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HR Notification: Payroll Welcomes Shemika Valentine

Human Resources and Talent Development is excited to announce the newest addition to our staff, Shemika Valentine. She joins HR as the payroll specialist. Valentine is a dedicated payroll professional with a strong foundation in business administration and experience managing full-cycle payroll processes. With a career focused on public service, she has provided payroll expertise across higher education, local government and nonprofit healthcare systems. Known for her understanding of bargaining unit compliance and unionized environments, Valentine ensures payroll accuracy, timeliness and adherence to policy in complex organizational settings. Supporting the people behind the payroll, she blends technical payroll expertise with a commitment to employee service and compliance.  Outside of the office, she enjoys spending time with her husband and their two adult daughters, whose accomplishments continually make her proud. Valentine has a passion for travel and a deep respect for equity, values that shape both her personal outlook and professional approach.

Payroll Notification: Post Memorial Day Timesheet Reminder

We hope you had a reflective and restful Memorial Day holiday. This reminder is for the 6/20/25 pay date timesheet (for the pay period of 5/26-6/8/25). The first day of the pay period was Monday, 5/26/25, which was the Memorial Day holiday. As a reminder, employees who are eligible for holiday pay (both hourly and salary) will use the HOL column on the timesheet to report regularly scheduled hours for that day. Generally, contingent (part time, non-benefited) and student employees are not eligible for holiday pay and should not work and not report time, either in in/out times or the HOL column. Contingent employees can use the NP column (for No Pay) for hours that day to add up to the regular weekly hours if the timesheet gives an error message when trying to submit. Supervisors, please pay close attention to hours on 5/26/25 to ensure people who are eligible for holiday pay are using HOL and those who are not eligible don't have any HOL hours reported or are using the NP column (or PTO for limited benefit employees who'd like to use some of their leave bank towards that day). Don't forget you can always send us an email at  hrpayroll@grcc.edu  if you have questions.

Member Purchase Program: Summer Tech Upgrade Sale June 2-16

We’re excited to announce Dell's Summer Tech Upgrade Sale– Enjoy incredible savings on our top tech, designed to enhance your productivity. Plus, get an extra 5% off with your member discount. Hurry, these limited-time deals are available from June 2 through June 16. Members can shop 24/7 at:   www.Dell.com/DellU/GRCC    Members save an additional discount on select Dell.com purchases with this exclusive coupon. Request your exclusive coupon at:  www.Dell.com/DellU/GRCC   Verify work email through "Employee Discount" button. Copy & paste coupon in checkout. Exclusions may apply. 

Stay in the Loop: Employee Events Calendar

We’ve created a dedicated  Employee Events Google calendar to keep you informed about upcoming events for employees. If you subscribe, you can toggle the calendar on or off at your convenience to see upcoming events.  Each event includes more details, so be sure to click in and  check for any registration requirements before attending. Have an event that’s focused on employees? Please email the details to  arikadavis1@grcc.edu  to have it added to the calendar. 

Tech tip: International travel

Prior to traveling internationally, it’s imperative to consider the GRCC systems  you’ll need access to at your destination. To ensure a smooth trip, please submit a request for our  International Travel Security Check . We’ll investigate potential hurdles you might encounter while traveling and collaborate with you to ensure you have the necessary tools abroad.  For security purposes, we recommend you use a loaner laptop rather than your assigned GRCC device. This recommendation is contingent upon supervisor approval in accordance with policy  11.6 Use of College Equipment Off College Property .   For more information and helpful tips, please visit the  IT Support Portal  or contact the Support Desk at x4357.      

GRCC Celebrates and Supports Pride Month at Local Festivals

June 5, 2025 Each June, Pride Month offers a meaningful opportunity to celebrate the diversity, resilience and contributions of LGBTQ+ communities around the world. It’s a time to honor the struggles for equality, recognize the progress that’s been made and reaffirm our collective commitment to inclusion, respect and human dignity. Why June? Honoring the Stonewall legacy Pride Month traces its roots back to the Stonewall riots of June 1969, a watershed moment in the fight for LGBTQ+ rights in the United States. The uprising began when LGBTQ+ patrons of the Stonewall Inn in New York City pushed back against police harassment and discrimination. What followed was a wave of activism that helped ignite the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement. Today, Pride celebrations are held across the globe in June to remember that pivotal event — and to celebrate the freedom to live and love openly. GRCC’s commitment to equity and belonging   At Grand Rapids Community College, we believe education should be a place where every student feels valued, respected and empowered. GRCC is proud to stand with our LGBTQ+ students, employees and community partners — not just during Pride Month, but all year long. As part of our mission to foster a welcoming and inclusive campus, GRCC supports: LGBTQ+ student leadership through StandOut, our on-campus student organization that provides space for advocacy, support and connection. Educational resources through the GRCC Library, including books, research guides and curated content on LGBTQ+ history and identity. Partnerships with local organizations like the Grand Rapids Pride Center, Grand Rapids Trans Foundation and United Campus Christian Fellowship to build bridges between campus and community. Policies and practices that uphold the rights and dignity of LGBTQ+ students, including non-discrimination, gender-inclusive facilities and access to support services. Join us at local Pride festivals This year you’ll find us at these local Pride Festivals: Grand Rapids Pride Festival – Sunday, June 22 Holland Pride Festival – Saturday, June 28 Our enrollment team will host tables at both events, sharing information about GRCC’s academic programs, student resources and inclusive campus culture. Stop by to connect with our team, grab some Pride-themed giveaways — including T-shirts — and show your support for an education system that welcomes everyone. Explore more resources In honor of Pride Month, the GRCC Library invites you to learn more about the history and ongoing impact of Pride: Read about the Stonewall Uprising in the Library of Congress Research Guides Visit the GRCC LGBTQ+ Resources Subject Guide to explore books, articles and tools for learning and advocacy Check out the in-library display highlighting LGBTQ+ authors and stories Pride Month is about visibility, celebration and commitment — values that align closely with GRCC’s vision of accessible, life-changing education. We are proud to celebrate this month with our community and continue working toward a future where all students feel seen, heard and supported. Happy Pride from all of us at GRCC!

Former faculty member and current TRIO Stem tutor Tom Neils fights to get incorrect value in inorganic chemistry textbooks fixed

Tom Neils is a semi-retired GRCC faculty member who taught chemistry for 25 years and has now been tutoring TRIO STEM students for the past few years. During his semi-retirement he has been working with colleagues at GVSU and Willamette University to point out a 100-year old error that chemists have been making. This error became so commonly accepted that it appears in most college-level organic chemistry textbooks.  While teaching at GRCC, Neils noticed that the organic chemistry textbook they were using had the value of 15.7 for the pKa of water. He worked with Stephanie Schaertel at GVSU (who is also his wife) to write a module on the topic for LibreTexts ( What is the pKa of water? ).  Then Neils wrote to many organic textbook authors pointing out the error and asking them to correct the error. Most would not change, not always because they thought the 15.7 value was correct, but sometimes because they did not want to be the first author to change the value. He then read a scientific paper on the pKa of water by Todd Silverstein, so he contacted him and asked him if he wanted to join forces.  Since that time, Neils, Schaertel, and Silverstein have published three peer-reviewed papers on the topic. Neils has given talks at GVSU, Hope, Calvin and MSU, and he has also presented posters and talks at two American Chemical Society (ACS) conferences. Neils has convinced quite a few organic chemistry textbook authors to correct the error and use the correct value of 14.0. He has also convinced the ACS Division of Organic Chemistry to use the correct values on the pKa tables that they curate ( Bordwell pKa Table ).  Neils states, “We did all this work because our students were confused by the fact that they were learning different values for the same constant in different classes.” In addition, Neils says, “My colleague Stephanie Schaertel and I will also be presenting a poster on this topic at the  National Organic Symposium  later this month.”  
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