In Brief: Chief HR officer to speak at Staff Council meeting, International ShakeOut Day spotlights earthquake safety
Helena Rodrigues, senior vice president and chief human resources officer
Jessica Thornburg, senior director of strategy and special projects, Office of Strategic Initiatives
In the event of an earthquake, the Earthquake Country Alliance says to drop onto your hands and knees, cover your head and neck with one arm and hand, crawl under a sturdy desk or table, and hold on until the shaking stops.
Staff Council to hear about HR initiatives, Project Management Community
Helena Rodrigues, senior vice president and chief human resources officer, and Diane Brennan, associate vice president for human resources, will speak about HR initiatives at the next meeting of the University of Arizona Staff Council. The two will also discuss the Senior Human Resources Partners program, which connects units throughout campus to human resources professionals who can assist with issues including conflict management, Career Conversations, University policy navigation and more.
The Oct. 31 meeting begins at 2 p.m. The full agenda will be posted online once it is finalized.
Jessica Thornburg, senior director of strategy and special projects in the Office of Strategic Initiatives, will also speak at the meeting to share details on the new Project Management Community, which will provide networking, collaboration and professional development opportunities for University project managers. The group held a kickoff event at the end of September.
The Staff Council is a shared governance organization that represents University Staff and Classified Staff. The council meets via Zoom the last Tuesday of each month throughout the year. Meetings are open to all employees.
More information about the Staff Council can be found on the council's website. Anyone interested in becoming a Staff Council representative can apply online. Those who want more information can contact Melanie Madden, Staff Council chair and program manager for curricular affairs in Academic Administration.
Practice earthquake safety with the Great Arizona ShakeOut
Millions of people throughout the world will practice earthquake safety by taking part in International ShakeOut Day on Oct. 19. Those interested can participate in a two-minute "drop, cover and hold on" drill at 10:19 a.m. to practice how to protect themselves during an earthquake.
The Earthquake Country Alliance, which organizes the Great ShakeOut, provides this guidance for what to do in the event of an earthquake: Drop onto your hands and knees, cover your head and neck with one arm and hand, crawl under a sturdy desk or table, and hang on until the shaking stops. If there is nothing sturdy to crawl under, hold onto your head and neck with both arms and hands.
Numerous active faults have been mapped and thousands of earthquakes have been recorded throughout the state, said Chad Kwiatkowski, research scientist with the Arizona Geological Survey. They can be viewed on the Arizona Natural Hazard Viewer.
More than 39,000 people have registered to participate in the Great Arizona ShakeOut, which is Arizona's version of the event. Those looking to take part in the drill can find more information on how to participate and register online.