Fall 2009: UAA Winter Closure

From the Office of the Provost: The University of Alaska Anchorage will be closed during the winter break period beginning Thursday, Dec. 24, 2009 through Friday, Jan. 1, 2010. UAA official holidays during the closure are Thursday and Friday, Dec. 24 and 25, and Thursday Dec. 31, 2009 and Friday, Jan. 1, 2010.

This year, in addition to the scheduled winter break, campus will be officially closed after 12 p.m. (noon) on Dec. 23. Unless otherwise required, University staff and faculty should therefore plan to close offices at that time. All employees should make sure to follow University Policy and Regulation during their leave. Please refer to the details here.

Thank you for all of your work for UAA and for our students. Please take advantage of this time to revitalize and look forward to the upcoming year at UAA.

Sincerely,

Mike Driscoll, on behalf of Chancellor's Cabinet

From Human Resource Services: Staff employees who are scheduled to work on Dec. 23 will reflect the balance of their regularly scheduled work time for that day as Administrative Leave, earnings code 465, on their timesheets. Those staff employees who will be on scheduled leave during this early closure record the type of leave appropriate to the absence.

To accomplish the goal of closing the campus throughout this period and to accommodate for the three days which are not paid UAA holidays (Dec. 28, 29 and 30), all regular, term and extended temporary staff must either take accrued annual leave or leave-without-pay (LWOP). Holiday leave will not be affected if an employee elects to use LWOP on the days between the Christmas and New Years holidays. A LWOP request form will only be necessary if an employee's accumulated LWOP will exceed 10 days in the 2009 calendar year. In addition, to annual or LWOP, non-exempt (Classified) staff may also use their personal holiday on one of these days. As a matter of policy, advances on an employee's annual leave are not allowed. An employee may use sick leave during the winter closure only upon submission of written evidence of illness or a professional appointment or treatment. This written evidence must accompany the employee's timesheet when submitted to payroll.

Employees desiring to work during the closure must request their supervisor's permission to do so. Granting such permission is authorized, provided there is work available during the closure period that is appropriate and timely. Supervisors are responsible for assuring that employees are at work and performing their assigned tasks during this period. Supervision in some form is required, and may include the use of an alternate supervisor, e-mail, and/or voice mail. Supervisors may consult Human Resources at (907) 786-4608 if assistance is needed regarding these options.

Supervisors may require certain employees who are necessary for on-going, mission-critical operations of the university to work during the winter closure period. Those employees needing to work during the winter closure due to a time-sensitive matter or some other reason must obtain supervisor approval.

Any employee requiring access to UAA buildings during the winter closure must have prior written approval from their supervisor and must notify the University Police Department (UPD) of their presence on campus. Contact UPD at (907) 786-1120 or aypolice@uaa.alaska.edu.