UHD President William Flores will discuss the UHD budget and upcoming budget cuts at the next UHD Staff Council meeting at 2 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 18, in Room 1099-North. 

Refreshments will be served. A flyer is available here. A meeting agenda is available here.

Staff Council representatives should make sure if they cannot attend that they send someone in their place. Council executive board members consider it important the group have strong attendance to voice concerns and ask the questions of interest to staff members.

The Consulate General of Mexico and UHD's Cultural Enrichment Center are hosting an opening reception from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 18, in the Special Events Center in commemoration of the Bicentennial of the Independence and Centennial of the Revolution in Mexico.

Please RSVP for the reception by calling 713-778-6116 or 6118. The "Pabellon del Bicentenario y Centenario" exhibit will be on display from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. through Friday, Aug. 27, in the Special Events Center. A flyer is available here.

(Note: Editor was sweltered...confused by the absence of cool...and referred to a Spring Convocation in the earlier edition. That reference was premature. The next event is Fall Convocation.)

President Bill Flores invites faculty and staff to attend the President's Fall Convocation at 2 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 1, in the Academic Building, Cullen Robertson Auditorium.

Cake and coffee will be available following the Convocation in the

Special Events Center.

The Fall 2010 Hispanic Film Series begins Thursday, Sept. 9, with a screening of "Cronicas:Ecuador" at 6:30 p.m. in Room 605-A in the Academic Building.

The 2004 film is directed by Sebastian Cordero and follows a television journalist as he investigates crimes against children in rural Ecuador. The series is sponsored by the Department of Arts and Humanities in UHD's College of Humanities and Social Sciences. For information contact Ana-Maria Medina, visiting assistant professor, at medina@uhd.edu. A flyer is available here.

Other films are:

Rosario Tijeras: Columdia - Sept. 23

Virgen de los Sicarios: Columbia - Oct. 7

Bombon: El Perro: Argentina - Oct. 21

Intacto: Spain - Nov. 4

Due to a change in hours and access to the Sports and Fitness Center, the final weigh-in day for the Biggest Loser program has been extended to today, Monday, Aug. 16. Please contact Sport and Fitness if you have questions.

On Aug. 20, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas (BCBSTX) will begin mailing medical ID cards to people enrolled in HealthSelect^SM of Texas as of Sept.1. Your ID card includes the health insurance copays that begin Sept. 1.

If you or your dependents are new to HealthSelect, and you have not chosen a primary care physician (PCP), call BCBSTX Customer Service toll-free at 800-252-8039 by Tuesday, Aug.17. This will ensure that your medical ID card lists the correct PCP. If you picked a PCP during Annual Enrollment, BCBSTX has the PCP information that was entered in your ERS OnLine account.

Employees or dependents are considered new to HealthSelect if they:

• changed to HealthSelect during Annual Enrollment,
• added dependents to your HealthSelect during Annual Enrollment

Texas Department of State Health Services Tobacco Prevention and Control Program is pleased to announce state employees, retirees and their dependents are now eligible for a new tobacco cessation program that offers free nicotine replacement therapy and free telephonic counseling.

These services are being made available through a partnership of the DSHS Tobacco Prevention Program, the Statewide Wellness Coordinator and the Employee Retirement System of Texas utilizing American Recovery and Reinvestment Act dollars.

Employees can call the Quitline at 1-877-YES-QUIT for access to over-the-phone counseling as well as up to eight weeks of nicotine replacement therapy (such as the patch, gum or lozenges). The free nicotine replacement therapy will be available through December 2011. The Quitline counseling services will continue to be available past this date.

Currently an estimated 45,000 state employees use tobacco products, and nearly seven of every 10 of these employees want to quit. Quitline users will double their chance of quitting by utilizing the free counseling and nicotine replacement therapy. According to the American Cancer Society, within 12 hours of quitting the carbon monoxide level in your blood drops to normal. Within nine months of quitting, shortness of breath and coughing decrease, and the lungs have repaired their ability to

function. After just one year of not smoking, the risk of coronary heart disease decreases by half, compared to a smoker's risk according to a study in 2006 by the Center for Health Research at Keiser Permanente. Additionally, a smoker who quits will personally save at least $2,100 per year.

This program offers a unique opportunity for state employees, retirees and their beneficiaries to take advantage of expanded tobacco cessation services. Make the call today - 1-877-YES-QUIT. A flyer is available here.

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Universal flu shots will be available at the UHD Student Health Services, Room 320N, for $20 starting in September.

The vaccination will be given for the 2010-2011 Flu Season and will be the H1N1 and the Seasonal Flu Vaccine in one shot. Separate vaccine will not be needed nor given.

NO APPOINTMENTS WILL BE REQUIRED. Shots will be given on a walk-in basis. Specific times and dates will be provided at a later date.

Flu vaccines are currently NOT available at this time. We will update everyone when they become available.

Renewal of Faculty/Staff parking permits for FY10-11 will begin Wednesday, August 4, 2010.

All current permit holders, full or part-time, are eligible to renew their permit online. Those choosing to use the on-line option will be asked to verify mailing address information via PeopleSoft Advantage Self Service (PASS). Permits will be mailed, via US postal services within 3-5-business days, to the address specified. 

To avoid deactivation of proximity cards, employees must purchase their permit by Tuesday, Sept. 7.

To register for parking using the on-line option, go to www.uhd.edu

  Select   (Register & Pay here)

  Select Faculty/staff eServices

  Go to My Online Transactions

  Select My Payment

  Select Parking

The payment options offered are payroll deduction (three monthly deductions), credit card (AMEX, Visa, MasterCard, Discover), and eCheck.  Customers are encouraged to purchase permits online, as only cash and check transactions can be accepted in the Parking and Transportation Service office.

An added benefit of the monthly payroll deduction plan is that when full-time faculty or staff members purchase their permit in this manner, the deductions are made on a pre-tax basis. For monthly employees, deductions will be taken equally for three months starting on October 1^st, which is actually the September paycheck.  Employees paid on a bi-weekly basis will see the deduction on the first paycheck of each month. Permits ordered online between Aug. 4^th and Sept. 10^th will have deductions of three installments beginning with the first paycheck in October. After Sept. 10^th, payroll deductions will be taken out in two equal installments only.

The breakdown by permit type is shown below.

 Adjunct professors and part-time employees will be able to request parking online and pay in full with credit card or eCheck.  Employee classification is obtained through PeopleSoft HR, which is maintained by Employment Services and Operations (ESO).  If an employee has questions about their employee classification, please contact your unit business administrator or ESO.

Disabled parking privileges are for the benefit of the registered permit holder only.  UHD requires that a UHD disabled parking permit be displayed along with a valid state issued disabled parking placard or state license plate whenever a vehicle is parked in a disabled parking space in any faculty/staff or student lot.

Motorcycle permits must be purchased in the Parking and Transportation Services Office. Motorcycle permits allow parking only in designated motorcycle areas and the permit holder is subject to the same parking regulations as motor vehicles.

As always, employees are asked to report lost, stolen, or damaged hang-tags/permits or proximity cards immediately to Parking and Transportation Services. The owner may obtain a replacement permit or proximity card for a fee of $10.00. 

The mission of Parking and Transportation Services is to provide the highest possible level of service and convenience to the campus community - students, faculty and staff.  Please feel free to contact Parking and Transportation Services with any questions or comments by e-mailing us at parking@uhd.edu or by calling ext. 8127.

Click here to register now!    https://global.dt.uh.edu:8585/eservices/es/login.asp?MySelection=F

For more information, contact Vanessa Turner, Manager, Parking and transportation Services, at 713-221-8947 or turnerv@uhd.edu

UHD this fall will again participate in the inter-university course "Disparities in Health in America: Working Toward Social Justice," which meets from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. every Tuesday starting Aug. 24, featuring prominent guest speakers from a variety of disciplines and organized by the Center for Research on Minority Health (CRMH) at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. 

The course is also open to undergraduate and graduate students in other member institutions of the Health Disparities Education, Awareness, Research and Training (HDEART) Consortium including University of Houston, Texas Southern University, Rice University, University of Texas Nursing, and UT Public Health.

Students at UHD are eligible for three hours of credit through SOS 3399 (CRN 11388, "Health Disparities in America" - taught by A. Henry Eliassen, assistant professor of sociology). Departmental approval is no longer a requirement for registration. Grades will be based on regular attendance, two essay exams, and a term paper. 

The class will meet at Rice University (meeting location on the Rice campus to be determined - refer to campus map at http://www.rice.edu/maps/maps.html). See the attached flyer, syllabus, and preliminary schedule for more details.

Contact Eliassen via e-mail at eliassena@uhd.edu for more information.

The Student Life Center will follow semester break hours through Monday, Aug. 23.

The center will be open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Fridays from Aug. 6 to Aug. 22. The center will be closed Saturdays and Sundays. The center also will be closed Friday, Aug. 20, for staff training.

For information, call the center at 713-221-8225 or email sportsandfitness@uhd.edu.

Regular registration for fall 2010 is under way, and students can take advantage of UHD's online class schedule availability and online registration process to add their fall classes today.

Saturday registration will be from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Aug. 21 at which time payment for tuition and fees must be made in order to preserve the selected courses. Various university offices will be open during Saturday registration to assist students. Fall classes begin on Monday, Aug.23. To register for classes, go to Student e-Services at www.uhd.edu/eservices and select My Registration & Schedule.

The fall 2010 and the spring 2011 class schedules are available online through Student e-Services at www.uhd.edu/eservices via UOnline. The first day of Priority Web Registration for spring 2011 is Monday, Nov. 1, for declared majors. The spring 2011 Web Registration for all other students begins Monday, Nov.8.

Please see the Academic Calendar www.uhd.edu/academic/calendar.htm for more fall 2010 and spring 2011 important dates.