SIUE and One Year of COVID
Posted March 8, 2021
March 8, 2021
Dear Campus Community,
In many ways, this week marks the one-year anniversary of the initial dramatic effects of the COVID pandemic on SIUE. A year ago, we were in the midst of Spring Break when events began to unfold which ultimately led to the decision to have almost all our students return home for the remainder of the spring 2020 semester. That was accompanied by the shifting of course modalities to an exclusively online format for the months of March, April and May.
No one could have foreseen in January 2020 the astounding amount of flexibility, commitment and, yes, grace, required for all of us to adapt to challenging conditions, while continuing our pursuit of excellence in education and support for our students. Thank you to every faculty member, staff and student for your commitment to safety and your perseverance in a world and a year that none of us expected. The safety protocols followed by everyone on our campus for these many months have kept our COVID cases low and allowed so much of the ongoing business of the University to continue. We are grateful to and for each other.
Leadership appeared in every corner of our University relating to academic continuity, pandemic planning, testing services and COVID safety protocols to name but a few. We shifted classes, food delivery, housing protocols, lab procedures, clinical activities, Head Start services, athletic schedules and so much more. We are not finished with the task of adjusting, but we are so much closer to it than at any point since last March, and we will be stronger as an institution because of the things we have learned this year.
In the last few weeks as positivity rates have continued to drop and vaccinations, while slower than hoped, have become more available for tiers 1A, 1B and 1C, an optimism seems to be emerging. We imagine a return to “normal” (whatever that now means) and think about future semesters where we once again will be able to teach on ground, collaborate through research and simply have a cup of Starbucks in the MUC. We look forward to the summer and fall 2021 semesters, but we will not reduce our caution or our commitment to safety.
I thought it both important from a morale standpoint after a year when so many lost loved ones or knew friends who did, a year of disrupted schedules, emotional turmoil and Zoom fatigue, that we pause and think back on how far we have come. To that end, I hope you will take satisfaction in reflecting on the degree of change we have confronted and navigated successfully. It is a testament to your courage.
You will hear from the following individuals this week:
Monday -- Provost Denise Cobb regarding Academic Changes
Tuesday – Vice Chancellor Jeffrey Waple regarding Student Affairs Changes
Wednesday – Vice Chancellor Morris Taylor regarding Administrative Changes
Thursday – Vice Chancellor Rachel Stack regarding Advancement Changes and the Resulting Funding Programs which Supported Our Students
Friday – Athletic Director Tim Hall Regarding Changes in Athletics
We reckoned with another horrible, long-standing pandemic in the past year–racism. In a similar manner to what I have just described, I have asked Vice Chancellor Jessica Harris next week to guide our efforts in looking back at 2020 and the first few months of 2021 to document the steps we have taken to create a more equitable environment at SIUE. I hope you will pause to reflect on those changes, as well.
Thank you again for all your efforts and extraordinary sacrifices these 12 months. You are an amazing group of people, and it has been my honor to work with you and walk with you (at a six-foot distance, of course) during these trying times.
Best wishes,
Randy
Randy Pembrook
Chancellor
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
