Lehigh University Employee Relations Advisory Committee (ERAC)
2010-2011 Progress Report
In the fall of 2010, ERAC reviewed the University Charge in its By Laws, its role within the Lehigh governance structure, and found out what was on the minds of our colleagues. This feedback was compiled and discussed, resulting in ERAC establishing its own "Front Runners" for the 2010-2011 academic year, which are:
- Environment and Workplace Culture: Equity & Equality
- Compensation.
The overarching goal of work related to these two topics has been to broaden the understanding of our workplace culture, to enhance and improve upon equity-related issues, and to educate our staff on Lehigh's total compensation package.
ERAC Front Runner: Environment and Workplace Culture: Equity & Equality Team
The Environment and Workplace Culture: Equity & Equality team discussed horizontal and vertical relationships here at Lehigh and decided to facilitate ways to enhance horizontal relationships, both personal and professional, across campus.
- Personal Networking The Personal Connections webpage was established and went live in December. The webpage lists a number of personal interest groups that ALL employees can become involved in. It is our effort to strengthen community at Lehigh and foster a supportive network for sharing information, services, and time among individuals and groups who have a common interest. http://www.lehigh.edu/erac/connections.htm
- Professional Networking In collaboration with Judy Zavalydriga in Human Resources, "Resources to Engage, Accomplish, Connect & Help" (REACH) is a interdepartmental and university-wide program aimed at fostering professional relationships and networks among faculty and staff. By connecting Lehigh employees with each other and providing opportunities to learn about the university, REACH seeks to advance the goals of Lehigh's strategic plan, component #2 Investing in Faculty and Staff: A Strategic Expansion and core values, as well as the aims of the Council on Equity and Community. ERAC reached out to other campus groups who are also addressing campus culture and community, including the CEC and the SPIG Campus Culture Aspirations (CCA) group.
Resources to Engage, Accomplish, Connect & Help (REACH) Proposal
"Resources to Engage, Accomplish, Connect & Help" (REACH) is a interdepartmental and university-wide program aimed at fostering professional relationships and networks among faculty and staff. By connecting Lehigh employees with each other and providing opportunities to learn about the university, REACH seeks to advance multiple goals of Lehigh's strategic plan, including investing in faculty and staff, as well as the university's core values and the aims of the Council on Equity and Community.
Like Learning the Institution, REACH will include presentations from different specific areas of the university (e.g., Alumni Relations, First-Year Experience, the Chaplain's Office, the Council on Equity and Community) to give a sense for what each does and how it serves the Lehigh community. Each monthly session will also provide time for participants to discuss how the information they just learned could be relevant to their work and how they could envision collaborating with the presenters and with each other. While the first several presenters will be secured by ERAC and HR, REACH participants will then choose a list of speakers or university departments that reflect their own interests under the leadership of a coordinator chosen from the cohort itself.
REACH cohorts will meet once a month at designated times during the workday. Beginning with the fiscal calendar in September, cohorts will be in place for one year, at the end of which participants will be surveyed about their experiences. Monthly sessions will be held in October, November, January, February, March, and April. All of the cohorts will be brought together for a closing reception or luncheon. When REACH begins each September, the cohorts from previous year's will be invited back to enhance and build upon the networking already in place.
REACH's Goals, Lehigh's Core Values and the Strategic Plan
Among REACH's direct and principal goals are:
- to engage faculty and staff across campus, regardless of their position or time at Lehigh;
- to enhance relationships among staff across different stems, departments and positions;
- to create a broader community by fostering professional networks;
- to provide professional development and educational opportunities;
- to enable participants to learn more about Lehigh, its resources and history and the people who work here; and
- to empower Lehigh's employees to collaborate with and learn from each other in new and creative ways.
These goals mesh well with Lehigh's Core Values in the following ways:
- Equitable community: REACH strengthens Lehigh's community by fostering cross-departmental/horizontal and interposition/vertical relationships.
- Intellectual curiosity: By providing venues for exploring Lehigh and gaining a deeper understanding of the people who work here, REACH creates a framework in which participants' intellectual curiosity is rewarded with learning and a better appreciation of how different areas of the university function and interact.
- Collaboration: Building and strengthening relationships across campus, as well as introducing faculty and staff to segments of the university they may currently be unaware of or not knowledgeable about, will provide fertile ground for collaboration across disciplines and areas.
In addition, Lehigh's strategic plan places a strong emphasis on investing in and retaining faculty and staff. As the plan recognizes, a key component of investment and retention is "the vibrancy of the community," which affects both individuals' length of time at Lehigh and their productivity while they are here. Accordingly, Lehigh seeks to "foster a campus culture that actively attracts and supports a diverse, inclusive, and intellectually vibrant community."
As mentioned above, REACH aims to strengthen Lehigh's sense of community across existing boundaries that may typically prevent individuals from interacting. By building bridging relationships that cut across various identities, stems and professional backgrounds, REACH maximizes the diversity that already exists here at Lehigh and will further the strategic plan's goal of faculty and staff recruitment, retention and investment. In this way, REACH will also advance the goals of the Council on Equity and Community, which seeks broadly to bring about a more inclusive community at Lehigh.
ERAC Front Runner: Compensation Team
The Compensation team has research and is evaluating Lehigh's Bereavement Policy to help make it a more equitable policy for all employees. The definition of "family" has changed over the years and ERAC is looking to recognize the changing dynamics within family units. The committee also recognizes that staff members have families located around the globe, and this would require added flexibility for extended travel time to attend funerals and deal with issues that result from losing a loved one. A final recommendation will be forthcoming.
Communicating with the Lehigh Community
Several Brown Bag events have taken place this year.
| September 22nd | Health Care Reform |
| October 28th | 50 Years Ago Lehigh: Come and See It With Your Own Eyes (in collaboration with LTS & Dining Services) |
| November 10th | Demystifying the Lehigh Admissions Process |
| April 4th | Staff's Impact on Student Retention (in collaboration with CEC) |
| April 26th | Benefit Allocation Review Team Information Session |
ERAC now plays a key role in keeping employees up to date on the status of the Benefits Allocation Review Team. A webpage was created to help enhance campus communications: http://www.lehigh.edu/~inerc/BART/bart.htm.
Bylaws
In our effort to have broad and diverse representation serving on ERAC from various areas of the university, a change in ERAC's bylaws was approved February 9, 2011 regarding nominations and elections to the board to include appointed positions. The amendment is as follows:
The Committee consists of seventeen voting members and two ex-officio members:
- Membership will include 9 non-exempt and 8 exempt staff members. 7 non-exempt and 7 exempt staff members will be elected by popular vote. 2 non-exempt staff members and 1 exempt staff member will be appointed following committee discussion and a majority vote by the full ERAC Board.
- Appointed positions may be considered from the nominated pool, or suggested as potential candidates by an ERAC board member.
- The appointment(s) will have final approval from the Vice President of Finance and Administration
- The Associate Vice President for Human Resources will serve as the ex-officio member.
- The outgoing Chairperson, will also serve as a nonvoting, consulting member for one year following his/her term as Chairperson.
To be eligible for election to the committee, employees must be nominated by the Lehigh community or the ERAC board and have completed one year's service at the university. If an elected member leaves the employ of the university or resigns his/her committee membership, the Election Committee will make recommendations for a replacement to the ERAC Board as follows:
- If the member was voted in, the next person with the most votes will be asked to take his/her place
- If the member was appointed, the Election Committee will meet with the Vice President of Finance and Administration to select and appoint a replacement
Faculty and Staff Appreciation and Recognition
- Faculty-Staff Appreciation Night was held on February 26th at the Lehigh Women's Basketball game in Stabler Arena. One hundred and thirty faculty and staff attended the game.
- ERAC has arranged a family night group outing to the Iron Pigs game at Coca-Cola Park on Saturday, June 25th Tickets to this event have sold out.
- ERAC Distinguished Service Award was awarded to Heidi Casciano, Director, Advancement Administration, Development Office.
ERAC Members Recognized
Anne Noon-Scaggs was the recipient of the Hillman Non-Exempt Staff Award Vivien Steele was the recipient the Lehigh University Distinguished Service Award Both were recognized for their contributions and achievements at the May 3, 2011 Lehigh Appreciation Dinner.
Other Ongoing Initiatives
- In collaboration with the CEC, ERAC hosted a Brown Bag on "Staff's Impact on Student Retention" with Dr. Henry Odi. Student retention is usually viewed as an area of focus for the colleges and the Dean of Students staff. However, we all have an impact on Student Retention, especially the administrative staff, who are usually among the first to make contact and work with the students in various ways, from assisting them with their schedules and bursar bills, to training and supervising them in their work study positions. Sixty people from all areas of the university were in attendance and feedback is currently being gathered from participants to help determine the next step.
- Dr. Susan Christy, author of Working Effectively with Faculty will be visiting campus July 13th and 14th. Her book offers a wonderful guide for staff, and faculty new or seasoned to gain an understanding of the dynamics for successfully working together. Workshops are currently being planned. We are collaborating with the LVAIC schools and expect that some of their staff to join the sessions. Further details will be forthcoming.
- A new program idea to formalize the use of Lehigh's retiree pool for office coverage within the departments is currently being researched. This program would provide staff coverage not only for short term disability situations, but for vacations, training, etc. More information will be shared as this exciting idea unfolds.
ERAC looks forward to continuing its efforts to advance Lehigh's mission and goals as well as the strategic plan, particularly in the area of Investing in Faculty and Staff.
Respectfully Submitted,
| Debra Rubart, Chair | Ainsley Lamberton |
| PatMann,Vice-Chair/Treasurer | Anne Marie Lobley |
| Robin Armbruster, Secretary | Anne Noon-Scaggs |
| Jackie Matthews, Ex-Officio | Cathy Plocinik |
| Margie Bartholomew | Allison Ragon |
| Seth Goren | Tammy Shellock |
| Olga Jacoby | Vivien Steele |
| Kathy Katcher | Susan Szilagyi |
