September 2025 CLAS Shared Services Updates

September 29, 2025

Below is a roundup of important announcements and reminders from the Business Center. If you have a question or there is something that you'd like to include in the next roundup, please feel free to reach out to the Business Center via bsc@uconn.edu.

Announcements

Meal Guidance

  • Given the current climate and the need to reduce expenditures, meal costs will continue to be reviewed at a very detailed level.
  • Please ensure any food costs are truly necessary and critical in nature.
    • Pre-approvals at this point should be submitted for any food expense.
    • There is no guarantee of allowable expenses or reimbursements.
    • All alcohol purchases must receive pre-approval from the Provost, as well as CLAS, and are subject to increased review.

Essential Travel Guidelines

Concur Travel Requests – Faculty Teaching During Travel

  • As part of the travel approval process, the CLAS Dean’s Office checks whether Department Heads/Directors are scheduled to teach during the proposed travel dates.
  • It is the Department Head’s responsibility to ensure that faculty have coverage.
    • The Dean’s Office will reach out to the department to confirm that there is a plan in place for class coverage as needed for unit leaders.

New UConn Brand Site

Fellowships Reminder

  • Once a Fellowship Disbursement request is submitted, the account field cannot be edited.
  • If a request is returned due to an incorrect account, please cancel the existing request and submit a new request with the correct account.
  • Please note that if an account has multiple recipients of the same award, they should all be listed on one form when submitting within the systems.

Post-Doc Appointments and Renewals Reminder

  • Reminder regarding post-doc appointments and renewals:
    • All post-docs need to be renewed with a 3% increase (increases are not allowed outside of renewal period.)
    • Appointments are typically for 1 year at a time; any appointments under 100% FTE or under 1 year, require approval from the CLAS Shared Services Business Center and Labor Relations (please email bsc@uconn.edu with all request information.)
    • Approval is required to hire a post-doc beyond a 5-year term, so please consult with the CLAS Shared Services Business Center if this situation arises.
    • Post-doc appointments cannot contain any teaching duties – must be strictly research based
      • If there is a teaching component, that should be processed through Special Payroll, in addition to their unclassified post-doc position.
    • PostDocs are required to be notified by email about the reappointment OR non-renewal 30 days prior to the end of their appointment.
  • Read more about Appointment/Reappointment Details for PostDocs on the CLAS Knowledge Base.
  • If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to the CLAS Shared Services Business Center (bsc@uconn.edu.)

PTR/PR & Interfolio Updates

Faculty Advisor Trainings

  • Please let your department faculty know about the upcoming Undergraduate Faculty Advisor Trainings.
  • For CLAS faculty: Thursday, October 2nd, from 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
  • For all faculty: Tuesday, October 7th, from 2:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. and Wednesday, October 15th, from 1:00p.m. to 2:00 p.m.

CLAS Monthly Topic Overview: Neurodiversity Training

  • CLAS is happy to announce a new training session on Neurodiversity presented by Andi Kent (PhD) [they/them] with the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL) at UConn.
  • Please join us for this hybrid session and create awareness for yourself and others.
    • Did you know that:
      • The most common form (by far!) of traumatic brain injury is a concussion.
      • Only 5% of students with learning disabilities go to college (versus nearly 60% of their peers).
      • Nearly 20% of the United States (1 in 5 people) are neurodivergent.
    • Attend this workshop to learn more about neurodiversity, neurodivergent folks and strategies to make our spaces and encounters more neuroinclusive.
    • This hybrid training will take place on Thursday, October 9th, 2025 from 1:30 p.m. -3:00 p.m. in Susan Herbst Hall (SHH) 236 and online.
      RSVP for the event.
      • In-person attendance will be capped at 50 participants. A Teams link will be sent before the training to those who wish to attend the session online.

Monthly Meetings

  • Monthly meetings will take place between CLAS Shared Services Management and the following:
    • Payroll will take place on Tuesday, October 7th.
    • Procurement and A/P will take place on Monday, October 13th.
    • Procurement will take place on Wednesday, October 15th.
    • Controller’s Office will take place on Thursday, October 16th
  •  Please reach out to bsc@uconn.edu with ideas for future topics or any areas of concern to be discussed at any of these meetings. 

Professional Development Opportunities

  • LinkedIn Learning is now available at no cost to all UConn staff on Storrs campus as an e-learning resource.
    • LinkedIn Learning offers an opportunity to develop professional skills through a digital library of over 6,000 courses.
    • Visit the Microsoft App store and navigate to the LinkedIn Learning application to activate your license.
  • CLAS Shared Services has a lending library with a variety of books on professional development and self-improvement.
    • For more information on how to borrow a book, please contact Emily Petry.
  • Academic Impressions offers professional development resources for higher education professionals. Resources include hundreds of hours of trainings in topics such as Academic Leadership, Advancement, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Faculty Success, Leadership Development, Compliance, and more.
  • The Lexington Group, Inc is UConn’s Employee Assistance Program (EAP). The Lexington Group provides confidential face-to-face counseling, or in certain circumstances video counseling, to assist employees in identifying and resolving personal problems no matter how unique and diverse they appear. Examples include family and marital conflicts, stress, substance abuse, depression, and other emotional issues. The Lexington Group also assists with referrals for eldercare support, childcare, as well as legal and financial guidance through our Life Care program.
    • Employees may call The Lexington Group for immediate and confidential assistance at 1-800-676-HELP (4357) or access their website. The Lexington Group is available seven days a week, 24 hours a day.
  • Please see the schedule for the Graduate School's Timely Topics webpage.
    • Topics for live upcoming sessions include:
      • Graduate Admissions: Program Application Processing in Slate and Admissions Cycle Kick Off! – Thursday, September 25th at 11:00 a.m.
      • Supporting Graduate Students Through Inclusive Mentorship – Thursday, October 9th at 1:00 p.m.
      • Supporting International Graduate Students at UConn – Thursday, October 23rd at 1:00 p.m.
    • Register for a Timely Topics Session.

Trainings

  • Concur Open Labs Registration.
    • Travel Services will be holding bi-weekly Open Labs at 3 Discovery Drive in the Bid Room.
    • Please come prepared with receipts and supporting documents saved to your laptop or in Concur.
    • The next sessions will be held on Wednesdays, October 8th and October 22nd.
      • Half hour slots are available between from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
    • Visit the Travel Services website.
  • Form I-9 Training
    • Please sign up for HireRight training on Learning@Work.
      • Tuesday, October 7th from 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
      • Thursday, November 13th from 10:00 a.m to 11:30 a.m.
    • HireRight access is not granted without an employee having attended training.
    • Please be sure to fill out the HireRight Access Request form in KualiBuild after the training is completed.
  • PageUp Training.
    • See Special Payroll Registration.
      • September 30th from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.

CLAS Shared Services Grant Management

  • For the month of August, CLAS faculty submitted 30 grant applications with a total requested amount of $18.8M.
  • For the month of August, CLAS faculty were awarded 9 new awards with a total funded amount of $4.8M.
  • Effective September 18th, 2025, 5% of IDC recoveries will be distributed to faculty on a real-time basis on all sponsored activities.
    • The IDC distribution to the PI's IDC account is a 2-step process:
      • As transactions are posted to project accounts, KFS also calculates the IDC amount to post. The IDC is based on the IDC rate applicable to the grant and the KFS object codes subject to the IDC assessment.
      • Following the posting of the IDC on the project account, a corresponding 5% of the transaction amount is applied to the PI's IDC account.

CLAS Shared Services Information Technology

  • Windows 10 is an operating system that runs on a portion of university-managed and personally-owned PCs.
    • Microsoft is ending support for Windows 10 on October 14th, 2025.
    • After this date, computers running Windows 10 will no longer receive updates and will be vulnerable to security threats and unpatched bug fixes. Users with PCs running Windows 10 must take steps before October 14th to ensure their computers remain up-to-date.
  • Read the UConn Knowledge Base page on Windows 10 End of Life Information page.
  • Reach out to CLASIT@uconn.edu with questions.

CLAS Shared Services Facility Services

  • There have been continuing questions and concerns regarding the changes in custodial services on the Storrs campus that was announced in an email received on August 9th, 2025 from the VP of Facility Services and University Planning, Eric Kruger.
    • Full roll out will start in early October, with the goal being full implementation by the end of calendar year 2025. A few key points are being shared to answer the most common questions that CLAS Shared Services has received.
  • Office trash will no longer be emptied on a regular basis. Small receptacles will be left in offices, occupants will be required to empty them into the larger centralized cans that are being placed in buildings. No additional bags will be provided once the existing supply has been exhausted. Departments can purchase them through HuskyBuy if they desire.
  • Offices will be vacuumed on a monthly basis.
  • Restrooms, common areas and entry points will continue to receive focused attention.
  • For questions or concerns, please email UConn Facilities Operations.
  • Faculty and staff can also contact the CLAS Facilities Team for assistance with custodial issues that are not resolved in a timely manner via email at CLASFSHelp@uconn.edu.

Well Wishes

  • Deborah Shelby, Assistant Dean and Chief Operating Officer, CLAS DEAN.
  • Frederick Guilao, Financial Assistant 1, EEB.
  • Joseph Ferraro, Computer Support Technician 1, CLAS IT.
  • Rosellen Enyart, Educational Program Coordinator, SPP.

Did You Know – Timecard Exceptions

  • Timecard Exceptions are errors that block hours from reaching “Supervisor Approval” and will result in no payment for the employee. The BSC reviews monthly and reaches out to the department with guidance on issues that can be resolved by the department admin.
  • Common exceptions include:
    • Stipend Limits Exceeded.
    • More hours than role allows.
    • Submit PageUp data change + update CORE to increase the stipend amount to account for additional hours worked by the employee.
  •  Time Not Within Stipend Dates.
    • First confirm that the hours were submitted on the appropriate record and during the expected appointment dates.
      • If entered on the wrong record, have person delete & re-enter on correct one. Separate any old records to prevent recurrence.
      • If entered on correct record but outside dates, submit PageUp extension to pay employee for additional hours worked.
      • If hours reported after end date, extension could still be in progress in PageUp and will be cleared once it is entered in CORE.
      • If it is still unresolved, contact bsc@uconn.edu.
    • Work Study Balance Exceeded:
      • Hire as regular student labor hire must be created to pay the additional hours worked.
    • Time Not in Work Study Dates:
      • A regular student labor hire must be created to pay the additional hours worked.
  • See the CLAS Knowledge Base Page on Timecard Exceptions.