New health insurance plan introduced for grad assistants and post docs
UF Human Resource Services is pleased to announce a new health insurance plan through BlueCross BlueShield of Florida for the GatorGradCare and PostDocCare programs.  The new plan will be available to postdoctoral associates beginning July 1, 2011, and to graduate assistants and pre-doc fellows beginning August 16, 2011. The plan represents a significant improvement in health coverage geared toward the issues facing UF’s postdoctoral associate and graduate assistant populations.
Titled GatorGradCare and PostDocCare, the plans will be offered through Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida Inc. and will provide significant enhancements to the existing plan, including:

• A reduction in the cost of individual coverage from $1,570 to $1,188, with considerable price reductions for spouses/partners and children.
• An unlimited prescription benefit.
• A reduced out-of-pocket cost for GatorGradCare and PostDocCare enrollees at in-network providers (from $12,500 to $3,000).
• An annual deductible of $100 instead of a per condition deductible of $100.
• A waived deductible at the Student Health Care Center and UF&Shands.

Additional information regarding the health insurance plan is available on the HRS web site for both the PostDocCare and GatorGradCare plans. You may also contact the HRS GA and Post Doc Associates Benefits Office at gabenefits@admin.ufl.edu, hrspostdocbenefits@admin.ufl.edu, or (352) 392-0003.

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UF Paid Parental Leave Program requires new time reporting codes

Employees may also use their personal accrued leave, unpaid leave, or a combination of paid and unpaid leave, so long as the total parental leave period, including the paid parental leave program, does not exceed a total of six calendar months from the first date leave is used.  If being used for foster care, the paid parental leave must be used within the FMLA entitlement period of 12 workweeks.

Once an employee completes the form to request use of UF Paid Parental Leave (including the Intermittent Leave Use form) and the department enters the parental leave through ePAF, UF Leave Administration will enroll the employee in the Paid Parental Leave Award and Paid Parental Leave Debt leave plans.  Leave Administration also will request that Payroll award the hours for the employee to use.  Once the hours appear in the employee’s leave balance, the employee may begin to enter the leave through the myUFL system by using the drop-down menu in Elapsed Time. 

The new time reporting codes for using UF Paid Parental Leave are:

• FLL - FMLA Parental leave Used
• FL8 - FMLA Parental Leave Used NRA18-Teach
• PPL - Paid Parental Leave
• PP8 - Paid Parental Leave Used NRA18-Teach
  

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Deadlines approaching to file 2010 flexible spending account claims
Employees enrolled in a medical or dependent-care reimbursement account for the 2010 plan year should note the following deadlines:  

• March 15, 2011, marks the end of the annual grace period (January 1 to March 15) and is the last date to receive services and claim them on your 2010 reimbursement account. Receipts dated after March 15 will be applied to your account for 2011, if applicable.

• April 15, 2011, is the deadline for filing medical and/or dependent care claims for your 2010 account.
• Claims with postmarks, fax dates, or time stamps after midnight on Friday, April 15, 2011, cannot be honored.
• If you have any money in your 2010 account after eligible claims have been processed, you will lose it.

Employees participating in a medical reimbursement account (MRA) may also claim 2010 money by using the new MyMRA debit card if it’s been properly activated.  Some of the expenses paid with your debit card may still require documentation.   Whether you choose to file claims using the paper forms or if you pay with the MyMRA debit card, be sure to submit all required documentation, along with a completed claim form to People First before the deadline. Documentation must include the patient’s name, type of service, date of service, provider name, and the total amount. You can submit your documentation one of three ways:

• Scan your documentation and submit it online through People First. Click FSA Information on the home page, then Online Claim Submission. Follow the directions and submission requirements or
• Fax the documentation and claim form toll-free to (888) 800-5217 or (850) 425-4608 (Tallahassee) or
• Mail your documents to the People First Service Center, P.O. Box 1800, Tallahassee, Florida 32302-1800

The new FSA reimbursement claim form may be found on either the state of Florida’s MyBenefits web site or the People First web site. Please follow the instructions found on the form and be sure to keep copies of the documents submitted for reimbursement as well as any mail dates, certified mail receipts, or fax confirmation receipts for your records.

Flexible spending accounts are a great way to fund medical and dependent expenses with pretax dollars, but if you don’t use services and submit your claims by the deadlines, you lose the benefit of these accounts—and the money.

Information about your contributions and the status of your claims may be viewed online through People First. To access your FSA information, a user ID and password are needed. If you have misplaced this information, contact the People First Service Center at (866) 663-4735 for assistance in resetting your ID and password. Questions?  Contact University Benefits and Retirement at (352) 392-2477 or benefits@ufl.edu.

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Annual performance appraisals for TEAMS and USPS employees due March 31
Performance appraisals for all TEAMS and USPS employees for March 1, 2010, through February 28, 2011, must be completed and signed by March 31, 2011.  Annual performance appraisals are designed to document and summarize feedback that employees have received throughout the year.  For more information about the performance appraisal process, please see the February 2011 issue of the InfoGator.

Performance appraisal forms are available on the Employee Relations section of HRS’s web site. Completed appraisals should be mailed to Human Resource Services, Employee Relations, Attn: Paulene Shindelbower, PO Box 100346, Campus. Questions should be directed to Paulene at (352) 392-3786.  Please note that forms that are not completed fully or accurately will be returned to the department for corrections, which could result in delayed processing. 

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Complete myUFL Financial Systems Upgrade training and you could win an iPod
In an effort to encourage employees to complete training necessary to prepare for “go-live” of the upgraded myUFL Financial Systems, the university will be giving away a total of 20 multi-touch iPod Nanos (16 GB) to employees who successfully complete their required training.

Drawings are being held approximately every two weeks. Anyone who has completed BRG900 or any course with the PST9 course number prefix will be automatically entered. Five employee names will be randomly selected at each scheduled drawing.

Employees who have completed courses will remain eligible for the drawing until they have either won an iPod or the giveaway ends. This also means that the earlier you complete a course, the more chances you will have to win!

To register for upgrade training, visit the myUFL system at my.ufl.edu, My Self Service, Training and Development, Request Training Enrollment.  Search for course numbers that begin with PST9.

• All of the upgrade training is being offered online, so you can take it without leaving your office, at a time that’s convenient for you, and most will offer a fast track version (quick—that only explains the differences between the current system and the upgraded version) and start-to-finish training (for those who want a more thorough review). When two versions are provided, you get to decide which one you prefer to take. You must complete an assessment at the end of each online workshop in order to be given credit for completion.
• The training does not need to be completed before requesting security for “go-live” (on May 10), but it does need to be completed by the end of May in order to keep any requested roles.
• A lot of the upgrade training is already available—and other workshops will be available soon. See the schedule to learn when relevant training for you will become available.
• The list of training also is available by security role.
• Once you take a workshop with a course number that begins with PST9, you do not need to take it again. 

The schedule for drawings is as follows:

Congratulations to winners from the March 4 drawing:

• Tricia Coraggio, College of Medicine
• Linda Miley, College of Education
• Rhonda Herring, College of Agriculture
• Tina Bolton, Levin College of Law
• Philip Calvert, Baby Gator Child Development and Research Center
  

Employees who complete the myUFL Financial Systems Upgrade training will be entered into the drawing once for each course completed. If you take multiple courses (different course numbers), you will be entered for each course taken. (Those who take the same course multiple times will only be entered once.)  UF Enterprise Systems and UF Training & Organizational Development employees are not eligible for the drawings.

For more information about the myUFL Financial Systems Upgrade, please visit its web site or e‐mail askgrady@ufl.edu.

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EEP accepting applications for summer semesters
The Employee Education Program (EEP) is a popular benefit available to eligible UF faculty and staff. The program provides tuition assistance for up to six credit hours of eligible college-level courses per semester. In the summer, a combined total of six credits taken during semesters A, B, and C may be covered by the EEP.

A new EEP tutorial has been added to the HRS web site to provide helpful information regarding this popular educational program.

Employees interested in participating in the EEP during the summer semesters should register and complete their applications by the following deadlines:

UF students:
Summer A/C 2011
EEP Registration Period: May 5-10
EEP Applications Due: 5 p.m. on May 11
Registration after May 11 is subject to a $100 late registration fee.
Summer B 2011
EEP Registration Period: June 23-28
EEP Applications Due: 5 p.m. on June 29
Registration after June 29, 2011 is subject to a $100 late registration fee.

SFC students
Summer/Summer A 2011
EEP Applications Due: April 28
If you register on or before this date, your EEP application is due to the SFC Cashier’s Office by 4 p.m. on April 28. You may still register after the registration date listed above; however, the EEP application must be turned in by 4 p.m. the next business day after registering.
Summer B 2011
EEP Applications Due: June 21
If you register on or before this date, your EEP application is due to the SFC Cashier’s Office by 4 p.m. on June 21. You may still register after the early registration date listed above; however, the EEP application must be turned in by 4 p.m. the next business day after registering.

Students attending other institutions
Students attending other institutions should register before the registration deadlines at their approved institutions. Completed applications for the summer 2011 semesters must be turned in by Friday, April 8, to Kenya Williams, education coordinator, by fax at (352) 392-1055 or via e-mail at kenya-williams@ufl.edu.
 
For program participation requirements, eligibility, and application deadlines, please visit the EEP section of HRS’s web site. For questions about this program, please contact Kenya Williams, UF Training and Organizational Development, at (352)273-1761 or kenya-williams@ufl.edu.

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Fifty TEAMS employees will receive tuition assistance for their children
The drawing for the University of Florida’s Higher Education Opportunity (HEO) program for the 2011-12 academic year will be held on Friday, March 11, from 2 to 4 p.m. in Room 120 of the Human Resource Services Building. 

The university’s HEO provides children of full-time TEAMS employees with the opportunity of tuition assistance for an undergraduate education at the University of Florida. (If the student is not accepted to UF, the benefit may be used at any public community or state college in Florida.)

At the March 11 event, 50 TEAMS employees who submitted applications by the November 1, 2010, deadline will be selected, at random, from a pool of eligible applicants. Chief Linda Stump from the University Police Department will preside over the event.

Please visit the HEO section of HRS’s web site for more information about the Higher Education Opportunity or contact Kenya Williams, UF Training and Organizational Development, at (352) 273-1761 or kenya-williams@ufl.edu.

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Baby Gator to host conference for parents of
young children
On Saturday, April 2, Baby Gator Child Development and Research Center and the Harn Museum of Art will host its second annual conference for parents of young children.

The daylong conference will be held at the Harn Museum of Art at the University of Florida and will feature presenters from the Colleges of Education and Medicine, as well as numerous organizations and agencies that support and educate parents. Twenty-five workshops and presentations will focus on the needs and concerns of parents of children from infancy through age five. 

For more information and to register for the conference, please visit the Baby Gator web site.

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UF introduces new living community for faculty, staff, and graduate students
The University of Florida has entered into a student housing agreement with Provident Resources Group and Capstone Management Company to increase its housing options. With plans to build just northeast of UF’s new Innovation Square, located between the UF campus and midtown Gainesville, “The Continuum” will be a premier community specifically developed for UF graduate and professional students as well as faculty and staff.

The Continuum will be an academically focused and mature student community that invites faculty and staff to connect with graduate and professional students. The complex will have amenities including granite countertops, stainless appliances, laundry in-unit, modern furnishings, and a fitness center, and will feature on-campus resources including a full-time, UF-employed residence director and programming designed specifically for graduate and professional students. This is the only off-campus community with a direct relationship with the University of Florida.

Fully furnished units will include living and dining room furniture, desk and desk chair, full-size captain’s bed with storage, in-apartment washer/dryer, refrigerator, stove, and microwave.  Units will also feature extended cable TV, Internet (ethernet and wireless), water, heat, electricity (cap per unit), 24-hour emergency maintenance, courtesy officer (local sheriff/police), parking garage, business center, fitness center, and outdoor pool.

To qualify for residency, you must be a matriculated, full-time or part-time (or equivalent) student enrolled in a graduate or professional school at UF or a UF faculty or staff member. Also eligible are undergraduate seniors who have been accepted by a university graduate or professional school or program or a fourth- or fifth-year UF student enrolled in a five-year (or more) dual degree program intended to result in at least one graduate degree. 

For more information, please contact continuum@housing.ufl.edu and view the Continuum web site.

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©2011 University of Florida Office of Human Resource Services
The InfoGator is a monthly e-publication produced by the University of Florida’s Office of Human Resource Services. It is distributed electronically to UF faculty and staff and is available online. Please direct questions or comments to its editor, Angie Brown; Human Resource Services; P.O. Box 115006; (352) 392-4626; TDD 800-955-8771. The InfoGator is available in an alternative format upon request.