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Embracing change: A welcome from the dean

Over the past year, we have experienced uncertain and challenging times. Yet, this unusual year has taught us about what matters most—our time spent with loved ones, our health and well-being, our commitment to addressing deep inequities in educational opportunities exacerbated by the move to online and remote learning, and so much more.

When we began the past academic year, we chose to focus on wellness in our retreat with faculty and staff. We could not have imagined that we would conclude the academic year in the middle of a global pandemic. Nor did we envision beginning the summer with a groundswell of national and international protests of the senseless, brutal killing of Black men and women and calls for systemic action and change to bring about racial justice. During these difficult moments, we have found opportunities to reimagine our work in the future and reexamine our practices and policies that reflect legacies of anti-Blackness and harm the most vulnerable in our society.

We began this academic year in our new campus home in the Fleming Building. Centering a strong community, developing new skills to engage in important dialogues, and wellness continue to be critical to our work as we adapt to change and make strides toward lasting progress. In this issue of Voices, you may find this renewed focus on wellness for ourselves and our community through stories of mindfulness in the classroom, schools at the center of every community, how poetry can be enriching for teachers and students and more. Just as taking care of ourselves and others can be daunting, difficult and rewarding, parts of this issue are weighty, while others are light-hearted. Through it all, we hope this issue finds you courageous, committed to change and looking for moments of joy—the ingredients that are necessary for weathering the challenges and changes ahead. I look forward to hearing from you.

Warmly, 

Kathy Schultz, Dean and Professor