VPBA Newsletter October 2006
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October 2006 |
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SideNotes |
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Kerry's Korner... What do you think of when you hear the word, ‘alignment?’ My wife, Brenda, immediately thinks about her lower back being out of alignment. She experiences pain – a ripple effect of strained muscles that eventually leads to stress throughout her body, limiting what she’s otherwise capable of doing. The body doesn’t function as it should; it loses energy and effectiveness; stress increases. When your vehicle’s wheels are out of alignment, the tires wear out sooner and steering and tracking to keep the vehicle on a straight course is hindered, hence the ride is irritating – certainly not smooth, as intended. There are alignment issues in our work environment as well. Consider these questions. Are your department’s policies and procedures fully aligned with the institution’s Tier I research vision and Business Affairs mission, vision of service excellence and partnering brand – when were they last updated? Do you measure and benchmark your service levels to see if they are aligned with customer needs and expectations? What about your attitude and work ethic? Do you consistently portray a positive, optimistic, professional and service-oriented attitude, willing to make changes to improve? If the answer to any of the above is negative, then you will experience many of the symptoms of an out-of-aligned body or wheels. That is, stress will increase, your energy level will wane, you won’t be as effective and productive as you could or need to be, you’ll become more self-focused than team-focused, and it will be increasingly difficult to stay the course to accomplish your routine functions, much less make progress and improvements. And worse, there will be a ripple effect from you that reduces the overall effectiveness and efficiency of the entire team - an unacceptable consequence.
So, here’s what I need each of you to do -
take inventory; ask colleagues and customers how well you and
your area are aligned; look for opportunities to make
adjustments and act. For us to be successful, alignment is not
an option. By all means, take care of your body and vehicle,
but don’t neglect the alignment in the workplace. It’s a
necessity for every person, every day and in every job. |
Calendar
SECC Campaign
Columbus Day
Business Affairs
Business Affairs
New Employee
Worth Remembering... "You are what you repeatedly do. Excellence is
not an event - it is a habit." |
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Calling All Speakers
The Office of Student Activities is
seeking speakers to add to the Speakers' Bureau. Through the
program, students will have a resource to find speakers who are
willing to make presentations at no charge. This is a great
service to the UTSA community, especially for student
organizations who do not have the resources to pay for speakers.
The College of Business Congratulations! The College of Business has been selected to receive the 2006 National Society of Hispanic MBA's (NSHMBA) Brillante Educational Excellence Award. The nomination was coordinated between alumni, Peter Morales, who is with the International Affairs Department of the city and with the Office of Graduate Studies and Research. Previous winners of the award include Cornell, Stanford, UT Austin, and Bentley. For more information on the award visit http://www.nshmba.org/brillante/.
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Lila Martinelli |
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Lila Martinelli is a
native Texan, born and raised in San Antonio, and a graduate of
John Jay High School.
Lila
will be receiving a Roadrunner meal card to use for either
breakfast, lunch or dinner at the Roadrunner Cafe, compliments
of Chartwells. |
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The Gift of Giving |
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It was 1992
when Shannon, my youngest daughter, died just before we were to
celebrate her 12th birthday. She would be 26. Shannon had one of those very rare birth ‘defects’ and had been
born severely mentally retarded (at least that’s what they
called it in the ‘80’s). She never walked on her own or was
able to speak as you and I are able; so no running into daddy’s
arms, shooting hoops with her dad, hearing his wise counsel on
the kind of man she should marry, or even speaking the
words, “I love you, daddy.” BUT, she, in so many other ways,
was an excellent communicator and teacher - a lovely, loving
daughter - an inspiration to me and hundreds of others. The
doctors said she would not live to see her first birthday. Now,
there aren’t many of us who will live 12 times longer than our
life expectancy! I thank my God for this ‘angel’ and for the
years that we had. I write this only to bring to life our
current SECC initiative. Shannon was assisted in her life by
health agencies, associations, and others who are to some degree
partially funded by the United Way. I remain most grateful to
them for their support of my daughter and our family. While I
admit that I am by no means an advocate of all the programs
supported by the United Way, our university SECC initiative
provides us an opportunity to give back a small amount to those
specific groups we choose, that can and have provided valuable
assistance, sometimes life-changing and life-saving, to our
friends, family and community – perhaps to those you never
imagined. Last year, 55 percent of UTSA employees contributed
more than $212,000 to local, national and international
nonprofit charities through the SECC. I encourage you to
participate – no matter the size of the contribution - to help
others who so often are desperate and much less fortunate than
many of us. Speaking on behalf of Shannon, I believe she would
have been most pleased and grateful. |
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National Housekeeping Week |
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September 11-15, 2006 was National Housekeeping week
across the United States. The Office of Facilities
supervisors expressed their appreciation and recognition to the
housekeeping staff by honoring them with a luncheon. “We
wanted to acknowledge the hard work performed by the
housekeeping staff on a daily basis”, said Sonia Saenz, Manger,
Housekeeping & Special Events. The housekeeping staff
is responsible for cleaning offices, classrooms, and restrooms
as well as the maintenance of floors and carpets. Daily, they greet students, faculty and staff, and from time to
time point them in the right direction. The housekeeping staff
is always ready to assist the UTSA family. The Office of
Facilities (1604 and DTC) currently has 104
housekeeping employees and 8 supervisors. “I
would like to thank the employees for all their hard work in
meeting the daily challenges and for cleaning with style and a
smile. You are appreciated every single day,” states Sonia Saenz.
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UTSA Friends and Family Day at Bring your friends and family to Fiesta Texas on Saturday, October 21, as we "Paint the Park" in UTSA colors!!! The Orientation and Transition Services office and The Alumni Programs office invite you to celebrate "UTSA Friends and Family Day" at Fiesta Texas by purchasing specially discounted admission tickets for only $20.99 (regularly $46.99) plus, optional discounted parking permits cost $7.40 (regularly $10). These prices will be good for that day only. Never again will you be able to receive such a huge discount on a Fiesta Texas ticket! Wear your UTSA apparel for a 25% discount at select park restaurants and shops. You can purchase your unlimited amount of tickets now at the Alumni Programs Office. Starting Monday, October 2, tickets also will be available at the 1604 University Center Information Booth and the UTSA Downtown Student Activities Center. It will be a great time to spend with your family as the park is transformed into a "Fright Fest." Questions? Call the Orientation and Transition Services office at 458-4724.
Fall 2006
REMINDER..... Please email us the new employees in your department, so we can add them to the newsletter mailing. PUBLIC INFORMATION REQUESTS All requests to view or copy UTSA documents must be processed through the Vice President for Business Affairs Office. For more information, click:
http://www.utsa.edu/bussvc/ |
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Officer Matthew Stacy |
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On September 8, 2006, with the assistance of Sgt. Charles Patnode, Officer Stacy conducted a traffic stop on a speeding vehicle that had disregarded a stop sign on George Brackenridge Avenue. It was discovered that the driver had a suspended license, and Sgt. Patnode spotted a pistol by the drivers seat. This led to the arrest of the individual. On September 10, 2006, Officer Stacy conducted a welfare traffic stop on a vehicle parked on the shoulder of 1604 adjacent to UTSA. After making contact with the male driver, Officer Stacy detected the odor of an unknown alcoholic beverage emanating from the driver’s breath. After his arrest, the driver informed Officer Stacy that he had a 9mm pistol under the driver’s seat. After a search of the vehicle, a second weapon was also discovered. The diligent and proactive policing of Officer Stacy resulted in the removal of three firearms from our streets which only strengthened the UTSA Police Departments motto of; “Protecting Your Future…Today”. |
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Auxiliary Services Peer Review |
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An Auxiliary Services Peer Review will begin November 5-8,
2006. The Peer Review Team is comprised of 6 individuals from
various universities across the country, plus UTSA
representatives Christina Gomez, Student, College of Science and
Dr. Tom Cannon, Director, Tourism Management Program, College of
Business. The auxiliaries to be reviewed include Bookstore
Operations, Food Services, Housing Operations, Parking and
Transportation, University Center Operations, UTSA Card Office
and Vending Services. |
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Construction Update |
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Parking Garage No. 1: This 148,026 square foot four-story structure is designed to contain 479 parking spaces at the heart of the 1604 campus to meet the growing demand for parking. Anticipated completion is prior to Fall 2007.
Thermal Energy Plant 2: The
Energy Plant is a 16,716 square foot single-story structure
designed to contain one chiller and one boiler for immediate use
and five additional chillers and two additional boilers for
future use. The Energy Plant will provide sufficient capacity to
meet all of the heating and cooling demands generated by the new
Recreation Wellness Phase II and all future facilities
constructed on the 1604 central and west campuses. Anticipated
completion is prior to the Spring 2008 and that all
depends on whether or not the 32 foot cavern that was exposed
the first week of October will cause any problems at the
construction site. |
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Within
a three day period from September 8-10, 2006, Officer Matthew
Stacy was responsible for the seizure of three firearms, which
were discovered during two separate traffic stops. 
