CSI Today

We hope that this message finds you well during this trying time. The Office of Student Life would like to remind you that the CSI Food Pantry remains an available resource.

If you or a student you know is having difficulties finding food to eat during this challenging time, CSI has a non-perishable Food Pantry that was created to help provide assistance for our students . At this time, the pantry remains available to our Campus Community by appointment only. The Food Pantry appointment hours will be from 10:00am to 1:00pm on Wednesdays and Fridays.  If you need to make an appointment, please fill out the online form and someone from the Office of Student Life will contact you.  

Please note, if the dates and times listed above do not work for your schedule or if you have any questions, please feel free to email us at studentlife@csi.cuny.edu. 

In addition, if you are not able to get to campus, there are a couple of food pantry’s here on Staten Island that are open and available to you and your family. Also see the April 2020 Schedule for the Community Health Action Mobile Food Pantry.

1.  Project Hospitality – 514 Bay Street, Staten Island 10301

     Hours: Tuesday and Thursday from 9:00am – 11:00am.

2.  El Centro / Faith Methodist Church – 221 Heberton Avenue (Entrance Red Door on Castleton Ave.), Staten Island , 10302

     Hours:  Thursdays from 5:00pm – 7:30pm 

3.  Stapleton UAME Church – 49 Tompkins Avenue, Staten Island 10304 

    Hours: Fridays 10:00am – noon

4.  Community Health Action of Staten Island –  2134 Richmond Terrace, Staten Island 10302 

    Hours: Tues., 10:00 am – 2:00pm, Wed., noon – 4:00pm, Fri., 2:00pm – 6:00pm, Sat., 10:00am – 2:00pm

Also, see list below for food resources available to all New Yorkers.

Food Bank of NYC

In light of ongoing developments around COVID-19, some emergency food providers have temporarily suspended normal operations and have switched to “grab and go” meals and pantry bags to minimize the risk of exposure. Many others, however remain open and this Website will help you find pantries near your home address.  

Plentiful App

Plentiful is a free app that you can download to locate pantries in your neighborhood. As the ongoing developments around COVID-19 are changing rapidly, please be sure to confirm hours of operation by calling before you visit.

FoodHelp NYC

This site provides a map of food pantries and community kitchens located throughout the five boroughs.  Please, call first.

By Carol Brower

In lieu of our monthly Lunch & Learn Series, Technology Training will continue to offer weekly training sessions on the applications that will assist you with your telecommuting efforts. The schedule will be updated every Friday evening for the following week.

If there is a topic that you would like to have covered in the future, please contact us and we will do our best to assist you.

Please use our Registration page to register for this week’s sessions. Please note that this schedule is fluid and we may add or cancel training sessions as needed to better serve the College community.

Day	Date	Time	Class
Monday	4/6/20	9:30am – 10:30am	Need Help? Visit with Doriann during a Virtual Office Hour
Monday	4/6/20	1:00pm – 2:00pm	Office 365 Applications – Explore what is available and how to install them.
Monday	4/6/20	2:00pm – 2:30pm	Dropbox – (Learn how to store files in the cloud.)
Monday	4/6/20	3:30pm – 4:30pm	OWA application – (Learn how to transition from Outlook to web email.)
Monday	4/6/20	5:00pm – 6:00pm	Blackboard Collaborate for Students
Tuesday	4/7/20	9:30am – 10:30am	Need Help? Visit with Doriann during a Virtual Office Hour
Tuesday	4/7/20	10:00am – 11:00am	Blackboard Collaborate for Students
Tuesday	4/7/20	Noon – 1:00pm	Office 365 – Teams (Learn how to collaborate with coworkers.)
Tuesday	4/7/20	2:00pm – 3:00pm	Blackboard Collaborate for Faculty – (Learn how to create synchronous and asynchronous lectures.)
Tuesday	4/7/20	3:00pm – 4:00pm	Office 365 – OneDrive (Learn how to store your documents in the cloud.)
Wednesday	4/8/20	9:30am – 10:30am	Need Help? Visit with Doriann during a Virtual Office Hour
Wednesday	4/8/20	Noon – 1:00pm	Office 365 – One Note (Create shared notebooks for your department and classes.)
Wednesday	4/8/20	2:00pm – 3:00pm	RAVE – (Learn how to use the system to communicate with students.)
Wednesday	4/8/20	3:00pm – 4:00pm	Blackboard Collaborate for Students
Thursday	4/9/20	9:30am – 10:30am	Need Help? Visit with Doriann during a Virtual Office Hour
Thursday	4/9/20	11:30am – 12:30pm	Using WebEx to Collaborate
Thursday	4/9/20	1:30pm – 2:30pm	Using your Phone to Scan Documents (Use your phone to scan and sync documents.)
Thursday	4/9/20	2:30pm – 3:30pm	Blackboard Collaborate for Students
Thursday	4/9/20	4:00pm – 5:00pm	Office 365 – Forms (Learn how to create surveys or exams.)
Friday	4/10/20	9:30am – 10:30am	Need Help? Visit with Doriann during a Virtual Office Hour
Friday	4/10/20	10:30am – 11:30am	Blackboard Collaborate for Students
Friday	4/10/20	Noon – 1:00pm	Blackboard Collaborate for Faculty – (Learn how to use the group function.)
Friday	4/10/20	1:00pm – 2:00pm	Office 365 – (Learn how to use Office 365 to collaborate on Office documents.)
Friday	4/10/20	2:00pm – 3:00pm	WebEx – (Learn how to conduct virtual meetings.)

We look forward to working with you.

By Doriann Pieve-Hyland

This week, we would like to invite you to participate in one of the following virtual training sessions being offered by the Faculty Center for Professional Development:

• Organizing Course Content in Blackboard: Best Practices: When using Blackboard to deliver course materials to your students in a fully online environment, how easy it is for students to find and access what they need is extremely important. This workshop will go over some of the best ways to organize your course’s content it is easily accessible by your students. 
• Working with Tests and Quizzes in Blackboard: Online Q&A Hour: Have a question about creating, working with, and/or grading tests and quizzes in Blackboard? If so, attend this open question and answer forum hosted by one of the Blackboard LMS Specialists from the CSI Faculty Center.
• Interacting with Students in Blackboard: Asynchronous Strategies and Best Practices: An overview of some of the best ways to interact, communicate, and collaborate with your students asynchronously online using Blackboard
• Troubleshooting in Blackboard: A Virtual FAQ Q&A: Something not looking or working as you want it to inside your Blackboard course? Do you have a question about creating content, or interacting with students via Blackboard? Or another general question pertaining to the Blackboard Learning Management System? If so, attend this open question and answer forum hosted by one of the Blackboard LMS Specialists from the CSI Faculty Center.
• Fully Online: Intro to the Blackboard Classroom Environment: Learn the basics of the Blackboard learning management system and prepare to manage your course(s) fully online. You will learn some best practices for setting up your course environment, as well as an overview of Blackboard’s navigation, course tools, communication, and assessment features. 

There is no sign-up needed to participate in any of the trainings offered. To attend, simply click on the access link provided anytime within 15 minutes of the start of the workshop. Once clicked, Blackboard Collaborate will appear at the top of the screen. It will show the specific training session you are joining and offer a place for you to type your name (please enter both your first and last name). Select Join Session after typing your full name.

Workshop Title	Date	Time	Location	Access Link	Phone Dial-in Info If you do not have  speakers or headphones
Organizing Course Content in Bb: Best Practices	Mon 4/06	10:00am	Online	Enter HERE	+1-571-392-7650 PIN: 597 888 0956
Working with Tests & Quizzes in Bb: Online Q&A	Mon 4/06	12:00pm	Online	Enter HERE	+1-571-392-7650 PIN: 597 888 0956
Interacting with Students in Bb: Asynchronous Strategies & Best Practices	Mon 4/06	2:00pm	Online	Enter HERE	1-571-392-7650 PIN: 377 524 9953
Troubleshooting in Bb: Online Q&A Hour	Mon 4/06	4:00pm	Online	Enter HERE	1-571-392-7650 PIN: 377 524 9953
Fully Online: Intro to the Bb Classroom Environment	Mon 4/06	6:00pm	Online	Enter HERE	1-571-392-7650 PIN: 377 524 9953
Organizing Course Content in Bb : Best Practices	Tue 4/07	10:00am	Online	Enter HERE	+1-571-392-7650 PIN: 597 888 0956
Working with Tests & Quizzes in Bb : Online Q&A	Tue 4/07	12:00pm	Online	Enter HERE	+1-571-392-7650 PIN: 597 888 0956
Interacting with Students in Bb : Asynchronous Strategies & Best Practices	Tue 4/07	2:00pm	Online	Enter HERE	1-571-392-7650 PIN: 377 524 9953
Troubleshooting in Bb: Online Q&A Hour	Tue 4/07	4:00pm	Online	Enter HERE	1-571-392-7650 PIN: 377 524 9953
Fully Online: Intro to the Bb Classroom Environment	Tue 4/07	6:00pm	Online	Enter HERE	1-571-392-7650 PIN: 377 524 9953
Organizing Course Content in Bb : Best Practices	Wed 4/08	10:00am	Online	Enter HERE	+1-571-392-7650 PIN: 597 888 0956
Working with Tests & Quizzes in Bb : Online Q&A	Wed 4/08	12:00pm	Online	Enter HERE	+1-571-392-7650 PIN: 597 888 0956
Interacting with Students in Bb : Asynchronous Strategies & Best Practices	Wed 4/08	2:00pm	Online	Enter HERE	1-571-392-7650 PIN: 377 524 9953
Troubleshooting in Bb : Online Q&A Hour	Wed 4/08	4:00pm	Online	Enter HERE	1-571-392-7650 PIN: 377 524 9953
Fully Online: Intro to the Bb Classroom Environment	Wed 4/08	6:00pm	Online	Enter HERE	1-571-392-7650 PIN: 377 524 9953
Organizing Course Content in Bb : Best Practices	Thu 4/09	10:00am	Online	Enter HERE	+1-571-392-7650 PIN: 597 888 0956
Working with Tests & Quizzes in Bb : Online Q&A	Thu 4/09	12:00pm	Online	Enter HERE	+1-571-392-7650 PIN: 597 888 0956
Interacting with Students in Bb : Asynchronous Strategies & Best Practices	Thu 4/09	2:00pm	Online	Enter HERE	1-571-392-7650 PIN: 377 524 9953
Troubleshooting in Bb : Online Q&A Hour	Thu 4/09	4:00pm	Online	Enter HERE	1-571-392-7650 PIN: 377 524 9953
Fully Online: Intro to the Bb Classroom Environment	Thu 4/09	6:00pm	Online	Enter HERE	1-571-392-7650 PIN: 377 524 9953
Organizing Course Content in Bb : Best Practices	Fri 4/10	10:00am	Online	Enter HERE	+1-571-392-7650 PIN: 597 888 0956
Working with Tests & Quizzes in Bb : Online Q&A	Fri 4/10	12:00pm	Online	Enter HERE	+1-571-392-7650 PIN: 597 888 0956
Interacting with Students in Bb : Asynchronous Strategies & Best Practices	Fri 4/10	2:00pm	Online	Enter HERE	+1-571-392-7650 PIN: 377 524 9953
Troubleshooting in Bb : Online Q&A Hour	Fri 4/10	4:00pm	Online	Enter HERE	+1-571-392-7650 PIN: 377 524 9953
Fully Online: Intro to the Bb Classroom Environment	Fri 4/10	6:00pm	Online	Enter HERE	1-571-392-7650 PIN: 377 524 9953

For questions about any of the training sessions listed above, please contact Kristen Lindtvedt at kristen.lindtvedt@csi.cuny.edu.

Please note: Due to the fluid nature of things, we ask you not rely on our Center phone extensions as all Faculty Center Staff are currently working virtually due to the campus closure. However, staff will be present within this Hub and on email all day, so please utilize these formats, as well as the text and chat options provided where applicable.

By Kristen Lindtvedt

The U.S Department of Labor has issued the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), which includes the Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act and the Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act.

The FFCRA requires employers to provide their employees with paid sick leave and expanded family and medical leave for specified reasons related to COVID-19. These provisions will apply from Wednesday, Apr. 1, 2020 through Thursday, Dec. 31, 2020.

Please go online for information on the Families First Coronavirus Response Act.

If you have any questions, please email Human Resources at hrbenefitPay@csi.cuny.edu

By the Office of Human Resources

A summary of recent news over the past few days from various sources is now online.

New decisions of impact are:

* Commencement ceremonies across the University system will be postponed

* All **summer** courses are to be offered in a distance learning format.

This is taken from a running collection of news being compiled by the College Council and Faculty Senate Executive Committees.

If you wish to highlight any information for the College community, please share at jverzani@gmail.com.

Be safe.

By John Verzani

Just as each of us has been forced to make changes in our personal and work lives to minimize the spread of the coronavirus, the University has had to make difficult but unavoidable decisions to ensure the health and safety of everyone in our community. None has been as heart-wrenching to make as the matter of graduation. 

As a lifelong educator, commencement season has always been my favorite time of year, the culmination of a lifetime of hard work and sacrifice. I began my tenure as chancellor last May, just in time to attend six CUNY graduations; as always, I was deeply moved by the excitement and emotion that were on display. So it is with a heavy heart that I announce that commencement ceremonies across the University-system will be postponed. 

With all public gatherings currently prohibited and no way to know how long this will continue to be the case, colleges simply cannot begin choosing dates, even if for later than usual, securing venues, and taking all the logistical steps that go into planning a successful commencement. 

To be clear, this will have no impact on diplomas. At the completion of the spring semester, all degrees will be conferred as scheduled. It will also not impact the official summer start date for our full-time faculty. 

We look forward to a future date when we’ll be able to celebrate in person and believe me — that will be an occasion like no other. If any group of graduates deserves a chance to mark its achievements, it is the resilient Class of 2020.  

I sincerely regret the impact of these sad circumstances on our students, who have worked so hard, and overcome many obstacles to get to this point. I know this will also come as a disappointment to faculty and family members. 

I have spoken to all CUNY presidents and deans, and they are exploring other ways to mark this rite of passage on their campuses. While we know that nothing can replace the pure joy of a commencement ceremony, some schools are considering alternate celebrations that fit their campus community. 

I also want to share that after careful consideration and consultation, CUNY’s Summer 2020 course offerings will be exclusively conducted via distance-education format. The decision is consistent with New York State Education Department (NYSED) guidance from April 2, 2020, which waives the requirement that specific courses and programs be registered for delivery via distance education. We appreciate the feedback we received from the University Faculty Senate and other academic leaders on this. For staff, current guidance regarding remote work will remain in effect consistent with the New York State on PAUSE executive order. Direction regarding the format of course offerings for Fall 2020 will be provided in the future, depending on the COVID-19 emergency time frame, and once consultation with academic leaders and faculty has occurred and direction from NYSED and other accrediting bodies has been received. 

CUNY continues to respond to the coronavirus by implementing measures to help our students navigate these extraordinary circumstances. Here are some steps we have taken in recent days: 

• With the support of Governor Cuomo, we have purchased 30,000 new laptops and tablets for students who need one to fully participate in distance learning. If you are a student in need of a device, please request one through your school by referring to the links provided here. 
   
• Because of the disruption caused by the transition to distance-learning education, students will have the option to convert any or all of the letter grades they earn in their spring 2020 classes to Credit/No Credit grading. Read more here. 
   
• Dormitory Fees will be credited to continuing students–and refunded to students set to graduate–on a prorated basis from the student’s move-out date. Read more here.
   
• The University will waive 25% of the Spring 2020 Student Activity Fee for students enrolled in CUNY colleges on a 15-week calendar and 50% of the fee for students enrolled on a 12-week or six-week calendar. Read more here.

Please know how much I appreciate your patience and adaptability, and all that you’re doing to keep moving forward in spite of this difficult situation. Please remain vigilant, take good care of yourselves and your families, and we will get through this public health crisis together.

By Félix V. Matos Rodríguez

Please see the email below from the Central Office regarding annual Financial Disclosure Statements, Honoraria, and Outside Activities.

If you have any questions, please contact me at robert.wallace@csi.cuny.edu.

By Robert Wallace

****

Subject: Reminder Memorandum regarding 2019 Financial Disclosure Statement (FDS) Filing, Honoraria, Official Activity Expense Payments and Outside Activities Requests

Dear College Ethics Officers/College Ethics Agency Contacts and Legal Affairs Designees:

Attached, please find a reminder memorandum regarding the annual Financial Disclosure Statement Filing (2019), Honoraria, Official Activity Expense Payments, and Outside Activities Requests. Please share this with all FDS required filers on your campus. Required employees must file the annual Financial Disclosure Statement for the calendar year 2019 by Friday, May 15, 2020. Records of honoraria must be submitted to College Ethics Officers by Friday, May 1, 2020.

Also attached are:

1.     JCOPE Guideline and Procedures Regarding Policy-Making Positions (November 2016)

2.     CUNY Employee Report of Receipt of Honoraria Form 2019-2020

3.     CUNY Faculty Report of Receipt of Honoraria Form 2019-2020

Please let us know if you have any questions.

Office of the General Counsel

The City University of New York