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Ford's Focus
We are well into the fall semester in case the changing leaves on the trees and the five straight weeks of home football games haven't given it away. It's also the start of flu season, so don't forget to sign up for your shot.
This is another packed issue of News & Views so I want to point out a few things to check out. We have gotten several thank you notes for the work OPP employees are doing. Keep up the great work! I appreciate how dedicated each of you are to the work you do. I'd also like to send a thank you out to those who assist with football operations. Your work is very important to a successful game day and to the fan experience.
OPP is hosting a Red Cross Blood Drive on Oct. 16. If you are able, consider signing up. More information can be found below.
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Welcomes
Hometown: Tyrone
Hobbies: Outdoors, family, crafts
 Dave Benner accepted a position as a sheet metal worker on Sept. 28. Hometown: Bellefonte
Hobbies: Sports, hunting
 Tom Cestone began a position as a utility maintenance worker. His first day was Oct. 11. Hometown: State College
Hobbies: Tailgating Penn State football
 Todd Garbutt began a position as a utility maintenance worker. His first day was Oct. 4. Hometown: Tyrone
Hobbies: Fishing, hunting, horses
 Willie Hawkins began a position as a utility maintenance worker. His first day was Oct. 12.Hometown: Houtzdale
Hobbies: Outdoors
 Tyler Hughes accepted a position as a custodial worker in District 62. His first day was Oct. 12. Hometown: State College
Hobbies: Drawing
 Bryan Kreger accepted a position as a landscape maintenance worker. His first day was Sept. 28.Hometown: Bellefonte
Hobbies: Sports
Hometown: Petersburg
Hobbies: Spending time with family
Mack Messner is returning to OPP after accepting a position as a facilities engineer. His first day was Oct. 5.
 Jason Myers accepted a position as a stockroom clerk. His first day was Oct. 12. Hometown: State College
Hobbies: Archery, woodworking
 Kelli Prescott accepted a position as an IT project manager. Her first day was Oct. 12. Hometown: Port Matilda
Hobbies: Hiking, camping
 Steve Rohrbach began a position as an OSEH Specialist. His first day was Oct. 12. Hometown: Woolrich
Hobbies: Camping, fishing
 Brandon Scheirer began a position as an environmental compliance specialist. His first day was Sept. 28. Hometown: Beech Creek
Hobbies: Fishing, hunting
 Thomas Shirey began a position as a custodial worker in District 32 Oct. 12. Hometown: Morrsidale
Hobbies: Archery
 Kirstie Taylor accepted a position as a custodial worker in District 12. Her first day was Oct. 12. Hometown: Bellefonte
Hobbies: Camping, outdoors
**If your picture was not included, we would be glad to include it in a future edition. Please contact Susan Bedsworth to set up a time to have your photo taken.
Farewells
Nickolas Conrad, utility maintenance worker, accepted a position at Penn State Altoona. His last day will be Oct. 18.
Zach Rhoads, DDC specialist, resigned from his position. His last day was Sept. 30.
James Snyder, custodial worker, has accepted a position in Auxiliary & Business Services. His last day is Oct. 25.
Marcie Van Horn, project manager, is leaving the University. Her last day is Oct. 8.
Facilities Coordinator Updates
Mike Blanco was named the Facilities Coordinator for Penn State Institutes of Energy and the Environment.
Chad Kelley was named the Facilities Coordinator for The Penn Stater.
Steve Koths was named the Facilities Coordinator for the Nursing Sciences building.
Jean Songer was named the Facilities Coordinator for Development and University Relations.
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Lab Safety Classes
Kaleb Bogale from the Undergraduate Research Society Executive Board wrote in to OPP to thank Mike Houser, safety specialist, for his assistance with the lab safety classes. "Thank you for being so flexible and understanding. Our executive board and student body are very appreciative and we know clubs like URS are only possible because of the support from those like yourself."
Bringing Light to the Darkness
Danielle Fritchman, administrative assistant, wrote in to OPP to thank the crew that repaired and replaced the lighting in the parking area under the JME building. "It's amazing the difference that it makes; a world of difference! It used to be so dark and dingy and quite honestly, downright spooky."
Offering a Helping Hand
Two WWTP mechanics were observed doing a good dead on Sept. 29. While traveling down Curtin Road on their way to the East Halls Pump Station, Brady Crain and Matt Wrye witnessed an elderly gentleman fall off the curb into the roadway. After stopping to ask if he was alright, they assisted him to his feet and helped him to cross the road safely. Thank you, Brady and Matt!
 Fall Leaves Keep OPP Busy
Penn State's Social Media Office recently featured Penn State OPP on its Instagram account. "The joy of Penn State in the fall is enhanced when the sidewalks are clear. Tom Leigey and others in OPP keep campus clean." To see the actual post, visit http://bit.ly/1NcTjmc.
Campus Beautification
Jim Miller, Class of 1972, recently drove through campus after retiring to the area. "My wife and I drove through the campus, and we commented on how beautiful it is and all the hard work that goes into keeping it that way. As we thought back, we were not able to remember any time that the campus wasn't pristine in its appearance. The beauty of Penn State is one of the many factors that contribute to the pride we feel for PSU."
University Tree Commission
Bill Elmendorf, associate professor and state extension specialist, wrote in to OPP to offer his thanks for the opportunity to work with the University Tree Commission. "I have been on a number of different boards and committees, it is so nice to work with Tom (Flynn), Derek (Kalp) and Jeff (Dice) and all the other people from OPP. Why? Because they are great at what they do and really care about the University and its landscapes."
Campus Landscaping
Wayne Eaton, a campus visitor wrote to OPP regarding the campus landscaping. "I want to congratulate your department on the landscaping at Penn State. Every football season it is a joy to walk throughout the campus. Even on those recent rainy weekends, I was amazed at how beautiful the grounds are."
A 'We Are!' and a Thank You
Brooks Meyers and David McCool were nominated for a "We Are!" feature in Penn State Today. Their nominee wrote, "Brooks and Dave really helped me out. I ordered signs for a small renovation, but realized late that I had missed one sign, and it was needed for a final inspection. I contacted Brooks, and they were able to get me that final sign in less than 24 hours." To see the feature in Penn State Today, visit http://bit.ly/1jvrhrQ.
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The item in the Sept. 24 issue of News & Views was a bolt alignment tool used in the sheet metal shop .
Item from the Sept. 24 edition:
The next "Tools of the Trade" item is below. What do you think this is and/or what is it used to do? Email your guess to newsviews@psu.edu.
Happy Guessing!
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Each edition of News & Views will include an interesting Penn State factoid. Some will be about OPP, while others will be about different parts of the University. Know an
interesting tidbit? Send it to newsviews@psu.edu. As long as we can verify its authenticity, we will share it.
 Lighting the WayWith a campus Penn State's size, it takes a lot of street lights to keep it illuminated once night falls. The University Park campus has more than 4,040 street lights.
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What: EBA 2016 Membership Drive
When: Oct. 28, 2015, 1-3 p.m.
Where: 105-B Physical Plant building
What is EBA?
The Employees' Benefit Association, known as EBA, is a non-profit organization that was founded in 1956 to provide specific benefits to its members during the best and worst occurrences that life has to offer. EBA cares for its members by acknowledging events such as the birth or adoption of a baby, marriage, retirement, significant illness or hospitalization, or death in one's family with benefits or benevolences.
Why join?
If you are employed at OPP, you are already a team member of the best operation of its kind in the world. With approximately 1,300 employees, you are also part of one of the largest.
OPP is amore than a place to work. It is a community! As a member of EBA, you stay connected with that community in a way that is impractical otherwise.
EBA is there when significant events occur in the life of our members. EBA cheers, encourages, and comforts its members when they need it. As a member of EBA, you are a part of your fellow members' major life events.
EBA is open to standing staff, fixed term I, and technical service employees.
What does EBA provide?
Benefits range from a card for a surgery or hospitalization to a gift ($35) for a wedding, birth/adoption, or death.
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Did you know that one unit of blood can help save three lives?
Please make your appointment to donate on Oct. 16 here at OPP. The goal for this blood drive is to collect 24 units of blood. So far, 18 people have signed up to donate.
What: OPP Red Cross Blood Drive
Where: 105 Conference Room
When: Oct 16, 2015 from 9 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.
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 In an effort to help us all stay healthy, we'll be sharing tips, stretches and workouts you can do at your desk, on your break or at home. We would also love to hear from you! How do you get more movement into your day? Share by emailing newsviews@psu.edu, and, with permission, we'll share your submissions in an upcoming edition of News & Views. Improving our health isn't just limited to our physical fitness. Our emotional wellness is also important. Since we spent a great deal of our waking hours at work, it's important to have ways to deal with the stressors work can bring.
Your Mind at Work New Ways to Approach Those Niggling Challenges
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Challenge
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Practice
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Benefit
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Distracted & Scattered
| Learn to follow a simple object (like your breath). The repeated returning to a focal point trains your attention. | Focus. Your attention wavers less and you're not as easily pulled away by external distractions or internal chatter. | | Annoyed by difficult colleagues, office politics, gossip | Let others talk about themselves. Listen and consider what might cause them pain. | Not as judgmental. You take more time to explore what might be causing other people pain and problems instead of assuming the worst. | | Physically worn down by tension, rushing through meals, staring at screens | Take a few minutes and let your attention scan your entire body from head to toe. Go take a walk or get fresh air. | Body awareness. You more often notice how you actually feel in your body and when it needs care.
| | Stuck: solution to a problem keeps evading you | Sit quietly doing nothing for 5 minutes. Then as you contemplate the problem, imagine you're seeing it for the first time. | Fresh eyes. Increased ability to let go of assumptions, expectations, and story lines and see things anew. | | Frustrated with lack of progress in yourself or others | Listen fully to a longer piece of music without doing any thing else. This helps you appreciate rhythm, rather than trying to force things. | Patience. You let things develop in their own time rather than always trying to push them. |
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 The flu vaccine clinic dates are now open for registration. To make an appointment, visit http://ohr.psu.edu/health-matters/flu-shots/. Flu vaccines are free to any current Penn State employee and their spouse/partner enrolled in health benefits. If an employee's spouse wishes to receive a flu shot and does not have Penn State health benefits, the cost of their flu shot is $24. Retirees and children are not eligible for this program.
OPP is hosting the following sessions in Room 150A&B. Please enter the 105B side.
Thursday, Oct. 22
12 - 7 p.m.
Tuesday, Oct. 27
4 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Tuesday, Nov. 3
8 a.m. - 6 p.m.
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 In each edition, we are including information and links to retirement information found both on the web and from Penn State's Office of Human Resources. Remember, regardless of your age, it's always important to plan ahead for retirement.
Investing Terms to Know
One of the first steps to feeling empowered with your finances and investments is to educate yourself. Below is part one of a list of investing terms you should understand to help you feel more confident when it comes to planning your future.
1. ROI - This is short for "return on investment." It refers to the gain or loss experienced relative to the amount invested. It's often expressed as a percent. Ex: An investment of $1,000 grows to $1,100. Its ROI is 10%.
2. Compound interest - Compounding means that when interest is initially calculated on the principal amount invested, the added interest can then also earn interest.
3. 401 (k) - This is a retirement savings account many of you may already have. It takes advantage of a specific tax code that allows for deductions from your paycheck before taxes. Earnings and deposits grow on a tax-free basis until withdrawn.
4. Roth IRA (individual retirement account) - Contributions to a Roth IRA do not receive an upfront tax deduction, allowing you to withdraw the funds in retirement tax-free.
5. Certificate of deposit (CD) - A CD is a type of savings account offered by a financial institution. For agreeing to allow the institution to hold your savings for a period of time, you often receive a higher interest rate than you would otherwise earn.
6. Money market account - A saving account offered through banks or credit unions that pays higher interest. However, it may also require having a higher account balance and have other restrictions. It's important to understand the restrictions prior to opening one.
7. Liquidity - This refers to how easy it is to cash out of an investment. Your bank accounts, checking and savings, are the easiest to access, but money in investments often takes a few days to become available.
8. Stocks - When you own a stock, you own a piece of that company. This allows you to profit off of the company's earnings.
9. Bonds - This is a debt security, where the investor loans money to the government or corporate entities. The organization then makes interest payments and pays back the loan in full.
Look for part two of this list in the next edition of News & Views.
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Dedicated to Diversity
In an effort to spotlight some of the diversity we have here in OPP, we'll be sharing words and phrases from the different languages many of your coworkers speak. If you speak a second language or know some words and phrases from your ethnic background, email Susan at newsviews@psu.edu and you could be featured in an upcoming issue of News & Views.
Phumara Phin-Cox, administrative assistant, is a first generation American. Her parents came to the states at the time of the Khmer Rouge ("Red Cambodians" translated from French) when the Communist Party was in control of Cambodia. Her parents were placed in a work camp in the country to work in the fields.
One night her dad, mom and a couple of their friends escaped in the middle of the night and walked to the Thailand border. At the time her mother was pregnant with Phumara's older sister Terri. At the Thai border, there were refugee camps and that was where Phumara's sister was born. Her family was given the option of moving to Europe or the United States and her dad chose the U.S.
What is your language? How does it sound? How is it different from the others around? How many friends can you make when you know a dozen different ways to say "Hello!" Come find out - and bring along a friend - to the Bilingual reading corner. Let the adventures begin!
- Where: Barnes & Noble, State College, Pa.
- When: Saturdays, 11:30 a.m. - 12 p.m.
- Dates:
- Oct. 17: Spanish & Italian story time with Carla Fernandex & Federica Bulgarelli
- Nov. 21: Welsh story time with Elizabeth Pyatt
- Dec. 19: French story time with Melinda Fricke
Everyone is welcome no matter what language you speak! This even is open and free to the public.
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The Office of Human Resources is seeking volunteers who would like to serve on the Faculty and Staff Achievement Awards review committee. The Faculty and Staff Achievement Awards are comprised of six different awards, including the Barash Award for Human Service, the McKay Donkin Award, the Award for Administrative Excellence, the Staff Excellence Award, the Support Staff Award and the Dr. James Robinson Equal Opportunity Award. Award recipients are announced at a university-wide ceremony held at the Nittany Lion Inn in April. Currently-employed faculty and staff may serve on there review committee.
The committee will meet on Nov. 4 to review the online nomination process, to learn about how to review the documentation for each nomination, and to determine the six award subcommittees. The review period and award selection process takes places between Dec. 15, 2015 and Jan. 8, 2016. Awards Committee members are invited to attend the awards ceremony in April.
For more information or to volunteer for the committee, please contact Linda Tobin at lpt10@psu.edu.
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As part of an effort to simplify misconduct reporting at the University, the Office of Ethics and Compliance has implemented a new universal hotline for reporting concerns about all misconduct.
The phone number for the combined Penn State hotline is 800-560-1637. Reports can also be made online at http://hotline.psu.edu. An independent third party administers the hotline 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and reports can be made anonymously and without fear of retaliation.
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 Bikem Oskin, financial assistant, is selling bags of peanuts to benefit the Free to Breathe organization. Bags are $3 each and include a coupon for a free appetizer at Texas Roadhouse with each purchase. All profits go to Free to Breathe.
Free to Breathe is a partnership of lung cancer survivors, advocates, researchers, healthcare professionals and industry leaders. They are united in the believe that every person with lung cancer deserves a cure. Their vision is to double lung cancer survival by 2022.
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 As a way of showing appreciation to Penn State Faculty and Staff, Penn State Athletics is extending an exclusive offer to join the Penn State Sports Faculty/Staff Appreciation Day at Beaver Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 31 whenPenn State hosts its sixth home game against Illinois.
As part of the All-U Day, the faculty and staff ticket package includes:
- Discounted ticket offer for all Penn State Faculty and Staff
- Scoreboard message in game that welcomes all PSU Faculty and Staff members
Tickets in the exclusive offer are available at two different price levels:
- Upper Side 35-Yard Line - $90/person (Normally $117)
- Upper South End Zone - $60/person (Normally $87)
Parking passes are also available in advance for $17.25/car (normally $40/car on game day).
* All tickets are allotted on a first come, first serve basis. ** Seat are not guaranteed until payment is received. *** Discounted parking passes must be purchased two weeks prior to the game date. To purchase more than 10 tickets, game day parking, or for more information, please contact Will McGrath at wwm12@psu.edu or 814-867-2536.
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The University Libraries United Way Committee is holding a Fall Book Sale on Tuesday, Oct. 20 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Mann Assembly Room in the Paterno Library.
In conjunction with the book sale, the committee is also hosting a small canned food drive for the Centre County Food Bank. A list of the most needed foods is below. Bring two items from the list below and receive a free book.
Food Bank Most Wanted Food List
Soups
Cereal/Oatmeal
Pasta Sauce
Dry Pasta
Rice
Sloppy Joe Mix
Tomato Product
Canned Meats
Canned Pasta
Protein Beans
Mac n' Cheese
New and used books, CDs, DVDs, magazines and puzzles can still be donated. Bring donations to Amy Miller in Common Services in 107 Pattee.
All cash proceeds benefit the Centre County United Way.
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Support Penn State Block and Bridle by purchasing meat from their semi-annual sale! Orders are due by Nov. 5 and will be ready for pick-up on Nov. 19-20.
Block and Bridle will be selling a variety of meat products from the Penn State meats lab. Products include a variety of sausage, ground beef, summer sausage and boneless games.
Hannah Lux
Meat Sale Chair
324 W.L. Henning Building
University Park, Pa. 16802
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 Participate in brain research using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)!
Participants must be at least 60 years old and have no history of brain injury or disease. Compensation is $10/hr for behavioral sessions and $20/hr for MRI sessions.
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Do you have football tickets you can't use? Consider donating them to the Centre County Youth Service Bureau. The YSB makes sure that organizations, like Big Brothers Big Sister and other local outreach programs receive the benefits of these gifts.
The YSB can take tickets via drop off at 325 West Aaron Dr. or contact Andrea Boyles at aboyles@ccysb.com or 814-237-5731.
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 Want to visit New York City and benefit the United Way too? Consider the College of Engineering United Way Fundraiser trip to NYC. Bus departs at 6 a.m. and returns to campus at 1 a.m. Enjoy nine hours to shop, sightsee and more.
When: Saturday, Dec. 5
Cost: $60
Contact: Sally Kelley (sjk4@psu.edu) or Jane Reese (jzr1@psu.edu)
Deadline: Reservation due by Nov. 18
Payment: Check only made out to COE United Way
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Tyrone to University Park CATA Vanpool
A new rider is needed for the Tyrone to UP CATA Vanpool. Sit back, relax and have someone else do the driving.
Schedule: 7:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., Monday-Friday
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Have something to sell? Let us know! E-mail Susan Bedsworth with your item(s), details, contact information
 and photos. We will include it in the next edition of News & Views. And don't forget about OPP's Yammer Group "Up for Grabs." Just sign in with your University ID and password to post your item.
OPP Bulletin Board
Bosch Washer and Dryer
Washer model WFVC6450UC/20
Dryer model WTVC6330US/09
Price: $899 for both (currently priced at $1,200 each at Lowes)
No negotiating.
Lion Surplus
Lion Surplus handles the removal of University-owned equipment in environmentally responsible ways, such as sales, bids and auctions. Their store, located at the corner of Services Rd. and Big Hollow Rd., is open to students, faculty, staff and the public. The inventory changes daily, but the store routinely has gently used furniture, computers and other electronics, scientific equipment, and much more.
Follow Lion Surplus on Facebook to keep up to date on inventory and special events.
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Contact Us
If you have any comments or suggestions for News & Views, contact Susan Bedsworth by e-mail or at 863-9620.
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You can find a list of carpoolers and regional bus services through the 
