Dear Colleagues,
I know this is a busy time of the academic year for everyone, but before this week gets away from me, I wanted to touch base on a few items of interest…
April Board of Trustees Action
During an April 9 Board of Trustees meeting, trustees voted to:
Trustees also charged me with submitting a robust strategic marketing plan for the university by their June meeting, and I look forward to sharing that plan with them soon. Finally, trustees received an update from Justin Oates, vice president for finance and business affairs/CEO, on various facilities projects happening across the university. You also may read the press release that contains the board’s action.
Second Annual Day of Understanding
The Diversity Council and the Office of the President sponsored the second annual Day
of Understanding event yesterday to celebrate PricewaterhouseCoopers’ (PwC) CEO Action
for Diversity and Inclusion. The 11 a.m. virtual event was an enlightening and meaningful
conversation that included three of our colleagues sharing “Moments of Bravery” and
their personal experiences with bias. The speakers included: Duha Hamed, assistant professor of mathematics; Hye-Sung Kim, assistant professor of political
science; and Brandon Ranallo–Benavidez, assistant professor of political science. I thank the speakers and everyone involved
with the event for their efforts. We heard some great ideas on seeking out and encouraging
connections, as well as received the challenge to do our parts to better understand
colleagues, neighbors and acquaintances.
SOURCE Annual Event
As you know, we tout Winthrop’s undergraduate research experience as a unique opportunity
that spans across all disciplines for freshmen through seniors. You can virtually
check out more than 160 research projects from 200 of our students at the annual Showcase
of Undergraduate Research and Creative Endeavors (SOURCE) event TODAY beginning at
11:30 a.m. Dr. Marc Suchard from UCLA will deliver the virtual Plenary Session at
1:30 p.m. on Reliable Evidence from Data Science in Healthcare. The Plenary Session,
as well as all other presentations, will be available via Zoom. My appreciation goes to Dr. Nicholas Grossoehme, professor of chemistry, for coordinating
this impressive effort. View the day’s schedule.
Faculty/Staff/Retirees Ceremony Reminder
Please join me on Tuesday, April 27, at 9:30 a.m. on the front lawn of Byrnes Auditorium to celebrate and recognize the achievements of our retirees, service award recipients, and winners of the Award of Excellence, Staff Member of the Year Award, Faculty Student Life Award and Mary Spann Richardson Award. It will be wonderful to see everyone safely gathered for such a celebratory time! I look forward to seeing you there.
In-Person Commencement
It’s hard to believe that spring semester classes will be completed in less than two weeks. We are now in that sprint to the end-of-semester finish line that includes completing classes, exams, grading and Commencement. We are expecting nearly 750 undergraduates and 230 graduate students to graduate in May. With multiple Commencement ceremonies slated May 6-8, we anticipate around 160-170 students at each ceremony in order to safely accommodate our graduates and their families. This is always a very special milestone for our students, and I am so thankful that we could provide them with a more traditional celebration. As always, I thank you for the important role you play in helping our students reach this special moment in their lives.
Finally, I want to thank those of you who are helping our students navigate their feelings and find their voices regarding the safety and security of our campus, especially as it relates to sexual harassment and discrimination. Listening to and responding to student concerns will continue to be a priority for this administration. As always, I appreciate your work and all that you do for this university.
Sincerely,
George
George W. Hynd
