Graduate Assistant Orientation (pdf)  

Supplies

Reimbursement Request form
   

The Department of Microbiology Administration office, 220 Nash Hall, is open Monday through Friday, 8:00am - 12:00N and 1:00pm - 5:00pm except holidays. The office is closed daily from 12:00N - 1:00pm while the office staff is on lunch hour, whether they're out of the building or at their desk. The office staff consists of Mary Fulton, Department Manager and Assistant to the Chair, Contracts, Faculty hiring; Richard (Dick) Toliver, Accountant, Grants & Reports; Dina Stoneman, Graduate Student coordination, Student hiring, Purchasing, Accounts Receivable, Payroll, Travel; and Sally Tatala, Reception. Each person has a multitude of responsibilities. Please take time to familiarize yourself with the office staff and office operations.

THE RECEPTION & FRONT DESK AREA (Sally)

Mailboxes & Incoming Mail

The department provides mailboxes for Microbiology graduate students. Located in the main office, this is where your campus and federal mail, flyers and notices, paychecks and statements (delivered last working day of the month), and memos from faculty, other students, and office staff are delivered. Please do not use the Microbiology department as your personal address.

Please check your mailbox at least once a week and pay attention to any and all memos, as many require your immediate response and/or action. In most, but not all cases, you will be notified via e-mail of current and upcoming time sensitive matters.

Outgoing Campus & U.S. Mail

Outgoing campus and federal mail is picked up by OSU Mailing Services twice daily at approximately 10:00am and 2:00pm. Please write your index number for payment by grants, on a sticky note and attach to your outgoing federal mail, and place in the outgoing mail-box in the department office. You may also place your outgoing personal mail in the bin. The department has a limited supply of first class postage stamps you may purchase for your personal use... please stop at the front desk for info (and please have exact or close change).

Packages

All packages are sent from and received at the front office @ 220 Nash Hall. Anything you order must be addressed as follows:

Please have packages addressed to the main office, not your office or lab. Upon delivery by the shipper, the package(s) are logged in and you are contacted by phone, then e-mail to pick up the package. You are responsible for picking up packages you have ordered.

When preparing package(s) for shipping, please provide the following information:

• - Recipient's Name & office/lab telephone
• - Recipient's Agency/Business
• - Recipient's physical street address - shipping companies do not ship to P.O. boxes, and they need more than a building or institute.
• - Index to charge shipping to (see your lab manager or supervising professor)-If recipient is paying, use their account number
• - Timeline for shipping - i.e. overnight next morning, overnight next afternoon, 2-day, 3-day, etc...
• - Complete description of contents, including whether or not it would be considered hazardous material and if it needs to be kept at a certain temperature.

Please see Sally at the Front Desk for sending packages, especially if you are sending organic materials and/or diagnostic specimens, and especially if any package is being sent out of the country as paperwork for customs is required.

RECYCLING & JANITORIAL

Oregon State University encourages recycling. White copy/printer paper, newsprint, and various low grade paper, and cardboard; as well as plastic, tin, and glass (with the exception of some laboratory material) is recyclable. Some labs have blue recycle bins for plastics and glass. Please check with your supervisor for lab recycling and specifics.

Cardboard boxes must be broken down and placed in the wire bin at the loading dock behind Nash Hall. Most rooms have small recycling boxes for paper which you are asked to empty into the larger recycling containers located throughout the department. Please rinse out plastic, tin, and glass food and beverage containers and discard in the red recycling bins behind the door in the kitchen. Campus Recycling comes every week to two weeks to empty recycling bins.

Floors are swept and trash is emptied by OSU's sub-contracted Custodial Service Provider, but the responsibility of keeping your lab, office, and workspace clean is yours. The department has a ‘kitchen' of sorts (Nash 216) with a sink, refrigerator, and microwave. (A copy/printer machine is also located in this room for convenience after hours.) Again, please clean your own dishes and maintain cleanliness in the shared food area.

If your lab, office, and/or workspace has been missed by the janitorial services, please contact the front desk so a clean-up can be rescheduled. If however, your trash basket hasn't been emptied, the ‘building' dumpster is available for disposal of trash.

PLEASE SEE YOUR SUPERVISOR FOR SPECIFIC INSTRUCTIONS ON DISPOSAL OF GLASS, SYRINGES, AND ORGANIC MATTER.

COMPUTERS (Dina)

The Email system used by Graduate Students

Grads will use the Webmail system on the ONID mainframe (see Attachment A). This system is separate from the OSU Community Network used by faculty and staff. Dr. Dreher and the office staff will send memos through e-mail whenever possible to cut down on the number of messages on paper, so please check your e-mail daily.

As a student, you may use the following computer labs on campus for the use of applications and to access e-mail:

 Main Student Computing Facility in Milne Computing Center

 Bryan Computing Facility in Sackett Hall Basement

 Hovland General Use Area I in room 108, Hovland Hall

 Hovland General Use Area II in room 108B, Hovland Hall

To access e-mail from a station in the computer lab, you must type www.onid.orst.edu at the prompt, go into Webmail, and login. Wireless connections are available in many locations on campus.

How To Set Up Your Email

Please follow the instructions in Attachment A, or you may pick up the "ORSTWARE" CD at the Technical Assistance Desk at The Valley Library (first copy is free).

PACKING SLIPS/ACCOUNTS PAYABLE (Dina)

You should talk to your supervisor about processes with packing slips. Dina will need the original or copies of ALL packing slips with the date received and your signature on the slip. It is much appreciated to receive these in a timely manner (within the week it was received). This includes Qiagen and other cabinet purchases. Any issues with the merchandise received vs. ordered, please see her. Proactive with amounts on invoices is very helpful.

INDEXES & ACTIVITY CODES (Dick)

You should talk to your supervisor about which index and activity code to use. Any questions they can't answer or about account balances, ask Dick.

SUPPLIES & SUPPLY CLOSETS (Sally/Dina)

There is a supply closet in the Department office. The Microbiology Department provides these supplies for your use as a Graduate Teaching or Research Assistant. Please take only what you need. If you take the last of something, or if you notice that something is out-of-stock, do not remove the empty boxes, but tell the main office so that we may replenish the item. If there is something you need and you do not find it in any of the general supply areas, ask Sally or Dina.

ROOM & EQUIPMENT RESERVATIONS (Sally)

The department maintains two conference rooms which are reserved via the front desk on a calendar program called ‘Web Event'. Nash 234 has a capacity of 6-10, and Nash 404 has a capacity of approximately 30. These rooms are used for meetings, social lunches and receptions, seminars, study sessions, etc. Please contact the front desk for information.

The department maintains an In-Focus projector and laptop computer for student and faculty use. Additional equipment is available through Media Communications Center with advance notice. Please see the front desk for information.

KEYS & FOBS(Sally)

Upon confirmation by your major or supervising professor, you will be issued specific keys and a FOB. Each requires a $10.00-$20.00  per item fully-refundable deposit. You pick up a signed key slip from the front office and take to the OSU Key Shop(510 SW 15^th)  for keys; your FOB will be available from the Microbiology front desk.

If you are a teaching assistant, you may require a key to the teaching lab. The instructor of the course will advise you accordingly.

LAB KEYS (Dick)

If you are requested by Linda Bruslind or Cindy Fisher to obtain a key to a lab, please contact Dick or Mary Fulton.

PAY STUBS AND CHECKS (Dina)

Paychecks and statements, (direct deposits) are available in your mailbox on the last working day of each month. Please make sure you pickup your paycheck or paycheck stub at that time or as soon as possible thereafter.

EMPLOYMENT STATUS & ACADEMIC RECORDS (Dina)

This covers information regarding both academic and professional careers while at Oregon State University (grade reports, stipends, appointments, etc.).

REIMBURSEMENTS (Dina)

First and Foremost-if purchase can be made with a purchase order or charge, do it. If not, check with Dina about purchasing with the department's procurement card. As a last resort, buy it, and get reimbursed.

Complete the Reimbursement Request (attachment C). Original receipts must be submitted. The employee should insist on an itemized receipt. Credit card charge slips provide proof of payment, but may not provide necessary itemization. In the case where a receipt has been lost, an affidavit of lost/missing receipt should be rare. Employees should submit requests for reimbursement in a timely manner to minimize the loss of the itemized receipts.

Remember to provide answers to the "W" questions...Who attended, What for, Why, and the index to be charged when giving the receipt to Dina. If you have questions, please ask.

TRAVEL REIMBURSEMENTS (Dina)

Any time you are traveling for business/research purposes, contact Dina to find out which procedure to follow. For example, international travel requires prior approval with either the head college or the research accounting office, or both (while domestic travel only requires supervisor approval). OR per diem amounts depend on where/when you are traveling. There are a lot of intricacies, and you can work them out with her help.

The reimbursement form is online, as a menu item in your "OSU Online Services" secured location, under the heading "Travel Reimbursement Entry System." You must be set-up as a vendor in the database-see Dina for this process.

DIRECT DEPOSIT/ACH for ALL reimbursements (Dina)

This is separate from direct deposit for our paychecks and is the most secured method for payments. You can set this up online, or pick up a form from Dina and return to her with appropriate documentation. This will save you time in the future from walking over to the Cashiers Office for employee reimbursements under $100.00.

TELEPHONES (Dina)

A telephone is provided in each lab and office. All occupants of the work area share it. It is equipped with voice mail (Audix). Basic telephone instructions are printed on Attachment B. Before any personal greeting can be recorded, or any messages retrieved, a password must be entered. Meet with your work mates and decide upon a password and a system for insuring that everyone will get all of their messages. Then, record your personal greeting. Here is an example:

"You have reached the voice mail for (name 1, name 2, etc.). We're not able to answer the phone. At the tone, please indicate whom you are calling and leave your name, number and a brief message. Your call will be returned as soon as possible. If you wish to speak with someone in the Microbiology Office, please press 0 now."

You may want to include the office hours of each person, or change the greeting as needed, i.e., if someone is on vacation, or during terms. It is helpful to write the greeting down first and read it while recording your greeting.

You should keep Attachment B close to your phone. It explains the different features and procedures for using your voice messaging system. The Audix can be a bit intimidating at first, so if you have any questions, the main office can help.

DUPLICATION & PRINTING (Sally)

The two department copy/printing machines require an ‘identification code' to operate. Depending on the purpose, the code will vary. Personal copying is also available to you at minimal cost. Print on both sides of paper when possible. Please see the front desk for information.

The Department of Microbiology follows University policy for copyrighted material. Because of this, we can not make more than one copy of any copyrighted material, including magazine and newspaper articles. The library reserve is at your disposal for these cases.

TEACHING EVALUATIONS (Sally)

Students are given the opportunity to evaluate your TA performance. The evaluation period is during the last two weeks of the term, including finals week. Prior to this, Sally will contact the instructor of record to schedule evaluations for each class.

AFTER-HOURS WORK PERMIT (Sally)

All graduate and undergraduate students must have a current (2007/08) After Hours Permit in order to be in the building for any reason after closing (hours depend on season). The permit will be issued to you at no cost by the front office following confirmation by your Major or Supervising professor. Please look for an e-mail addressed to Microbiology Graduate Students.

If you are asked by security to show your permit (together with your student ID card) and you do not have it on you, you will be required to leave the building - no exceptions.

Additional Security Issues - Please keep your lab and/or office door locked (as well as any windows closed and locked) when you leave, even for short periods. Laptops, cell phones, ipods, etc., are stolen at high volume in and around campus.

BUILDING ISSUES (Cindy)

Nash building manager is Theo Dreher, and the assistant building manager is Cindy Fisher. Cindy is the liaison between Facilities Services and the department for repairs to the building and building equipment. Email Cindy at fisherc@oregonstate.edu for minor problems such as dripping sinks, toilets that don't flush, light bulbs that are out, etc. Major building emergencies require contact by phone or in person. These would include fire, floods, large chemical or biological spills, and refrigeration/freezer problems. Cindy may be reached during weekdays at her lab phone, 737-1888. Cindy can be reached for after-hours and weekend major emergencies at 757-8919 or 619-6665. Mary Fulton, 7-1833 is the contact person for the building in the event that Cindy is unavailable when a major emergency occurs during the weekday.

There is a room on the second floor (room 216) which contains one refrigerator and a microwave for your use. Your office key unlocks the door. This room is for faculty, grads and staff use only. Please do not lend your key or provide students access to the room.

There are coffeepots in the break room and there is a coffee club formed. Those people who belong to the club pay for the coffee-the department does not supply it. Please do not leave dirty cups and dishes in the sink (clean up after yourself).

MISCELLANEOUS

Do not mar or mutilate the building. Please do not use staples, nails or tacks on doors or walls. Do not put bags or boxes outside your office door. Keep your lab or office door locked when you leave, even for short trips to other parts of the building. There have been thefts in some buildings, even when the person was out for only a couple of minutes.

ATTACHMENT A

How to Set Up Your E-Mail Account

            Once you are on the Internet, go to http://www.onid.orst.edu/ and click on Sign up for an ONID account at the bottom of the page. The step-by-step process will be mapped out for you as you go along. You'll be prompted to type in your OSU ID number, and your GAP, which is your birth date (mmddyy).

            NOTE: Unless you have already accessed your OSU information, and reset your GAP, you may be prompted to do that now.

            You must then read and agree to the Acceptable Use Policy, and you'll be directed to the page where you set your ONID password. Your password must be 6-10 characters, not found in ANY dictionary, and have at least one numeric or symbolic character (e.g. 2hot4you).

            If you want email from your ONID account forwarded to another address, type that in next.

            Once you are done with this, your ONID account will be activated, and you should see a confirmation page with your account information.

Your E-mail Address and other E-mail Addresses on Campus and the Internet

Your e-mail address will follow this protocol: the first seven letters of your last name and the first letter of your first name, the @ sign, and onid.orst.edu. Please type addresses in lowercase letters.

You send and receive mail to local network servers on campus through an Internet gateway. Look up faculty and staff e-mail addresses in the online directory (http://www.onid.orst.edu/directory).

The Microbiology Department faculty and staff are on the COSINe Network. Their e-mail addresses will follow this protocol: mailname@onid.orst.edu (for those on Webmail), mailname@ucs.orst.edu (for those on UCS network), first.lastname@oregonstate.edu (for those on COSINe network), mailname@science.oregonstate.edu (for those on science network), mailname@bcc.orst.edu (this is for those on the Biological Computing Consortium network); or mailname@oes.orst.edu (for those on the Oregon Extension Service network).

How to Get Your E-Mail in the TA offices

• 1. Turn on monitor and hard drive
• 2. Access the Internet Browser
• 3. Type http://www.onid.orst.edu/ in the address bar
• 4. Click Webmail

•5.      Login

ATTACHMENT B

Basic AUDIX Instructions

LOGGING IN the first time - must use a touch-tone phone

1. If you are on campus and you are logging into Audix, Dial 7-7111. If you are off campus dial 737-7111. This gets you to the Audix menu.

2. You'll be asked for your extension followed by the # sign. If you're at your own phone, just press # and the system will recognize your extension. If you're calling from another phone, you'll need to enter your 5-digit extension followed by the # sign.

3. At this point you'll be asked for your password. To log in for the first time, press 258 #. This is a temporary password which will allow you to get into the system, record your greeting and choose a new password.

4. You will be asked to record your name. Press 1 then press # to approve.

NOTE: You must be logged into AUDIX to access any of the following features.

NEXT CREATE YOUR PASSWORD - this can be up to 15 digits. Make sure you write it down! There are a few restrictions in passwords: you may not use your phone number, the same digits (e.g. 44444), digits in consecutive ascending or descending order (e.g. 12345, 54321) as your password.

 Press 5, to select Subscriber Administration Activity

 Press 4, to change your password

 Enter your new password and then press #

 Enter your new password again for confirmation, and then press #

RECORDING YOUR GREETING

1. Dial 7-7444 (from a campus phone); enter extension number #, and your password #

2. Press 3 to select the Personal Greeting Activity

3. Press 1 to record or rerecord your greeting. Select greeting number 1-9

4. Start recording your greeting

5. Press 1 when you finish recording your greeting

6. Press 2 3 if you wish to listen to your greeting before approving it or *D to delete it

7. Press # to approve your greeting

8. Press 3 to select your personal greeting for use, enter greeting number, or press N to select the system greeting.

9. Press 1 to activate your greeting and press 4 for call type

GETTING YOUR MESSAGES - if you hear a stutter dial-tone when you pick up your receiver, you have messages.

1. Log in: dial 7-7444; enter extension #, and password #

2. Press 2 to get your messages

3. Press 0 to listen to the message

4. Press *D to delete the message or # to save

CALL COVERAGE - "Send all calls"

1. Pick up receiver, wait for dial-tone, press *8 to send your calls to Audix immediately without ringing in your room

2. Pick up receiver; wait for dial-tone, press #88 to deactivate "Send all calls"

TO REPLY IMMEDIATELY TO AN INCOMING MESSAGE - to reply with a Voice Mail message with attaching a copy of the original message.

1. Listen to the message (press 2 then 0)

2. Press 1 7 to reply to the caller without a copy of the original message or 1 9 to attach a copy of the message

3. Record your message

4. Press * * # to stop recording, approve, and send immediately

TO FORWARD THE MESSAGE WITH YOUR COMMENTS

1. Listen to the message

2. Press 1 2 to begin recording

3. Record your comment/s

4. Press # to stop recording and approve your comment/s or press 1 to edit

5. Enter the recipient's extension, and then press #

6. Press # for Audix to send the message immediately.

For more information on Audix possibilities, ask Dina for an Audix brochure.