Dear Colleagues,
I hope you and your families are all healthy and safe.
Welcome to a new academic year! Many of you are returning to campus for the first time in many months, others continue to make a difference by working from home, and some of you are new to the Wright State University family.
The start of the Fall Semester is such an exciting time, ushering in a new beginning for many of us. This week is no different. While we may be learning, teaching, and working through an unprecedented crisis, it does not diminish the hope and enthusiasm I have for the 2020–21 year.
Without a doubt, however, this school year will be unlike any other in Wright State history. Whether you are teaching and working remotely or on campus, we promise to provide a valuable educational experience for all our students!
Please understand that it will feel different on our campuses. I am asking ALL OF YOU for your help. All students, faculty, staff, and visitors must comply with university safety protocols to keep our Wright State family and the surrounding community safe.
I ask everyone to follow these protocols:
- Perform a daily self-assessment, including checking your temperature, and stay home if you are sick.
- Wear your mask inside our buildings and also when in groups outdoors.
- Maintain physical distance (at least six feet), both indoors and out, whenever practical.
- Do not congregate socially in large groups. Gatherings of greater than 10 people are strongly discouraged.
- Wash your hands and use hand sanitizer.
- Follow posted guidelines in buildings and dining areas on campus.
- Disinfect your high-touch areas frequently.
You can learn more about our response to COVID-19 and plans for Fall Semester at wright.edu/coronavirus. Check the site often as new information is added daily.
As we planned for the academic year, the health and safety of our campus was our number one priority. Thank you to everyone who worked tirelessly over the summer to prepare for Fall Semester. Thank you for serving on committees that monitored COVID-19 and planned for our phased return to campus.
This immense, ongoing effort has included faculty, staff, and student representatives from across the university, including Environmental Health and Safety, Wright State Physicians, Student Health, Center for Teaching and Learning, Facilities, Faculty Senate, Student Government Association, Academic Affairs, every college, Lake Campus, Residence Life and Housing, CaTS, union representatives, Police, Student Success, Disability Services, University Center for International Education, University Libraries, Human Resources, Marketing, Communications, and other units.
I specifically want to express my sincere appreciation to all of our faculty and staff members for your extraordinary efforts to prepare a safe and welcoming learning environment.
As you are aware, we are still in the middle of a stressful situation, filled with uncertainty and worry. I ask that you support and check on your friends and coworkers regularly. Faculty and staff can seek support through the Employee Assistance Program.
I remind you that this is an evolving situation, so I ask that we all be patient, flexible, tolerant, and most importantly kind to one another.
We are all in this together.
Best wishes,
Sue
