Messages from the President

Dear WWU Community,

Last month, I shared with you my anticipation of bringing our Western community back together for fall quarter as the introduction of vaccines and a continued focus on prevention measures in our state and across the country gave us reason to believe that conditions will improve as we approach fall quarter. 

I…

Dear Western Community:

Despite all the difficulties of enduring the COVID-19 pandemic in the past year, one of the unexpected outcomes of social distancing and a downregulated economy seemed to be a hiatus in mass shootings.  That relative peace was broken this week by a gunman’s rampage in the Atlanta area that killed eight people, including six women of Asian descent.  This would be a horrific act under any circumstances, but in the context of increasing anti…

Dear WWU Community,

Like many of you, I have been reflecting on living through a pandemic year.  I returned from a short trip to Pakistan on February 28, 2020, with Uzma following a couple of weeks later, just days before international travel was suspended.  While there was talk about coronavirus even before I left on the trip in mid-February, it seemed to be limited to Wuhan province in China.  Little did I know that a week…

Dear WWU Community,

A couple of weeks back, Provost Carbajal and I shared with you some reflections on our Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity (DEI) work, including an update on several facets of our collective work in advancing DEI at Western.

In our update, we…

Dear Western Community,
 

Recently, we have been in several conversations within our university community and beyond on the priorities for higher education as we emerge from the health pandemic.  Western is not unique in being under pressure from pandemic-related enrollment declines, loss of critical auxiliary revenue, reduction in state funding, and threats to equitable access and…

Dear Western Community,

As we look ahead to the days getting longer and brighter, I am also eagerly looking forward to bringing our Western community back together.  The introduction of vaccines and a continued focus on prevention measures in our state and across the country gives us reason to believe that conditions will begin to improve as we approach fall quarter. 

…

Dear Western Students,

The first days of the new year have provided no respite from one of the most challenging years in living memory, as the nation deals with astounding post-holiday COVID spikes, with some areas, including the northern part of Whatcom County, seeing a tripling of infection rates in just the past week…

Dear Western Community,

No words can do justice to the profoundly disturbing political violence that unfolded yesterday in the heart of our nation’s capital.  The appalling images of extremists defacing the inner sanctum of our democracy, and of lawmakers being rushed by Capitol police to safe rooms have shocked the world.  January 6, 2021 will be remembered as one of the darkest days in…

Dear Western Community,

We are nearing the end of a year unlike any other in our history. I imagine that you are looking forward to saying goodbye to 2020, and welcoming a healthier, safer, and brighter 2021, as much as I am.

I am deeply grateful to our faculty, staff and students for…

Dear Western Community,

As we anxiously await the outcome of the 2020 election on Tuesday, I am reaching out to ask that over the next few days you take extra care of yourself and those around you, and if you haven’t already and are able to do so, please vote.

This has been a long and difficult election season for many, exacerbated by the challenges of the COVID pandemic.…