On February 19, 2020, the University will conduct an academic continuity exercise.
Faculty and staff who teach can gain invaluable assistance at upcoming drop-ins offering ideas on potential teaching approaches and how Canvas provides support.
Canvas & Cookies Drop-Ins
Jan. 8, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Brown Room (4th floor of Cooper Library)
Jan. 9, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Brown Room (4th floor of Cooper Library)
Cookies will be served.
Academic Continuity Drop-Ins
Feb. 12, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Class of 1941 Studio (1st floor Daniel Hall)
Feb. 13, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Class of 1941 Studio (1st floor Daniel Hall)
Utility, safety improvements may affect your routes during the next few weeks
It may be a little challenging navigating the Clemson University campus in the next few weeks because of utility and safety improvement projects.
Road closings may affect how you travel to graduation or basketball games, so check the closing schedule below and Facilities’ interactive road work map.
Fort Hill Street
Traffic on Fort Hill Street will be limited to one way going east from Klugh Avenue to Calhoun Drive from Saturday, Dec. 14, to Dec. 30.
From Dec. 30 to Jan. 1, Fort Hill Street will be completely closed to traffic from the Trustee House to Calhoun Drive.
Cherry Road
This map shows the impact areas of the utility construction in the Cherry Road area.
Cherry Road from Bryan Circle to McMillan Road is closed now through Dec. 23 for the installation of underground utilities.
The final phase of the project will begin in mid-December and will require the complete closing of the intersection of Cherry Road at Bryan Circle through early January. No traffic will be permitted through the intersection. Traffic will be able to reach Calhoun Courts from the east via Morrison Road.
Perimeter Road
Perimeter Road will be closed between Cherry Road and the entrance to the C-01 parking lot from Dec. 14 through Jan. 7 for the installation of underground utilities.
Walter T. Cox Boulevard (Highway 93)
Construction on Walter T. Cox Boulevard from mid-December until early January will cause some disruptions near Sikes Hall and Calhoun Drive. The three-phase project will begin with the southbound lanes being closed and two-way traffic in the northbound lanes. There will be no access to Calhoun Drive at this time.
Phase 2, beginning at the end of December, will shift to the middle lanes. Southbound vehicles will be able to enter Calhoun Drive and vehicles leaving Calhoun will be able to turn right.
Phase 3 will be in early January. The northbound lanes will be closed and southbound lanes will be open for two-way traffic. Vehicles exiting Calhoun Drive will have to turn right until the project is finished.
Hunter Hall sidewalk
The sidewalk to Hunter Hall and the auditorium will be closed for repairs from Dec. 17 through Jan. 10 for pedestrian safety improvements.
Calhoun Drive access
New gates installed on Calhoun Drive will prevent traffic access between Fort Hill Street and Gantt Circle in front of Brackett Hall except to approved vehicles beginning with the spring semester in January.
The gates were installed to reduce the volume of traffic in the heavily congested area and to improve pedestrian safety.
Approved vehicles, such as Tiger Transit buses, emergency vehicles and delivery trucks will carry transmitters that signal the gates to open.
On Sept. 24, 2019, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced a final rule regarding overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The DOL’s final rule includes updated earnings thresholds that employers must consider when exempting employees in certain positions from the FLSA’s overtime pay requirements. The DOL’s rule does not make changes to the “duties tests” for these positions, which remain a critical factor in determining overtime exemption. The updated “standard salary level” threshold necessary to exempt an employee from FLSA overtime pay requirements will be $35,568 annually. Employees who are “exempt” are not entitled to overtime pay for hours worked over 40 in a workweek and, consequently, are not required to track hours worked.
The Office of Human Resources recently completed a review of approximately 1,400 Clemson University positions and has made determinations regarding overtime exemption status based on the DOL’s new rule. During this review, the following factors were considered:
Whether or not the duties listed on the employee’s position description meet the duties test for executive, academic administrative, administrative, computer or professional exemptions as defined by the DOL’s regulations.
Whether or not the employee is paid on a salaried basis.
Whether or not the employee earns $35,568 or more annually.
Because exemptions are based on all three of these criteria, many employees making above $35,568 will remain FLSA “nonexempt,” meaning they will continue to track their time worked and will be eligible for overtime pay.
What’s next?
This week, approximately 300 employees whose FLSA status is changing to “exempt” will receive a communication from the Office of Human Resources explaining the rule and detailing any changes. Each employee’s supervisor will be copied on the message.
Exemption status changes will become effective Dec. 15, 2019.
Employees whose positions are FLSA “exempt” are not eligible to receive overtime pay for hours worked over 40 in a workweek. Additionally, these employees are not required to track their hours worked in Kronos or on a time sheet.
Clemson University invites you to attend the 38th annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. celebration. The theme for this year’s celebration is 2020 Vision: Looking Back, Moving Forward. First organized at the University in 1982, the MLK celebration includes a variety of programs for the campus and the community to reflect on the legacy of Dr. King and its application in our society today.
There will be a blood drive on Jan. 20 from 11 p.m. to 4 p.m. in Hendrix Meeting Rooms A & B.
On Jan. 21, a commemorative service will be held with a keynote speech delivered by President Emerita of Johnson C. Smith University and Shaw University Dorothy Yancy. The service will be at 6 p.m. in the Brooks Center for the Performing Arts. It is free to the public.
Dorothy Yancy
On Jan. 23, the Tunnel of Oppression will be open from noon to 6 p.m. in Hendrix Ballrooms A & B. The Tunnel of Oppression is a simulated depiction of real-life scenarios relating to issues of oppression faced by marginalized communities. The depictions are acted out by members of the campus community. Scripts are submitted for the event and the winners who are selected will win a monetary award.
Volunteers are needed to serve in a variety of roles for the Tunnel of Oppression. To volunteer, sign up here.
Refer to the 2020 MLK Celebration page for additional updates and information.
More than 1,300 students will receive Clemson University degrees in two graduation ceremonies on Thursday, Dec. 19. They are scheduled for 9:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. in Littlejohn Coliseum. In addition, Ph.D. candidates will participate in a doctoral hooding ceremony at 3 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 18, in the Brooks Center for the Performing Arts.
Magnetometers will be present at all gates to Littlejohn Coliseum and the university’s clear bag policy will be in effect for both graduation ceremonies. Guest services, stroller/walker check-in and first aid will be located in Burton Gallery, the south entrance to the coliseum.
Graduates will be grouped into one of two ceremonies through the various academic colleges as follows:
9:30 a.m.
Behavioral, Social and Health Sciences
Education
Engineering, Computing and Applied Sciences
1:30 p.m.
Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences
Architecture, Arts and Humanities
Business
Science
PARKING/TRAFFIC Visitor parking will be available in commuter lots around the coliseum, including C-3 and R-3 adjacent to Perimeter Road (Silas Pearman Boulevard). Parking is for graduation staff is reserved along the Avenue of Champions and across from the Tiger statue near the east gate in the C-9 lot on Centennial Boulevard.
Due to the installation of underground utilities on Perimeter Road between the C-1 parking lot and Cherry Road, attendees should use Walter T. Cox Boulevard (Highway 93) to come to graduation. Visit the university’s interactive facilities map for all construction impacts during graduation.
FACULTY Swann Pavilion is accessible to graduates and working staff only. Attending faculty are invited to enter the VIP entrance to Littlejohn at the southeast corner and follow directions to the Coliseum Club for processional and seating.
WORKING STAFF Staff members assigned to work at graduation will enter from the loading dock along the Avenue of Champions. Magnetometers will be present at the loading dock as well. Check-in is inside the loading dock, where staff will receive a wristband to access areas inside the venue.
The Office of Human Resources will partner with AnMed Health to bring mobile mammography services to Clemson University’s main campus throughout 2020. The AnMed Health Mobile Mammography Coach will provide AnMed’s powerful cancer screening technology and expertise at a convenient on-campus location.
The Mobile Mammography Coach will be parked off Fernow Street beside Riggs Hall from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. on the following dates:
(Access the links above to view these events in the University Calendar and add them to your personal calendar.)
Appointments may be scheduled through AnMed Health. To schedule your appointment, call 864.512.2255. This service may still be accessed without a scheduled appointment.
Don’t wait Routine mammograms are an important component of healthful living. Mammograms help detect breast cancer early when it’s most treatable.
Don’t work on or near main campus? You’re not out of convenient mammography resources! Contact your local health department to learn more about mammography services near you. The State Health Plan for covered Clemson employees provides one baseline routine mammogram (four views) for women ages 35-39. Women ages 40 and older can receive one routine mammogram (four views) each calendar year. The State Health Plan also covers any diagnostic mammograms, which are subject to patient liability.
Stop the Bleed is a national awareness campaign aimed at equipping, training and encouraging members of the general public to help in the event of a massive traumatic event until professional medical help arrives. Its mantra is simple: the only thing more tragic than a death… is a death that could have been prevented.
Sgt. Charles Burks (right) wraps a tourniquet around Lt. Chris Harrington’s arm.
Clemson University has joined the movement over the past few years. In 2017, Clemson Undergraduate Student Government (CUSG) worked with staff from the university’s public safety teams to purchase trauma kits. The first four kits — complete with a tourniquet and compression bandage — were installed that fall in Hendrix Student Center and Robert M. Cooper Library. Since that time, 34 additional kits have been installed in administrative and academic buildings throughout Clemson’s campus.
“Applying a pressure bandage and tourniquet can save a life, even if it’s just one,” said Capt. Bill Shivar of the Clemson University Fire Department (CUFD) and Emergency Medical Services. “But it involves taking action during both a physically and mentally traumatic opportunity.”
Trauma kits have been installed in highly concentrated areas on Clemson’s campus. Officials have purposefully installed the kits in visible areas so the public is accustomed to seeing them and knowing where they are located. Shivar said CUFD is working with information technology to try and build an interactive map for trauma kit locations through the my.Clemson app.
“We want people to see that big red kit and automatically know what it means and where to find it in the event it’s ever needed,” said Sgt. Charles Burks of the Clemson University Police Department (CUPD).
Shivar and Burks were among four instructors who delivered a pilot training program on Dec. 5 to a select group of building security coordinators. They were joined by Jennifer Thackston of CUFD and Lt. Chris Harrington from CUPD.
Donna Jervis (left) watches as Jennifer Thackston adjusts a tourniquet on her arm.
The training was based on a structured curriculum from the Department of Homeland Security that allows all persons to be able to intervene in the event of a traumatic event. Overarching goals of the training focused on how to identify life-threatening bleeding and to stop it. Participants learned the ABCs of bleeding control: Alert 911; Bleeding – find the source by looking for a high and continuous volume of blood; and Compress – apply direct pressure to the wound until medical help arrives.
The instructors hope to use the pilot training to gather feedback from participants and will begin scheduling courses through the Tiger Training platform for the 2020 spring semester with students, faculty and staff.
“The main thing we want the campus community to know is that anyone can be trained to intervene in a situation involving massive bleeding,” Thackston said. “It takes a first responder an average of seven to 10 minutes to respond to a massive traumatic event, so the ability to lend help until EMS arrives on the scene is immeasurable. Our public safety teams are proud to partner together to offer this important program to the university.”
The organizers of the 2020 Clemson University Women’s Leadership Conference are seeking session facilitators for the March 7 event.
The conference, with the theme “Nothing Less,” is a platform for discussing gender issues and an opportunity to build leadership capacity and efficacy.
Anyone is welcome to apply to lead one of the hour-long concurrent sessions. Fill out the Presentation Proposal Form by 11:59 p.m. Dec. 13. Apply here: http://bit.ly/WLC20.
Educational sessions will relate to topics around empowering women, gender issues and leadership. All presentation ideas will be considered by a committee comprised of undergraduate students, graduate students, staff and faculty.
Here are some theme suggestions to help promote ideas; prospective presenters are encouraged to find a topic or theme that works best for them.
Feminism
Inclusivity/Awareness
Wellness
Confidence-Building
Empowerment/Leadership Development
Action/Activism
Allyship
Education/Professional Growth
Applicants will be notified by Jan. 22 of the committee’s decision.
Clemson University will conduct an academic continuity eLearning exercise Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2020, and all classes will be taught online that day. The exercise will focus on assessing the University’s instructors’ readiness and ability to deliver instruction using online tools and methods, and instructional strategies appropriate for situations where face-to-face instruction is not possible.
Faculty and staff who teach will be involved in the exercise, and only face-to-face instruction will be moved online. Because the focus of the exercise is to assess teaching readiness, for staff who do not teach, Feb. 19 will be business as usual. The University will remain open to everyone and for all other business.
Classes will resume their normal schedules and mode of delivery on Thursday, Feb. 20, 2020. Should you have questions or concerns about this announcement, contact Constancio Nakuma, Associate Provost for Academic Affairs at cnakuma@clemson.edu.
The Clemson University Bookstore invites you to their annual Faculty and Staff Appreciation Day on December 6th from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
During this time, all university faculty and staff will receive 20% off all regularly priced items. The event will also include free refreshments and two drawings for door prizes. DJ Supa Man will be on hand to provide holiday music and host a Clemson Trivia contest from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m., where the winner will receive a grand prize.
