@PimaNews

Nov. 7, 2024

• College Updates
  • EPAF to Replace ePARs for Most Personnel Action Requests
  • AZ NOSS Free Virtual Conference on Students’ Post-pandemic Needs
  • Employee Handbook Social Media Guidance and Best Practices
  • Cababi Art & Literary Magazine Submissions Due Dec. 15
  • Get Help with Your Community Engagement
  • Arizona State Retirement System Retirement Planning Virtual Presentation
  • Social Security 101 Virtual Workshop
  • Leadership Dialogues with Department Heads
  • Foundations of Department Headship – CQI Basics
  • ARC Seeks Donations for Winter Wonder Bags
  • Minimum Wage Increase for City of Tucson
  • Volunteers Needed for Arizona STEM Adventure Nov. 22
  • Join Pima Foundation Team for Nov. 23 El Tour de Tucson
  • Submit a Pima Story Idea
• Pima Cultural Connection News
• Pima Arts News
• Pima Athletics News
• Employee Wellness
  • Sign Up for Virtual Workshops and Challenges

College Updates

EPAF to Replace ePARs for Most Personnel Action Requests
The Electronic Personnel Action Form (EPAF) will replace ePARs for the majority of personnel action requests effective Dec. 1, 2024.

Employees who currently create or approve ePARs should attend an EPAF training session in the next few weeks. Enrollment is via My Career Center: Introduction to EPAF (Electronic Personnel Action Form) [FY25].

If you have any questions, please email esc-employee-processing@pima.edu.

AZ NOSS Free Virtual Conference on Students’ Post-pandemic Needs
Arizona National Organization for Student Success (AZ NOSS) hosts a free virtual Hot Topic Conference for college professionals on Nov. 15.

The Fall 2024 {Hot Topic Conference}: Meeting the Needs of Students Post-pandemic will be 10-11:30 a.m. Participants are eligible to receive CEUs.

Register via this online form.

Employee Handbook Social Media Guidance and Best Practices
The All Employee Representative Council (AERC) proposes the Social Media Guidance and Best Practices in the College’s Employee Handbook. The purpose of this guidance is to summarize the guidelines and best practices for the use of and engagement with social media as employees of Pima Community College. This is not a policy; instead, there are PCC Policies and State and Federal Laws listed throughout this guidance that an employee could trigger by their use or engagement on social media.

It is posted for a 21-day comment period, available through the @Work tab in MyPima.

The draft guidelines are in the box on the left, under the Employee Handbook heading. You can submit feedback via the Feedback Form linked in the same box.

Cababi Art & Literary Magazine Submissions Due Dec. 15
Cababi Art & Literary Magazine is now accepting art and literary submissions for the 2024-2025 edition. Submit your artwork, photography, creative writing or performance videos by Dec. 15 here. If you're interested in volunteering for Cababi, please contact Molly McCloy, mamccloy@pima.edu.

Get Help with Your Community Engagement
The Community Engagement dashboard is accessible on MyPima. There you can:

• Learn more about Pima’s college-wide community engagement and the resources available to you.
• Report your community engagement for posting to the college-wide calendar.
• Sign up for volunteer opportunities to share your subject-matter expertise.
• Share your volunteer opportunities and outreach photos.

Learn more about these opportunities and sign up here. If you have questions, contact Joi Stirrup, jstirrup@pima.edu.

Arizona State Retirement System Retirement Planning Virtual Presentation
Michael Moreno, ASRS Member Education Supervisor, will provide an Arizona State Retirement System (ASRS) Route 3: Destination in Sight virtual presentation 10-11:15 a.m., Nov. 8.

The presentation will cover pension benefits and formulas, retirement eligibility, annuity options and service purchase. Register online to attend.

Social Security 101 Virtual Workshop
The College has partnered with the U.S. Social Security Administration to host a free virtual workshop about Social Security, 11 a.m.-noon, Nov. 15. SSA Public Affairs Specialist Jack Burns will cover several topics, including:

• When are you eligible to receive retirement benefits?
• How does early retirement affect your benefits?
• Do you qualify for disability, survivor and spouse benefits?
• How do you get the most from your benefits?
• What is the future of Social Security?
• When should you file for Medicare?

Register online to attend.

Create a free “My Social Security” account online, then print your Social Security statement to have for the workshop. If you have questions, contact esc-benefits@pima.edu.

Leadership Dialogues with Department Heads: StAR Workshop on Pima Data
Join us for an interactive session where you can dive into key College metrics such as enrollment, retention, persistence and completion. Özlem Ö. Kacira, Ph.D., Director of Institutional Analytics for Strategy, Analytics and Research (StAR) will give an overview of existing reports and discuss the potential for custom reports at 2 p.m., Nov. 7 on Google Meet. Attendees are encouraged to share their experiences with College data, raise questions and explore topics related to institutional research, WebI reports and more.

Foundations of Department Headship – CQI Basics
Are you curious about the finer details of making curriculum changes or starting a new program at the College? When it comes to program review, do you have questions about how the process works? For answers to these questions and others related to curriculum, assessment, additional locations and aspects of accreditation, join the Curriculum Quality Improvement (CQI) team at 1 p.m., Nov. 14 on Google Meet.

The session also will cover the systems used at the college, such as Curriculog, eLumen and the catalog during this session.

ARC Seeks Donations for Winter Wonder Bags
The ARC Resource Center and Food Pantry, which each month hands out 500 food bags to PCC students, would like to give out a Winter Wonder Bag along with each weekly food bag. Each Winter Wonder Bag, including a $15 turkey/ham/veggie platter voucher, as well as a selection of essential holiday meal items, will help a student over Winter Break, when ARC is closed.

ARC is having a fundraiser through Dec. 2 to help it fund its goal of providing 200 Winter Wonder Bags. You can make a one-time, tax-deductible donation through the Pima Foundation website (Comment: "Winter Wonder Bag") or sign up for the employee payroll deduction program. Instructions are here.

Or, you can drop off food items at designated locations. For details, see the Nov. 5 Pima-All email for details or email pcc-arcpantry@pima.edu.

Minimum Wage Increase for City of Tucson
Effective Jan. 1, 2025, the minimum wage in the City of Tucson will increase to $15.00 per hour. While Arizona’s state minimum wage will be $14.70 per hour, the City of Tucson’s higher rate of $15.00 per hour applies to employees who work at least five hours per pay cycle within Tucson’s city boundaries. This increase will impact temporary employees paid under the Unclassified Pay Schedule. If you have questions regarding this change, please contact Human Resources, hr@pima.edu.

Volunteers Needed for Arizona STEM Adventure Nov. 22
A total of 100 volunteers are needed for Arizona STEM Adventure on Nov. 22. College employee and student volunteers will guide 4th-8th graders around Northwest Campus, assist exhibitors, and help with set up/clean up parking. Sign up by Nov. 13 at Arizona STEM Adventure 2024.

If you have questions or difficulty signing up, contact Susan Kramer, skramer@pima.edu, or Dani Wright, dani@sarsef.org.

Join Pima Foundation Team for Nov. 23 El Tour de Tucson
Tucson cyclists and runners, are you ready to pedal for a purpose? Sign up to be on the Pima Foundation El Tour de Tucson team. Register online for the Nov. 23 event. Join us in our mission to make education accessible and life changing. If you have questions, email Savannah Franco, savannah@pimafoundation.org.

Submit a Pima Story Idea
The College wants to highlight the incredible achievements of our outstanding students and alums. We need your help! We want stories to inspire current and potential students, stories that deserve to be shared with our community. If you know of any inspiring success stories or remarkable accomplishments by our students or graduates, we would love to hear from you. Please take a moment to share your story ideas. Together let’s shine a spotlight on their achievements and highlight the diverse and remarkable journeys in our Pima community. If you have questions, contact Web Systems.

Pima Cultural Connection News

November is National Native American Heritage Month, a time to honor and celebrate the traditions, languages and stories of Native American, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian and affiliated island communities, and ensure their rich histories and contributions continue to thrive with each passing generation.

That celebration includes recognizing the remarkable diversity of Native American and Alaska Native cultures and peoples while also reconciling it with our history, including the impact of colonialism and the importance of recognizing tribal sovereignty. The College recognizes its role and is committed to providing service and education that celebrates indigenous cultures and stewardship while also recognizing the history of displacement and dispossession.
Learn more:

• Learn more about the peoples of the nearby Pascua Yaqui Tribe and Tohono O’odham Nation 
• Tucson Native American Heritage events
• Tucson Indian Center provides information on a variety of Tucson area events, supports and services
• Native American Heritage Month in the United States
• Indigenous Peoples of the World
• The Native Digital Project shows indigenous peoples communities worldwide

To join or engage with the College’s Native and Indigenous Pride Affinity Network or participate in an outreach event with the Pascua Yaqui Tribe and/or Tohono O’odham Nation, contact Pima’s Tribal Liaison Marisa Castro, mcastro16@pima.edu.

Pima Arts News

Here are some ongoing and upcoming Pima Arts events:

• Through Jan. 9: “Neda Contreras - Paintings,” Desert Vista Art Gallery, Pueblo Building, Desert Vista Campus; this exhibit showcases Contreras’s oil paintings, which blend whimsical beach scenes with skeletons, and lowrider scenes depicting the society and culture in the Southwest, rooted in Mexican Folk Art traditions.
• Nov. 12-Jan. 12: “I|AM: Muxe, S/He, Him, Family: Graciela Iturbide, Vittorio D’Onofri, Liz Cohen, Jess T. Dugan, Mariette Pathy Allen, Catherine Opie, Keri Pickett, Roy Blakey, John Kirby and poet TC Tolbert, Louis Carlos Bernal Gallery, ; Reception: 5-7 p.m., Nov. 14, Lecture, 6 p.m. by Vittorio D’Onofri”; 6 p.m., Dec. 5 Poetry Reading / Artist Talk: TC Tolbert and Liz Cohen, with Eric Crosley (virtually).
• Nov. 21-24: Pima Theater presents “Wandless: Power Beyond Spells”, Thursday-Friday, 7 p.m., Saturday 2 p.m. and 7 p.m., and Sunday 2 p.m., ASL Night: Nov. 22, Black Box Theatre, West Campus Center for the Arts; tickets: $5/$10, PCC students receive one free ticket, tickets at eventbrite.com; Box Office Hours: Tuesday-Friday, 12-5 p.m. and one hour before each performance.
• Nov. 23: Piano Day, 3 p.m.; piano faculty, talented students and accomplished alumni perform music of French composers, including Debussy works for piano solos, piano duets and two pianos, four-hands.

Unless noted otherwise, Pima Arts programs and exhibitions are free to the public.

The Bernal Gallery will be closed on Nov. 28-29 in observance of the Thanksgiving Day Holiday and Dec. 23-Jan. 3 for Winter Break.

Stay up-to-date on upcoming Pima Arts events by checking the Pima Arts Calendar. For questions, contact 520-206-6986 or centerforthearts@pima.edu.

Pima Athletics News

Pima sports teams have these home games in the next week:

• Nov. 9: Men’s Basketball vs. Arizona Christian University JV, preseason scrimmage, Aztec Gymnasium, West Campus, 2 p.m.

Keep up with Pima Athletics at pimaaztecs.com.

Employee Wellness

Sign Up for Virtual Workshops and Challenges
Sign up online for Employee Wellness virtual workshops and challenges.

Visit the Employee Wellness Intranet page to access free resources and tools. Employees also are encouraged to visit the Employee Wellness website for additional resources, news and information on the Pima Healthy Rewards Program and wellness-related activities that qualify for Pima Wellness Activity points.

@PimaNews is an electronic newsletter for employee news of Pima Community College. The Marketing Office publishes this e-newsletter every Thursday, except when the College is closed for a holiday or break, during the semester and every other week during the summer. Please send announcements and news items – 75 words or fewer – to pimanews@pima.edu by noon on Monday. Check any links before sending. Back issues are available on the @PimaNews webpage. The newsletter also accepts submissions about Pima employee accomplishments.