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HR notification: Check your vacation balances

As we approach the busy holiday season, check your vacation hours and make sure you are not at risk of losing any vacation hours as of 12/31/24 with the  Vacation Bank Calculator .  As of 12/31/24, employees are allowed to have their current fiscal vacation accrual plus an automatic 10-day carry over. Employees can request to have these 10 days transferred to their sick bank by sending an email to hrpayroll@grcc.edu . Any vacation hours above the limits allowed by your employee contract/handbook will be forfeited. For APSS, CEBA, and PMA employees, an additional five-day carry over on an exception basis due to workload may be granted with supervisor approval. Supervisors, please email hrpayroll@grcc.edu with any approved employees for the additional five-day carry over. Supervisors, also remember that you have access to view the leave bank balances of your direct and indirect reports through the Online Center under Supervisor Self Service, My Employees’ Leave Balances. To view your indirect reports, click on the “View My Organization” link in the upper left corner of the page.

Healthy Minds study extended to Dec. 13

We are excited to announce that Grand Rapids Community College (GRCC), in conjunction with the University of Michigan, is launching the  Healthy Minds Study  on campus starting October 28! We hope to use data from this study to understand the state of our students’ well-being by circulating a survey enquiring about their mental health status, needs, and other related information. If you have any questions for the study team, you can reach out to hms-  coordination@umich.edu . All students at GRCC will be invited to participate and earn $10, and students will receive their links to the survey in their inbox starting Monday, October 28. Please encourage students to not mark it as spam! Their participation ensures that a variety of student perspectives and experiences are represented.  The survey will be open from Monday, October 28 to Friday, December 13, sent from Dr. Sheila Jones,   at  GRCC-healthyminds@umich.edu . We would like to hear from as many students as we can, and would appreciate you sharing information with your students about this study in class or via email. Thank you for your cooperation and support as we work to better understand our students and their needs. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to Melissa Ware, Program Director-Center for Counseling and Well-Being,  atmelissaware@grcc.edu . 

Holiday Toy Drive at TerryTown RV on Dec. 7

  There is a family friendly event taking place on Saturday, Dec. 7 from 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. at the GR Classics Auto Museum located inside the TerryTown RV Showroom,7303 S Division Ave, Grand Rapids.  Help fill a red '55 Chevy Cameo Pickup! There will be ornament decorating for the first 200 families who bring a toy to the event, a hot chocolate station and special guests/photo opportunities.   If you choose to donate, toys that you bring in need to be new and unwrapped. This event is being organized by the Lakeshore Corvette Club along with The GR Classics Auto Museum.

Toys for Tots Drive on campus from Nov. 22-Dec. 6

There will be boxes on campus from Nov. 22 -Dec. 6 to collect toys for the Toys for Tots program.  There will be one box in the lobby of the ECLL and two in the Center for Student Life & Leadership office. All of the toys donated at the collection sites on campus will be taken on December 6 to bring to the Holiday Toy Drive on Dec. 7. If you choose to donate, toys that you bring in need to be new and unwrapped. If you have any students with children who could benefit from receiving a toy you can send them to the Toys for Tots website between now and  December 1 at 5 p.m. to apply on their  Find Your Local Campaign webpage  

Payroll notification: Timesheet reminder

As we prepare for some time away from work for the holiday campus closure starting Wednesday, 11/27/2024, Payroll has a reminder about your timesheets for the 12/6/24 pay date (for the pay period of 11/11-11/24/24). We don't want the due dates to sneak up on you! Timesheets are still due by noon on Monday, 11/25/24, and supervisor approvals are still due by noon on Tuesday, 11/26/24.  However, we have a very truncated processing time for the next pay date.  We will not be able to easily send our manual reminders for late timesheets. This is a reminder to please adhere to the deadlines to ensure the smooth and timely processing for the next pay date.  And, supervisors, if you're out for any additional time around this shutdown, please ensure you have a backup approver in place to review and approve timesheets by the approval deadline. More information on setting up a backup approver can be found on the HR  Employee Forms webpage. Enjoy the well-deserved break!  

PTK All-USA scholarship nominations due by Dec. 2, 2024

Please consider nominating a student for the PTK All-USA scholarship which provides $5,000 to the selected recipient. This is late notice for nominations, and these are being sought by Dec. 2, 2024. The All-USA Academic Team recognizes high-achieving college students who demonstrate academic excellence and intellectual rigor combined with leadership and service that extends their education beyond the classroom to benefit society.  The scholarship is for transfer and workforce students and is by college nomination only through the PTK All-USA Nomination Form . The program is sponsored by Cengage, with additional support from the American Association of Community Colleges and Phi Theta Kappa.

GRCC helps student overcome FAFSA challenges

Nov. 22, 2024 Edirene Flores is on her way to the life she always imagined. The 18-year-old is wrapping up her first semester at Grand Rapids Community College’s  Lakeshore Campus in Holland and couldn’t be happier. “My classes are interesting and my professors are really good,” said Flores, who lives in Holland.  “I really appreciate the convenience of going to college like 15 minutes from my house rather than having to drive all the way to Grand Rapids.” But Flores is most grateful to GRCC financial aid specialists who helped guide her through the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) application process and, ultimately, qualify for grants and scholarships so she could afford college. “Going to college was my dream and I knew I could be a good student and a worker in the future,” Flores said. Born in Indiana, Flores lived most of her childhood in Mexico with her mother. She moved to Texas at the age of 15 and relocated the following year to live with extended family in Holland and complete high school. Flores began working on the FAFSA form months before graduating from Holland High School. But the process was complicated by the fact that her mother lives in Mexico and doesn’t have a U.S. Social Security number. “I spent three months calling FAFSA every single morning trying to get help,” Flores said. “I was just really sad because I left Mexico looking for a better life. But without completing my FAFSA and qualifying for loans or grants, I could never afford to go to college.” Then  Jaqueline Araiza came to the rescue. Araiza, operations manager at  GRCC’s Lakeshore Campus , is dedicated to supporting new students in navigating the enrollment and admission process, bringing her wealth of experience to assist individuals on their educational journey. Araiza worked with Flores for weeks until her FAFSA was successfully submitted. Thanks to GRCC grants and scholarships, Flores was able to begin classes in August and is enrolled full-time. Flores shares her FAFSA struggles not to complain, but in hopes of inspiring others — especially those whose first language isn’t English — to seek assistance from the college’s  Financial Aid Office .  “I’m so grateful and want to thank GRCC and my family for supporting me,” Flores said. “Maybe if someone reads this they’ll see that good things can happen and they don’t have to give up their dreams.”  This story was reported by Beth McKenna.

LRC Renovation Design Open House Dec. 4

Major renovations to the Learning Resource Center (LRC) are scheduled to begin in 2025. On Wednesday, December 4. 11 a.m. - 1 p.m., GRCC employees and students are invited to ATC 120/122 to review current design plans, ask questions and provide feedback.  When completed, the renovated building will house the Library, Disability Support Services, the Center for Counseling & Well-Being, the Woodrick Center for Inclusion and Multicultural Affairs, Academic and Tutoring Services, a new Testing Center, Media Services and a variety of student study and gathering spaces.  It's an open house-style event and refreshments will be served. Come see and speak into what's planned for the future LRC!  
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