Dear Faculty and College Staff,
This has been an extraordinarily challenging semester for all of us. I’m writing today to express my sincere gratitude for your efforts, which were nothing short of amazing.
In a mere two weeks, you helped the university shift to remote teaching and learning. In the face of this pandemic, with your own personal concerns to attend to, you kept our students focused while delivering high quality pedagogy. Throughout this disruption, your patience, kindness and collegiality have been a constant source of inspiration.
Because we remain in an unprecedented and unpredictable situation, NIU and universities nationwide do not yet know what the future holds for the fall. It is becoming increasingly clear, however, that the pandemic will continue to have a profound effect.
Right now, we know this much: The fall semester will look, and feel, different than semesters before. Will face-to-face teaching return, or will remote teaching continue? Could it be a blend of the two? How will we accomplish social distancing? What new resources will you need to help our students? What new resources will our students require? Many of you are in discussions within your departments and colleges to consider these questions and plan for fall.
As previously shared, we are working collaboratively and thoughtfully to answer these and other questions, with the success of our students in mind. Rest assured, the health, safety and well-being of our faculty, staff and students is, and will continue to be, the guiding principle behind our decisions.
We welcome your input through your chairs and representatives of shared governance, who are involved in the process. And we urge you over the summer to regularly check your email and the NIU Coronavirus website for important university updates. As the summer progresses, our course will become more evident, but in these unchartered waters, we know our responses might not always be perfect. We continue to ask for your understanding as we do our best.
Finally, I want to wish for you a safe, healthy, happy and productive summer. Your hard work and selflessness have been a true testament to our Huskie spirit, and you’ve earned the right to take a deep breath, relax and enjoy the sunshine.
With kindness, generosity and patience toward our students and each other, we will succeed.
Beth Ingram
Executive Vice President and Provost
Office of Executive Vice President and Provost
originally posted May 12, 2020 in NIU Updates
