Be represented.

Resolution Adopted

Angie Crews — Wed, 29 Oct 2025 00:53:54 +0000

Resolution Adopted Angie Crews Tue, 10/28/2025 - 18:53

In April 2025, Boulder Campus Staff Council adopted a resolution titled “Reaffirm and Commit Support for a Positive Work Environment for the Transgender, Intersex, Non-Binary Community.”

Per the resolution, Staff Council stands together in support of transgender, intersex and non-binary employees, families, communities and allies, and we request that the University of Colorado Boulder creates, supports and maintains a transgender, intersex and non-binary positive culture and work environment. Staff Council looks forward to partnering with campus leadership on action steps pending their formal response.

Read the full resolution on our website.

You can direct your feedback and questions about the ongoing status of the recommended actions in the resolution directly to Campus Leadership through Buff Info or to Staff Council via our Contact Us Form.

In April 2025, Boulder Campus Staff Council adopted a resolution titled “Reaffirm and Commit Support for a Positive Work Environment for the Transgender, Intersex, Non-Binary Community.”

Off

Traditional

White

You’re Invited: Employee Appreciation Breakfast

Angie Crews — Wed, 29 Oct 2025 00:45:12 +0000

You’re Invited: Employee Appreciation Breakfast Angie Crews Tue, 10/28/2025 - 18:45

Mark your calendars!

You are warmly invited to attend the Employee Appreciation Breakfast hosted by ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Staff Council in partnership with the Office of the Chancellor. Join us as we celebrate your hard work and dedication with a morning of good food, community, and gratitude.

Date: Thurs. Dec. 11, 2025

Time: 7:00am-9:30 am MT

Location: UMC Glenn Miller Ballroom

Details: Buff OneCard required for admission, and donations of non-perishable food and personal care items (e.g., soap, toothpaste) will be collected on behalf of area pantries.

We hope to see you there!

You are warmly invited to attend the Employee Appreciation Breakfast hosted by ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Staff Council in partnership with the Office of the Chancellor on Dec 11th from 07:00 - 09:30 AM.

Off

Traditional

White

Join Staff Council - Area 10 Vacancy

Angie Crews — Tue, 28 Oct 2025 23:12:39 +0000

Join Staff Council - Area 10 Vacancy Angie Crews Tue, 10/28/2025 - 17:12

Are you interested in supporting your fellow Research Faculty and having a voice in shared governance at ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ��?

Staff Council currently has an open seat for Area 10, which represents Professional Research Assistants, Senior PRAs, Research Associates, and Senior Research Associates. This is a great opportunity to contribute to advocacy efforts, provide input on university projects and policies, and build relationships across campus.

What does the role involve?

Attending monthly Staff Council meetings on the 2^nd Wednesday of the month from 12:15-2:15 pm MT.
Participating in at least one committee.
Communicating with Research Faculty colleagues to understand and represent their concerns.
Helping shape the priorities and direction of the university.

Time commitment: ~8-10 hours per month, which may occur during scheduled work hours. A letter requesting work release is sent to your supervisor.

Term length: Flexible—ends June 2026 or June 2028, based on your interest. Contact us for details.

No prior experience is required—just a willingness to engage and represent your colleagues. Training and support are provided!

If you're interested or have questions, please contact the current Area 10 representatives or the Staff Council Administrator at staffcouncil@colorado.edu.

We’d love to have more Research Faculty voices at the table—consider joining us!

Are you interested in supporting your fellow Research Faculty and having a voice in shared governance at ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ��? Staff Council currently has an open seat for Area 10.

Off

Traditional

White

Letter from the Committee

Angie Crews — Tue, 28 Oct 2025 22:49:02 +0000

Letter from the Committee Angie Crews Tue, 10/28/2025 - 16:49

Dear Research Faculty,

As your Boulder Campus Staff Council representatives, we are excited to connect with you and affirm our commitment to supporting your work, your needs, and your voice within Shared Governance and the broader University of Colorado Boulder community. We are here to ensure that your perspectives help shape the university’s priorities.

Representation for Professional Research Assistants, Senior Professional Research Assistants, Research Associates, and Senior Research Associates (referred to here and within Staff Council as Research Faculty) on Staff Council officially began in Fall 2024. This significant milestone followed the work of an exploratory committee, which found that Research Faculty were underrepresented in shared governance and that your values and priorities aligned closely with university staff.

Since then, we've been actively working to build a foundation of advocacy, understanding, communication, and collaboration for and with our Research Faculty constituents.

As our first achievements in 2024-2025, which ensured more equitable participation and a clearer path for your voices to be heard, we successfully advocated for:

increased representation of Research Faculty on Staff Council, doubling the number of seats from two to four.

a designated representation area for Research Faculty: Area 10.

In Summer 2025, we took an important step forward by establishing a dedicated Staff Council Special Committee for Research Faculty. This committee focuses on enhancing outreach and education efforts, including:

Translating Staff Council initiatives for Research Faculty constituents.

Providing insight into ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� policies, procedures, and funding mechanisms that impact Research Faculty.

Identifying and advocating for key issues affecting Research Faculty.

Collaborating with campus leadership to support your experience and well-being.

We want you to know: we're here for you. Whether you have ideas, concerns, or simply want to connect, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us. Our contact information is listed below, and we welcome hearing from you at any time.

Thank you for all that you do—and we look forward to continuing to serve and represent you.

Warmly,

Kate Cochran & Ginnie Hershbarger
Research Faculty Special Committee Co-Chairs

Staff Council Area 10 Representatives
kate.cochran@colorado.edu | ginnie.hershbarger@colorado.edu

As your Boulder Campus Staff Council representatives, we are excited to connect with you!

Off

Traditional

White

Staff Council Committee Meetings

Christopher Marelli — Mon, 13 Oct 2025 15:18:59 +0000

Staff Council Committee Meetings Christopher Marelli Mon, 10/13/2025 - 09:18

Looking for ways to be more involved with Staff Council? Feel free to join one of our Staff Council Committee Meetings or our Monthly Full Council Meeting :

1st Week of Month
Tuesday @ 9:00am - Front Line Staff Committee
Tuesday @ 11:00am - Awards and Staff Recognition Committee
Wednesday @ 12:00pm - Research Faculty Special Committee

2nd Week of Month
Tuesday @ 11:00am - Experience and Elections Committee
Tuesday @ 12:00pm - Committee for Belonging, Equity, Accessibility and Mattering
Wednesday @ 12:15pm - Full Council Meeting
Thursday @ 11:00am - Communications Committee

3rd Week of Month
Tuesday @ 10:00am - Blood Drive and Community Service Committee
Thursday @ 3:30pm - Outreach & Events Committee
Friday @ 10:00am - Payroll, Benefits, Retirement and Legislative Committee

Looking for ways to be more involved with Staff Council?

Off

Traditional

White

Fall 2025 Tri-Chair Letter

Eryn Van Poole — Tue, 23 Sep 2025 22:21:45 +0000

Fall 2025 Tri-Chair Letter Eryn Van Poole Tue, 09/23/2025 - 16:21

Hello Staff and Research Faculty,

Welcome to the start of a new semester! While fall is usually a busy and exciting time, we recognize that the past few weeks have been deeply unsettling for many in our campus community. The recent swatting incidents have understandably left many feeling anxious, vulnerable, and uncertain. Please know that we see you, we hear you, and we are actively working with campus leadership to share your comments and concerns about these recent events. To help us better advocate for your needs, we request that you please share your feedback on our website and take a few minutes to complete this newsletter’s survey. We also encourage you to explore the many resources CU offers to support your wellbeing, and to lean on and check in with your colleagues and friends—community and connection are more important than ever.

In addition to employee safety and wellbeing, our priorities this year include promoting our Resolution to Reaffirm and Commit Support for a Positive Work Environment for the Transgender, Intersex, Non-Binary Community, strengthening our relationships with you—our constituents—and ensuring your needs are represented as we engage with new campus leadership. We always encourage your feedback on how Staff Council can better serve staff and research faculty, so please don’t hesitate to reach out via our website or join us at a full council meeting.

Next, we would like to extend congratulations to Jasimine Evans, who was named an Honorary Lifetime Representative of ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Staff Council. Jasimine’s leadership within Staff Council and contributions to the staff and research faculty experience on campus cannot be understated, and we are so grateful for her service, dedication, and support. Congratulations, Jasimine!

Finally, to all staff and research faculty, thank you for everything you do—both seen and unseen, acknowledged and behind the scenes—to support students, collaborate with colleagues, and make ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� a better place to work and learn. We wish you a season of abundance, inspiration, and continued success throughout the fall semester.

Warmly,

Crystal, Leah, and Jessica

Welcome to the start of a new semester!

Off

Traditional

White

Invite Staff Council To Your Staff and Research Faculty Meetings! We will bring the treats!

Christopher Marelli — Tue, 23 Sep 2025 15:58:36 +0000

Invite Staff Council To Your Staff and Research Faculty Meetings! We will bring the treats! Christopher Marelli Tue, 09/23/2025 - 09:58

Staff Council's outreach and events committee would like to celebrate all the hard work staff do, where you do it: in your departments! Fill out this form, and one of our staff council reps will be in contact to get treats and/or small swag items at your next staff meeting. This program will be running all year, so there will be opportunities for all departments that want to participate.

Staff Council's outreach and events committee would like to celebrate all the hard work staff do, where you do it: in your departments!

Off

Traditional

White

Join Us in Advocating for Research Faculty!

Christopher Marelli — Tue, 23 Sep 2025 15:55:35 +0000

Join Us in Advocating for Research Faculty! Christopher Marelli Tue, 09/23/2025 - 09:55

We're excited to kick off committee work for the 2025–2026 academic year! As a special committee of Staff Council, our aim is to strengthen outreach and communication efforts about Staff Council with Research Faculty and deepen advocacy for Research Faculty. Our committee meets on the first Wednesday of every month from 12:00–1:00 p.m., and everyone is welcome to attend—we’d love to have your voice at the table.

Learn more and get involved!

We're excited to kick off committee work for the 2025–2026 academic year!

Off

Traditional

White

Staff Council Committee Accomplishments

Eryn Van Poole — Mon, 19 May 2025 21:17:51 +0000

Staff Council Committee Accomplishments Eryn Van Poole Mon, 05/19/2025 - 15:17

Boulder Campus Staff Council recognizes all staff members who reached a career milestone in the 2024 - 2025 academic year. You are an integral part of the ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� campus, and we sincerely thank you for your service and dedication. Read more about the staff career milestones.

We'd also like to recognize the four awardees of the Chancellor's 2024 Employee of the Year award: Miki Brooks, Janelle Henderson, Sally Lowell, and Jeanne McDonald and University of Colorado Staff Council (UCSC) 2025 Staff Excellence Awardees: Kai Amey and Estrella Lastre. This year's winners represent incredible dedication to the students, faculty, and staff of the ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� campus.

Awards and Staff Recognition (ASR) Committee

We honored a total of 767 ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� university staff, classified staff, and profession research assistants and research associate members for their years of service: 318 for five years; 205 for ten years; 83 for fifteen years and they received a $25.00 gift card; 67 for twenty years and they received a $50.00 gift card; 53 twenty-five years and they received a $75.00 gift card; 29 for thirty years and they received $100.00 gift card; 7 for thirty-five years and they received a $150.00 gift card; 2 for forty years and they received a $150.00 gift card.
We honored the four Chancellor’s Employees of the Year and the two University of Colorado Staff Council Staff Excellence Award winners with a gift bag made up of Staff Council swag and purchased items from the bookstore.
ASR planned and launched the successful revival of the Brightest Buffs recognition program in spring 2025! This refreshed initiative was brought to life to honor the creativity, dedication, and innovation of our incredible staff community. So far, we've launched a brand-new website featuring a recognition form and an optional public spotlight for honorees, giving them the opportunity to share their stories with the broader campus community. Recipients are also awarded a CU gold star pin as a token of appreciation. Thanks to campus-wide collaboration and enthusiasm, Brightest Buffs is already creating a meaningful platform to celebrate the people who make ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� thrive.

Belonging, Equity, Accessibility and Mattering (BEAM) Committee

BEAM has purchased a Little Free Library (LFL), the first to be established on the ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� campus. The nearest LFL is on the hill, in downtown Boulder, and east of 28th Street, so it will fill a much needed void in the area. The long-term plan is for the LFL to float between major hubs on campus indoors, like the C4C, the UMC, Williams Village, etc. to allow all staff, students, researchers, and faculty to visit easily. BEAM is planning a ribbon-cutting for the LFL's first location and hope to fill it with books that celebrate and affirm the LGBTQIA+, transgender, intersex and non-binary community for the inaugural opening.
BEAM presented a resolution to the full Staff Council on April 16, 2025 called "Reaffirm and Commit Support for a Positive Work Environment for the Transgender, Intersex, and Non-Binary Community" co-authored by Kathleen Stutzman and Rose Smith. This resolution was adopted by Staff Council and will be presented to leadership on campus. This resolution affirmed the positive steps that have already been established on campus to support a positive work environment for the transgender, intersex and non-binary community over the past few years, and provided an outline of recommendations to the administration to improve morale and safety for this community.
In collaboration with UCSC and Dr. Kelsey Draper of Infrastructure and Resilience, BEAM is co-sponsoring the screening of This Is [Not] Who We Are on campus during the month of June 2025. This movie is directed and produced by Dr. Beret Strong and Katrina Miller and explores the lived experiences and discrimination of Boulder's Black citizens both historically and in contemporary times.
The Many Voices: Co-Creating ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� summit on April 21st, was sponsored by the Office of the Provost, the Office of Leadership Support and Programming, and all four of CU's shared governance organizations. Staff Council tri-chairs, as well as the BEAM committee members attended planning meetings throughout the past year, and helped to solidify the goals and content of the summit. Dr. Adrianna Kezar (Director of the Pullias Center of Higher Education at the University of Southern California and Dean’s Professor of Leadership and Wilbur-Kieffer Professor of Higher Education at USC) and Dr. Ángel de Jesus González (Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership at Fresno State University) facilitated the day long event, focusing on the Shared Equity Leadership model. This model has been adopted by the campus as a collaborative approach to advancing diversity, equity and inclusion, by emphasizing shared decision-making, representation and continuous learning.

Blood Drive and Community Service Committee

The Blood Drive and Community Service Committee, along with long-time partner Vitalant, hosted blood drives in October, December, February, and April. Between these four drives, over 742 units of blood were collected to be used by those in need in the community. Each unit of blood donated has the possibility of saving three lives, meaning that the cumulative effort could save 2,226 lives.

This effort involved recruiting students, staff, faculty, and community to commit to helping be a positive force in the community.

The committee also partnered with Meals on Wheels Boulder to create Valentine’s Day cards.

The committee is focused on continuing to host successful Blood Drives on campus and expanding community service opportunities that directly impact our community and support the staff on our campus.

Communications Committee

Partnered with 20+ campus organizations to send out three newsletters during the academic year to over 6,000 staff and research faculty.
1. Received 613 individual responses from four newsletter surveys relating to Wellness Barriers, Why Stay/What to Change at CU, Prescription Challenges, and Staff Council Priorities/Future Goals.
Collaborated with the ASR committee to launch the Brightest Buffs Program.

Experience & Elections (ExEl) Committee

The committee updated the Elections Code to make it clearer and to reflect current practices. The proposed changes were voted on and adopted in April 2025.
The committee successfully proposed a name and scope change from the Elections Committee to the Experience and Elections Committee to include new responsibilities around onboarding and supporting Staff Council Representatives.
The committee facilitated successful voting processes for new Staff Council Representatives and Officers for the 2025-2026 year.

Front Line Staff Committee

This year, Front Line Staff was voted in as a full standing committee! This not only has allowed the committee to be more secure in our future, but has reaffirmed Staff Council's commitment to supporting, uplifting, and celebrating our frontline staff across campus. This year, we welcomed our very first frontline staff council member. We hosted two lively roundtable discussions with frontline staff in multiple languages and heard critical feedback from them about their jobs around campus. This year, we started outlining a white paper to bring frontline staff concerns to campus leadership. We continue to champion language access for all frontline workers on campus. We have repeatedly connected with supervisors on campus on how to support frontline staff. This has been a great year, and we can't wait for what next year has in store!

Outreach & Events Committee

The Outreach & Events Committee hosted Staff Council’s annual Staff Appreciation Breakfast and food drive on December 12, 2024. As with previous years, the event was well attended with over 1,100 staff attending this year. Campus leadership once again did an outstanding job volunteering in their serving roles and Chip the mascot even came by to say hello. The generosity of staff with food donations supported several food pantries in the area with welcome donations before the holiday season. This event is continually one of Staff Council’s most successful offerings and it is a highlight of our year.

We also collaborated with campus partners to host an all day event for all CU employees to bring their kids to work for a day of discovery and fun! We are proud of how many campus units joined us in offering activities for little buffs in addition to the Kickoff Party hosted by our committee. Almost 200 little buffs showed up with their parents to the kickoff party and enjoyed ice skating, snacks, games, activities and pictures with Chip and his Dad, Chip Sr.

Payroll, Benefits, Retirement & Legislative (PBRL) Committee

Raised awareness with HR about issues related to the uneven process for performance management across campus, created a survey regarding staff and the performance management system to be shared with campus in the May newsletter. HR shared concerns and committed to continuing to work on improvements to this process for staff.
Partnered with ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� MyLeave Replacement Initiative to discuss payroll in arrears as they move into the Design phase.
Spoke with Jess Doty at health and wellness to better understand current benefits & perks landscape to see what is available for staff and if changes should be made.
Met with Kelly Reel about salary transparency and checked where the compensation framework initiative project is at.
Continued to staying informed on the HR Blueprint project and kept in touch with HR regarding how it's being developed.

NEW! Research Faculty Special Committee

In the May Staff Council meeting, a special committee to serve interests of Professional Research Assistants, Senior Professional Research Assistants, Research Associates, and Senior Research Associates was ratified by a majority vote.

The committee will assemble through the 2025-2026 academic year with the goals of:

Enhancing outreach and education efforts about Staff Council with Research Faculty, particularly through translating Staff Council and standing committee efforts for Research Faculty constituents.
Providing understanding and perspective on ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� policies, procedures, and funding of Research Faculty for Staff Council members.
Promoting and advocating for equitable and proportional representation of Research Faculty as elected or appointed representatives on Staff Council.
Supporting the implementation and evaluating the effectiveness of the Research Faculty special committee.

Be on the lookout for future communications and contact ginnie.hershbarger@colorado.edu or kate.cochran@colorado.edu for more information, with questions, and if you are interested in joining the committee.

We'd like to take a moment to share the accomplishments of our committees within Staff Council from this past year.

Off

Traditional

White

Staff Council election results: Meet your new 2025 representatives

Eryn Van Poole — Mon, 19 May 2025 20:50:05 +0000

Staff Council election results: Meet your new 2025 representatives Eryn Van Poole Mon, 05/19/2025 - 14:50

Staff Council is excited to announce the winners of the 2025 - 2026 ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Staff Council elections, as well as announce our new officers. We are deeply grateful to all the candidates willing to take the time and make the effort to be involved!

If you were not elected, or were unable to run but are still interested in volunteering your time with Staff Council, we encourage you to contact Staff Council directly. Any CU Staff, Research Associate, or Professional Research Assistant employee can participate and can benefit from networking opportunities, event volunteering, and professional development through committee work. No prior experience or specific time commitments are required.

Elected Representatives

The following representatives were elected by popular vote during our election cycle by you, the ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Staff, Research Associates, and Professional Research Assistants. In the event that the top elected candidate is unwilling or unable to fulfill their duties, a runner-up (if available) is named in their place.

Area-specific

These are staff members elected by popular vote to represent a specific "area" of campus. If you are unsure what area your position is covered by, visit our Area Breakdowns page or our Representatives page.

Area 1, Sara Abdulla
Area 2, Claudia Numan
Area 3, John Carlson
Area 4, Rob Blacker
Area 5, Vanessa Dunn
Area 6, Vacant
Area 7, Sarah Safadi
Area 8, Tom Klenow
Area 9, Jessica Sandoval
Research Faculty: Kate Cochran

Elected At-Large

Elected At-Large are staff members elected by popular vote to serve the entire ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� system, rather than a specific area.

Crystal Cyr
John Tran
Chris Marelli
Claudia Acosta Lopez

Appointed Representatives (At-Large)

These are staff members appointed by the Staff Council Elections committee to serve as representatives for a 1-year term. Appointed representatives include former elected representatives as well as those who were runners-up in their elections for specific areas.

Alisha Stewart
Brian DeWolf
Gena Welk
Jacob Henry
Megan Henning
Nicole Morris

Officers

Officers are nominated and elected by ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Staff Council representatives after the general elections are complete. The majority of these positions are 1-year terms.

Tri-Chairs

Leah McDaniel Parvez, 2 Year Term
Jessica Sandoval, 1 Year Term
Crystal Cyr, 1 Year Term

Co Vice-Chairs

Ginnie Hershbarger
Megan Varra

Treasurer

Yasmine Ortuno

Secretary

Cameron Brooks

University of Colorado Staff Council Elected Delegates

Alisha Stewart
Alternate: Natalia Johnston

Staff Council is excited to announce the winners of the 2025 - 2026 ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Staff Council elections, as well as announce our new officers.

Off

Traditional

White