At the commencement of each fiscal year, the Staff Council ushers in a new president tasked with steering our annual objectives and priorities. For fiscal year 2024, James Jorris assumed this role, championing the three core principles of Collaboration, Celebration, and Communication. Under his leadership, the Staff Council endeavored to enhance collaboration with leaders and teams across the university and our broader community, recognize the exceptional achievements of our peers, and bolster communication with our constituents to keep them well-informed about the policies and initiatives that the Staff Council plays a role in. In alignment with these principles, here are some key accomplishments achieved by our Staff Council team:
Celebrate
- Set a new record for award nominations and allocated over $17,000 in awards to individual staff members.
- Disbursed over $30,000 in Staff Appreciation Grants, benefiting more than 6,200 staff members.
- Conducted our monthly Staff Council Meetings at various campus locations to showcase the activities within those facilities.
Communicate
- Launched social media platforms, resulting in 73 distinctive posts over the year.
- Revamped the Staff Council website, leading to increased visitor traffic.
- Refined our monthly meeting communications, significantly boosting average attendance by nearly fourfold.
- Organized “Council Corners” forums to directly address constituent concerns.
- Collaborated with IowaNOW to support each other’s communication efforts.
- Achieved a 5% increase in newsletter engagement rates.
Collaborate
- Held regular monthly meetings with UI senior leadership to discuss staff concerns and suggestions.
- Engaged in a variety of campus initiatives, such as the Board of Regents DEI Luncheon, UI Health and Wellbeing Fair, Hawkeye Caucus events in Des Moines and Washington DC, and UIHC Human Rights Week, among others.
- Contributed to over 20 community events, with 70% of council members volunteering their time this year.
- Served on senior leader search committees for UI Health Care.
- Forged a partnership with United Way, enhancing volunteer participation, boosting monetary contributions by 3%, and earning the 2023 Spirit of Philanthropy Award.
- Extended invitations to local legislators to attend our monthly meetings.
- Collaborated with HR and senior leadership to establish the Tuition Assistance Program as a permanent fixture of the staff awards program.
It has been an eventful and fruitful year, and we eagerly anticipate the continued growth and achievements in the coming year.