UPbeat

News for and about University of Portland faculty and staff.

Human Resources

Title IX Advisory Meeting, April 26, 11 a.m.

All members of the UP community are invited to join the Title IX Advisory Committee and attend our meetings on Mondays at 11 a.m. this spring. Title IX Advisory Committee Meetings for Spring will take place at the following times on Zoom (https://uportland.zoom.us/j/97562343235). Our remaining meeting takes place on Monday, April 26, at 11 a.m.

If you aren’t able to make the Monday morning meetings you can stay in the loop about meeting discussion topics by checking out the meeting minutes available on the Title IX website, https://www.up.edu/titleix/titleixupdates.html.

Regardless of your ability to attend the Monday morning meetings, you’re invited to join a subcommittee to work toward positive change. Subcommittees focus on a particular need identified for our community and work towards their goals and meet outside of the main Title IX Advisory Committee meeting.

  • Cultural Change and Education Committee
  • Student Advocacy Program Committee
  • Non-UP Confidential Resource Program Committee

Please email titleix@up.edu if you are interested in joining a subcommittee. Contact Sarah Meiser, human resources, at 8484 or meiser@up.edu for more information.

Flexible Spending Account Changes

University of Portland is happy to announce some unique opportunities for Flexible Spending Accounts benefits this year per the Consolidated Appropriations Act which allows temporary changes to Section 125 cafeteria plans due to the COVID-19 pandemic:

  • All Medical and Dependent Care FSA unused 2020 account balances will automatically rollover into 2021 accounts and will be amounts that are in addition to 2021 elections.
  • Employees can elect up to $10,500 per household for Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts for the 2021 calendar year.
  • We are allowing employees to submit new enrollments or change requests to 2021 FSA elections during the month of April to go into effect May 1, 2021.  If you wish to enroll in an FSA plan please complete and submit the 2021 Flexible Spending Account (FSA) Enrollment.
  • All out-of-pocket amounts paid by an individual taxpayer for COVID-19 PPE for use by the taxpayer, the taxpayer’s spouse, or the taxpayer’s dependents after January 1, 2020 are eligible to be reimbursed under health FSAs and HSAs.

If you have any questions please reach out to the HR benefits team at benefits@up.edu.

Title IX Advisory Meeting, March 29

All members of the UP community are invited to join the Title IX Advisory Committee and attend our meetings on Mondays at 11 a.m. this Spring.

Title IX Advisory Committee Meetings for Spring will take place at the following times on Zoom (https://uportland.zoom.us/j/97562343235). Our remaining meetings are on:

  • Monday, March 29 at 11 a.m.
  • Monday, April 26 at 11 a.m.

If you aren’t able to make the Monday morning meetings you can stay up in the loop about meeting discussion topics by checking out the meeting minutes available on the Title IX website.

Regardless of your ability to attend the Monday morning meetings, you’re invited to join a subcommittee to work toward positive change. Subcommittees focus on a particular need identified for our community and work towards their goals and meet outside of the main Title IX Advisory Committee meeting.

  • Cultural Change and Education Committee
  • Student Advocacy Program Committee
  • Non-UP Confidential Resource Program Committee

Please email titleix@up.edu if you are interested in joining a subcommittee.

New COVID Safeguards In Place for Spring 2021

As the University begins to finalize plans for welcoming approximately 1,000 students back to campus this month, new safeguards are in place to reduce the risk of COVID-19 on campus.

Employee Designations

Each staff member has been classified in one of the following categories based on expected level of contact with students or one another:

  • High Contact. Those in this group will be required to screen for symptoms, and participate in 2 baseline tests and more frequent surveillance testing.
  • Low Contact. Those in this group will be required to screen for symptoms, and participate in 1 baseline test and less frequent surveillance testing.
  • No Contact. Those in this group will be required to screen for symptoms if coming to campus, but will not be required to participate in baseline or surveillance testing.
  • Exclusively Remote. Those in this group will not participate in any preventative screening or testing measures on campus.
  • Tested by Athletics. Those in this group will participate in the preventative screening and testing  measures coordinated by athletics.

If you do not know your employee designation, please contact your area vice president as you will need this information to proceed.  Please note: the No Contact group does not participate in testing but should utilize the screening application when coming to campus.  Exclusively Remote employees do not participate in testing or screening. 

Symptom Screening

If you were on campus in the fall of 2020, you are most likely familiar with the CAMPUS CLEAR symptom screening application. Faculty and staff in the High Contact, Low Contact, and No Contact groups will continue using the CAMPUS CLEAR application to screen for symptoms when coming to campus. If you are not in one of these testing groups described above, you can skip to the Symptomatic COVID-19 Testing portion of this message.

Staff in the High and Low-Contact groups will also need to start using the new CARBON HEALTH mobile application for scheduling testing appointments and reviewing results. This is in addition to using CAMPUS CLEAR for symptom screening.  You will receive an invitation to register on January 11, 2021.  Please register upon receipt and follow these instructions (in this specific order):

To start the program, you will:

  1. Be invited via an email sent from Carbon Health
  2. Register for the program on a web browser using your up.edu email address
  3. Registration will include creating an account, signing the COVID-19 release waiver and completing a coronavirus assessment
  4. Note: Entering your insurance information is optional and testing costs will be covered by University of Portland.  Be sure to click on “Enter Details Manually”
  5. Go to the Apple App Store or Google Play Store and download the Carbon Health app
  6. Attend the on-campus testing event as notified to get a COVID-19 test

For technical support for the application, please contact up-support@carbonhealth.com. More information will be shared from CARBON HEALTH soon.

Asymptomatic COVID Testing

To ensure a safe and healthy campus, we are asking staff in the High Contact and Low Contact groups to participate in baseline and surveillance testing. Those in the No Contact, Exclusively Remote and Tested by Athletics groups do not participate in the testing listed below.

For High Contact and Low Contact groups, please read the directions below carefully to ensure you know how to proceed.  

Baseline Test 1: All staff in the High Contact and Low Contact groups are required to get a baseline COVID test between the dates of January 15, 2021 and January 21, 2021. Please work with your supervisor, if necessary, to get your test during regular business hours. Follow the steps below to procure a COVID-19 test.  NOTE: The Cares Act may expire after January 21, 2021 so it is imperative not to miss the timeline. Please make a plan upon receipt of this message! 

Option 1: Kaiser. For Kaiser members, log in to KP.org  

  • Click Schedule a COVID-19 test 
  • Click COVID-19 testing
  • Click yes to See if you are eligible for a COVID-19 test
  • Click yes to Were you told by your employer or school to get a COVID-19 test? 

Option 2: For non-Kaiser members, procure a COVID-19 test by contacting your primary care provider to request a COVID-19 test, notifying them you need one to return to work. 

Option 3: You can also visit a local Walgreens, Rite Aid, or drugstore that is providing COVID-19 testing. OHSU is another option. The Cares Act should cover this cost. If you are a Kaiser member, you can contact Kaiser member services about reimbursement options as needed. 

Option 4: If you have a personal hardship or are unable to fulfill this requirement, please contact Sean Ducey who can provide additional resources or support at ducey@up.edu. 

Baseline Test Results: Staff and faculty are asked to show evidence of test results by completing the following form: Covid Baseline Test Results – Spring 2021. 

Baseline Test 2:  Starting the week of January 25, staff with a High Contact designation ONLY will be scheduled for a second baseline COVID-19 test. You do not need to do anything at this time; Sean Ducey will send you an email with a link to sign up for your second baseline test. The testing center will be located on campus in the Lund Family Annex across the street from the Chiles Center. Please note: Low-Contact staff and faculty will not participate in the second baseline COVID-19 test. 

Surveillance Tests: All faculty and staff with High and Low Contact designations will be part of ongoing surveillance testing from February 1, 2021 to May 7, 2021. Employees will be assigned to pods or stratified random samples based on anticipated contact groups. You will be notified a week in advance when you are selected for surveillance testing at which point you can schedule a test using the CARBON HEALTH application.

Symptomatic COVID Testing

Any staff member who experiences COVID-19 symptoms during the spring semester is required to: (1) report symptoms to Human Resources, (2) immediately refrain from coming to campus until approval to come back to campus is provided by Human Resources, and (3) contact your health provider for symptomatic testing, isolation instructions, and treatment planning. 

Support

In the spirit of collaboration and good will, we ask for your patience as we roll out this comprehensive screening and testing plan for our campus community. We have put a lot of thought and care into this plan but expect there to be some challenges from time-to-time. If you need support with scheduling or rescheduling testing or have questions about the app, please contact up-support@carbonhealth.com. For more general questions or to provide feedback, please contact one of us.

Matthew Rygg, Associate Vice President for Student Development

Joe Kaleel, Director of Campus Events

Sean Ducey, Associate Director of Campus Events

Human Resources: Information on Unemployment Fraud

Oregon and Washington State have reported an increase in fraudulent unemployment claims. Impostors are filing claims for unemployment benefits by using the names and personal information of people who have not filed claims. For more information about this issue, please visit the Oregon.gov and Oregon Department of Justice websites.

When unemployment claims are received by the Human Resources Department for active University employees, Human Resources may reach out to the employee to confirm that they did in fact file for unemployment.  If an employee reports that they did not file a claim, Human Resources will file the claim as fraudulent with the Unemployment Office and provide the employee with the resources listed below.

If you think a fraudulent unemployment claim has been submitted under your name, please contact Human Resources (hr@up.edu).

The Unemployment Office recommends the following steps and resources to protect your personal and financial information:

Complete the UI Fraud Referral Form:  Visit the site at this link and click “Report Identity Theft” on the left hand menu. (Also linked here)

Protect Your Finances: Visit www.IdentityTheft.gov to report the fraud to the FTC and get help with the next important recovery steps. These include placing a free, one-year fraud alert on your credit, getting your free credit reports, and closing any fraudulent accounts opened in your name. IdentityTheft.gov will also help you add a free extended fraud alert or credit freeze to your credit report. These make it more difficult for an identity thief to open new accounts in your name. 

Review your credit reports often. For the next year, you can check your reports for errors every week for free through www.AnnualCreditReport.com

 Contact the three major credit bureaus: Report to the credit bureaus that the fraudulent claim was made using your identity and provide them with the case number from your police report (if you have one). You can have a fraud alert put on your identity or freeze your credit. Doing either is free by law. To place a fraud alert, contact one of the three credit bureaus listed below.

  • Experian 1-888-397-3742
  • TransUnion 1-800-680-7289
  • Equifax 1-800-525-6285

File a nonemergency police report with the agency whose jurisdiction you live in.  For information from the City of Portland visit their website linked here.

Additional Resources

The Employee Assistance Program (EAP) provides ID theft assistance to University employees.  They have resources available on their site linked here.

Virtual UP Staff Luncheon: Dec. 21

Because of restrictions on public gatherings due to COVID-19, UP’s Staff Christmas Luncheon will be replaced by a special video program this year. Staff will receive an email around 11:45 a.m. on Monday, December 21, with a link to the prerecorded video. The program will include a Christmas greeting from University president Fr. Mark Poorman, C.S.C.; presentation of the staff awards; and recognition of new employees and employees celebrating milestones in their years of service at UP.

If you have questions, please contact hr@up.edu.

COVID Updates: Please Review Important Information

Here are some recent COVID updates for the UP community:

Required COVID-19 Training: OSHA is requiring that all employees complete a COVID-19 training. If you did not attend one of the Zoom trainings offered last week, please do the training on Moodle at: COVID-19 Training on Moodle.

Required COVID-19 Assessment: OSHA is requiring that employers gather work-related risk assessments related to COVID-19. All faculty and staff, whether you work on campus or are teleworking, are requested to fill out the assessment at: Covid-19 Risk Assessment. After a faculty or staff member fills out this form, it will be forwarded to their supervisor to review and approve. If you have questions, please email ehs@up.edu.

Non-Essential Travel & Quarantine Requirements: This is the guidance from the State of Oregon about non-essential travel and quarantine: “To fight the rapid spread of COVID-19, the governors of Oregon, Washington, and California issued travel advisories urging visitors entering their states or returning home from travel outside these states to self-quarantine. The advisories urge against non-essential out-of-state travel, ask people to self-quarantine for 14 days after arriving from another state or country, and encourage residents to stay local.” Oregon’s travel advisory does not apply to people who cross state borders for “essential travel,” including work, study, critical infrastructure support, supply chains, economic services, health, immediate medical care and safety and security. See more at this link.

All members of the UP community are strongly encouraged to follow COVID-19 related guidance from the State of Oregon.

Please note, if an employee is quarantining after engaging in non-essential travel and the employee is unable to telework during the quarantine period, the employee can use any accrued and available regular sick time and vacation time for related absences from work. COVID sick time is only applicable for COVID-19 related absences approved by HR such as when an employee is sick with COVID-19, tested positive for COVID-19, or needs to quarantine due to potential exposure to COVID-19.

Additional travel-related guidance from UP is here: travel related guidance.

Clarifications to Frequently Asked Questions

FAQ 1: Someone I had in-person contact with – such as a family member – has a COVID-19 symptom, but I don’t know if this person has COVID-19. What should I do?

Answer: Please stay home and contact Human Resources – text or call (971) 276-6854 or email hr@up.edu. Please do not come to campus until Human Resources approves.

FAQ 2: I telework 100% and tested positive for or was potentially exposed to COVID-19. What should I do?

Answer: Please contact Human Resources – text or call (971) 276-6854 or email hr@up.edu. It is helpful for Human Resources to be contacted for several reasons. First, some teleworking employees have had in-person contact with someone who works on campus, and the communication with Human Resources has helped the employee remember and share this information. Also, if a teleworking employee gets sick, Human Resources can provide support by applying COVID sick time and connecting the employee to other resources such as the Employee Assistance Program.

FAQ 3: A student employee may have COVID-19 or may have been exposed to it. What should I do?

Answer: Please contact Human Resources – text or call (971) 276-6854 or email hr@up.edu. The student employee’s supervisor should contact Human Resources directly in case the student employee forgets to do so. Also, please ask the student employee to not come to campus until Human Resources approves.

FAQ 4: I have a COVID-19 related question or situation, but I’m not sure what to do. What should I do?

Answer: Please contact Human Resources – text or call (971) 276-6854 or email hr@up.edu. If we cannot answer your question, we will connect you with the appropriate resource on campus.

Thank you for your efforts to keep our UP community safe. If you have any questions, please email hr@up.edu or ehs@up.edu.

Mandatory COVID-19 Training Sessions: Dec. 7, 8 Via Zoom

According to Sandy Chung, vice president of human resources, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has a new requirement that employees take a COVID-19 training. Sarah Schmits, environmental health and safety officer, will provide two training sessions this week via Zoom. Both sessions are the same; please select the time that works best for you.

Monday, December 7 at 11 a.m.
Zoom Link HERE
Passcode: Pilots1!

  • iPhone one-tap: +12532158782,,91090670427#,,,,,,0#,,80270674#  or +13462487799,,91090670427#,,,,,,0#,,80270674#
  • Telephone: US: +1 253 215 8782  or +1 346 248 7799  or +1 669 900 6833  or +1 301 715 8592  or +1 312 626 6799  or +1 929 205 6099

Webinar ID: 910 9067 0427
Passcode: 80270674

Tuesday, December 8, at 1 p.m.
Zoom link HERE
Passcode: Pilots1!

  • iPhone one-tap: +12532158782,,93154564629#,,,,,,0#,,86484155#  or +13462487799,,93154564629#,,,,,,0#,,86484155#
  • Telephone: US: +1 253 215 8782  or +1 346 248 7799  or +1 669 900 6833  or +1 301 715 8592  or +1 312 626 6799  or +1 929 205 6099

Webinar ID: 931 5456 4629
Passcode: 86484155

For those who are unable to attend one of the Zoom sessions next week, HR will send a link to the training via Moodle; the Moodle version of the training can be scheduled at your convenience.

If you have any questions, please email Schmits at schmits@up.edu.

Title IX Advisory Committee Meeting: Dec. 3

All members of the UP community are invited to join the Title IX Advisory Committee meeting to learn more about Title IX related policies, processes, and supports at UP and provide feedback and insight to help the Title IX office best serve our community.

The next Title IX Advisory Committee Meeting will be on Thursday, December 3, 9-10 a.m., on Zoom (https://uportland.zoom.us/j/97991828616). We hope you can join us.

The Title IX Advisory Committee has created three subcommittees to address needs in our community related to Title IX:

  • Cultural Change and Education Committee: designed for those interested in advocacy, getting information/resources out to campus, and being part of change change.
  • Student Advocacy Program Committee: designed to help build a student-driven advocacy program at UP.
  • Non-UP Confidential Resource Program Committee: designed to address student desire for an off-campus resource not affiliated with UP but likely located on campus.

Please let us know (titleix@up.edu) if you are interested in serving on a subcommittee or know someone who is. For more information contact Sarah Meiser, HR, at x8484 or meiser@up.edu.