Congratulations on your new position and welcome to Ohio University! We recognize that taking on a new role, working for a new institution, and living in a new area each comes with unique challenges for employees. We’ve compiled a variety of information below to help new employees become acquainted with the University, get involved, and be successful. Should you have any questions or concerns at any point during your time at Ohio University, please let us know and we will gladly connect you with the appropriate resources!
| PAPERWORK & PREPARATION | NEW HIRE WELCOME | BENEFITS |
| RETIREMENT OPTIONS | TRANSPORTATION & PARKING | ONBOARDING RESOURCES |
Paperwork and Preparation
You will receive an email from the Employee Service Center ( uhr@ohio.edu ) with important steps to complete before you arrive. A New Hire Paperworkpacket will be attached to the email.
Paperwork Tips
- Leave the "Employee ID number" blank
- Complete I-9 and tax information. Federal regulations require that page 1 of your I-9 be completed no later than your first day of work.
- After completing page 1 of your I-9 form, review the I-9 list of acceptable documents to determine which identification documents are acceptable. Gather the required documents. (All documents must be original; no copies or digital images will be accepted).
- Schedule an appointment to have your I-9 documents reviewed or visit with staff on hand at your New Hire Welcome session.
- Athens-based employees: Schedule an appointment to bring your documents to the Employee Service Center at 103 Grosvenor West Wing, Athens, OH 45701.
- Regional Campus employees: Schedule an appointment to bring documents to the designated location for your campus.
- Remote employees: Follow instructions you received in the email from uhr@ohio.edu .
- If acceptable documentation is not shared with an approved I-9 Reviewer within the first 3 business days of your employment, you may not continue working.
- The “SSA–1945” form requires a physical signature. This can be done by either printing and physically signing the form or using the hand drawn signature option in Adobe.
- The packet may be uploaded to the Human Resources secure upload site .
Email uhr@ohio.edu or call 740-593-1636 with questions or if you did not receive this email.
Flexible Work Schedule
- As a matter of work-life balance, Ohio university supports a progressive work culture that embraces diversity and provides, where appropriate, flexible work schedules, flexible hours, and flexible work location options. View HR's Guidelines for Flexible Work Schedule, Flexible Hours, and Flexplace for further details.
- Given the University’s requirement to appropriately tax each individual employee and our institutional direction towards a more flexible workforce, the University will implement state and municipal tax withholding for each location in which the University has employees located, including remote workers, on campus employees, and employees with split work locations. Employees working in campus locations will have withholding for that municipality. Employees working remotely will have state and local withholding for their home/work location. All employees are expected to keep their arrangements up to date using the FlexWork Tracker within My Personal Information (MPI).
New Hire Welcome
We are so excited to welcome you to the OHIO community! If you are a benefits-eligible employee, please attend the New Hire Welcome that has been scheduled for you.
If you are attending in-person:
Your welcome session will be held in the Grosvenor West Building at 16 West Green Dr., Athens, OH 45701 (Building #124 on the Athens campus map ). When you arrive, park in Lot #112 (circled on the map below). You should see a sign for "New Hire Welcome” next to this lot. If space is not available, or if your orientation is in a location other than Grosvenor West, you may park in any dark green or purple lot if your welcome week parking permit is displayed on the dash of your car.
Please arrive at 8:15 AM and check-in at the lobby. Beverages and light pastry items will be available and representatives from Human Resources will be there to review your I-9 documents and answer questions. Our workshop will start promptly at 8:30 AM.
Please bring the following items with you:
- Original I-9 documents
- Temporary parking permit that was emailed to you by Parking Services (display on your car dash)
- Completed New Hire Paperwork Packet (if not already submitted)
- Government issued photo ID card (required to obtain an OHIO ID card).
- Pen, paper or other note-taking items
If you are attending remotely via Microsoft Teams:
Please click on the Teams meeting invitation that was sent to you 15 minutes prior to the start of your workshop so you can review the pre-meeting instructions and so we can register your attendance. Our workshop will start promptly at 8:30 AM.
Please have the following items with you:
- Pen, paper or other note-taking items
Benefits
Core benefits include health, vision, dental/orthodontia insurance, prescription drug benefits, employee and dependent life insurance, and short and long-term disability coverage. Health and dependent day care flexible spending accounts are also available.
- Benefits are not automatic, you must enroll online within 31 daysof your start date using My Personal Information and selecting Self Service Benefits
- View the 2024-25 Benefits Summary [PDF] for a high level overview of health care and other supplemental benefits as well as retirement.
Enrollment Tips
- If covering a dependent who is a former or existing OHIO employee or student, Human Resources will need to link the dependent to your record. Call 740-593-1636 or email benefits@ohio.edu prior to enrolling
- Use " child" for children, do not use daughter/son
- Be sure to choose only ONE option per plan, you will need to uncheck "waive" and check the appropriate box of your chosen coverage
- Certifications are required for all covered dependents (Marriage certificate, birth certificate, etc.)
- Email benefits@ohio.edu when you've completed your enrollments so they can be processed. (Enrollments will show in "suspended" mode until processed by the Benefits Office).
- You may make changes to your benefits if you experience a family status change or during our annual Benefits Open Enrollment period held in the Spring
- The benefit plan year is July 1st through June 30th
- Coverage is effective on your first day of employment, retroactive premiums will be charged
- PPO coverage through Anthem includes prescription drug coverage through CVS Caremark
- Once enrolled, your information is sent on a weekly file to our benefit vendors who generate ID cards. ID cards can take 10-14 days to receive via US Mail
ID Cards
- Medical and/or Dental cards from Anthem are issued in the employee's name as well as each covered dependent
- Prescription cards from CVS Caremark are in the employee's name only
- Vision ID cards are not issued by VSP (Vision Service Plan), visit our Vision Coverage page for more details
- Medical ID cards are also available on Anthem's Sydney app
- Prescription ID cards can be found by creating a CVS Caremark Account or downloading the CVS Caremark app
Helpful Benefits Links
- Adoption Assistance
- Coverage Details
- Educational Benefits
- Employee Assistance Program
- Employee Health & Wellness
- How to Enroll
- Parental Leave
- Provider Contacts
- Time Off
- Wellbeing at OHIO
Retirement Options
You have 120 days from your start date to decide whether to enroll in the state plan STRS (State Teachers Retirement System), OPERS (Ohio Public Employees Retirement System), or the ARP (Alternative Retirement Plan)
- STRS or ARP for Faculty
- OPERS or ARP for Staff
Visit the Retirement Options for New Hires page for more details.
Helpful Retirement Links
- Retirement Plan Election form [PDF]
- Benefits Secure Upload site
- Ohio University Approved Retirement Providers
- Supplemental Retirement Accounts (403b and 457 plans)
- OPERS site -Selecting Your Retirement Plan
- STRS site -Selecting Your Plan
- Social Security
Transportation and Parking
Ohio University boasts a pedestrian friendly campus offering transportation solutions connecting users to campus, local, and regional travel destinations. An important part of preparing for your time on the Ohio University Athens Campus is planning for campus parking and access.
Hassle-Free Parking for New Faculty and Staff
Transportation and Parking Services will email a complimentary temporary parking permit to your home email address the Friday before your Welcome Session. This permit is good in all regular, non-metered, non-restricted spaces within dark green & purple lots for the entire week of your welcome session. Please look for this permit in your email and display it on the dash of your car when you arrive. If you request and receive an annual parking permit before the end of your first week, just destroy the temporary permit and use your new permit instead.
Annual Parking Permit Determination for New Hires
New Faculty and Staff are encouraged to carefully evaluate parking options to decide which option best fits their working arrangement. A valid permit or paid meter is required when parking on the Athens campus. For your convenience, benefits-eligible employees can purchase a standard annual parking permit, good in all dark green and purple lots, with pre-tax payroll deductions of $150/year.
If you opt-in to a standard annual parking permit:
Annual permits are available to full-time and part-time benefits eligible employees via pre-tax payroll deduction. Permits are issued per fiscal year and fees are deducted based on payroll cycles. The Standard Dark Green/Purple parking permit allows access to regular non-metered, non-restricted spaces within dark green or purple parking lots on campus. All dark green and purple lots require a parking permit Monday-Friday 7AM-5PM. These permits are also valid in campus priority lots after 5PM and on weekends. For parking locations please view the campus parking map .
If you opt out of a standard annual parking permit:
By opting out of the annual parking permit, you are no longer able to purchase the annual parking permit with payroll deductions until the next annual renewal period. If parking is needed, options include paying $150 out-of-pocket for a non-prorated annual permit, hourly parking at meters or pay-by-space areas, or purchasing a daily or monthly printable permit through the parking portal . Each of these options would require payment at the time of purchase.
Complete the New Hire Parking Permit Determination Form:
Use the New Hire Parking Permit Determination Form to notify Transportation and Parking Services of your decision regarding an annual parking permit as soon as possible, but no later than the Friday following your start date. Failure to respond by this deadline will result in being automatically opted out of the annual parking fee deduction for the current fiscal year.
If you have questions or concerns regarding campus parking or transportation options, please contact TPS Customer Care by phone, 740-593-1917, text 740-593-4040, or e-mail at tps@ohio.edu .
Onboarding Resources
Links to important OHIO Resources:
- Accessibility Services
- Affinity Organizations
- Bobcat Depot
- Collective Bargaining Agreements (AFSCME 1699, AFSCME 3200 and FOP)
- Culinary Services Faculty & Staff Meal Plans
- Diversity & Inclusion
- Employee Assistance Program
- Employee Health & Wellness
- Equity & Civil Rights Compliance
- Faculty Handbook
- Featured Services
- Health Navigator
- Human Resources Forms
- Human Resources - Who is my HR liaison?
- Lactation Room locations - Athens and Regional campuses
- Multicultural Center
- Ohio Ethics Hotline 1-866-294-9591
- Ohio Information Technology
- Ombuds Office
- Performance Management
- Policy and Procedure Manual
- Professional Development
- Transportation & Parking
- Well-being & Recreation
HR email contacts:
- Benefits: benefits@ohio.edu
- Employee Service Center: uhr@ohio.edu
- Payroll: payroll@ohio.edu
OHIO ID Card
If you have not already received your university ID card, stop at the Bobcat Depot on the first floor of Baker University Center (Building #23 on the map). Follow the dashed blue line if walking there from Grosvenor West. While there, check out the great selection of Ohio University apparel, gifts, technology, and other ite ms!
Faculty Resources
Faculty Success
Watermark’s Faculty Success is a digital tool intended to collect and house important data for the University. Watermark Faculty Success organizes and builds reports on teaching, research, and service activities. This allows users to keep track of their activity information.
Academic units across Ohio University have utilized Faculty Success for a variety of reasons including (but not limited to) tracking research, tracking faculty contributions, and building annual evaluation documents.
New Faculty Welcome
Hosted by the Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost, the OHIO New Faculty Welcome provides critical information, resources, and support for new faculty joining any of Ohio University's campuses.
The event, offered just prior to the start of Fall semester, offers information regarding critical processes and procedures, student support and success, promotion and tenure, tapping resources that support teaching and research, and key introductions to University contacts.
Executive Vice President and Provost
The Executive Vice President and Provost is the chief academic officer of the university and oversees all academic programs, resource allocation and student success. The EVPP works with the deans, faculty and staff to ensure that students have high-quality learning experiences inside and outside of the classroom.
Vice Provost for Faculty Development
We play a key role in ensuring that academic excellence and high professional standards are hallmarks of Ohio University. Responsibilities include processes for program and curricular changes; academic program review and assessment; faculty hiring, promotion, and tenure; student tuition appeals and more. The office provides valuable resources for new and established faculty; deans, chairs, and directors; and students.
Ohio Information Technology Resources
- Setting up your OHIO ID account
- Enrolling in Multi-factor authentication (MFA)
Everyone with an OHIO ID is required to enroll in Azure MFA to protect their sensitive information. The enrollment process takes approximately ten minutes and requires both a computer and a phone. - Phones, voicemail and faxing
- Getting OIT help