Thanks, Farewell, and Let’s Party!
As finals draw to a close, students are packing up and heading out for the summer. Alas, the class of 2013 will not return in the fall, which means we must say good-bye to three student staff members of the Optimize team. They are:
Erin Byrne – For the past two years, Erin has contributed to the project in many ways, particularly as a creative resource. We very much appreciate her excellent contributions to the Optimize SoundNet site and other project communications.
Kenzie Miller – Kenzie’s bright smile and good nature have been invaluable assets during her two years on the project. We are grateful for her adaptability, as she has jumped in with minimal direction and supervision to tackle any task asked of her.
Shelby Lee – Shelby came on board this year and contributed greatly in her time with us. As a major in computer science, she was put right to work helping build queries in PeopleSoft and performing many other technical tasks.
Congratulations to all three graduates, and special thanks for all you have done to enrich the university and further this project. We wish you the very best for the future!
Today also marks the departure of MIS, the firm that has been with us through the core implementation of PeopleSoft. Moving forward, we will utilize outside consultants as needed to assist in refinements and enhancements to the system.
So, now it’s time to celebrate the implementation of the Campus Solutions module. Please join us for cake and other refreshments Thursday, May 23, from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. in the garden level of Howarth Hall. This will be a great opportunity to catch our collective breath as we congratulate the team and express our thanks for a job well done!
Student Financials Goes Live
On Monday, April 22, the student financials portion of Campus Solutions went live in PeopleSoft, allowing students to see their accounts and due dates through Student Center. This follows implementation of the early decision process by Student Financial Services last December.
With this latest go-live behind them, the Campus Solutions team is ready to party! Please plan to attend the implementation celebration Thursday, May 23, from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. in the garden level of Howarth Hall. This will be a great opportunity to congratulate these hard-working folks on all they’ve achieved while enjoying some delicious cake and other tasty refreshments as well.
On the HR side, Benefits Administration is now in production and a group of beta users are trying out the functionality in order to fine tune things and develop training materials. Most campus members won’t interact with this component of the system until open enrollment in the fall. But Associate Vice President for Human Resources and Career and Employment Services Cindy Matern is pleased with what she’s been seeing, noting that “it’s going to be a good system.” HR also continues to work with Career and Employment Services on the new employment recruiting system set to go live May 3.
Registration Week a Success
Almost 2000 students registered in five days this week using PeopleSoft. According to Associate Registrar Lori Blake, the week was definitely a success.
“We were pleased registration went well,” she reports. “Students were prepared and made good use of the shopping cart and other tools offered by the new system.”
Staff from the Office of the Registrar, Advising, and Technology Services provided one-on-one assistance to students during drop-in sessions in Library 034. Shown below helping students are (left to right) Student Services Coordinator Norma Guiler, Degree Evaluator Melanie Sullivan, and Blake.
PeopleSoft Campus Solutions is Live!
It’s a special “Monday-edition” Optimize blog post to announce that PeopleSoft is now the university’s system of record for student information! See the campus message from President Thomas for more on today’s go-live of the Campus Solutions module.
Faculty will now use PeopleSoft via the Faculty Center link in Cascade to complete Fall 2013 preregistration tasks, view Spring 2013 class rosters, and enter Spring 2013 final grades. Students will utilize PeopleSoft for Fall 2013 registration, which takes place the week of April 8, through the Student Center link in Cascade. Eventually, these “centers” will be accessed in a new portal, called myPugetSound, scheduled to replace Cascade later this year.
For the remainder of the Spring term, faculty will continue to use Cascade functionality for the student alert process and to access advisee information. Financial aid capabilities in PeopleSoft are scheduled to go live in April.
Congratulations to everyone involved in reaching this major milestone!
Crunch Time!
Preparations are in high gear as we approach the next phase of go-live for the Campus Solutions module on Monday. As of that date, March 25, PeopleSoft will become the system of record for student information. Look for campus communications next week providing more details. We continue to offer training sessions for faculty and support staff. See the Campus Solutions training site to register for a session or to find online instructions and self-help videos if you prefer to learn on your own. There will also be drop-in sessions and online support for students during registration, which takes place the week of April 8.
Kate Cohn, Scott Dunham, Tasha Helton, Katie Holmes, Dana Kapla, Jenifer Lambert, and Stefanie Lund were in Indianapolis this week representing Puget Sound at Alliance 2013, the annual conference of the Higher Education User Group (HEUG). We’ve gotten several reports indicating there were many exciting things to learn in conference sessions, good networking opportunities with other schools using PeopleSoft, and some extra fine desserts at the closing reception.
Optimize Features Prominently in TechNews
TechNews has gone out to faculty and staff this week with features, photographs, and other details related to Optimize Puget Sound. Special thanks to those who contributed quotes, articles, or your photogenic presence to this issue!
The Campus Solutions team has been extremely busy as they hurtle toward go-live March 25. They’ve converted enrollment data for all classes since 1985 into PeopleSoft. Also, paper and electronic versions of financial aid awards and letters were sent to incoming freshmen. Luanne Meyer in the Office of Admission was especially happy about the automatic processing of the third round of merit letters in PeopleSoft. She reported, “We even got them out before the due date!”
Spring break may be next week, but we’re still offering training for faculty and administrative support staff. See the Campus Solutions training site to register for a session or to find online instructions and self-help videos if you prefer to learn on your own.
It won’t feel like spring for the Puget Sound folks heading to Indianapolis for Alliance 2013, next week’s annual conference of the Higher Education User Group (HEUG). Instead of shorts and sunblock, you’ll want to pack your fleece and mittens!
Time for Training
A faculty training session in Wyatt 226: (l-r) Emily Precht, Rob Hutchinson, Nancy Bristow, Sarah Moore, David Hanson, Landon Wade, Pat Krueger, Terry Beck, Joel Arakaki, and Priti Joshi.
Several faculty training sessions took place this week on how to manage classes and advisees in PeopleSoft. The associate deans have scheduled ongoing sessions in multiple buildings across campus to assist faculty and support staff in learning the new system. Visit the Campus Solutions training site to register for a session or to find online instructions and self-help videos if you prefer to learn on your own.
Congratulations to the Campus Solutions team for reaching a major milestone with the completion of financial aid awards and letters for admitted students!
This week the Financials team sent an update to budget managers and support staff detailing the seamless nature of the partnership with Wells Fargo to issue accounts payable payments.
As always, for assistance with PeopleSoft, please contact the Technology Service Desk at 253.879.8585 or servicedesk@pugetsound.edu.
CS Training Begins Monday
Beginning Monday, March 4, through Friday, March 15, the associate academic deans, director of academic advising, and other Optimize team members will conduct training sessions for faculty and administrative support staff on the changes that will occur when the PeopleSoft Campus Solutions module goes live March 25. Those planning to attend a session are encouraged to register, although drop-ins are welcome as space allows. For those who prefer to learn at their own pace, handouts and short video clips will be available by Wednesday, March 6.
In other news this week, the Human Resources team had an exciting configuration checkpoint on recruiting in PeopleSoft to review the job opening and approval process, while the Financials team continued with nVision report training.
Please send any questions or comments to optimize@pugetsound.edu. Have a great weekend!
Student Center is Live!
Congratulations to the Campus Solutions team on go-live of the Student Center now available through the Cascade menu for students. At this time, functionality in Student Center is limited to two items: a draft of the Fall 2013 class schedule and the To Do List. Student Financial Services is the first to add items in the To Do List, but other offices such as Academic Advising and the Registrar will utilize it in the future. Initially, only a handful of students will be notified by email that they need to check their To Do List, but eventually this feature will play a key role in communicating specific requirements to every student.
Implementation of Student Center is a precursor to the full go-live of Campus Solutions on March 25. The training schedule for faculty and administrative support staff is available on SoundNet (requires Puget Sound login). Sessions begin March 4, so please sign up now to reserve a seat (though drop-ins are welcome as space permits).
If you need assistance using PeopleSoft, please don’t hesitate to contact the Technology Service Desk at 253.879.8585 or servicedesk@pugetsound.edu. We appreciate everyone’s patience during this time of transition!
Student Center is Coming!
The Campus Solutions team continues work on several fronts as we move toward the initial go-live of Student Center slated for next week. On Monday Kris Bartanen, academic vice president and dean of the university, and Mike Segawa, vice president of student affairs and dean of students, sent a message to students about what to expect in Student Center. Initially, Student Center will only provide a “to-do list” and the Fall 2013 course schedule, but eventually tools will be added for such tasks as registration and billing.
The message to students also introduced myPugetSound, the name of the new portal scheduled to replace Cascade in August. Moving forward, students will receive email updates and announcements from the myPugetSound Transition Team, composed of Martin Jackson, associate academic dean, Donn Marshall, associate dean of students, Maggie Mittuch, associate vice president for student financial services, Sarah Moore, associate academic dean, Brad Tomhave, university registrar, and Landon Wade, director of academic advising.
Also this week, Optimize managers visited with administrators at Clover Park Technical College to compare notes on preparing for an ERP implementation. Clover Park will be moving to PeopleSoft as part of an implementation planned by the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC).
We continue to welcome questions, suggestions, or any other feedback you may have. Please contact us at optimize@pugetsound.edu.