Services

The UNL Agronomy and Horticulture Office Professionals provide expertise in the following areas:

Financial Assistance

• Coordinating travel arrangements and expense reimbursement
• Completing purchasing card transactions forms
• Processing non-travel expense reimbursements
• Purchasing office supplies and non-chemical products
• Completing Industry Income Forms

General Office Services

• Assisting with copy and print projects (including ordering business cards and poster orders)
• Creating and updating newsletters, flyers, brochures and proceedings
• Entering data via Excel and Access
• Making conference room and conference phone reservations
• Organizing and supporting seminars and events
• Reserving university automobiles
• Proofing and editing manuscripts
• Scanning documents
• Sending faxes
• Sending letters and packages via FedEx, UPS, and USPS
• Typing and word processing

Teaching, Research, and Extension Support

• Arranging conferences, field days, field trips, seminars, short courses, and workshops
• Gleaning information from MyRed
• Navigating and updating Blackboard
• Providing course support
• Distance education assistance via PASSeL (eLibrary) and Blackboard

Technology

• Arranging "Bridge" conference calls
• Developing PowerPoint presentations
• Creating and updating department webpages
• Posting to Blackboard
• Starting equipment for conference and polycom calls

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Who We Are

The UNL Agronomy & Horticulture Office Associates or “Office Professionals” are a pool of staff members who assist faculty, staff, and students with their efforts on behalf of the department, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and the citizens of Nebraska. We promote the department in a positive way, aim to deliver a high-quality work product in a timely manner, and provide great customer service to on-campus and off-campus clients.  Our balloon graphic on this page is to remind faculty, staff, and students that the Office Pros are here to lighten their workload.  In short, we are here to help.

While we are cross-trained to assist with multiple job tasks, many of us work in specialty areas or have favorite types of work that we like to do.  We are located in 279 Plant Sciences Hall and 202 Keim Hall.

The Office Professionals include:

Fran Benne, 472-8747, 279 PLSH
Fran enjoys using her creative skills to create and edit files, pictures, and graphics, through the Adobe Creative Suite.  She also assists with pre-trip travel arrangements and travel expense voucher reimbursements when employees and student return from trips.  She helps the Department Activities and Entertainment Committee, purchases supplies, keeps track of the copy counts for the university's cost-per-copy program, and makes phone and data port requests. Fran completes many general office requests.

Kat Cockrill, 472-1503, 279 PLSH
Kat creates and maintains Blackboard course sites.  She makes proficient use of Photoshop, InDesign, Word, Excel, WordPerfect, and Adobe Acrobat for revising and/or creating all manner of course materials (course manuals, worksheets, spreadsheets, graphs, charts, illustrations, photos, etc.).  She purchases supplies via eShop and with the UNL Purchasing card (P-card), revises manuscripts, sits on the Safety Committee, and completes many general office duties.

Nicole Kobus, 472-2811, 202 Keim
Nicole greets and provides assistance to visitors, faculty, staff and students by phone, e-mail, or in person. She schedules conference rooms,maintains department lists and emails, completes Blackboard requests, coordinates manuscript movement of copy, processes travel and reimbursements, purchases supplies, and serves as a Building Maintenance Reporter.  She provides assistance to the Department Head, Assistant to the Department Head, Facilities Coordinator, Business Manager, and Personnel Generalist.  She also serves on the department Awards Committee.

Kathy Schindler, 472-1508, 279 PLSH
As the Office Supervisor, Kathy distributes work after it arrives in the office.  She enjoys writing and editing documents, creating and updating webpages, and working with the department curriculum committee.  She serves as backup to the assistant to the department head (including working with Visiting Scientists and faculty candidate interviews).

Nes Vance, 472-5138, 279 PLSH
Nes greets people and provides assistance as they arrive in 279 PLSH. She collects and distributes mail as well as coordinate delivery of packages.  She helps organize the department's seminar series during the academic year.  Nes also assists with pre-trip travel arrangements and travel expense reimbursements.  She schedules conference rooms, purchases supplies via eShop, completes Blackboard requests, serves as a Building Maintenance Reporter for Plant Sciences Hall, and completes many general office duties.
 

 
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Goodding Learning Center

Diane Nolan, 472-1515, 280 PLSH
Diane is the computer information assistant in the Goodding Center.  She assists faculty, staff and students with computer, printing, and technology issues. She also provides support on Blackboard and the PASSeL e-Library.  Diane is president of the department's re-established Staff Advisory Committee (SAC). 

 

Student Services Center

Our new Student Services Center is in operation with Marlene Busse and Ashley Hartman staffing the center.  The goal of this student-centered office is to provide a resource center to Department of Agronomy and Horticulture graduate and undergraduate students.  Students may obtain information and forms, and staff will be able to help students reach their faculty advisors.  Watch for an open house coming later this fall.

Marlene Busse, 472-1560, 279K PLSH
Marlene assists students with finding resources, information, and forms.  She works with the Schedule of Classes, class rosters and textbook orders.  With extensive experience working with graduate students, Marlene collects graduate student applications and organizes department scholarship applications for the Graduate and Scholarship committees respectively.  Marlene serves on the department Recruitment and Retention Committee.

Ashley Hartman, 472-1730, 279J PLSH
Ashley serves as a resource for graduate and undergraduate students. She works extensively with distance education students and classes.  She provides distance education support for certificate programs and AG*IDEA classes.  Ashley also sits on the department Retention & Recruitment Committee..

Helpful web pages for Department of Agronomy & Horticulture students include:

1. the department's webpage for Prospective Undergraduate Students,
2. the CASNR Undergraduate Academic Bulletin,
3. the Transfer Course Equivalency web page,
4. and the UNL Graduate Bulletin.

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Frequently Asked Question (FAQs)

1. How does the Office Pool work?
   Contact Kathy Schindler, office supervisor, at 472-1508 to discuss work requests. She assigns the request to an Office Associate based on the nature of the work, the pool’s current workload, the due date, and the Office Associate’s skill set.
2. How do I get assistance with classes on Blackboard?
   The Office Associates need to be added in Blackboard as either Teaching Assistants (T.A.s) or Course Builders. Please contact Kathy Schindler at 472-1508 to get help from an Office Associate. Our Blackboard expert is Kat Cockrill.
3. Who must sign my expense voucher?
   When requesting reimbursement for work-related travel or purchases, the employee and the owner of the cost object account number must both sign the expense voucher. This person is usually the professor, supervisor or administrator that the employee works for, but occasionally it is someone in another department or building.  The department head, business manager, or deans may also sign the voucher depending on the funding source.
4. How does the university mail system work?
   USPS mail is delivered to UNL East Campus on the odd-numbered days of the month and City Campus on the even-numbered days of the month. Incoming mail is delivered about 10:30 a.m. Our staff distributes the mail and it is usually in mail boxes by 2 p.m.  Staff and students will find their mail in the “support mail box” of their supervising professor in 279 Plant Sciences Hall (PLSH).
5. Who do I contact if I haven’t received a timecard or paycheck yet?
   Please contact a member of the HAPPI Business Center. Faculty members and salaried employees should contact John Dillingham, 472-1548.  Hourly employees should contact Mary Jo Haverkamp, 472-2859, and student employees should contact Susan Thomas, 472-8617.
6. Who do I contact to get keys or building access?
   Contact T.J. McAndrew, Facilities Coordinator, or Nicole Kobus, 472-2811, in 202 Keim Hall.
7. Who should I call for Purchasing help?
   Contact Ben Lennander, 472-6238, or Valerie Swartz, 472-5132, in the HAPPI Business Center or Kathy Schindler, 472-1508, with the Office Pros group, for more information about purchasing.  The Office Pros can order supplies through eShop or with Purchasing cards.   Ben and Valerie can set up shoppers for the university's eShop system. 
8. Who can assist me with travel arrangements?
   Please contact Kathy Schindler so she can assign an Office Associate to start your travel arrangements. 
    

Policies & Procedures

Copier Codes:

Contact any of the Office Pros to find your copy code within the department. The 4- or 5-digit copier codes are put into the "Department Code" screen on the copiers, and are used to bill for copies. 

Mailing & Distribution

• Fed Ex: A FedEx Express Driver picks up packages between 3:30-4 p.m. each business day. For FedEx Ground pickup, please call 1-800-463-3339.
• UPS: UPS picks up at 2:30 p.m. daily in the Plant Pathology office, 406 PLSH. For free "Smart" pickup from 279 PLSH, call 1-800-742-5877.
• USPS Mail Delivery Schedule: Mail arrives on UNL East Campus on the odd-numbered days of the month and is usually delivered by 2 p.m.
• The physical shipping address for the department is: UNL Department of Agronomy & Horticulture, 1875 N. 38th St., 279 PLSH, Lincoln, NE 68583-0915.

 Reserving Rooms 

• Reserving Conference Rooms
  To reserve a conference room, please contact any of the Office Professionals. Our conference rooms include: 202N Keim Hall; 150 Keim Hall, 279M Plant Science Hall; and 375 Plant Sciences Hall.  Please throw away trash and clean up the room following use.
• Reserving Class Rooms
  Contact Marlene Busse, 472-1560.

Safety & Health

• Department Safety Committee
• Environmental Health and Safety
• UNL Health Center
• USDA Safety & Health webpage in Lincoln, NE

 Transportation

• Department Cars: The Department of Agronomy and Horticulture rents two cars for short-term (less than 5 days) use by faculty, staff & graduate students. Drivers must be authorized to drive a university vehicle. To reserve a car or to find out how to get authorized to drive a university car, contact T.J. McAndrew or Kathy Schindler.  There is no charge to drive the car below 25 miles.  After 25 miles, the charge is $.21 a mile and that may be billed to a cost object.  A Voyager fuel card is available for purchasing gasoline.
• University Transportation Department: There are a variety of vehicles to rent from the UNL transportation department.  The cost depends on the size and type of vehicle, and the trip destination.  A Voyager fuel card is also available for purchasing gasoline.
  
   

Newsletters

Agronomy and Horticulture Department Newsletters

• Current Newsletter
  

Agronomy and Horticulture Department Newsletter Archives

• March 27, 2013
• Feb. 7, 2013
• Dec. 21, 2012
  
• Nov. 30, 2012
  
• Oct. 24, 2012
• Oct. 5, 2012
• Sept. 20, 2012
• Sept. 5, 2012
• Aug. 13, 2012
• July 16, 2012
• June 20. 2012
• May 25, 2012
• May 11, 2012
• April 27, 2012
  
• April 10, 2012
• March 26, 2012
• March 12, 2012