Western District
Digest
January 2008
Colleagues; I am so happy to be here beginning my term
as the western district director and working in partnership with
all of you to advance the mission of our great organization! Thanks
for the many good wishes...I have appreciated the kind words
on the phone and the encouraging messages via e-mail. There
are a number of "administrivia" items that I need to
communicate to you. Please bear with this rather long note.
District Office Relocation. For a short period
of time, the district office will remain in Neillsville while
arrangements are being made to relocate the office to Black River
Falls. We are waiting for the Dept of Administration
to complete the lease agreement with the owner of the building where
we intend to relocate. At that point we will set a date
with the movers, get the needed furniture ordered, phone and
internet hook-ups, and start the move. The new office will
be conveniently located downtown Black River Falls, less
than a mile from the I-94 exit. While I recognize that
visiting a district office does not rank high on the list of
people's desires, it will have a moderate sized meeting
space that you will be welcome to use. We will notify everyone
as soon as we are scheduled for the move and provide you with
new address and phone contact information.
Pay Plan Letters. Our office has received the pay
plan information and it is one of our top priorities to get these
letters out to you very shortly...hopefully within the next week.
Market Adjustments. A reminder that requests for
market adjustments must be in by February 15. A question
came up as to whether or not requests need to include a
letter of support from the Department Head. All requests
must demonstrate support from the Department Head...a letter
would be the best evidence. If this is not available, I
will follow-up personally with DHs in offices where market
adjustments are being requested. For further information
on market adjustment procedures, please refer to the Dean's e-mail
sent on 12/19 or e-mail me and I will forward it to you.
January District Meeting. Yesterday Rhonda sent an e-mail regarding
registering for the January 15 district meeting in Eau Claire. We
have an hour at the beginning of the meeting for all-district
business and discussions. If anyone needs time with the
group at that meeting, please let me know. (And good news...there
will be a HOT meal for lunch again. Your voices have been
heard! "Food at the district meeting" has been
the #1 comment I have received since being named DD!) :-)
State Travel Mileage Rate. Just a reminder that
the mileage rate for state travel went up to .465/mile
as of December 1, 2007. Following is the link to the updated
Travel Expense Report in case you have not yet had the opportunity
to download the new form. http://www.uwex.edu/business-services/documents/sfster1207-2.xls
Staffing Projections. For planning purposes, the
dean's office is taking a look at staffing projections over
the next few years. District Directors have been asked
to provide estimated numbers of anticipated retirements, etc. Because
I am new to this role and have no history of discussions with
district colleagues related to retirements or potential
vacancies for other reasons, it would be very helpful to me to
hear from those of you who are considering retirement or resignation
for other reasons within the next five years. This information
will be confidential. The dean's office is not requesting
names of individuals...only numbers of expected resignations. If
you would be comfortable sharing this information with me, I
would appreciate it. Please know that I respect the preference
that some of you may have to not share this information.
District Communications. Perhaps the greatest
challenge in any large organization is communication. I
am interested in your thoughts on strategies and methods to maintain
the most effective and efficient communication possible within
the district. We are all a part of the same team...it is
my goal that our communication in the district will be a team-builder.
Department Heads. Stay tuned for a message from
me later today regarding WACEC and other details.
Thanks to each of you for your work in bringing excellent
education to our counties. I will do my best to serve you
efficiently, fairly, and respectfully. I look forward to
getting on the road and meeting each of you in your locations
as we work together to continue building Extension's relevance
and visibility in the Western District! May 2008 be a positive "transformational" year
for each of us!
Make it a great 2008!
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