Resources

 It’s only been three months, but the start of the Fall 2020 semester seems like lightyears ago. The priority, then and now, is to maximize a safe and healthy environment for us to teach, work, learn and live in. Although the decision was made to move learning off-campus early in the Fall semester, the foundation was laid in ConnectCarolina to help staff manage information about COVID-related changes to the academic calendar, class schedules, course details and more.     Last summer, the ConnectCarolina Student Administration team, led by Maribel Carrion, rose to meet the challenge of collecting, coding and providing updated information to students, faculty and staff. That included changes such as:   a compressed academic calendar,   longer instructional days to allow extra time for students to travel between on-campus classes,   reassigning classrooms to meet COVID-19 capacity recommendations, and  the addition of new ways for faculty to deliver instruction.     ConnectCarolina, as the system of record for the University, is the place where all this updated information resides. Did you know that moving the Fall 2021 term start date from August 18 to August 10 led to nearly 11,000 updates to the start dates of classes? It also meant more than 40,000 updates to student records, because each class they registered for had to be updated with the date changes, and each time the mode of instruction changed.    The team is now building on that foundation to prepare for Spring 2021 registration and the start of the semester.  Here’s a behind-the-scenes peek at what the Student Administration team is working on.      Updated the Modes of Instruction & Class Details page  … Read more

“If I attend UNC, what Financial Aid package will I receive?”  It’s a question that’s always remained unanswered for students and their families for a week, month or more after they receive their admission offer. That’s about to change thanks to a process improvement project led by The Office of Scholarships and Student Aid in collaboration with ITS Enterprise Applications.  One of the primary objectives of the project is to make financial aid package information available to prospective students at the same time as they are offered admission.  An equally important objective is to automate the processes for packaging financial aid as much as possible. Getting information for prospective students earlier, combined with automating routine work, will give the Enrollment and Scholarships and Student Aid staff more time to  focus on their core mission: to help advise students and families so they can have a full Carolina experience and successfully complete graduation. The significant benefits of this project for the University were noted by Rachelle Feldman, Interim Vice Provost of Enrollment and Undergraduate Admissions and Associate Provost for Scholarships and Student Aid: “I think this will be one of the most important and transformative technology projects, affecting students and student … Read more

Transfer vs. Terminations Transfers_vs_Terminations_20201104  Knowing when to transfer an employee versus when to terminate an employee is an important distinction in ConnectCarolina with pay, benefits, and potential compliance implications. Transfer: If an employee is moving from one job/position to another within the same department or to a new department without a break in service, the receiving department should submit a Transfer action via the Hire an Employee ePAR. Things to keep in mind with transfers: If the employee should be paid out leave, enter the Applied Termination Codes into TIM based on the effective date of the transfer and based on deadlines on the Payroll calendar. TIM information is fed over in real time so closely monitor leave accruals and leave payouts. If the employee is moving from SHRA to EHRA OR from EHRA to SHRA, both departments should closely monitor employee pay and information in TIM and submit a Service Request for any needed pay corrections when reviewing preliminary payroll. The receiving department HR Rep should first double check the end dates for the employee in the current (or exiting) department before submitting the hire/transfer ePAR. If the transfer is for a student job and the current department needs … Read more

This recorded webinar explains the new purchasing online purchasing solution, BuyCarolina, that replaces eProcurement effective August 17, 2020 at UNC.

This reference card explains how to use the Student Services Managers Facility Report in Tableau.  This report, intended for Student Services Managers across campus, shows class information such as the room the class is schedule to meet in, if applicable, and the type of instruction.

This help document shows the pages and information that you can access in the Graduate Student Tracking Hub.

If you already take advantage of one of the supplemental retirement programs offered as a benefit at UNC, or if you’re interested in participating, you’ll be happy to hear that the enrollment process just got a little easier.  On Thursday, July 2, as part of an ongoing initiative to make benefits enrollment easier for employees by moving forms online, you can make elections for the UNC 403b and UNC 457 plans in ConnectCarolina.    SelfService > My Benefits > Benefits Enrollment > Supplemental Retirement Plans    UNC 403b and UNC 457 through TIAA and Fidelity   Until now, employees downloaded and completed forms for each of four available plans and then sent the completed form to the Benefits Department, where staff keyed the information in manually.  Now, a click in ConnectCarolina takes you to a supplemental retirement planning “hub” with information on all the plan options.   If you select the UNC 403b or UNC 457 plan as a best fit for you, you’ll go on to enter the dollar amounts you want to be deducted from your future paychecks or indicate a one-time deduction amount.  If you’re already enrolled in a UNC-administered plan and you want to change your elections, you’ll make those changes online and get an immediate acknowledgement of your new … Read more

There’s some exciting news coming from the Office of Human Resources (OHR). The University is implementing Cornerstone, a talent management system branded “Carolina Talent,” which has tools that support the University’s ability to plan for, attract, develop, engage and retain talented employees. What’s a talent management system? It’s a system that gives us tools to manage our careers at the University, plus it gives managers and HR representatives tools for working with employees through all stages of their careers.   The first part of the Carolina Talent system we’ll start using is “My Learning,” the Learning Management System (LMS), which is targeted to go live this summer. During phase one of the implementation, training offered by the Office of Human Resources’ Organization and Professional Development group and LinkedIn Learning content will be available through My Learning. When it reaches its potential, My Learning will give us a central place for employees to find most of the development opportunities available to them across the University. Things to Note The training history that is currently in ConnectCarolina will be transferred to Carolina Talent. The new LMS does not impact any student-facing systems such as Sakai. Managers will be able to see the training … Read more

Can I swap this class to meet that requirement?” is an all too familiar request from students and, because Carolina has rich and diverse academic offerings, departments occasionally allow students to substitute courses for specific major requirements. In the past, processing “adjustments” meant additional steps for the directors of undergraduate studies. Adjustments were made by completing an online form in SharePoint, which was then manually processed by a team member in the Office of the University Registrar. Once processed, the change was reflected in the Academic Advisement record (The Tar Heel Tracker) and visible to the student. This manual process was both cumbersome and time-consuming, and we wanted to find a more efficient way to make the experience better for our faculty colleagues and our students. As it turns out, we were not the only university grappling with this issue and seeking a more student-centric option. Finding a simpler way to make requirement adjustments seemed a long way off until a strong collaboration between ITS and the Office of the University Registrar, along with some advice from colleagues at the University of California at Santa Cruz (UCSC) made this goal achievable. Enter the ConnectCarolina Student Administration team, led by Candy Davies, Director … Read more

  ConnectCarolina process improvements continue when a much anticipated Graduate Student Hub launches this summer. If you are a Student Services Manager, you’ll soon see a Graduate Student Hub tile on your ConnectCarolina Admin homepage. “Hub” really says it all. Student academic information, funding information, frequently used ConnectCarolina queries and reports that reside on multiple in ConnectCarolina will now be accessible from one place. One of the most exciting features for student services managers is the Graduate Student Tracking page. It’s easy to search by student or by program and plan and find comprehensive information about students in seven key areas: Student Profile Information: photo, PID, address, program, emergency contact, and an optional area for departments to designate the academic advisor or mentor and an option to add notes about interactions with the student Degree Progress: program details, leave history and key milestones Achievements: memberships, licenses and certifications, student presentations, and so on. Courses Taken: information on completed classes such as hours, course names, and instructors ·Courses Taught: information on classes taught such as section number and enrollment Funding: stipends, tuition awards and other information from GradStar and GSHIP, and other funding Alumni Info: email addresses and employment information for alumni   What started out as a … Read more