Keiser University Newsletter from the

Student Services Department

2101 NW 117 Avenue Miami, FL 33172 Phone: 305-596-2226 Fax: 305-596-7077

Website: www.keiseruniversity.edu

Lorraine V. Beach Campus President

lbeach@keiseruniversity.edu

Dr. Cristy Sibila Dean of Academic Affairs

csibila@keiseruniversity.edu

Christina Caras Director of Admissions

ccaras@keiseruniversity.edu

Ruben Lugo Director of Financial Aid Rlugo@keiseruniversity.edu

Carmen M. Perez-Padrón Director of Student Services

cperez@keiseruniversity.edu

September 2020 MIAMI CAMPUS

Message from KU Miami Campus President Lorraine Beach:

Welcome New Students and Welcome Back students, faculty, and staff!

Fall of 2020 is very different this year! We have worked together to create a learning environment

that allows students and faculty to remain engaged remotely in the teaching and learning

experience while having opportunities to meet in person as appropriate and safe.

We also have launched the Greatness Leadership Initiative! What a great opportunity for us to

think about what leadership means to us and to practice applying our own leadership skills and

concepts collaboratively!

Our campus, our community, and our lives have changed, and I am so proud of how well you have

all adapted and adjusted! You have risen to the added challenges presented by this pandemic and

have championed through.

You have become zoom experts and are super flexible with scheduling. I am enjoying the evening

zoom sessions with students and faculty to catch up and check in. While you are not on campus as

often as you were pre-pandemic, it is nice to see you when you are here.

Masks…. who would have ever thought that would become a fashion statement??? Additionally –

who would have thought there would be “mask protocols”. When to where them, how to wear

them, how to direct others to wear them…

If you had told me one year ago that I would be writing this deep in the midst of a pandemic I would

not have been able to conceptualize what that meant.

One important take away for me about this is, however, that we are truly in this together and I am

so proud of how the entire Keiser University Miami community has pulled together to support one

another and our students. Thank you!!

Students First at Keiser University Miami!!

COMMUNITY RESOURCES

FOOD SHORTAGES: Feeding South Florida Website: https://feedingsouthflorida.org/covid19/ has a number of sites around the area that

are providing food for those in need. You can also give them a call at 954-518-1818.

HELP WITH SCHOOL AGED KIDS: Miami Dade County Public Schools provides a website with resources for helping families with

children who are learning at home: https://coovid19.dadeschools.net/#!/fullWidth/3024

LOOKING FOR A NEW JOB OR ASSISTANCE SPEAKING WITH YOUR EMPLOYER: Check out Career Source South Florida website,

www.careersourcesfl.com or call 305-594-7615 ext. 1526. Current students/graduates looking for job placement assistance can contact

the Student Services Department.

QUESTIONS ABOUT GOVERNMENT SERVICES OR COMMUNITY NON-PROFITS: in Miami Dade County, dial 3-1-1 or 305-468-5900,

you can also call the United Way 24/7 at 2-1-1 or 800-226-3320.

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What Happens to the Money? Contributed by Geoff Stam, Director of Default Management and Financial Literacy

Do you ever ask yourself the question, where did the money go each month? Maybe you ask why you are falling short financially or struggling to get ahead. What do you need to do financially to be at least on even terms with your money at the end of each month? Or, are you just trying to figure out how to move yourself forward financially to achieve your monetary goals? If you are asking yourself these questions, establishing a budget can help you track your spending and get you on track to meet your financial goals. Creating a budget may not be “fun,” but it can help empower you when it comes to your money.

To set up a budget, there are a few steps that you need to take. Each step is important to the process, so don’t skip any, or the budget you build may not find the success you seek!

Step 1; determine your goals. What do you want to accomplish with your money and your budget? Start with shorter term goals; saving for emergencies (especially right now), getting through the semester with some money left over, buying a new car, a vacation, paying off debt, or making sure you are breaking even at the end of the budget period. Also consider your long-term goals such as a new home, a child’s college, retirement. Prioritize your goals and determine what you will need to save to reach them. Using SMART goals can help:

S for Specific; clearly defined and concise. M for Measurable; create measuring points to make sure you stay on task. A for Attainable/Realistic; something you can reach or complete. R for Relevance; what is important to you as an individual. T for Time-framed; establish a time to complete the goal.

Step 2; identify your income and expenses. To build a budget that meets your financial behaviors but still accomplishes your goal, you need to clearly understand what money you have to work with. Track your monthly income; wages, salary, tips, allowances, child support, or any other forms of earnings so you know what you have to work with.

Next track down all your expenses, from housing (rent, mortgage) down to the vending machine beverage you bought with lunch. To help find where you can make some changes in your spending, divide the expenses into 2 categories; fixed (do not change month to month like savings (“pay me first!!”) housing, insurance, child care) and variable (items you can adjust your spending on with changes in behavior like food, coffee, utilities, cable TV, phones, entertainment.) Keep in mind out-of-pattern expenses like house repair, car repair, holiday gifts and so on. A spending diary is a priceless tool to track your expenses!

Now do the math. Income less expenses determines your net discretionary funds. To get ahead, you should be making more than you are spending. If you are spending more than you are earning, it’s time to make some changes to how you are spending your money! Go back to the variable expenses and change some behaviors!

I will be hosting webinars covering more details on this subject (budgeting), credit and student loans throughout the semester. Check your Student Services calendar on Blackboard for details on dates and times for each topic. I can be reached directly at gstam@keiseruniversity.edu or 904-238-

3099.

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Keiser University – The Greatness Leadership Initiative

Hosted by: Don Yaeger

Program Fact Sheet

• In response to COVID-19, Keiser University has initiated The Greatness Leadership Initiative to aid our Campus Communities to, “Transform the World in the Face of Change.”

• The Greatness Leadership Initiative is a comprehensive 12-week leadership course that will be offered to

students as a 1-credit hour course starting on 8/31/2020 o Students who are starting with Keiser University on 8/3/20 (20SD-1M) and 8/31/20 (20FA) will be auto

enrolled into the program as a benefit and feature of the University.

• The Faculty/Staff/Admin at KU campuses will nominate at least 40% of the student body to participate in this program.

o Formal Invitations will be sent via email/mail to nominated students for RSVP o After the RSVP deadline, the program will allow enrollments of the rest of the student population.

• All KU Staff/Faculty/Administration will be allowed to enroll into the program for professional development

credit.

• The course will be coded as LDR 0001 – The Greatness Leadership Initiative in Campus Nexus and will be deployed in Blackboard by the CDT on 8/31 for all students who have been enrolled.

• The course will show up on all enrollees’ schedules for the 20FA Semester.

• Each campus will have their own shell of the course that will be facilitated by the Dean, SSD and faculty

members that have been selected.

• The course consists of 8 weeks of content including 2 LIVE sessions per week (in most weeks) with Don Yaeger and the Campus Community. Weeks 9-12 will consist of LIVE interviews with Don and very Special Guests.

• Students will earn credit for the following items which totals to a minimum of 3 to 4 hours per week.

o Attending Live Sessions (2 per week) (45 mins per session) (hosted on ZOOM) ▪ Facilitated by Dr. Peluso, Shyam Mistry, Dr. Record or another appointed individual.

o Discussion Board Post o Journal Assignment o Certificates will be earned on a Bronze, Silver, Gold scale based of level of participation.

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Student Government Association

Attention Miami Seahawks!

Get involved in your campus! Contact Michelle Acosta, Student Services Coordinator for more information,

Micacosta@keiseruniversity.edu. Join SGA! There are no membership dues or GPA requirements. There

will be monthly meetings, activities to help in and community outreach opportunities to get involved in. Meet

with Campus leaders and meet other students while being a voice for your campus. Do you have ideas to

make the campus a better place? Take this opportunity to get involved on campus while building your

leadership experience that you can add to your resume. Have a voice and make an impact!

President: Xavier Aguilar Vice President: Kevin Cardenas

Secretary: Adianiz Hernandez Treasurer: Vacant

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Are you a military veteran or still serving in the military? If you have any questions please see our VA Certifying Official, Ruben Lugo, in Financial Aid. If you need assistance outside of the University about resources or counseling services please see our Vet

Center Representative, Jorge Martinez, that visits the campus monthly or feel free to contact him at (305)715-3712 or Jorge.Martinez2@va.gov.

Miami Vet Center is located at 8280 NW 27th Street Suite 511, Doral, FL 33122 www.vetcenter.va.gov

Need Health Insurance? You have options whether it’s just for your clinical rotations (allied health programs) or in general. Student Health Insurance have accident only coverage for those that are in allied health core classes where you are required to have some sort of health insurance coverage that will cover you while at your clinical rotations/externships. For more information, access information online at: http://www.insuranceforstudents.com. KU is listed under the college/university plans.

Referral Services 2-1-1 Referral Information 2-1-1 provides free and confidential information and referral. Call 2-1-1 for help with food, housing, employment, health care, counseling and more. 2-1-1 can be found online at www.211.org

Jobs…Jobs….and more Jobs….

Check out the announcements bulletin board outside of the Student Services

Department for job fairs and job posting flyers that are posted regularly. These

are hot jobs sent directly to Student Services from various employers.

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Keiser University Information Hotline

1-877-353-4737

Call before/after hurricanes to see if our campus is open.

Check out our social media and like our page @KeiserU Follow us, post your pictures, tag @keiserU and use

#KUMiami to get featured.