ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Congratulations to Joseph Schwarz who successfully passed his final MS-NT exam on Monday, January 4, 2016.
Congratulations to Robbie Zinna for winning the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology’s Division of Comparative Endocrinology Gorbman Best Student Oral Presentation award at the annual meeting in Portland, Oregon. http://www.sicb.org/index.php3. This is a prestigious award and there was stiff competition!!! Erica Crespi kindly forwarded this picture of our winner! Two awards will be given in the Best Student Presentation competition at the SICB Annual Meeting: one for the best oral presentation, the Aubrey Gorbman Award, and one for the best poster presentation, the Lynn Riddiford Award. In addition to a certificate, the winners will receive a cash prize. See attachment for more info on this award.
Steve Sheppard was featured in segment on an Oregon Field Guide segment that was shown on Oregon Public Broadcasting on Oct. 15th. The segment is titled “Could a Mushroom Save a Honeybee.” To see the segment go to: http://www.opb.org/television/programs/ofg/segment/could-a-mushroom-save-a-honeybee/
Graduate TA Workshop
WHEN: Saturday, January 16, 2016 WHERE: Todd 116
TIME: Registration and Breakfast: 8:00 a.m. Workshops: 9:00 – 1:00 LUNCH
Qs? Email cheryl.reed@wsu.edu
Sessions last year included:
- Successful Strategies for Active Learning in the Classroom
- Leadership in Science Instruction
- Tips for Teaching Large Classes
- Dealing with Students, Ethics in Teaching, and Class Policies
- Techniques for Online Teaching
- Engage Students in Class
The call for abstracts to Faculty, Staff, Graduate and Undergraduate Students for the WSU Academic Showcase and GPSA Research Exhibition (formerly known as Wiley Expo) has gone out. Abstracts of up to 250 words are due no later than 5:00 PM, Monday, January 25, 2016. The 2016 Showcase will be on Friday, March 25th. For more info go to: https://showcase.wsu.edu/ and click on the left sidebar.
As you begin to prepare for your 2015 Tax Return filing, be aware there is another form you will need this year in addition to the W2. The 1095 is a new tax form that includes information about your healthcare insurance coverage. Almost all employees will receive this form. It serves as a “proof of insurance statement”, as required by the Affordable Care Act, and shows the IRS if you have been covered by insurance in 2015. You will need information provided on this form to complete your 1040, 1040A or 1040EZ tax form, similar to how you take information from your W-2 form and transfer it to your tax forms. The 1095 form is in addition to your W-2 — it does not replace your W-2. WSU will mail out your W-2 form mid-January, and the 1095 forms will be mailed directly to your home address by either the Health Care Authority (HCA) or your insurance provider and should arrive in late January/early February. There may be situations where some of you receive 1095 forms from multiple sources. Make sure your address is up-to-date in myWSU to ensure you receive your W2 and this 1095 form. More information will be forthcoming from Human Resource Services over the next several weeks, including a website with FAQ’s. You can also find information on the IRS website: https://www.irs.gov/Affordable-Care-Act/, or consult a tax advisor.
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IMPORTANT DATES TO KNOW:
WSU’s deadline for faculty to enter data into WORQS is January 8, 2016
The Graduate School has announced the 6th Annual Global Case Competition. This competition brings student’s together to develop innovative interdisciplinary solutions to complex global issues facing each of us in today’s world. Registration opens Feburary 1, 2016. Teams of 4 to 6 students work together under a strict timeline to develop an innovative solution to the selected case. Judging the solution occurs in 2 stages. Teams present their solutions in a 2-page written solution. Expert judges evaluate each solution and the top-5 teams are selected as finalists. Each of the finalist teams presents a solution in a public forum. Judges hear each solution and pose questions to the respective teams before selecting a winner. To learn about GCC visit this webpage: https://ip.wsu.edu/on-campus/overview-schedule/
*March 1, 2016 will be the deadline for our 2016 Research scholarship applications: “Student of the Year” and “Paper of the Year” award submissions.
ESA Pacific Branch meetings are April 3-6, 2016 in Honolulu, HI at the Pacific Beach Hotel.
2016 International Congress of Entomology, Sept. 25-30, 2016, Orlando, FL. Website: http://ice2016orlando.org/