In just a few weeks Associate Athletics Director John Kriebs will have his office all packed up and ready to move.

Kriebs is just one of the 275 university employees that will be moving or shifting offices within the next year. His office, along with other athletic department offices in the North Gym, is the start of what the Facilities Management office has named the Year of the Move.

“We’re just a small cog in the whole process,â€Â Kriebs said.

“Year of the Move” to affect multiple departments

In addition to the North Gym, some shifting will also take place in the Henry Madden Library, the Thomas Administration Building, the Joyal Administration Building, McKee-Fisk and the University Center.

Along with the seven athletics offices, such as the Athletics Business office, Athletic Media Relations and the Athletics Ticket office, 15 other academic offices will have to pack their office and move within the year. This will include the Institutional Research, Assessment and Planning office, the Office of the President and University Communications, According to the Year of the Move Web site, the moves will take place in phases, the first phase will occur from September to November, phase two from December to February 2009 and phase three from March to May.

“A lot of people and programs are being affected, so we’re hoping one will follow the other and roll right along,â€Â said Wendy Moritz, an administrative analyst within the Facilities Management office. “We’ll be in full move mode.â€Â

That mode begins with the seven offices in the North Gym. In September, the current offices and layout will receive minor renovations and retrofitting, which will allow for a shift in personnel.

Following the renovations, the athletics offices, kinesiology offices and ROTC offices will be consolidated into certain areas of the building.

“The idea is to get the North Gym where it’s more user friendly and easier to find people,â€Â Kriebs said. “It’s really going to help the athletics department run better.â€Â

Thomas Administration move to shake up faculty, services

While those in the North Gym will be experiencing more of a shift in personnel, the employees in the Thomas Administration building will begin their move to the Harold Haak Administration Center in the brand new Henry Madden Library. Beginning in January 2009, University President John D. Welty, Provost Jeronima Echeverria and Vice President for Administration Cynthia Teniente-Matson, along with their staff, will be in their new offices on the fourth floor of the library.

According to Associate Vice President for Facilities Management Robert Boyd, the emptying of the Thomas Administration building will be unique in that it is the first time in school history that there will be a completely empty building on campus.

“The Thomas building will be renovated to help us add much-needed office space for programs that will benefit from being in the center of campus and allow us to improve services for students,â€Â Welty said last week in his 2008 faculty assembly speech.

Four to six months of renovations will open the doors of the Thomas Administration building for the College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP), the Academic Senate, the Jan and Bud Richter Center for Community Engagement and Service-Learning, the McNair Program, the Women̢۪s Resource Center and Career Services.

Due to the moves of numerous academic offices and student services there will not be a printed campus directory. Students attempting to locate offices will have to use the online directory, which is available on Fresno State̢۪s main Web site. According to Moritz, phone numbers will remain the same throughout the moves and once a phone is hooked up in a new office, location information is immediately translated into the electronic directory.

“On the very first day of school, you can look them up and find them,â€Â she said.

Management seeking to avoid student confusion

However, students such as freshman Marcus Martinez, are still a bit skeptical.

“I think it will affect the students,â€Â he said. “I really hope not, but I think it might cause problems.â€Â

Moritz, however, assures students, faculty and staff that there will be at least two weeks advance notice of all moves as the Facilities Management office attempts to move 275 university employees in a single year.

“This is a giant puzzle, and that’s our challenge,â€Â Boyd said. “We want to provide better space and make the move as seamless as we can.â€Â

MORE INFO: For a time line and a full list of departments and offices affected visit Year of the Move’s Web site.