Last week’s updates from UBC
- April 9: President’s Blog: Weekly Update
Updates on UBC’s response to COVID-19 are at covid19.ubc.ca.
Managing your mental health
HR has collected mental health resources to help you manage your ups and downs. Our VPFO HR staff is always available for a confidential conversation.
- April 13 (Part 1), 21 (Part 2): Self and Community Care: Building skills to manage stress: Learn to integrate relaxation and your personal needs into your daily life in this 2-part facilitated webinar.
- April 19: QPR Suicide Intervention Training: This internationally recognized suicide intervention program is designed to help you question, persuade, and refer.
- May 10, 17: The Working Mind Virtual: Mental Health Training for Faculty & Staff: Established by the Mental Health Commission of Canada, this program is designed to address mental health and reduce stigma in a workplace setting
- May 11 (Part 1), 19 (Part 2): Understanding Mental Health: The goal of this session is to increase mental health literacy while providing tools and skills to respond effectively in a caring and respectful way.
Operations updates
Facilities
Building Operations, Energy & Water Services and Infrastructure Development
- Update on Facilities Operational Priorities: Last week John Metras, Facilities, AVP, shared an update on Facilities’ operational priorities as we head into the new financial year. The full update is available on the Facilities website.
- Customer Services & Informatics (CSI) reporting to Facilities: As of April 7, the CSI team will be reporting directly to Facilities, AVP. This will better serve everyone in Facilities, and help reduce redundancies and expand our lens in working better together as one Facilities team.
- New Recreation Centre: Board 1 approval was received in June 2020, and a fly-through video of the New Recreation Centre is available to view on the UBC Recreation website. Learn more about this project on the Infrastructure Development website.
Finance
Comptroller, Finance & Operational Excellence and Treasury
- Fiscal year end: The first draft of the report “Ledger Summary – Distributed” for fiscal year 2020/21 is now available for faculties and units. Financial Reporting team is working diligently on the capital asset close, elimination of intercompany transactions, consolidation and accounting adjustments. Appendix C is due on April 16 and OAG is starting the audit on April 19.
- Update on quarter end dates for 2021/22: The quarter end dates for fiscal 2021/22 have been determined and are now available on the UBC Finance website.
Operations & Advising
Communications & Engagement, Human Resources, and Safety & Risk Services
- Channels in the VPFO: Our channels are established ways you can connect to other teams in the portfolio, across UBC, or the wider public. Learn about our channels as well as when and how to use them.
- VPFO HR on-site support schedule: Due to increased safety measures, the VPFO HR team will be working from home on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday for the month of April. For any questions, please contact Senior HR Manager, Arvind Kang (arvind.s.kang@ubc.ca).
- April 12: Rachel Lau, Sonia Lachar
- April 13: WFH
- April 14: Kasia Burza, Rachel Lau, Arvind Kang
- April 15: WFH
- April 16: WFH
Other notable updates
EDI resource – How can you be an effective ally?
Everyone in the VPFO plays a key role in building a more open, respectful and inclusive UBC. How can we equip ourselves with the right tools and understanding as an ally to effect real change?
Read the latest article by the VPFO EDI Committee to find out.
One more week to apply for the Healthy Workplace Initiatives Program
Do you have a great idea to make your workplace more healthy? Want to boost team-building and the health of your colleagues?
The Healthy Workplace Initiatives Program (HWIP) provides start-up funds for health-related activities for UBC departments and units interested in promoting wellbeing in the workplace.
The deadline for applications is next Friday, April 16, 2021 at 4pm. More information is available on the HWIP page.
Call for proposals: UBC Anti-Racism Initiatives Fund
UBC’s Anti-Racism Initiatives Fund, established in 2021, supports initiatives that seek to celebrate and elevate diverse communities and advance anti-racism efforts at our UBC Vancouver and Okanagan campuses.
Faculty and staff are encouraged to apply for funds in support of anti-racism initiatives, including those that celebrate, elevate, and build greater awareness and understanding of diverse cultures that make up our UBC community.
Proposals are accepted until 11:59 p.m. on May 31, 2021.
Learn more on the UBC Anti-Racism website.
Helpful news
Some interesting news articles people have found informative, helpful, or fun! These are provided for information and entertainment only. Unless noted, UBC doesn’t specifically endorse or supply this content.
- Have you ever struggled with saying what’s really on your mind? We all do. However, problems occur when you don’t speak honestly. Here are four strategies that can help you begin those honest conversations, even when you’re unsure how.
- Inclusive conversations are critical to maintaining strong relationships. Read this Forbes article to learn how to use inclusive language in order to improve your negotiation, conflict resolution, and business skills.
- In celebration of the arrival of spring (again), this fun article by Mental Floss gives you 15 scientific reasons why spring is great.
Have an article for your peers? Email communications@vpfo.ubc.ca.