Northeast Texas Community College s HR Newsletter Happy March Birthday! Anita Steward 3/2 Donna Griffin 3/5 William Cobbins 3/8 Charlotte Burke 3/9 Justin Chambers 3/9 Keely McCary 3/10 Kimberly Vaughan 3/14 Cynthia Mohr 3/15 Julie Taylor 3/15 Roxana Allen 3/17 Hope Walker 3/18 Jeri Thornton 3/20 Jim Archer 3/23 Carolyn Lewis 3/23 Amanda Freeman 3/26 Sherry Keys 3/29 Open Positions: Director of Agriculture Faculty Member in Agriculture Faculty Member in Art Faculty Member in Business Faculty Member in English Faculty Member in Computer Technology Faculty Member in Medical Lab Technology Faculty Member in Music Faculty Member in Radiologic Technology Recruitment Counselor (bi-lingual) Secretarial Assistant to the Dean of Enrollment Management Nursing Transition Instructor CIS Coordinator Graphics Reproduction Clerk
Page 2 of 8 BENEFITS under the new plan for GBP participants. Option 3: Keep your current coverage and do not apply for coverage under the new plan for GBP participants you do not need to take any action with this option. New Long-Term Care Provider Open enrollment March 26, 2007 April 27, 2007 If you currently have long-term care coverage through CNA (existing CNA plan), and if you are eligible for the new Long- Term Care Insurance Plan offered through John Hancock (new plan for GBP participants), you will have to make a choice during the upcoming open enrollment period (March 26 April 27): Option 1: Replace your current coverage with coverage under the new plan for GBP participants. You may be eligible to receive a premium discount under the new plan for GBP participants if you elect this option! The premiums for the new plan for GBP participants will be based on your current age, and any discount will be based on the premiums you ve paid under the existing CNA plan. Option 2: Keep your current coverage and apply for additional coverage The new plan is also available to actively-atwork GBP participants, retirees and family members who are eligible and who do not currently have coverage with CNA. Family members must be age 18 or older and, except for spouses of eligible, active employees, must reside in the U.S. (50 states, DC, and Puerto Rico) to be eligible to apply. Eligible family members include: spouses, parents, parents-inlaw and grandparents of eligible employees and retirees. Additional information on the new plan for GBP participants, including a personalized letter with a description of each option and its associated cost, will be mailed within the next week. Please read the information and think about whether this new plan may help meet your long-range financial needs and goals. In addition, several online and telephone informational meetings (webinars) will be held during the next few weeks. See the webinar schedule on the next page. If you have any questions in the meantime, please call the John Hancock Customer Service Center at 1-800-400-9396, Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Central Time, and speak with a long-term care service consultant. The Employees Retirement System of Texas is pleased to announce a NEW Long-Term Care Insurance Plan, a valuable voluntary benefit program developed in partnership with John Hancock Life Insurance Company.
Page 3 of 8 Currently don t have CNA Long-Term Coverage? The new plan is available to eligible, activelyat-work employees and their eligible family members. During the upcoming open enrollment period of March 26 April 27, 2007, actively-at-work employees will be able to enroll without having to provide evidence of insurability (guaranteed acceptance). Eligible family members must provide evidence of insurability when applying at any time. Eligible family members include: spouses, parents, parents-in-law and grandparents of eligible employees. Family members must be age 18 or older and, except for spouses of eligible, active employees, must reside in the U.S. (50 states, DC and Puerto Rico) to be eligible to apply. Many of you may have personal experience providing care for a parent, friend, or relative and realize the emotional and financial stress this situation can place on a family. Long-term care insurance can help you preserve and protect your financial resources and provide peace of mind to you and your family. The objective of this program is to offer you affordable coverage that will provide meaningful benefits for most long-term care expenses, including care in your home or in a qualified adult day care center, alternate care facility, or nursing home. This insurance provides benefits for extended care resulting from long-term, chronic illnesses or injuries that Medicare and ERS s health care plans are not designed to cover. Information on the new Long-Term Care Insurance Plan for GBP participants will be mailed within the next week. I encourage you to read the materials and think about whether this insurance may help meet your long-range financial needs and goals. In addition, several online and telephone informational meetings (webinars) will be held during the next few weeks. See the webinar schedule on the next page. If you have any questions in the meantime, please call the John Hancock Customer Service Center at 1-800-400-9396, Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Central Time, and speak with a long-term care service consultant. Webinar Schedule A John Hancock long-term care representative will be conducting webinars, which will provide you with an overview of long-term care and detailed information about the coverage. Each webinar session will last approximately 60 minutes. A question and answer session will follow. If you are unable to attend a live webinar, you will be able to view a pre-recorded webinar during the enrollment period. Note the dates and times for now; more details will be provided within the next week. See chart on next page for average cost of Skilled/Private Nursing Care in the United States.
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Page 5 of 8 New Additions! Jerry Clark s brother and his wife had their baby last month. Her name Salina Marie Clark, she was 8.8 ponds 22 inches long and healthy. They live in New Carrollton MD. Lonnie Beene has been selected to participate in a SACS visit to another campus. On April 23, he'll be heading to Monroe, LA, to Louisiana Delta Community College as part of a SACS accreditation team. CIS and GEAR UP are working with the college to implement the first Certificate and Professional Programs Exploration Day. This project, the idea of CIS Youth Services Coordinator Lyndsey Norris, will bring 12th grade students (that have been identified as those without plans for higher education) from area high schools to the college to see what we have to offer regarding workforce readiness programs, certificate programs and those professional programs that will help the students get into the workforce more quickly. Students will have an opportunity to dialogue with faculty, students and former students currently in the workforce from each of these areas, and will have an opportunity to learn about financial aid opportunities to assist them with paying for their education. This is a valuable opportunity for the college to increase enrollment! So far, we have about 160 kids signed up to attend and we've got four schools still waiting to submit their numbers! Verna Moos was voted the 2007 Omaha Chamber of Commerce Citizen of the Year for her contributions to the city of Omaha. Since she was in Dallas with her Pewitt High School Special Education students at a basketball tournament, she was not able to attend the Annual Chamber Banquet where the recipient is usually honored. Instead, she was presented the award by Carabeth Luckey, Omaha Chamber President, on Thursday, February 22, 2007, at 1:30 pm in the Pewitt High School Library. Omaha Chamber of Commerce members, Pewitt ISD and High School administrators, and NTCC Naples- Omaha Center staff were in attendance as well as Verna s Special Education students at Pewitt High School. Verna was called the Busiest Person in Omaha and noted accomplishments included: Teaching Special Education students at Pewitt High School Driving the school bus morning, afternoon, and to other school events Teaching GED classes two nights each week at the NTCC Naples-Omaha Center Serving as Local Director and Area 10 Board of Directors member for Special Olympics Working nights and weekends at Brahma Mart in Omaha Volunteering during the summers at the Mt Pleasant Child Development Center Attending school and community events whenever her students are participating Serving on various committees at the First United Methodist Church of Naples
Page 6 of 8 Congratulations and gratitude to Verna for all her contributions to the students and citizens of Northeast Texas. Donna Griffin and Janice Allen, Learning Resource Center, attended the Fred Pryor Seminar, How to Supervise People, in Longview on Tuesday, March 20. The LRC staff will be doing lots of personal development activities in April. Stay tuned! NTCC Ceremonial Mace The Dean s Council has approved the design for the NTCC Ceremonial Mace. I will email the picture and specs following the Board of Trustees meeting on Tuesday. I would like to say thank you to the following committee members for their hard work: Brandon Dennard: Upward Bound Coordinator Jeanni Pruitt: Coordinator of Mt. Pleasant Adult Center Jamie Hoffman: Student Kenneth Klassen: Adjuct Faculty Mr. John Beavers, the son of Mindy Nobles, will begin a tenure-track professorship in Linguistics at the University of Texas at Austin this fall 2007. This position follows Dr. Beavers one-year appointment as a visiting professor in Linguistics at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. The performances of "Forever Plaid" are coming to the Whatley Center on Mar 31 (7pm) and Apr 1 (2pm). It's a musical comedy with over 20 songs from the 50s. All money raised goes to history and theater scholarships. By the way, Mr. Ken Hanushek will be in this production, which might explain the comedy part! Break a leg Ken!!! Dr. Beavers graduated from Stanford University in June 2006 with a Ph.D. in Linguistics. During his years as a doctoral student/candidate at Stanford, Beavers was first the recipient of a full fellowship for graduate studies and later of a Mellon Foundation Dissertation Fellowship. During Beavers' graduation ceremony, he was also acknowledged as the recipient of Stanford's highest award to graduate students, the Walter J. Gores Award for Excellence in Teaching. Way to GO! John
Page 7 of 8 NTCC GRANTS POLICY REMINDERS The purpose of the NTCC Grants Policy is to provide structure and consistency in our grants development process. For those of us who have been involved in this process for years, it may seem cumbersome. While we have been extremely successful in garnering grant funding, this success comes at a price to the college. For this reason, more attention to the availability and allocation of indirect and administrative budgets is necessary. Please review the NTCC Grants Policy (attached) along with the following reminders. 1. The NTCC Request for Grant Assistance and Pre-Approval form (Appendix A in the Grants Policy) must be completed PRIOR to developing and submitting a grant application. *The Vice President of Administrative Services must sign the form in block #15. The form will not be accepted without the proper signatures. 2. Grant application budgets MUST include indirect and/or administrative costs. These funds help defray the college s cost of administering the grant. Examples of budget items covered by indirect and/or administrative costs include a percentage of salary of the grants clerk in the Business Office, cost of utilities and office space, and administrative oversight for the grant program. Allocation of indirect or administrative costs is at the discretion of the Vice President of Administrative Services. 3. The Vice President for Administrative Services must approve the budget before submission. Tip: Early in the process of developing your application, provide information about your grant program along with an estimated budget 4. The Final Approval for Grant Proposal Submission form (Appendix C in the Grants Policy) must accompany grant applications awaiting the signature of the President. Please note that approval of the final product, including the budget, must be indicated on the form before the President will sign the application. 5. The NTCC Grants Policy applies to all grant submissions including online submissions. For online submissions, hardcopies of grant application information, including the budget, must be provided and approved as required in the policy before final submission. Adherence to the NTCC Grants Policy will ensure that you are successful in avoiding last minute questions and delays, and that you are able to submit your grant application by the deadline. Thank you, Sharla Trimm Coordinator of Grant Initiatives & Development Northeast Texas Community College *Denotes a change in process.
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