Inside Iowa State for faculty and staff
April 20, 2023
Inside news
The parking division invested in a new online parking system that offers credit card payment options and introduces 'virtual' permits through license plate reading. Employees will first use it in May.

More than 90% of employees who responded to the survey indicated university benefits meet their needs.

To be considered for funding for the budget year that begins July 1, faculty and staff must submit their project proposals by 5 p.m. Friday, April 28.

Thanks to increased testing for forever chemicals in drinking water, Ames water officials know the city water meets proposed federal standards for allowable levels of the chemicals. Graduate student (and city part-time employee) Daria Dilparic analyzes Ames water samples to ensure its safety. 

Members of the campus community may submit nominations of talented candidates to any member of the search committee. Dean Beate Schmittmann will retire at the end of the 2023-24 academic year.

The first rollout of the project starts in June. The WorkCyte program team chose a phased implementation to ease users into the software.

Senior vice president for operations and finance Shawn Norman is doing an assessment of the division in three areas: operations, budget model and communications.
Announcements
The following announcements were added this week:
  • You're invited: Annual undergraduate research symposium is April 20
  • United Way annual food drive runs April 24-May 4
  • Weekly update on dependent eligibility verification project
  • Distinguished Awards celebration is April 28
  • Grants support ISU innovations with commercial potential
  • Send summer, fall course material requests to the bookstore
  • Malaysian Cultural Night is April 23
  • Host an event at October's Cyclone Family Weekend
  • SHOP seeks employee volunteers for prep, exam weeks
  • Many postal rates will increase July 9
Around campus
From instant nitrogen readings in a field to insect identifications from a cellphone photo, ISU researchers help Iowa farmers make better decisions. Read more in a spring series by news service writers that highlights new approaches Iowa Staters are taking to the discovery process. An entry will post every Tuesday through April.

A search has begun for the next associate vice president for campus life and residence director. Pete Englin retires from Iowa State on May 1, and associate director Virginia Speight will serve as interim director beginning May 2.

Marketing professor Huifang Mao's research found virtual fitting rooms -- a recent addition to online retail sites -- can cut down on returns and encourage buying. But they also may hurt the self-esteem of customers with a higher body mass index.

Iowa State librarians have begun an "innovation bookshelf" in Park's Library's Fireplace Reading Room (and online). So far, it contains about 200 of the library's best print and e-book titles on innovation and entrepreneurship.
Retirements
Next week
  • John Wong, marketing, April 24 (5-6:30 p.m., Kingland Hub, Gerdin Building)
  • Randy Fiscus, carpentry shop, facilities planning and management, April 26 (2-3:30 p.m., maintenance break room, 168 General Services Building)

Upcoming
  • Pete Englin, residence department, student affairs administration, May 1 (no public event)
  • Chris Patton, residence department, May 1 (no public event)
  • Roberta Johnson, student financial aid, May 5 (2-4 p.m., program at 2:15 p.m., first floor rotunda, Beardshear Hall), post well wishes to her Kudoboard
  • William Meeker, statistics, May 11 (3:45-5:15 p.m., via Zoom)

Employees, their colleagues or supervisors are invited to submit retirements and departures to inside@iastate.edu. Inside doesn't receive this information from a central source.
Seminars and conferences
  • Workshop, Tools, Tips and Tricks for Putting 'Science of Team' Science Research into Practice, tools to help manage teams, with Ellen Fisher and Hannah Love, Divergent Science LLC, April 20 (2-4 p.m., MU Cardinal Room), register
Open forums
  • Town hall, Digital Equity for Iowa, State of Iowa Office of the CIO, April 25 (6 p.m., 0114 Student Innovation Center) 
Arts and events
Enjoy the newest outdoor exhibit, Glass in Flight, this week through Oct. 8 at Reiman Gardens. Twenty sculptures, made of steel and colored glasses by artist Alex Heveri, provide an array of insects and pollinators that play in the sunlight. Garden admission rates apply (public $12, seniors $11, members and ISU students free).

The Cyclone football program will conclude its spring season with an intrasquad game on Saturday, April 22 (11 a.m., gates 1-3 open at 10 a.m., Jack Trice Stadium). Admission is free. At its Oct. 7 home game with TCU, the Cyclones will wear throwback uniforms as part of the 100-year commemoration of former student-athlete Jack Trice. Those uniforms will be revealed at the spring game.

Students in comedic coach Gavin Jerome and University Professor of economics Peter Orazem's "Comedy College" University Honors seminar this spring will host their final exam on the M-Shop stage April 24 and 26 (8 p.m., doors open at 7:30 p.m., Memorial Union). Admission is free. In the class, students learn how to use humor in their personal and professional lives. It may be the farewell tour for Orazem, who retires this summer.
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About us
Inside Update is published Thursday mornings by Strategic Relations and Communications. Questions? Email inside@iastate.edu or call 515-294-7065.