WorkLife Connections Newsletter
June 2021
Upcoming Events
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Service Spotlight

Michigan State University is a large campus with many different opportunities. Sometimes, connecting with colleagues who share research interests or values can help make an enormous campus feel more like a community. Below are just a few suggestions about where you might get started.
Webinar replay
International Photo Voice kickoff
MSU faculty and staff members share their experiences of transitioning to the United States from their international home. Through a written story and a meaningful photograph, they describe their experience navigating new systems, embracing new traditions, the feeling of living in two different worlds, and finding a sense of belonging in their new home at Michigan State.
Adult working from the computer distracted by two kids.
It Is No Longer Hidden: Embracing Caregiving
In the past 14 months, we have come to learn so much more about who our colleagues are and what their life is like outside of work. We have seen parents and caregivers working at home with children at home. We have discovered those who are navigating elder care issues or are caring for a spouse or adult child who may be disabled. We have come to respect and appreciate our children’s teachers so much more after trying to explain math to a third grader or practicing Spanish language vocabulary with our high schooler. We idolize pre-school educators’ ability to stay calm with a room full of toddlers, when we can barely remember which child NEEDS to have goldfish with their lunch or a tantrum will occur. 
MSU COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS
Michigan State University is a large campus with many different opportunities. Sometimes, connecting with colleagues who share research interests or values can help make an enormous campus feel more like a community. Below are just a few suggestions about where you might get started. See what groups are available in the MSU community.
canvas of colorful paint rows
The Gender and Sexuality Campus Center
Lesbian, Bisexual, Gay and Transgender Resource Center (LBGTRC) in the Division of Student Affairs and Services at Michigan State University will now be known as The Gender and Sexuality Campus Center.

The name change allows the center to be more inclusive of the diversity of sexual and gender identities, including asexual and agender communities and it positions them as a resource for all students, as well as the faculty and staff being served.  

The inclusion of “Campus” demonstrates the breadth of our work and shows that we are more than a “resource.” We are community builders who create a space for students to be powerfully and authentically themselves. We are a “home away from home” and a safe haven. We shift culture and work tirelessly to create a more inclusive campus for all people to be exactly who they are.
Discover Interest Groups & Information
Did you know one of the focus areas of the MSU WorkLife Office is connecting people to the MSU community and surrounding community where you work? That is right! We have several listservs that connect people to resources and information. You can join them to share resources with other Spartans.
LGBTQIA+ flag
Employee Pride and Inclusion Coalition
MSU GLFSA is now MSU EPIC, the Employee Pride and Inclusion Coalition! 

It is the mission of EPIC: Employee Pride and Inclusion Coalition to create an inclusive and welcoming community that supports faculty, staff, and administrators of diverse sexual and gender identities. We view our work through an intersectional lens, centering those with multiple marginalized identities. 

We strive to improve the campus climate for the MSU Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual + (LGBTQIA+) community
FAMILY
Family cooking a meal together
Positive Parenting: Twelve+ Ways to Keep Kids Active, Engaged & Learning This Summer
So, we’re home with our children, and we are limited in what outings we can do. Now what? How do we keep our kids active at home? How do we keep them engaged in learning? How do we come out of this summer feeling like we did our best, especially as we may be working from home at the same time?
Woman on the phone with two children playing in the back, one holding a puppy
Dependent Care Support Available
Sometimes one more helper is exactly what you need. 

There are lots of hours in a day and it's ok to take a few for you. MSU offers Dependent Care Support for children and elders through a couple of different subsidy options. Get help for a few hours to a whole workday of care when you need it. 

Consider:  

  1. Quiet time to write or research 
  2. Create and or give a presentation 
  3. Practice for your dissertation 
  4. Attend an appointment 
  5. Give yourself reflection time  
Woman sitting with two boys playing with toys
 Care.com/msu
This service is provided free of charge to all MSU affiliates – faculty, staff and postdocs – to help you find quality childcare, eldercare, household help and services both at home and when you are away, or when your loved one lives far from you. You can post a job, search for student employees, look for a job or find service providers in your geographic area. Care.com/msu provides extensive informational resources for managing relationships and responsibilities with service providers and employers.
RESEARCH
Toward a Respectful Workplace Website Provides Research and Insights
“Workplace bullying” is a phenomenon in which people psychologically damage or manipulate their colleague(s) through personal diminishment — making people feel incompetent, incapable, and unwanted — in a professional setting.
people sitting around a table talking
Employee Guide Toward a Respectful Workplace
This guide is designed to help employees (and their families and friends) familiarize themselves with the various forms that workplace bullying commonly takes, and to assess their own situation. It also suggests concrete steps that a target can take to address their situation. 
WORK
Nominate Your Outstanding Supervisor
Members of the MSU community are invited to nominate a supervisor/administrator who consistently supports the work-life (professional/personal) needs of their employees/staff through positive leadership and managerial practices.
HEALTH & WELL-BEING
Spartans Will Spartans Well podcast graphic
The Spartans Will, Spartans WELL Podcast: A Space Where Educators Can Dock to Get a Second Wind
During this biweekly podcast, guests respond to questions submitted by educators with stories and strategies that can inspire hope as listeners deal with challenging realities that have changed their lives. Spartans Will, Spartans WELL is hosted by members of the MSU Community with expertise in educator and student well-being. The podcast has been designed to let listeners know they belong, they matter, and they make a difference.
two people doing meditation
Fitness On Demand
The Fitness On Demand™ platform delivers consistent, high quality fitness media and programming through a variety of channels, creating the ideal virtual fitness experience for any environment. Choose from over 1,000 different videos!
CAREER
HERC Webinar Series: Preparing for a Successful Higher Education Job Interview
In this four-part series, career and leadership expert Sharon Justice will equip you with interview tools and techniques to feel confident and ready. 
Dual Hire: Searching Higher Education Employment for You and Your Partner
Michigan State University recognizes that dual career partner assistance is an important aspect in recruiting and retaining outstanding, qualified and diverse faculty and staff. A dual career couple is one in which both heads of household pursue careers and at the same time, maintain a family life together. Dual career couples often face challenges finding jobs within a commutable distance to meet career goals for both partners. See below for a general overview of the university's efforts to support talented couples in their search for meaningful employment at the university and in the Greater Lansing Area.
EVENTS
graphic with words Lets Talk about Mental Health
Mental Health Series
What are we up against? How does COVID-19 impact our mental health? How do we care for ourselves and others? What resources are available and how do we access them? Let's talk about these and other important questions as we address the intersection of physical health and mental health in the COVID19 pandemic.
glass ball held over a sunset lake scene
June 16: Reflect and Connect
Followed by Chair Yoga
We invite you to take a moment to connect with MSU colleagues as we reflect on the impacts of national and global events/tragedies and exploration of self-care/work-effectiveness strategies.
people sitting around a table talking
June 17: Well-being at Work Kickoff
The goal of this guide is to provide evidence-based best practices in order to recruit and retain high-quality candidates and create healthier workplaces and teams, as we take care of our well-being and the well-being of each other. Well-being at work is important. It honors each employee as a complete person both inside and outside of work. It provides shared knowledge about workplace culture and practices that attract people to work at MSU and keep them here. It is a tool to use from any position when thinking about strengthening a team or a unit.
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June 22: WNA Follow-up Q&A to Assertiveness: The secret Ingredient for Self-Care and Unlocking your Untapped Power
The speaker will be answering questions based on this past presentation: Assertiveness is one of the most important skills women need for stepping into their power, reclaiming their lives, and establishing boundaries and self-care practices. Despite its importance, assertiveness is often misunderstood as aggression, acting like a man, being mean, or being disrespectful. This talk will debunk the myths about what assertiveness is and is not. By the end of this session, participants will have the resources needed for growing their assertiveness skills so they can build self-care practices and unleash the full depths of their power. Review the presentation from earlier this year.
Photo with 16 drawn faces showing different emotions
Parenting Series: Building Early Emotional Skills – Thursdays in July
Building Early Emotional Skills (BEES) is a research-based parenting curriculum for parents and caregivers of children 0-3. The BEES curriculum is an active, hands-on tool to teach parents about how young children develop social-emotional skills and helps give parents skills to deal with parenting stress.

Topics covered in the curriculum include: 

  1. Parent’s temperament and stress 
  2. Child’s temperament and “fit” between parent and child temperament 
  3. “Family movies” and managing feelings 
  4. Being reflective about my child’s feelings and my feelings 
  5. Emotion coaching — responding to my child’s feelings 
  6. Reducing biting, conflict, and frustrations 
  7. Handling tantrums 
  8. Building a solid foundation for tomorrow
MSU WorkLife Office | worklife.msu.edu