Staff updates

News, events and updates from and for UQ staff.

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The 2024 All Staff Expo is fast approaching, and registrations are now open. The expo, on Tuesday 6 August at St Lucia, is a chance to learn about the great range of benefits on offer to UQ staff, with stalls run by UQ areas and benefit providers.
Nominations for the 2024 Ally Award are now open. These awards highlight staff members and teams who contribute to creating positive change for LGBTQIA+ inclusion. Any staff member can nominate a colleague or team before Friday 26 July. The winner will be announced at the UQ Awards for Excellence in November.
Expressions of interest (EOIs) are open for two 12-week online behaviour change programs developed by UQ Wellness and Bupa. Goal Set focuses on improving physical wellbeing, while Mind Set focuses on improving mental fitness. The programs begin the week of Monday 12 August. EOIs close Wednesday 24 July.
Expressions of interest are open for media training for early- to mid-career researchers. This one-hour session will be hosted by UQ’s Marketing and Communication team on Wednesday 31 July at St Lucia. Come along to learn how the media works, what journalists are looking for and how to confidently handle interviews.
As a UQ staff member, you have access to many great discounts and benefits. When you travel on non-work trips, you can now take advantage of exclusive new discounts on airfares for Singapore Airlines and Air Canada flights.
UQ’s Institute of Modern Languages (IML) is offering online and face-to-face courses to staff, students and the community in Semester 2. Starting in late July, the courses are designed for beginner learners of languages from Spanish and Mandarin to Classical Latin.
Throughout July, UQ Wellness and the School of Public Health are running an awareness campaign around vaping and its potential health risks. Get involved by completing a survey to help the team understand the UQ community’s views on vaping. You can also register to attend an expert panel event on Friday 26 July.
If you use Learn.UQ (Blackboard), take some time to review and declutter your course site in preparation for Semester 2. Cleaning up your course site should make it easier for you, your teaching team and your students to use and manage. The eLearning team has put together a decluttering checklist with tips to help you.
UQ wi-fi fosters daily innovation, collaboration, and achievement by connecting more than 55,000 students and staff at more than 30 locations. Wherever, and whenever, you're on campus or at a UQ site, UQ wi-fi is the gateway to realising your goals.
UQ has lodged its annual public report with the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA). Staff are encouraged to read the 2023–2024 report and provide feedback. You can find the report and instructions for submitting comments in the 'Reporting' section of UQ's Strategies, plans and governance webpage.
With UQ celebrating NAIDOC week this week, the UQ buying community is encouraged to recognise the significant value that engaging Indigenous suppliers adds to the University. A new webpage on engaging with Indigenous suppliers at UQ has been launched this week, which includes new resources for staff.
Motor Active is a children's physical activity program run by third-year UQ clinical exercise physiology students. The program aims to improve foundational motor skills in a fun, unique, non-threatening and inclusive environment, focusing on motor development and the ongoing improvement of physical, social and cognitive wellbeing.
Academic staff are invited to participate in an anonymous survey conducted by an ARC project team based at the UQ Business School and School of Psychology. The survey is an opportunity to share experiences of performance appraisal processes at UQ, particularly metric-based performance data. Please note the research team is an independent group of researchers, and this study is not being undertaken at the request of the University.
The Microsoft 365 student mailbox migration is now complete. This transition means that from Monday 8 July, students will have expanded access to tools like OneDrive, Microsoft Teams, OneNote, and Forms. Due to the migration, staff and students now share the same Microsoft 365 environment. While there is no direct impact to staff, these changes will affect your digital presence at UQ.
If you use Learn.UQ, you may have used the video hosting service Kaltura to embed videos on the platform. All Learn.UQ videos hosted on Kaltura have been automatically migrated to the platform Echo360. The new Echo360 videos have been embedded in Learn.UQ courses. The old Kaltura video links will also remain visible to teaching staff, but will no longer be playable. We recommend reviewing your resources and deleting any old Kaltura video duplicates.
Plastic Free July has inspired millions of people and businesses around the world to reduce their single-use plastic. Your small changes can make a big difference. Find out what you can do around UQ and further afield.
Expressions of interest are now open for two 12-week online behaviour change programs run by UQ Wellness. The Goal Set program focuses on physical wellbeing and the Mind Set program focuses on mental fitness. Both programs will commence on Monday 12 August, and EOIs close 12pm Wednesday 24 July. You can express interest in both programs, but only one program can be undertaken at a time.
A draft of UQ’s inaugural Disability Inclusion Research and Innovation Plan is now open for consultation. The Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Innovation) has gathered feedback via a survey and focus groups and now it’s your chance to have a say. The Plan will launch in September during Research and Innovation Week.
If you use Learn.UQ (Blackboard), you can preview the latest version of Blackboard courses by emailing the e-learning help team to request an Ultra Course preview site. The preview site is not accessible to students, so you can explore Blackboard's new functionality in a test environment.
Cool weather means more warm drinks! If you’re getting a takeaway beverage to heat up your winter mornings, don’t forget to bring your own cup. Many cafes on campus offer discounts for BYO cups – read UQ Sustainability's updated list.
Teaching staff can visit the new Library Digital Learning Hub to find modules, guides, videos and interactive content for courses. These resources can help students with research, referencing and learning digital skills.
Submissions are invited to the review of the Bachelor of Science program, which will be conducted by the Academic Board between Monday 26 and Thursday 29 August. The terms of reference for the review are available on the Academic Board website. Submissions should be sent to the Review Coordinator at uqreviews@uq.edu.au by Monday 22 July.
The University has updated its parking terms and conditions, which will be in effect from Monday 1 July. In addition, the option to use part-time parking permits at St Lucia, Dutton Park and Herston campuses has been extended until Monday 30 June 2025. Please be reminded the green zone in P3, P4 and P11 is only available for staff with parking permits.
Road closures will be in place at St Lucia for the upcoming July graduation ceremonies from Monday 24 June to Wednesday 17 July. Where possible, please be mindful of noise and avoid unnecessary vehicle movement in and around the affected areas: the UQ Centre, the Great Court, Union Road, Campbell Road and Campbell Place.
A new online training module is now available on Workday for anyone looking to hire a new staff member. Whether you are a beginner or seeking to refine your skills, this course will provide you with the essential tools and knowledge for successful hiring at UQ.
Looking for a relaxing activity during semester break? Pop down to the St Lucia or Gatton community gardens this week or next and join in a working bee led by UQ Sustainability. Tasks are easy, and friendly lead gardeners will tell you everything you need to know. Meet some new faces and enjoy the winter sunshine.
Congratulations to the University of Queensland Press (UQP) authors who have recently been recognised with awards. Angela O'Keeffe won the Christina Stead Prize for Fiction at the NSW Premier's Literary Awards for her novel 'The Sitter'. The book was also longlisted for the Miles Franklin Literary Award, along with another UQP title, 'Edenglassie' by Melissa Lucashenko. UQP authors Omar Sakr ('Non-Essential Work') and Sara M Saleh ('The Flirtation of Girls / Ghazal el-Banat') have also been shortlisted for the 2024 ALS Gold Medal. Visit the UQP website to browse their books online.
From Semester 2, 2024, course profiles will be published using the new Jac Course Instance, which is replacing the current electronic course profile system. If you are involved in updating, reviewing or publishing course profiles, you can now register for a training session to learn more about Jac.
Are you looking for more ways to get involved in sustainability at UQ? UQ Sustainability runs a range of programs and initiatives throughout the year including training sessions to help you reduce waste in your workplace, volunteering opportunities, and the Green Fund to support you to implement new sustainability ideas.
UQ is implementing a new email security protocol called DMARC (Domain Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance), designed to protect you against imposter emails and ensure your messages are delivered without interruptions. If you are an email system owner, applications to have DMARC applied to your system immediately are now open. From late 2024, email services that do not use DMARC will be quarantined and emails sent will be undeliverable.
A new admissions system is coming. In October, StudyLink will replace UQ’s current domestic and international admissions systems. Find out more about this exciting project on the Admissions Reimagined and Transformed project page.
The UQ Food Drive is now open at our St Lucia campus. Members of the UQ community are invited to donate non-perishable, unopened foods that have a minimum 4-week shelf live. Donated food will directly support the UQ Union’s welfare programs for students experiencing hardship, including Kampus Kitchen and grocery hampers. Donations can be brought to the UQ Union building at St Lucia, opposite the Lolly Shop.
Find your new best friend through UQ VETS. There are 4 pets currently looking for new homes – could you help them find their new forever families?

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