The Campus CONNECTION Issue 20 October 2015
In this issue Employee Corner P.2 Employee EnrichmentP.3 Supervisor Corner P.4
Now You Know Current Staff Openings
Secretary III Academic Advising and Student Success Police Officer
Texas Pioneer Foundation Donates Scholarship Funds to A&M-Texarkana Dr. Emily Cutrer, President, accepts a $20,000 gift from Fred Markham, President of the Texas Pioneer Foundation. The funds will be used for student scholarships at A&M-Texarkana. The Texas Pioneer Foundation today announced a $20,000 donation to Texas A&M University-Texarkana to be used for student scholarships. “The Texas Pioneer Foundation is pleased to support the current and future students of A&M-Texarkana,” said Fred Markham, president of the foundation. “This donation represents an investment in the future of our community, our state and our region.” Dr. Emily Cutrer, president of A&M-Texarkana, said the funds will be applied toward a scholarship endowment in the name of the Texas Pioneer Foundation. “We are extremely grateful for the generous support of the foundation and its members,” Dr. Cutrer said. “Over the years, the foundation has provided muchneeded funding for student scholarships and other campus initiatives. Our students’ lives are better because of the funding we receive from wonderful organizations such as the Texas Pioneer Foundation.” For more information on giving to Texas A&M University-Texarkana, contact LeAnne Wright, associate vice president for University Advancement, atLeAnne.Wright@tamut.edu or (903) 223-3078.
Employee Corner Employee of the Month August BIRTHDAYS Tommy Hughes Brandon Barron Andrea Hamilton Suk Jin Lee Amy Carwile Julia Allen
Aaron Harding Elaine Beason Steve Jones Wade Stovall Bette Shoptaw Hal Lorance
Meet Our
Sheri Brady
Melissa Harrison
Community College Transfer Coordinator
Briana Taylor Counselor
Her Nominator said “ I think that Sheri would bean awesome employee of the month for the month of August because she went above and beyond in so many ways this month. As many of you know, the month of August is hectic for our staff in general because of all of the beginning of the year festivities. She has been over the new campus ID card system. This has been a complicated project as we transition to a one-card system and Sheri has been instrumental in working out how this will work with multiple departments involved. She also showed up and assisted at several evening and weekend activities. She made student ID cards for the Bringle Lake Village residents on both move-in days, she helped set up and coordinate nearly all Hatch Camp activities the weekend of August 21-23rd, she stayed late on Friday evening to help us grill over 300 hamburgers and hot dogs for our new students. All of these activities are on top of processing all purchasing documents for our department, all our departmental EPA’s and continuing to make student ID cards for EVERY new student and faculty/staff member. Sheri has been working a lot of extra hours, and pitching in in so many different ways and she does it without complaining or asking for recognition. I can’t think of a better person to honor with this month’s employee of the month award. The Campus Connection
Employee Enrichment Negotiating Change It is common for us to take advantage of routines, not realizing how much comfort and stability they provide us with, until they undergo a change. Be it on a small or large scale, changes in our personal or professional lives can lead to resistance, a desire for going back to the “old way,” and increased stress. So, whether you can see a change on the horizon, or if a change inevitably comes about out of the blue, you may want to try some of the following strategies to make any transition as smooth as possible. Monitor Your Thinking: Without knowing it, your worries about an upcoming change may be muddying the waters of your thoughts. Take a few moments each day to actually listen to what your mind is telling you about the change. Are you only focused on potential negatives of the new routine? Is your mind trying to trick you into thinking that you can’t handle this change? Hear these thoughts, and attempt to provide yourself with facts to combat the negatives (i.e., Are there any potential positives this change may bring? Even though it may have been stressful, have you been able to make it through changes in the past?) Don’t Resist: People who end up having the highest levels of stress are not just those who are over-thinking the change, but those who are avoiding thinking about it. Ignorance is only bliss in the short term, but often is quietly piling up until we feel as if we are emotionally ready to burst. Schedule worry time during your day (but avoid doing this right before bed). Take a moment to run over your concrete concerns or problems that this change will bring about. Write them down, and then close your notepad and make a commitment to limiting your stress to your scheduled worry time. Worrying all of the time decreases our productivity in other areas, and tends to make our problems turn into fears and excessive worry. Change Your Routine: When one aspect of your life is changing, it can be very helpful to stick to routines in other aspects of your life. However, you may need to make a little space for self-care. Off the top of your head, who are three of the most positive people in your life, or what are three of the activities that you find most relaxing or fun? Try dropping a few hours of television or social media during the week and replace them with the most positive people or pleasant leisure activities. This can help create a better sense of well-being and balance. Deer Oaks offers free resources, tips, and confidential counseling for handling change. Contact us for more information! Visit us at www.deeroaks.com for more information.
How To: Recover from a Personal Financial Setback Financial setbacks inevitably happen, and if you find yourself dealing with a layoff, high medical expenses, or another setback, there are some steps you should take to start the road to recovery. • Assess Your Personal Situation - First, assess the situation so that you know exactly what you are dealing with. Is this a one-time setback, or an ongoing issue? Is it temporary or permanent? Know exactly how much money you’ll need, and how much you have. • Analyze Available Financial Resources - Determine what resources are available to you, both from your own accounts as well as insurance. If you are facing medical bills, have you made sure everything has been covered appropriately by insurance? If you’ve been laid off, look into Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) extended health insurance coverage, as well as unemployment insurance. Do you have an emergency fund? If so, this may be the right time to start using it. • Set Financial Priorities - After you know exactly what your situation is and what resources you have available to you, you’ll need to set priorities. Go through your budget and determine if there is any opportunity to decrease costs, such as canceling or cutting back on cable. • Prioritize - Know which bills have to be paid immediately, and what things you can prioritize later. Just don’t be tempted to go without insurance – this can change a minor setback into a major one very quickly. • Create a Personal Financial Plan - With your spouse, work through your budget and your bills, and decide how you are going to get everything paid. Is there opportunity to earn more or spend less? Know exactly how you’ll be spending your money over the next few months, and make a plan to track your progress. • Contact Your Creditors - Finally, if there are some bills you absolutely cannot afford to make minimum payments on, contact your creditors to work through payment options. You should make these phone calls before your bills end up in collections, because once there, your options are limited.
The Campus Connection Issue 20 October 2015
Supervisor’s Corner Tips for Working more Effectively with Difficult Employees As every manager knows, some employees are more difficult to work with than others. More difficult to manage individuals can take extra time and effort, be less cooperative, and are often a source of frustration for their supervisors. Of course there are many reasons that an individual employee can be difficult to manage. Some are due to temporary circumstances or stressors (i.e. a personal issue that the employee is dealing with), and others are ongoing and appear to be driven by the employee’s personality (chronic negativity, selfcenteredness, etc.). Whether these challenges are temporary or long-term in nature, below are several tips for working more effectively with a difficult to manage individual: • Be extra Prepared for the Interactions – To minimize the stress of interacting with a challenging individual, make a point to pick the right time and place to talk. Make sure that you’re in a good place mentally and emotionally – if you’re not, put off the conversation if possible. Be sensitive to the mood of the employee as well. If they seem upset or agitated, it’s probably also wise to pick a different time to talk. • Take a Positive Approach – Although it’s human nature to minimize contact with individuals that are harder to work with, try not to avoid these employees. That can make things worse. They need your time and attention. Try to stay positive and encouraging as you interact with them. Optimism can be contagious – some of it will rub off on the employee and potentially help them to become a more cooperative and productive team member over time. • Be more of a Coach than a Boss – Instead of using a directive management approach when interacting, introduce the task, problem, or performance to be discussed and ask the employee for their input. This approach helps many individuals to feel more valued and respected, which can lead to them to being more engaged in the work and easier to deal with. • Thoughtfully Respond, Instead of Emotionally React – When you’re confronted by a difficult to manage individual, discipline yourself to stay calm emotionally so you can respond thoughtfully. If you find yourself getting overly emotional, consider putting off the conversation if possible. I am a new supervisor and want to know right now what the pitfalls are for people like me. I have 40 employees, and many of them have been around for years. I can almost feel the tension in the air that I have to prove something to get their respect. You are new to the work unit, and your employees know it, of course, so your number one mistake will be communicating in some way that you know everything, either accidentally or nonverbally. Sending this message will set you up for a rough ride in the months ahead. To reduce the likelihood of that, you do not have to admit that you are not knowledgeable about the work and operations of your unit—you simply need to be a good listener and ask questions. Treat employees like they are valuable resources for you, be respectful, and be thankful for their ability get you oriented. You’ve probably heard that old quip or seen it on T-shirts, “Those who think they know everything are annoying to those of us who do.” Your goal is to help ensure that this doesn’t become your reality. The Campus Connection