News & Updates sent October 8, 2021

Dear College Community,

Only 3 more days until we are live with ctcLink! This day has been more than a decade in the making and it is finally less than one week away! Go Skagit Valley College!

This email provides information about important next steps in Skagit Valley Colleges’ move to ctcLink over the next few weeks as well as details on “how to” and support information for Go Live.

We want you to be aware of the support we have planned as we learn the new system and important dates over the next few weeks.

Employee Support Plan
The next few months will be a busy time as everyone at the College begins to use ctcLink.  Most of us will need help doing familiar things in new ways. Here is the recommended process for getting help with ctcLink:

1. Stay in contact with your colleagues and supervisor.  Often the fastest and most specific information you can get is from people trying to do the same things you are. 
2. If your issue isn’t easily answered by your friends, please consult our library of step-by-step guides available on the ctcLink Employee Self-Service Tutorials and Help Resources webpage.
3. If you can’t find the needed step-by step instructions on the website, please contact the IT Helpdesk.  The IT Helpdesk will log your concern, relay your questions to the correct person, and monitor progress.  The IT Helpdesk has two possible actions for your issue:

1. Make a deep dive into the extensive libraries of documentation.  Helpdesk workers have experience finding answers, or
2. Refer your issue to a ctcLink subject matter expert (SME). 
3. All of the subject matter experts will be very busy during all of October.  However, some issues can only be answered by a subject expert.  SMEs have three possible actions for your issue:

1. Resolve the issue using their knowledge and access,
2. Refer the issue to the Security Team for configuration changes, or
3. Refer the issue to the State Board ctcLink HelpDesk.

Access to ctcLink
Our official Go Live date is on October 11, as you know. However, only the Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) will be able to get into the ctcLink PeopleSoft system the first day. The rest of us will receive access to the ctcLink PeopleSoft system on October 12. An email will be sent out to the college with the link and instructions on how to login to the system; please look for that email.

When you get access to the system, please activate your account and check your personal information. Do not input any financial transactions once you get access to the system, e.g., requisition, travel, or expense, until you have received the okay to do that from Kim Cook.

What’s Been Happening This Week and What to Expect Oct. 11 – Nov. 10

Monday, Oct. 4

• TLR is now set to inquiry only (users will be unable to submit or approve timecards). Employees will be able to see their historical timesheets within TLR.
• ctcLink Production Accounts “lock” at 5 pm: ctcLink production accounts for class schedulers and enrollment staff are locked.

Wednesday, Oct. 6

• FMS: Last day for any data entry into the legacy Financial Management System (FMS). September accounting month end ran overnight. Limited FMS access was available Thursday morning.
• Admissions: Last day to approve any web admissions applications in SMS to have them brought over into ctcLink.

Thursday, Oct 7:  

• SBCTC set all our SMS, FMS, and PPMS access screens to inquiry only. SBCTC’s ctcLink team begins converting our data into ctcLink.

Friday, Oct. 8:

• Legacy SMS/FMS/PPMS Access: Staff regain view-only access to the legacy systems.

Sunday, Oct. 10:

• The project team will gain access to our newly converted data.  Teams will be on campus to validate data and SVC will officially transition to the live system. 

Next Week: October 11-15

Once we ‘go live,’ we will have two major focus points:

1. getting timesheets in for our first ctcLink payroll
2. preparing for the start of Winter quarter enrollment

Monday, Oct. 11 at 8 am – Go live: Skagit Valley College begins using ctcLink.

• Support website: Employee How-To Resources

Tuesday, Oct 12

• Classified, hourly, and student employees: make sure you’ve activated your account, and have a plan for submitting timesheets by Friday, Oct. 15.
• Managers: check in with your classified, hourly, and student employees regarding account activation and timesheets and approve timesheets and leave by Friday, Oct. 15.
• Faculty are invited to activate their ctcLink accounts for leave reporting.
• Support website: ctcLink Training and Resources for Faculty

Friday, Oct. 15 – Timesheets are due for classified, hourly, and student workers. Any leave requests for this period are also due for all employees.

What else will be happening this week? Departments across Skagit Valley College will be logging into ctcLink production, settling in, and getting ready to serve students and other employees. HR will be refining recruitment and employment processes. Purchasing will be recreating about 300 blanket purchase orders. Enrollment will be setting up enrollment appointments for Winter Quarter. Cashiering and business office teams will be working on getting tuition and fee processes all set for Winter Quarter enrollment to start.

Tentative: Week of October 25-November 8

Monday, Oct. 25 – Students are invited to begin activating their accounts.

• Support website: ctcLink Frequently Asked Questions for Students
• Student support sessions start
• HR: Recruiting and hiring processes begin to startup in ctcLink. Stay tuned for additional information from your HR team.
• Purchasing: Employees can begin submitting new purchase requisitions in ctcLink.
• Faculty: Faculty can begin accessing Advising Tools in ctcLink.

Monday, November 3 – Enrollment opens for returning student registration.  Note this is a change from our prior estimate of November 1.

Monday, November 8 – Enrollment opens for new students.

Gratitude for our Fantastic Team

October 11 marks the beginning of the next chapter for SVC as we all truly begin to learn the new system, find new ways of doing our work, and discover ctcLink’s quirks. We are making this change together, and will need to continue to rely on each other for grace, patience, and support.

As always, I am so encouraged by our collaboration, problem-solving, and perseverance. Each day we have overcome obstacles, made progress, and provided solutions to a multitude of questions.  This was only possible because of the people on the state’s and SVC’s ctcLink implementation, steering, and project management teams.

Thanks to each one of you who have served diligently on one or more of those teams!  I am so very proud of the SVC team and their commitment to this amazing project.

I believe next week will be full of rewards and challenges as we learn to do our work differently. Please remember to have compassion and patience with yourself and those around you. Thank you!