APSCUF Newsletter. A Message From. Mansfield University. November 2018 this issue. Message from President..p 1

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1 Mansfield University APSCUF Newsletter November 2018 this issue Brian Loher President Bill Keeth Vice-President Shawndra Holderby Secretary A View from the Tioga County Visitors Center A Message From Message from President..p 1 Member Appreciation Luncheon...p 2 Recommitment Campaign...p 3 Flu Shot Information..p 4-6 Pre-retirement Checklist.p 7 Overload & Related Payments...p 8 Member Accomplishments...p 9 Adjunct Newsletter...p 10 APSCUF Scholarship..p 11 Michele Whitecraft Treasurer Linda Smith Office Manager APSCUF Office Mansfield University 209 Memorial Hall Mansfield, PA Fax

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3 FACULTY AND COACHES: DON T DISCARD YOUR CARD! SIGN AND RETURN TO RECOMMIT TO APSCUF OR TO JOIN OUR UNION Mansfield APSCUF Vice President Dr. Bill Keeth signs his membership form recommitting to our union. Our recommitment mailing posted in August to home addresses, and we thank those who have signed and returned the forms. There s strength in numbers! Our contracts will expire in June and we need to make sure that we send a clear message to PASSHE that we all stand together before we go to the negotiations table. If you did not receive your mailing at home or accidentally disposed of it, please contact Linda Smith at or stop by the APSCUF Office, 209 Memorial Hall. MA APSCUF would like to welcome the following new members to the APSCUF family: John Szentesy Chardonnay Hope Athletics Athletics 3

4 FLU SHOT OPPORTUNITIES FALL/WINTER 2018 STATE SYSTEM Health Plan Members Highmark PPO Plan All Highmark members (who are age 9 and older) can obtain a no-cost flu shot at any CVS, Giant, Giant Eagle, or Rite Aid pharmacy in Pennsylvania, and at many other pharmacy locations (see attached list). No appointment is needed the member must present their Highmark member ID card. The State System health plan will be billed directly for this service. Rite Aid, Giant Eagle, select CVS pharmacy locations and many other pharmacies will conduct an on-site campus flu shot administration, if the campus would like to pursue this option. There will be no additional fees specific to this event the State System health plan will be billed for the number of vaccines administered to its State System Highmark members. Many campuses have already been approached by a pharmacy. If you have not, and you would like to pursue this option, please notify me, and I will put you in touch with the appropriate individual. If an on-site clinic is offered, all State System Highmark members (and Highmark members covered under an unrelated employer plan) can receive a no-cost flu shot at the event (they must present their Highmark member ID card). For individuals who are not covered by a participating health plan, there is the opportunity for them to receive a flu shot at the campus event on a self-pay basis (cash or personal check, the logistics of this will need to be addressed with the pharmacy vendor in advance of the event). They may have the ability to submit the receipt for this flu shot with a claim form to their health plan and receive reimbursement. Highmark members of all ages can obtain a flu shot from their physician (an office visit co-pay may be charged). STATE SYSTEM Health Plan UPMC HMO Members UPMC HMO members of the State System plan can obtain a no-cost flu shot at the following retail pharmacies: o Rite Aid o Giant Eagle If the campus does an on-site flu shot program with Rite Aid, the UPMC HMO member can obtain a nocost flu shot at that event. This needs to be coordinated in advance with Rite Aid and UPMC. UPMC HMO members can obtain a flu shot at their doctor s office (an office visit co-pay may apply). UPMC HMO members can also obtain a flu shot at any pharmacy or clinic. They may then submit a claim form with a receipt to UPMC and they will receive reimbursement. The claim form is attached. 4

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7 ARE YOU THINKING ABOUT RETIRING? Check out APSCUF s Pre-Retirement Checklist! Please Note: This checklist should only be used as a guideline. All faculty contemplating retirement should consult with their retiree handbook from either SERS or PSERS. Those enrolled in TIAA-CREF should have their portfolios in order. In addition, faculty should have a copy of the current Collective Bargaining Agreement between APSCUF and the State System of Higher Education. APSCUF s Pre-retirement checklist Getting ready to retire? Check out this checklist to get prepared! Select an anticipated date of retirement and begin to contemplate pension options. Check beneficiary information. Contact your retirement counselor and/or investment counselor o SERS members need only to contact (toll-free) to be connected with their local counseling center. The SERS website is o TIAA-CREF members can call TIAA-CREF s website address is o PSERS members need to contact (toll-free). PSERS website address is Visit APSCURF's web page, for direct links to a variety of different sites including the Social Security Administration's website which provides answers to quite a number of questions. Visit the APSCURF page for an abundance of information on retiring and retirement! Contact your human resources office. Confirm credited years of service. Certify any outstanding qualified service time while in active status. No payment is required to purchase the value of this service during active service. The amount owed can be subtracted from the pension. CBA health retirement requirements to retain lifelong health benefit coverage include one of the following: o 25 years of credited service at any age o 10 years of credited service at superannuation age (60 years of age) (applies to those hired prior to the fall semester of 1997) o 15 years of credited service at superannuation age (60 years of age) (applies to those hired for the fall semester of 1997 through June 30, 2004) o In addition, credited service for those faculty members hired for the fall semester of 1997 and after will only include Commonwealth and/or State System service. o Those hired on or after July 1, 2004, "20 years of credited service at superannuation age. o Please Note: Your spouse and/or eligible dependents are only entitled to your State System health benefit package as long as you are alive. The Surviving Spouse Act provides the right to purchase your package from the State System for your spouse only. ALL annuitants must draw a pension check (annuitize) from their retirement plan in order to receive the health benefit coverage. Those retiring on or after October 20, 2005, are permitted to waive enrollment under the retirement health package IF THEY ARE COVERED UNDER ANY OTHER HEALTH INSURANCE. If the health package is waived at retirement, retirees may enroll during an open enrollment period or upon loss of their current coverage. ALL annuitants must draw a pension check (annuitize) from their retirement plan as one of the criteria to be eligible to obtain sick leave buy-out benefits. In addition, the member must be retiring at 60 years of age or more with five years of Commonwealth/State System service or under 60 years or age with at least 25 years of Commonwealth/State System service (may include periods in other positions other than a faculty/coach position). PA Faculty Health and Welfare Fund benefits will terminate on the last day of the next month in which you retire. Schedule any services for which you are eligible prior to the termination date (Dental, Vision, Hearing, etc.). Those retiring on or after November 1, 2005, may qualify for COBRA coverage. 7

8 OVERLOAD AND RELATED PAYMENTS Overload and related payments must be submitted locally between now and by no later than October 5, Overload and related payments will be included in the October 26, 2018 paychecks. If a faculty member has not received an overload payment in his or her October 26, 2018 paycheck, there are three likely possibilities: either (1) the faculty member has not yet earned credit overload (see explanation below); or (2) the paperwork to authorize the payment was not sent to your Payroll Office; or (3) your Payroll Office has questions about the paperwork. In any case, please keep in mind that the affected faculty member will have forty (40) days from October 5, 2018 to file a grievance if he or she has not received an overload payment or disputes the amount paid. This means that such grievances must be filed at Step Two of the Grievance Procedure by no later than December 5, 2018, in order to be timely. Please remember that most faculty members who teach 15 credits in the fall do not earn credit in the fall even if they are scheduled to teach 12 credits this spring, as their workload could be modified to 9 credits in the spring, making them ineligible for overload compensation. If the faculty member actually does teach 12 credits this spring, he or she will have then earned the credit overload in the spring. DISTANCE EDUCATION PAYMENTS Distance education payment must be submitted locally between now and by no later than November 2, Distance Education payments will be included in the November 21, 2018 paychecks. If a faculty member as not received a distance education payment in his or her November 21, 2018 paycheck, either the paperwork to authorize the payment was not sent to your Payroll Office or your Payroll Office has questions about the paperwork. In any case, the affected faculty member will have forty (40) days from November 21, 2018 to file a grievance if he or she has not received a distance education payment or disputes the amount paid. This means that such grievances must be filed at Step Two for the Grievance Procedure by no later than December 31, 2018 in order to be considered timely. 8

9 MEMBER ACCOMPLISHMENTS On October 19, 2018, Bonnie Kutbay (Art History) presented a paper on Michelangelo and The Agony and the Ecstasy (1965), in Renaissance Art and Architecture as Cinematic Muse, at the SECAC Art Conference, in Birmingham, Alabama. Using Social Media to Promote Your Academic Department and Strengthen Relationships with Alumni. Bia Bernum and K. Sue Young co-presented at the Association for Business Communication international conference, Miami, FL, October 26, Share your accomplishments and service with your colleagues! At Mansfield, we are always proud of our distinguished faculty. Because our talented instructors are continuously working towards new academic pursuits, we strive to stay updated on your scholarly awards, publications, and presentations. Please let us know what you are working on and what you ve achieved! Your achievements will be posted in our monthly newsletter. To report your latest accomplishments, or to let us know about a colleague s important work or achievement, please contact Linda Smith at lsmith@apscuf.org The Mansfield APSCUF Office will be close at 1:00 pm on Wednesday, November 21 and will reopen on Monday, November 26th at 8:00 am. 9

10 Adjunct Update Newsletter launches Our union is one of only a few across the country that represents all faculty whether they are tenured, tenure track, or adjunct. ASPCUF debuted the Adjunct Update, a newsletter composed with and for adjunct faculty members, in early November. If you are an adjunct member of APSCUF and did not receive the newsletter, which State APSCUF aims to publish in October, February, and April, please qualityeducation@apscuf.org. Any member can view the Adjunct Update archive at (login required). ATTENTION: ADJUNCT FACULTY DENTAL and VISION Benefits Information!! ARE YOU ELIGIBLE FOR DENTAL/VISION BENEFITS? Temporary, full-time faculty are eligible for Health & Welfare Benefits upon employment. The full-time benefit package includes services for dental and vision. Temporary, part-time faculty are eligible for Health & Welfare Benefits if you have worked at least 25% of full-time in any one of the preceding 3 semesters. The part-time benefit package reimburses for vision exams and dental preventative & restorative services. If you are a returning adjunct temporary faculty member and you know that you are already enrolled, there is no need to re-enroll unless you have a change of address or family status. If you are eligible, please call the Mansfield APSCUF office to set up a time to fill out your enrollment card and to learn more about your benefits. My office hours are Monday Friday, 8:00 AM 4:00 PM. You can reach me by calling Ext 4919 or by ing lsmith@apscuf.org You can also learn more by visiting the Health & Welfare Fund website 10

11 2019 State apscuf scholarship program The State APSCUF Office awards a $3, scholarship to a student (family members) of an APSCUF or APSCURF member. The scholarship will be awarded to an eligible applicant for the pursuit of either an undergraduate or master degree at one of the 14 state-owned universities. Topic for this year s essay is What are your views on public service in the context of your professional future? The essay must be a minimum of 500 words but does not exceed 1000 words. Completed scholarship packets must be postmarked no later than March 1, The State APSCUF Scholarship will be presented in August The complete application/guidelines are available in the Mansfield APSCUF Office, Linda Smith, or lsmith@apscuf.org They can also be printed from If you have moved in the past year, please inform the APSCUF Office of your new address. Reporting your new address to Human Resources does not guarantee we have received this information. Please contact the APSCUF Office, Linda Smith, , lsmith@apscuf.org. We are Don t miss out on important information and benefits! Register today for access to the members only section at Like us on Facebook Subscribe to our blog! Follow us on Twitter! APSCUF