March 22, 2020
Dear L&S Colleagues,
I realize that you have been receiving and processing many messages about how we’re handling COVID-19; I know a lot of information has been coming your way. However, I thought it important to take a moment to express my sincere gratitude to all of you for the truly impressive amount of work that has gone on in response to the changes in our operations and the steps we are taking to ensure we can fulfill our core mission of teaching and research.
What we have accomplished so far is truly remarkable. As one indication, in L&S we are teaching nearly 4,000 course sections this semester; as of today, we have transitioned almost every single one of them to an alternate mode of delivery in time for the start of classes tomorrow. Take a moment to let that sink in. In the course of less than 10 days, we have—working together—completely revamped our course delivery. I cannot thank you enough!
I know that this effort has been extremely challenging. You have been working very long days, and, with our transition to large-scale telecommuting, most of you have been doing so in a very different environment. And we have all gone through this upheaval while also managing the stress this pandemic has brought to all aspects of our lives, be it childcare, concern for a parent, college-aged kids returning home with their own anxiety, or the constantly developing news reports.
I am deeply grateful for my colleagues in L&S administration who have come together not just to get the work done, but to do so with a real sense of a supportive community. I hope you can maintain the social connections and communities in your departments and units, even as we continue the physical distancing needed to slow the spread of this virus.
We know there will be some things that don’t work this week. We find ourselves dependent on a lot of technology and software that we have never tested at this scale. While some things may not go according to plan, we cannot give way to panic. The word “grace” has been used a lot in conversations about how we should approach our work this week. Let’s approach all of our interactions, those with each other and our students, with grace.
I want to re-emphasize two key points that have been shared over the past few days. First, we must minimize the number of people on campus and in our buildings. Please only come to campus if you have been: approved to conduct essential research-related activities with an explicit exception; approved to carry out essential instructional activity with an explicit exception; or you have been designated as essential personnel who cannot telecommute. Second, this situation is obviously fluid. We will communicate changes to conditions and policies as best we can, but please regularly check for campus updates.
Crises like this reveal each of our unique strengths. When I look back at this past week, and look ahead to what comes next, I know L&S has the strength to meet this challenge. And that is because of everyone who is working hard each and every day, dedicated to make it work, whatever “it” happens to be on a given day.
Thank you for all you are doing, and as we carry on please remember to take care of yourself and those around you.
On, Wisconsin!
Eric M. Wilcots
Interim Dean, College of Letters & Science
Mary C. Jacoby Professor of Astronomy