Just thinking about you
11th February, 2020
Dear SHSS Faculty and Staff,
I hope you and your loved ones are staying healthy and engaged despite the challenging conditions that we are all facing. Thus far, this academic year has been punctuated by a seemingly relentless string of exceptional events. Constant change in our expected work schedules and lifestyles has been stressful, to put it mildly.
I keep recalling Karl Marx’s (1852) observation that people “make their own history, but they do not make it as they please, but under circumstances existing already, given and transmitted from the past.” in my field (political science), this quotation is typically interpreted as meaning that we have the capacity to make choices, but not in the conditions of our choosing. People are born into different types of contexts, in different parts of the world, in different historical eras, with different opportunities. True.
Yet the quotation isn’t entirely apt for SHSS.
At some point, all of us made the decision to join the School, whether as faculty or staff, and throughout these unsettling times, I am reminded every single day of how fortunate we are to have such dedicated members. Faculty who have taught the same way for years are quickly learning Zoom — with the support of staff who are similarly getting up to speed. Most members are working remotely and trying to meet various deadlines that occur in the administrative rhythm of the university, even with various family/household responsibilities always looming. Some have ventured quietly into the office to attend to both urgent and quotidian matters. (I’m in that category. It feels like going into work on a Sunday every day of the week, though with a bit more hallway sightings this week, it feels more like a a string of Saturdays).
I typically address all of you when there is something prescriptive, or to deliver ceremonial/holiday greetings. Your in-boxes are already filled with a bewildering stack of university e-mails about campus security, changed academic arrangements for the spring semester, Zoom training sessions, self-quarantine requirements, university supply of surgical masks, and so on. Some of the key announcements are compiled here.
My message? I just wanted to express appreciation for all that you are doing for one another, for our students, and for the mission of SHSS. I also wanted to remind you that all of you are in my thoughts. Our members may have different political opinions and anxiety levels over the current epidemic, but I am proud that we share a common mission of promoting educational and research excellence in our School, and am heartened by our collective resilience.
Don’t hesitate to stop by my office for a chat (or a mask). I’m here. By choice.
Take care,
Kellee