In this final Deans’ Notes newsletter of the semester I want to once again thank faculty and staff who worked so hard this term and this year returning our campus to a version of normalcy. It hasn’t been easy, and we certainly still have a long way to go to make sure all of our students and our community feel connected to our campus – but I can see a truly inspired future emerging from these challenging times. The countless hours, behind the scenes work to keep things moving forward and to uplift one another, has not gone unnoticed. Working in support of the Lynx community this past year has tested us all; thank you for showing up and continuing to support each other.
I’m energized by the work going on around the university to implement the campus Strategic Plan, and I’m excited to start putting into play a new Strategic Plan for the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. The next step in getting the CLAS Draft Strategic Plan, posted now on the CLAS website, put into action is you voting on it before Friday, May 27th. In order to view the plan you will need to be connected to VPN (if working remotely or from a wireless connection on campus). While you will be asked to login with your university id and password the votes will be logged anonymously. For a quorum we need a yes or no vote from as many faculty and staff as possible, so please vote and encourage others to vote as well. And, thank you, again, to everyone who has worked on this over the past few years. The document is a reflection of a collective and collaborative process.
So much of what we accomplish in our college we accomplish together. While the pandemic felt in many ways like an encumbrance to teamwork, we are emerging stronger and more unified than ever. It is with immense gratitude that I express my heartfelt appreciation for all that you did this past year. Thank you for your commitment to the work, your openness to change, your engagement in a collaborative approach, and your time and energy in the spirit of supporting our learners – your contribution means more than you may know. I’d especially like to recognize the work of the ICB faculty and staff on the ground in Beijing this year. They've experienced even more COVID related anxiety than those of us on campus, and in response they've displayed remarkable dedication and tenacity. With your help (and it will take everyone) I look forward to putting our strategic priorities into action next year. All of us have a role to play in the future of this university, so enjoy summer and get ready to contribute to a university that works for all come fall.
