- Senators voted on a proposal to change our senate name to Exempt Staff Senate
- Professional is the classification for EEO-6 codes, but it does not accurately represent the exempt staff whom we represent as the other senate names do. Additionally, we consider all staff on campus to be 'professional', not just those classified with Exempt status.
- This proposal will be brought to the University Steering Committee for approval.
- Draft IT Policy Updates
- Jack Suess, VP of IT and CIO, Damian Doyle, Deputy CIO and Interim Chief Information Security Officer, and Laura Mateczun, Research Graduate Assistant, discussed several IT policies that have been drafted to align with the USM 5.0 Security Standards.
- Four policies are being updated: IT Security Policy, Acceptable Use Policy, Policy on the Classification and Protection of Confidential Information, and the Policy on Credential Management, Authentication, and Authorization
- The IT Steering Committee has been guiding the updates to these policies, and these will be presented to shared governance groups for input before they go to the President for approval. If you have questions or comments on these policies, contact Jack Suess or Damian Doyle.
- Damian Doyle, Deputy CIO and Interim Chief Information Security Officer, also brought a new email filtering product to the Senate for our thoughts.
- Due to the frequency and sophistication of phishing attacks, a new email filtering system was rolled out for students this summer. This has been a huge success, bringing down the amount of spam emails from thousands in a day to effectively zero entering student inboxes.
- The system filters emails that are flagged as phishing or spam into a quarantined folder, preventing the emails from reaching an inbox or spam folder. If you have reason to believe you are missing an email, DoIT's security team can investigate
- DoIT would like to enroll staff and faculty in sensitive departments into the email filtering system as soon as possible to prevent accounts from being compromised; this can put sensitive data at risk. For those of us not in sensitive departments, this system will generate a warning message that will appear on emails that are suspected to be spam. We are encouraged to use caution when viewing these emails.
- DoIT will send out campus announcements when this rollout happens. Contact Damian Doyle or DoIT Security with any questions or concerns.
- We reviewed our PSS Bylaws and discussed changes that may be necessary to make this year.
- Thank you to everyone who completed our survey on Strategic Planning! We had 145 responses from a variety of different divisions. This input was shared with President Valerie Sheares-Ashby and will help guide the interaction of the strategic planning process.
Check out the meeting minutes for additional information.
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Next PSS Meeting
Thursday, December 14th
2:30 – 4:30 p.m., Virtual
PSS meetings are open to all interested staff members. View our meeting minutes and meeting schedule on myUMBC. To RSVP and join via WebEx, visit myUMBC.
Please RSVP via the myUMBC event if you are not a senator.
Missed a PSS meeting? You can access all PSS Meeting Minutes on our PSS MyUMBC page! Minutes are located in our files tab, which you can access here.
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Do you know who's on the PSS Executive Committee?
- President - Ray Soellner, Jr, Director of Telecommunications, DoIT (Pictured, Left)
- Vice President - Cael Mulcahy, Director of Operations, CAHSS (Pictured, Right)
- Treasurer - Jeff Cullen, Director, Student Conduct and Community Standards
- Communications Officer - Ally Hepp, IT Project Coordinator, DoIT
- Co-Secretary - Melissa Huselton, Health Professions Preparation Coach/Advisor, CNMS
- Co-Secretary - Lori Hardesty, Associate Director, Shriver Center
For the complete list of current senators, check out our PSS Roster on the website.
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Council of University System Staff (CUSS)
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Shared governance leaders from across UMBC and the University System of Maryland (USM) had the opportunity to connect on Wednesday, November 15th, 2023 on campus for the USM Joint Councils Annual Meeting. This meeting returned in person for the first time since before the start of the pandemic and UMBC was thrilled to host this event for the first time in the history of the meeting, which takes place each year to bring the USM Councils together. Attendees included representatives from the Council of University System Faculty (CUSF), the Council of University System Staff (CUSS), and the USM Student Council (USMSC). Faculty, staff, and students involved in these Councils represent their respective groups at the system level. For the morning sessions, participants had the chance to hear from several esteemed guests including a welcome from President Sheares Ashby (UMBC), remarks from Chancellor Perman (USM), and a panel discussion with members of the Board of Regents (Regents Gonella, Helal, Parker, Pope, & Wood). During lunch, participants had a chance to connect across Councils and even had a visit from Officers Chip & Cheatem! In the afternoon, participants heard from Assistant Vice Chancellor for Government Relations, Andy Clark, discussing the upcoming legislative session, and each of the Council Chairs shared a "State of the Council" Report. A wealth of information was shared throughout the day and a goal of continuing to collaborate across shared governance groups will be the priority moving forward. Please reach out to one of the CUSS Representatives or Alternates for UMBC if you would like more information about this meeting. UMBC Representatives/Alternates include Laila Shishineh, Roy Prouty, Terisa White, Laszlo Korossy, Deanna Cerquetti, and Cathy Myers.
Read the November 2023 Regents Report
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Winter Session is Coming Up - Use your Tuition Remission!
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Winter session is a great time to learn something new - take a class for personal interest or professional growth! If you have college-aged dependents, they can earn valuable transfer credits during winter session.
Winter Session 2023 courses are mostly online, with some hybrid and in-person classes on campus. The Winter session starts on January 2, 2024, and runs through January 26, 2024. Tuition remission is available for eligible UMBC faculty and staff, as well as their spouses and dependents. For more information, visit the winter session website.
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Meet the Senator - Chris Moss
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I am currently in my second year as a senator and have the privilege of serving as the Chair of Staff Outreach & Development. My journey with UMBC began in the 2007-2008 academic year. I initially started my college experience in Boston and pursued a non-traditional path transferring schools and working before finding my true academic home at UMBC and was the place where I discovered my sense of belonging.
Over the years, I've had the opportunity to wear various hats at UMBC, starting as a contingent employee in the commonvision Production Room. I then transitioned to the role of a department scheduler in the Events and Conference Services office, followed by an IT Support Specialist position with The Commons. My journey continued as I assumed the role of IT Manager for the Division of Student Affairs, and I currently serve as the Assistant Director for Desktop Support in the Department of Information Technology (DoIT).
My experience is a testament to the growth opportunities available at UMBC and the university's commitment to helping individuals find their unique place and purpose within the institution.
Beyond my professional roles, I maintain an active presence contributing to events like Homecoming and Quadmania. I have also been involved as an advisor to student clubs in the past and continue to support groups I've had the pleasure of working with. Additionally, I engage in community outreach, particularly with First Lego League Challenge in Maryland, where I assist with website and logistics work.
Outside of my UMBC commitments, I enjoy hiking, reading, and occasionally binging some of the latest shows out there. It's my way of finding balance and relaxation amid a busy and rewarding professional life.
At the end of the day I head home to my wonderful wife, and we have a delightful little one who fills our lives with joy and laughter. Family is at the core of my values, and they provide the inspiration and support that drive my dedication to my roles at UMBC.
PS: Our October issue featured Lazslo Korossy as the Meet the Senator, incorrectly titled as Michael Walsh. If you see Lazslo and Michael around campus, don't forget to call them by the wrong names!
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