Outplacement Service
The Office of the Provost has contracted with Careerminds, a global outplacement and career management partner. Their "support-until-placement" services are available to faculty and staff directly affected by the non-renewal or reduction in force processes associated with Academic Transformation that began in May 2023.
Careerminds offers a range of employment services including one-on-one coaching, access to a professional CV/resume writer, live interaction webinars on best practice job search strategies, PerfectMatch job search technology, social media training, salary offer/negotiation role-playing, relocation assistance, and more.
Eligible participants whose position is eliminated will receive link to a form to indicate whether they wish to opt into use of Careerminds services. For those who choose to use their services, the Office of the Provost will provide Careerminds with contact information and Careerminds will reach out to discuss next steps.
Information About Funding Awards
- It is possible that the RIF process could identify a faculty member (more likely with tenured faculty) who has active multi-year research contract(s) that extend beyond their last day of employment. If this happens, the faculty member should work with Director of OSP Katie Schneller ( Katie.Schneller@mail.wvu.edu). If the faculty member finds a faculty position at another academic institution, it is conceivable to transfer the research project to their new institution. This is not uncommon, and WVU has a standard process for doing this.
- It is also possible that the faculty does not land in another academic position, does not choose to remain in academia or chooses retirement. The University would first explore an option of having the faculty member complete the work as a contract employee/consultant to complete the project (sort of like a teach out). If that is not possible, it is not uncommon here or at other institutions that WVU work with the agency to determine how to complete the work or to terminate the project.
Information on Digital Measures
Departing faculty who obtain employment at another institution that uses the Digital Measures a/k/a Faculty Success platform may request that information from their WVU Digital Measures account be copied to their account at the new institution. The request must be initiated by the new institution’s Digital Measures/Faculty Success administrator making a request to Watermark support.
When asked, WVU will grant permission for this copy to be made. Due to differences between Digital Measures/Faculty Success configurations, please be advised that not all information will be able to be copied between accounts.
All departing faculty may request full copies of the files and data uploaded to their Digital Measures/Faculty Success account here at WVU. Any such requests should be made to WVU’s DM administrator, Brian Meredith (brian.meredith@mail.wvu.edu). Please include your WVU username and an email address to which the copy should be sent. Please allow two to three weeks for your request to be processed.
Additional Resources
Employees whose employment is terminated based on Reduction in Force (RIF) or non-renewal have special considerations regarding their benefits when exiting the University. Employees should refer to their RIF or non-renewal letter for specific information related to their separation, including important deadlines for benefit elections. The WVU Talent and Culture website has specific details on the following:
- Continuation of benefits
- Sick and annual leave
- Retirement benefits
- No hardship payment
- Longevity payment
- Updating contact information
You can also learn about eligibility requirements and apply for unemployment insurance through Workforce WV.