HR News

Join the Syracuse University Wellness Initiative—and everyone’s favorite mascot, Otto!—on Tuesday, June 10, at 6:45 p.m. for the Syracuse WorkForce Run at Onondaga Lake Parkway.

The annual 5K event features a relatively flat, down-and-back course [PDF] and is a great opportunity to bond with your coworkers, enjoy some friendly competition and promote wellness among faculty and staff.

For faculty and staff who had a flexible spending account (FSA) through Syracuse University in 2024, the deadline to submit eligible expenses from the previous calendar year (Jan. 1-Dec. 31, 2024) for reimbursement is April 30, 2025. Additionally, up to $640 in unused funds from 2024 may be rolled over to a health care FSA for use in 2025. No funds may be carried over to the following calendar year for the dependent care account.

University Board of Trustees’ bylaws provide for the appointment of a staff member to serve as a representative on the Board. The Office of Human Resources is now accepting applications for the staff representative position for the 2025-2027 term. This role offers a valuable opportunity for staff to directly engage in key University governance decisions.

Mark your calendars for Thursday, March 27—it’s Giving Day at Syracuse University! It’s our chance to show the world what Orange pride really means. We’ve set an ambitious goal of 6,600 donors this year. When we unite as one Orange community, even small gifts create massive impact. It’s not about the size of your donation—it’s about joining together with fellow Syracuse supporters worldwide.

TODAY is Employee Appreciation Day.  Yes, it may seem as if it is one of those “Hallmark Holidays” designed to ensure that greeting cards are purchased or tailored for local restaurants to capitalize on catering to the lunch crowd.  In fact, National Employee Appreciation Day dates back to 1995, when Dr. Bob Nelson, a founding member of Recognition Professionals International, proposed it as an unofficial holiday.  As with any good academic, Dr. Nelson based his proposal on a study highlighting the important benefits of building employee-employer bonds through proper acknowledgement and that employee satisfaction is critical to an organization’s success.

At Syracuse University, we have over 5,500 employees performing so many roles—faculty, staff, student employees.  Each and every day, our employees complete amazing feats, from teaching, researching, answering questions, processing information and data, fixing our buildings, preparing and serving food, guiding students and prospective students.  The University has a rich history of doing amazing things through its amazing employees, for over 150 years.  Many leaders, managers, supervisors and employees know the importance of recognition and showing appreciation. And employee recognition does not and should not simply be about a one-day event.  There are so many simple ways to recognize employees, including:

• A hand-written note or brief thank you note, even by email or a text message.   It does not need to be lengthy, but it should be honest, authentic and tailored to a specific accomplishment.
• Taking the time to stop, reflect and approach a colleague and say, “Hey, I really appreciate you for the work that you did on that project” or “I noticed how you handled that situation.  I appreciate it and I learned that I am going to do the same when I face a similar situation”.
• In the right situations, sharing recognition and appreciation beyond the individual to a group, team or division, can be inspiring for the individual and also their colleagues.  Even the use of a bulletin board, for a “Kudos Corner”, is a simple way to recognize others.

The opportunities are endless and are only limited by your imagination and assurances that it achieves the simple goal of recognizing that we are all doing amazing things.

Particularly, as these times seem to be uncharted and acutely uncertain with the changes being brought about by abrupt changes directed from Washington, DC, I believe it is even more important going forward this year, to take the time to recognize each other for the amazing things that we do. So, I strongly encourage you to stop on a regular basis and acknowledge the great work of each of our employees through simple acts of gratitude.  And on this Employee Appreciation Day—to our 5,500 PLUS—deepest and sincere THANK YOU FOR BEING AMAZING.

Sincerely,

Andrew Gordon
Senior Vice President, Chief Human Resources Officer

Every year, Syracuse University releases an informational report on drug and alcohol policy and services. This report is required of all universities, in compliance with the Drug Free Schools and Campuses Act, and gives campus community members information about substance use and abuse, and institutional policies and programs in place to provide intervention and support.

Syracuse University cordially invites the campus community to the 108th Chancellor’s Review and Awards Ceremony, a distinguished event honoring our Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) cadets, on Friday, March 28, 2025, at 9 a.m. in the JMA Wireless Dome, followed by a brief reception at Club 44. This time-honored tradition, inaugurated on May 4, 1917, by Chancellor James R. Day, underscores the University’s unwavering dedication to military service and mirrors traditional military ceremonies that date back to the Middle Ages.

Academic Affairs and Institutional Effectiveness (IE) are pleased to announce a call for nominations for Syracuse University’s One University assessment awards. Self-nominations or nominations by campus community members will be accepted through Friday, March 28.

Five members of the Syracuse University community have been selected to participate in the 2025 Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Academic Leaders Network.

The program is designed to facilitate cross-institutional networking and collaboration among academic leaders while building leadership capacity at participating ACC institutions.