Faculty/Staff News Now: Anti-Bias Fall Workshop Participants Announced; Kent State Recognized by American Solar Energy Society; 2021 Homecoming Grand Marshals Announced; Employee Parking Refund Update; Mentoring Mondays Kicks Off September 20

Fall Anti-Bias Workshop Participants Announced

Kent State remains committed to being a diverse, inclusive, and equitable workplace. The staffers listed below have been selected to participate in the Anti-Bias workshops in support of this commitment.

Participants are required to attend all five sessions and submit reflections for each session before receiving a $1,000 stipend. All sessions are synchronous and will be held virtually. All courses must be completed in the timeframe allotted. There will no make-up sessions.

Thanks to everyone for submitting an application for the Anti-Bias Workshops. Congratulations to those who were selected. The response was overwhelming. All participants will be uploaded into the registration system next week and will automatically receive email notifications on how to access the Zoom links (also listed below) and add reflections after each workshop.

Thank you for your commitment to make Kent State a more diverse, inclusive and equitable workplace.

2021 Fall Workshop Schedule:

Session 1: Working Toward Equity?
Tuesday, September 21, 10 a.m. - noon

Session 2: Recognizing Bias & Addressing Microaggressions
Tuesday, October 5, 10 a.m. - noon

Session 3: Understanding Race, Racism and Anti-Racism
Tuesday, October 19, 10 a.m. - noon

Session 4: Safe Space Ally Training
Tuesday, November 9, 10 a.m. - noon

Session 5: Creating an Inclusive Workplace
Wednesday, December 8, 10 a.m. - noon.

2021 Summer Workshop Pay Schedule

Pay dates for the spring workshops are still being finalized. Please check the Anti-bias Workshop Updates website for updates.

Selected participants can contact Training and Development at hrd@kent.edu, or the Division of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at diversity@kent.edu if you have any questions or concerns.

Eight Kent State Sites on the American Solar Energy Society's National Solar Tour October 2 - 3

Kent State is part of the American Solar Energy Society's National Solar Tour and part of the ASES local "Ohio Wish You Were Here" tour on October 2 and 3. Explore sites virtually.

Kent State went solar for cost savings to continue to establish Kent State University as a leader in sustainability and environmental stewardship, to attract students, and to help our planet.

Kent State’s first solar array was installed through a power purchase agreement on the roof of the Field House on the Kent Campus. A third-party developer owned the solar array but sold the power to Kent State. Upon completion in the summer of 2012 it was the largest roof-mounted solar photovoltaic (PV) panel electrical system within the University System of Ohio. Kent State now owns that system.

Recently, Kent State added solar arrays at six of our regional campuses (Ashtabula, East Liverpool, Geauga, Stark, Salem, Trumbull) as well as the College of Podiatric Medicine, increasing our solar energy capacity to 4.25 megawatts. While contributing to the environmental benefits of solar power, these new solar arrays are also projected to save the university about $2 million over 25 years. Every year, the solar PV arrays currently installed are projected to reduce the Kent State carbon footprint by 4,116 Tons of CO2, the emissions reduction equivalent to removing 802 cars from the roads or 420,121 gallons of gasoline burned.

Learn more by visiting Sustainability's Solar Tour website.

Announcing the Homecoming 2021 Grand Marshals

The University is excited to announce that the class of 2020 has been selected as the 2021 Homecoming Parade Grand Marshals. The parade is one of Kent State’s oldest Homecoming traditions that honors the achievements of this class during Homecoming Weekend.

The role of Grand Marshal is typically reserved for famous alumni, notable leaders and other dignitaries. As the Homecoming Parade Grand Marshals, the Class of 2020 alumni will lead the parade as it makes its way down East Main Street past Front Campus.

Homecoming Weekend Kickoff

Be there on the evening of Friday, Oct. 1, at the first Homecoming Kickoff event at the Lefton Esplanade. This marks the official start of Homecoming Weekend with music, food, entertainment, fireworks and t-shirt giveaways.

For a full schedule of Homecoming Week events, visit www.kent.edu/homecoming/all-events. Use #KentHC when posting to social media.

Employee Free Parking Update

As part of the welcome back to campus employees will be provided free parking for the fall semester. Due to the varying methods of payment, the free parking will be implemented in the following ways.

• Employees who purchased a parking permit and selected monthly payroll deduction as their payment method will not have any deductions from the beginning of September through the first paycheck in January 2022 (nine deductions totaling $60.75).
• Part-time employees who purchased a fall semester only parking permit and selected a one-time lump sum deduction of $60.75 ($30.38 for evening only permits), normally taken in October, will not have a fall deduction.
• Employees who purchased a parking permit using a credit card through the online parking portal will be issued a refund in the amount of $60.75 ($30.38 for evening only permits) to the credit card they used. The refund will be issued by mid-October.
• Employees who purchased a parking permit using a credit card in the parking office or over the phone, cash, or check, will be issued a refund of $60.75 ($30.38 for evening only permits) on a future paycheck (tax free) during the month of October.

Please direct any questions to Parking Services at parking@kent.edu.

Mentoring Mondays (Reminder)

Kent Engaged and Emerging Professionals, in partnership with HR Training and Development, begins the Group Mentoring Program for all employees on Monday, September 20, from noon – 1 p.m. in Heer Hall on the Kent Campus, where a light lunch will be provided. A virtual (Teams) option is also available.

On September 20, Vicki Ladd, controller, and higher education finance expert, will explain index reconciliation and Banner finance. You can join the conversation via this Teams link.

For more information, or to register for Mentoring Mondays, please visit HR Training and Development's Mentoring Mondays website.

Important Information Regarding Student Registration into Classes

As we begin the new semester, the Office of the University Registrar asks for your assistance in making sure that all students are properly registered for their Fall 2021 courses.
   
As per University policy, only officially registered students are permitted to attend courses. Go to Faculty & Advisors / Faculty Dashboard to find the link to official class rosters in FlashLine. Students who are not officially registered within the appropriate time WILL NOT receive a grade or earn credit for the course even if they attend the entire course and complete all required work.
   
Registration and schedule adjustment deadlines for courses can be found in the Detailed Class Search. To access the Detailed Class Search, visit the Registrar's website, click the Schedule of Classes quick link and select fall 2021, or in FlashLine, go to Faculty & Advisors/Resources/Courses and click on the Registration Deadlines and Tuition Credit Search Link.
   
Instructors are asked to remind students that it is important to finalize and verify their registration within the proper timeframe. After the published deadlines, adjustments in registration will require faculty and Office of the University Registrar approval.

Grades Submission Information
The deadline for submitting final grades can be found on the Registrar's website.

Incomplete Mark and NF/SF Administrative Marks:  
The administrative mark SF (Stopped Attending–Fail) denotes that the student stopped attending the course and did not formally withdraw and must be accompanied by a date of last attendance in the course. If a student has stopped attending your course the SF can be entered on the Final Grade Roster along with the student’s last date of attendance.

The administrative mark NF (Never Attended–Fail) denotes that the student neither attended one class session nor formally withdrew from the course. If a student has never attended your course, mark the student as “Not Started” on the Academic Presence Verification Roster, and the NF will automatically populate to your Final Grades roster.

The administrative mark of IN (Incomplete) may be given to students who are unable to complete the work due to extenuating circumstances. To be eligible, undergraduate students must be currently earning a D or better grade and are unable to complete the required work between the course withdrawal deadline and the end of classes. Graduate students must be currently earning a C or better grade and are unable to complete the required work between the course withdrawal deadline and the end of classes. Instructors are required to complete and submit an Incomplete Mark Contract.

Incomplete Mark Contract Workflow
The instructor must create and submit an Incomplete Mark contract via the new workflow. Instructors can no longer select the incomplete mark (IB+, IC+, IC-, etc.) from the final grade roster in FlashFAST (Self-Service Banner). The primary instructor must initiate and submit the contract using this new workflow process, which mimics the old paper process. Once the contract has been accepted by the student and approved by the department chair/campus dean, the student’s grade will be updated automatically. The primary instructor will be able to initiate and submit the contract for a student after the deadline to withdraw (10th week of a regularly scheduled section in fall and spring, or prorated for flexibly scheduled sections) through the end of final grading.

Access the Incomplete Mark workflow in FlashLine from the Faculty Dashboard under Grading Resources or Faculty Workflows. The incomplete mark and default grade will no longer be available to assign via the final grade roster or the Grade Push Application.

For complete information on university grading policies including Incomplete Mark and NF/SF grading policies, procedures, and timelines, please visit the Grading Policies and Procedures section in the university catalog.