and VP and Chief Human Resources Officer Mark Schmelz, to answer questions and concerns of OAs in an open dialogue format. We were able to host OAs in-person as well as via zoom, in our first hybrid meeting offering – a learning experience for us all!

We provided the opportunity for OAs to ask questions as part of their RSVP to the event so that we could get a sense of interest in various topics and areas. There were certainly themes that came out of this initial query, including

  • Recruitment and Retention
  • Salaries and Compensation
  • Administrative Processes and Systems
  • Professional Development

It was also great to have an organic conversation in real time with the executive leadership that attended. Please see the OAC Fall 2022 Meeting Themes document for more information, as well as a recording of the Zoom session which will be posted soon.

Save the Date – Fall Open Meeting

We have scheduled our Fall 2022 Open Meeting for Thursday, November 10, from 12:30 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time. The OA Council has asked Interim President Patrick Phillips to join us for a Q&A session.

We are excited to be able to host this meeting in a hybrid setting, OAs are welcome to join us in the Gumwood Room in the EMU or via Zoom from any location convenient to them. Please feel free to bring a lunch; light refreshments will also be served.

There will be opportunities to suggest topics in advance, as well as ask questions during the meeting. Meeting details, including an in-person RSVP and the remote Zoom link, will be sent later in October.

OA Star 2022 Recipients

Each year the OA Council solicits nominations for folks who go above and beyond to improve the University of Oregon. This year, more than 73 OAs were nominated by their peers for outstanding service to the UO community. Congratulations to the 2022 OA Star recipients!

  • Tom Driscoll, director of university housing, University Housing: led the accommodations and dining planning and implementation for Oregon22, the largest and most complex conference hosted on campus with over 120,000 meals served and 50,000 bed nights.
  • Mariko Lin, assistant director education and prevention outreach director, University Health Services Counseling Services: oversees counseling services mental health outreach on campus, was responsible for JED campus distinction, implemented Kognito and other initiatives to assist students with mental health concerns.
  • Sarah Rivas, executive assistant: with staff departures, she took the lead on planning and executing campus wide events like homecoming, spring parent and family weekend, and commencement. She works tirelessly and diligently to cultivate the best experience.
  • Chantelle Russell, associate director, Physical Education and Recreation: developed and oversees the Thrive Healthy Living academic residential community (ARC), oversees over 140 PE classes per term for nearly 4,000 students.
  • Anna Shamble, senior project manager, Office of the Provost: manages and executes academic initiatives, incorporates innovation and inclusion in the provost’s initiatives. Her colleagues describe her as the unsung hero that keeps the university functioning.

OA Star Nominations!

Over the past several years, one thing has been evident: OAs across campus are rock stars! Each year, the OA Council recognizes Officers of Administration who have made an exceptional, positive impact on the University. We invite you to participate in this process by nominating up to three exceptional OAs for an OA Star Award! Honorees will be recognized at an upcoming Oregon football game.

Officers of Administration selected to receive OA Star Awards distinguish themselves by applying their professional efforts for the betterment of the entire institution and the university community. They excel not only in their positions and departments, but they also embody a spirit of collegiality and vision, working with peers and partners across departmental and divisional lines. They strive for continuous improvement by building cross-campus relationships and offering creative solutions that improve the University for all stakeholders.

Please submit nominations by Wednesday, August 24 on this Qualtrics form.

OA Vacation Maximum Extension

OA Council recognized that the upcoming vacation cap accrual expiration was a concern to many OAs. As a result of the Spring OAC listening sessions and interactions with our OA colleagues this summer, the OA Council went into action to advocate for fellow OA’s. Back in June 2020, the UO temporarily increased the vacation cap accrual from 260 hours to 340 hours as a result of the pandemic’s impact on OAs’ inability to take vacation time. This temporary cap expansion was to end September 30, 2022. Knowing that many OAs would be negatively impacted by the looming deadline, OA Council met with UO leadership asking for more insight on the impact and advocating for another option. As a result, we are pleased that the UO instituted a step down approach giving OAs, managers and teams an ability to plan thoughtfully for time off, ultimately working toward “work-life harmony” at the UO.

It’s up to all of us to know how the step down process works. On October 1, 2022, the maximum vacation accrual balance will reduce to 300 hours. On October 1, 2023 the vacation allowance will revert to the regular maximum allowance of 260.

For more information related to OA vacation accrual, visit HR’s website.

Spring 2022 Listening Session Recap

Throughout Spring term 2022, the OA Council hosted five listening sessions. The purpose of these listening sessions was to hear from OA’s about their lived work experiences, and listen to their challenges, concerns and accomplishments. The themes presented in these sessions will inform priorities for the OA Council in the next academic year.

The key themes we heard from OAs across campus were:

  • Retention and recruitment: All divisions, units and teams are doing more with less. OAs have stepped up and this has taken a toll. The University should work to become nimbler in this area to recruit and retain top OA talent.
    • OAs need to be recognized financially for taking on additional work to cover vacancies;
    • Relatively lower salaries and the rising costs of living in the Eugene and Portland regions are causing OAs to consider employment elsewhere;
    • Inability to take vacation, burnout and work balance are impacting OAs’ desire to remain in roles;
    • Open OA positions are difficult to fill;
    • A slow job offer process has caused the UO to lose competitive candidates; and
    • A desire for tools and resources to effectively and proactively retain current employees, as well as to competitively recruit talented OAs.
  • OAs would like cohesive and consistent policies to be implemented across campus. Without uniform application our OAs have experienced the following:
    • Struggle to get hybrid work approved at the unit level (this takes on immediate relevance with Oregon22 upon us); and
    • An experience of inequity within roles and teams, impacting inclusion and belonging.
  • Professional development: OAs continue to grow and look to the future of their professional goals. Requests include:
    • Clarity regarding the OA Job Family Framework; and
    • Increased access to professional development opportunities

Spring 2022 Listening Session Invite

Throughout Spring term, the OA Council is hosting informal listening sessions across campus and virtually. We invite all OAs to drop in to a listening session that works with their schedule, stay for as long as you would like.

There is no need to RSVP for a listening session. If you would like to add the listening session to your calendar, you can download the calendar invites here. If you would prefer to provide your feedback in writing, please contact an OA Council member directly.

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