The Hidden Cost of War - April 21st
Staff Council will co-sponsor an event on April 21st. Department of Veteran Affairs Director Tammy Duckworth will be the keynote speaker discussing “The Hidden Cost of War” for the 2008 Seminar: Veterans/Disability Advocacy in America. For more information on the event, view the flyer.

Next Public Meeting - April 16th
Our next open meeting will be 1pm-4pm on April 16th on the Lincoln Park Campus, Student Center 314A. It will be our pleasure to welcome President Holtschneider who will answer questions from staf members. If you have an issue that should be brought to our attention in the meantime, please feel free to submit it to Voice of Staff.

University Budget Meeting
Staff Council and Faculty Council are pleased to announce this year's University Budget Update, which will provide an update on this year's SRAC process and recommendation to the President. The event will take place on:

Tuesday, January 29, 2008
1:30pm - 3:30pm
Lincoln Park, Munroe 114-116

Guest speakers include Bob Kozoman (interim EVP), Helmut Epp (Provost), Joe Filkins (Staff Council), and Anne Bartlett (Faculty Council). They will provide an overview of the key points in the budget and answer questions from staff and faculty in the audience.

The meeting will also be webcast online and questions can be asked by emailing staffcouncil@depaul.edu either before or during the meeting. View the online broadcast here.

We Want to Hear From You!
As a new feature of the website a new question will be featured each month and the results will be communicated at the monthly Staff Council meetings.

November Meeting Update
At the November 2007 meeting, Staff Council welcomed Fr. Holtschneider for an open discussion with staff. Additionally Mark Laboe, from Student Affairs, introduced a Thursdays With Vincent initiative and Kurt Gonska, President of DePaul's Student Government Association, discussed a Greening DePaul initiative. The end of the year fiscal update was presented, university-wide committees provided reports and Voice of Staff submissions were reviewed. A summary of the meeting and an archived feed of the webcast (itunes software needed) are coming soon.

Cultural Heritage Day - October 24
The Diversity Committee of Staff Council presents Cultural Heritage Day on Wednesday, October 24 from noon-2 p.m. at the Loop Campus-DePaul Club. Please join us for an afternoon of food, fun, and cultural celebration. We encourage you to wear your traditional & cultural attire. More info.

Next Meeting - October 17th
Our next meeting will be on October 17th in the Lincoln Park Campus, Student Center, 314A. This month, we are pleased to welcome representatives from the Office of Human Resources who will discuss Compensation and Benefits resources and Work/Life and Dependent Care Survey. Also joining us this month are Don Casey, Dean of the School of Music, and John Culbert, Dean of The Theatre School, who will discuss their Schools and highlight upcoming special events. If you have an issue that should be brought to our attention in the meantime, please feel free to submit it to Voice of Staff. View the agenda. The meeting will also be webcast.

University-Wide Committee Opportunities
Staff Council regularly receives requests to appoint or recommend staff representatives for university-wide committees, on a wide range of topics. The Council believes that broad staff participation on university committees is essential to effective shared governance.

In order to better improve our selection process, we are asking staff who are interested in serving on university-wide committees to fill out a short survey of their interests. As new committees are formed or positions open on existing committees, staff who indicated an interest in that area may be contacted with specific information regarding the committee and its requirements.

This survey can be found online.

Staff Council Outlines 2 Year Strategic Plan
Goals and objectives for the next 2 years have been outlined by Staff Council to represent the concerns of staff and to provide a forum for staff to voice those concerns. Additionally, the Council seeks to facilitate shared governance for staff in University planning and decision making; and to preserve the Catholic, Vincentian and urban nature of the University community by being sensitive to and caring for the needs of each other and those we serve. To see the full Plan (updated Jan 07), click here.

Newly Elected Staff Council Members
The votes are in!! We would like to thank all those staff members who took the time to vote in our elections. This year, well over 500 staff members voted for their representatives on Staff Council, making this the largest election turnout in our recent history. View the list of new members here.

NCA Forums
DePaul will host a 14-member team from the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA) from Jan. 22 to Jan. 24 as part of our application to renew our accreditation. There are opportunities to participate in this essential process via staff forums. All staff are strongly encouraged to attend one of these sessions, and to share any stories or insights that you have about DePaul.

STAFF FORUMS:
Monday, Jan 22nd, 4:30 - 5:45 pm, LPC - Student Center 120A
Tuesday, Jan 23nd, 4:15 - 5:30 pm, LOOP - DPC 11th Floor, North Cafeteria

For those of you new to accreditation, the NCA visits DePaul every 10 years to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of what we have achieved in the past decade and to identify areas for possible improvement. DePaul's self-study report and a copy of the full NCA Accreditation Visit schedule may be found at http://nca.depaul.edu.

Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. Heroes of Peace Celebration
Staff Council’s Diversity Committee will hold its annual "Heroes of Peace” program on January 18 from 12-1:30 PM at the DePaul Center, 11th floor.

The DePaul community is invited to submit “Heroes of Peace” nominations, which are open to all faculty, staff and students. Heroes of peace are defined as those demonstrating qualities such as courage, tenacity, peace and social justice. The program will recognize nominees and include a short film on Dr. King and performances by a gospel choir. For more information, contact AnJanette Hosley at ext. 2-6366.

Staff Council President Featured in Newsline Story
Joe Filkins disusses strengthening relationships, collaborative leadership, and improving communications. Read the full article here.

Events Scheduled for St. Vincent DePaul Week, Sept 25-29
Staff Council and Faculty Council are sponsoring a clothing drive throughout the whole week. Also, a tour of the Vincentiana Collection in the University Special Archives is scheduled for Sept 27th. For details on both events, click here.

Staff Council Committee Reorganization
Staff Council recently reorganized members in committees and elected a new Council president as well as committee chairs. To view the names of the new composition of the Council, click here.

University Organization Restructure Finalized
Fr. Dennis Holtschneider's proposal to the university community to recommend restructure of several departments within the university has been finalized. This includes the formal title change for the Excecutive Vice Presidents. To read the the full communication, click here.

Strategic Planning
The Board of Trustees approved the six-year Strategic Plan on March 4, 2006. The university will now be moving from planning to implementation. John Culbert, Dean of the Theater School, will be leading efforts to bring the plan to the university in the next year. Learn more.

Staff Council Elections
The Staff Council general elections will be held in April, and at this time we invite all staff to consider running for Staff Council. The deadline to submit candidacy forms is Friday, March 24th. Read more.

EVPAA Contract Extension
Fr. Dennis Holtschneider, with support from Staff Council and Faculty Council, has approved the contract extension for Dr. Helmet Epp as Executive Vice President of Academic Affairs. To read the full report, initial letter from the President and the Staff Council recommendation, click here.

University Budget Update
The Staff Council Budget Advisory Committee hosted the 2006/2007 University Budget Update on January 16, 2006. Guest speakers Dr. Helmut Epp, Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dr. Scott Scarborough, Executive Vice President for Operations gave an overview of the SRAC process, discussed major decisions made and took questions from the audience. Over 84 staff attended the meeting, either in person or through a web broadcast. Read more.